Yo-Yo Ma's Cousin

So, Sorry for my ignorance, but how do these cool floors work? Are they just there to be decorative? They look great for sure, but looking closely they seem to be intentionally pervious, does that mean they used for drainage?

Here's what I'm picturing in my head, some how, there was a drainage pipe installed in the concrete of the garage; then, there was waterproofing and a drainage mat laid on the garage concrete; and, these tiles go ontop of that. Am I crazy?

12 minutes ago, shane@detailedreflections said:

@Yo-Yo Ma's Cousin check out the McCollouch MC1385 as an entry level steamer. It’s the same one we started with and was sold to a member here. It works really well for the money and can be gotten for under $200. It may even be cheaper with the holidays. 
 

The steamer we use is a Vapor Chief 135. It gives us the ability to fill while it’s hot (which is limited functionality if you plan correctly). But it also lets us mix chemical in the line and dispense (we’ve used rinseless and steam before). Most commonly we keep APC in it. 
 

The steamer we use also has a much higher pressure. The downside is that the steamer we use costs about ten times the McCollouch unit. 
 

Next time we have it out (Sunday we have a nasty interior so it’ll be in use with the extractor and a ton of other chencials) I’ll take some images of how we use it on the interior. 

Awesome. thanks Shane. I have been interested in extractors too. but from what I can tell it seems like it may be smarter to start with a steamer. Would you agree with that?

@RayS Wow very impressive!

On 11/24/2019 at 1:52 PM, shane@detailedreflections said:

But what other topics?  The world is your oyster as far as topics go. We cover a lot. I can’t promise a timeline for each subject as it depends on when we get a vehicle that fits that need. 
 

Shane, seeing your use of a steamer is something that really interests me. I'd love to see how you use it on an engine bay, or when you use it on an exterior. I have been debating getting a small household type steamer and using it on the vehicles. However, seeing as I rarely get detailing customers and our vehicles are somewhat well maintained, I have postponed that.

23 hours ago, RayS said:

Hi Shane,

 I always appreciate your write ups and refer to the ones you have done before.  There is a particular area that I struggle with and have never got to a level or process that seems to really work. For the lady’s, please don’t take this sexist, but it is mostly with vehicles women drive.

 

The cleaning and conditioning of the steering wheel and to a lessor extent the arm rest where it is grabbed to close the door.  I regularly get vehicles where the primary driver uses hand lotion that sticks to the steering wheel.  While I can usually get the areas cleaned, some them are left with a discolored area and sometimes with a sticky feel.

 

i recently did one that the person did a lot of yard work and the wheel was filthy, but it cleaned up without any issue.  This leads me to believe that it is the oils in the lotions causing the difficulty and not just the fact that it is dirty.

Ray, that's a good observation. I've noticed it too with my wife's car. I think the use of make up also can add to the discoloration. Shane and Michael have provided good options for trying to attack those. I've had very very good luck with the All Purpose Interior Cleaning Gel - I also like to dilute this one and use it with care. I think it's becoming my favorite cleaner for everything right now. I use it in the house, on shoes, on clothes if I have trouble with a stain, and in the car.

Welcome!

Like @shane@detailedreflections said, it could have been from hard water in your water supply.

It could also have been from the rain. It's pretty common for ceramic coatings to show waterspotting.

There's a other factors that might be considered:

How long ago did it rain?

How long ago did you coat?

Do you live on a dirt or gravel road?

I found that it helps to have a bottle of Waterless Wash in my car and I'll give it a quick wipe down after it rains on the surfaces where water tends to sit.

2 hours ago, tomzcam said:

After the last snow storm I washed my car yet couldn't get the windshield clean from wiper fluid or the mag they put down on the street. It seemed like it etched it's way on the windshield. I've tried a lot of things with lots of elbow grease to clean it but it will not go away. is their a product to remove this from Adams?

 Thanks

Hi tom, and Welcome to the Forum!

I would recommend a clay bar also as @ObsessedDetailer suggested.

I also believe that @Chris@Adams has suggested using the orange Correcting Polish and an orange HexGrip Foam Applicator by hand to hand polish the glass. Chris please correct me if I'm wrong.

I'm in for this as well.

I don't know, Adams... that's 2 from GA and 1 from SC, maybe it's time to relocate HQ down here. Maybe like in Athens, GA?

I can do the site planning and permitting, no worries.

Welcome, Rod! Nice Ride! We look forward to hearing from you. Let us know if you have any questions

Hi Steve, Welcome to the forum.

Agreed with the above. Waterless wash probably works better in my opinion. But if say you've left your vehicle in the garage for a week, and it gathered some dust, Detail spray should do just fine for that. If it's like fresh bird doo doo, I would definitely use waterless wash for that. And be sure to use discretion, if it's something that's been caked on or super dirty, you'll want to use water and a traditional two-bucket wash as your safest method.

20 minutes ago, TR6speed said:

I currently have a PC 7424 that I have had for years.  I does a good job at polishing the car, but it is not the best for getting the paint in great shape.  It does not help that I have a C6 Corvette that is known for it hard clear coat.  So will the mini swirl killer work even is I wanted to do say the hood or other large areas?

Hi Jack, I was wanting to pursue the same thing when I first was researching polishers. I was told that the Mini is not setup to do larger jobs as it has a tendency to produce a lot of heat. If I remember correctly, what happens is that heat will cause issues in the machine, particularly in the backing plate.  It was designed for small areas and touch up correction. The SK 15 and 21 better heat regulated and are designed to tackle full corrections at a time.

I just saw the SK 15 on amazon prime for under $200

Great post! @shane@detailedreflections

I posted the above video because he uses a matte hood as an example so you can see the results and decide if that’s the look youre going for or not.

below I have posted a good thread by @stalebreadjr and I had some input on my process for ceramic coating. Keep in mind I’m not coating a matte finish, so the process will vary pretty greatly. For example i don’t think you’ll want to clay or polish a matte finish. Others will have to chime in on their process for coating a matte finish.

and this next post is also a great one by the @stalebreadjr again after he finally went for the coating. He provides a very good, very extensive write up for his process:

Hi Edwin! I’m from Ga too. What part are you from? Congrats on the new ride. And welcome to the forum you definitely came to the right place. 
 

it looks like you e got great inventory so far. And you’ve got probably one of the best ways of protecting your matte finish in the Ceramic Spray Coating. I’ll try and find some videos and threads to send over to you.

10 hours ago, shane@detailedreflections said:

A strip wash won’t remove coating from trim. Coating from trim is difficult to work with honestly. Why are you trying to remove it?  You can scrub with a mildly abrasive sponge and a lot of patience and it’ll come off. But it doesn’t guarantee it doesn’t mar the plastic. 

Do you think using a utility towel and something like rubber and tire cleaner could come in handy? Or do you think it would be necessary to use something like an abrasive sponge?
 

7 hours ago, Sandalwood said:

I tried the wipes and missed some spaces. I thought I might need to remove some areas before or after to deal with overlap.

Do all ceramic coatings eventually wear away on their own or do they just lose their protective qualities and still must be polished away?

I’m thinking this might not be fully necessary. You might be able to give it a good clean and surface prep and go over the existing ceramic.

That’s awesome JR! Thanks for sharing! Looking forward to seeing how these hold up and your next paint job!

Welcome, Carlos!

48 minutes ago, mhousto said:

My daughter has a 18 ZL1.  The old man was cleaning the interior (it had been 6 months) and noticed how crappy the steering wheel looked.  I tried a bit of soap and water and a Adams interior brush. It cleaned some of the wheel but in the thumb notches its was still very dirty.  What chemical should I try to clean the stubborn spots on the wheel.  The rest of the microfiber interior just needed a good brushing and vacuum attention. 

I like using the All purpose interior cleaning gel.

If Im reading this correctly, you're saying its a microfiber steering wheel? If so, I may consider using Microfiber Revitalizer?

I have not replaced fully. I still really like Car Shampoo and Mega Foam... I also like Rinseless Wash alot, but I use Ceramic Waterless Wash very very often. It's one of my favorites. I use it as a waterless wash, I use it after a rinseless wash, and I use it as a drying aid after a normal bucket wash. 

You've got Ceramic Boost, and I would highly recommend Ceramic Waterless Wash, but I don't necessarily think it's vital for you to fully replace either of those products. Both are great and work well with ceramic coatings. All this to say, I don't think it's necessary to do a full discard and replace. 

Although, if are wanting to try out the new products, @falcaineer 's suggestion is a good one so you don't have to spend more money, just find somebody who is willing to do an even trade.

Agreed with @TheWolf it’s great standalone protection. So you should have no issue. It has tendency to build up if you use it too often, so I normally keep it to about once a month.

 Also remember you can use it for your wheels to give them a bit of protection.

Not a great picture but Air Force One made an appearance today at the office

Barrier Reef

Welcome to the forum!

1 hour ago, SgtLip said:

 

Can you use HGG with Ceramic Spray Coating?

I have used it over ceramic spray coating and it worked well. I treated it the same as I would have if I were applying over sealed paint or bare paint

1 hour ago, Joey11 said:

although if the black one comes out really good, maybe after wards before doing the next wax, I'll give the ceramic a shot on mine... the adams strip wash should remove all wax and then just prep spray and ceramic spray after, correct?

It's highly recommended to decontaminate with clay bar and Iron remover, then polish to what level the vehicle needs (Revive Hand Polish is great is your finish is near perfect), and then Surface Prep, and  then Ceramic Spray Coating

54 minutes ago, Joey11 said:

last question sorry.. for the orange pad and correcting polish, would I only need 1 pad as I see they are a bit expensive... in other words, will one pad with black be ok to use for the entire car or does it need to be switched to a new one half way through?

I would recommend having multiple pads. Also with black paint, many people find it especially beneficial to follow the orange Correcting Polish with the white Finishing Polish and white pads.