For those responsible car owners who make sure that their rides are clean and shiny at all times (if not most of the time), rain can be a huge pain in the butt. Rain brings with it airborne dust and dried leaves, and when these stick to your car, all the effort exerted and time spent can end up nullified.
Fortunately, rainwater, which is clean in and of itself, can be used to wash your ride to make it squeaky clean. This solution may not make sense at first, considering what was mentioned above, but there are workarounds to make rain beneficial to the process.
Rainwater Car Wash
There are a few things you need for a rainwater car wash. These are:
- Two buckets
- Microfibre towel or wash mitt
- Car shampoo, preferably one that contains wax
- Rainwater (preferably collected and stored in a clean tank)
- Dry microfibre towel
- Detailer wax or spray
- Glass cleaner
- Garden hose
Before you start, make sure that the rain that will be used is not contaminated with dust and other impurities. To check the purity of rainwater collected, place a few raindrops on a piece of clear and clean plastic or glass. Let these drops dry, then check for stains. If you’re in a hurry, you can place the piece of glass or plastic under a bright light bulb, which causes the drops to dry faster.
If you find stains on the glass or plastic piece, the rainwater should be filtered a few more times. Also, take this as a sign that more filters need to be set up in your rainwater collection system so that the rainwater that goes into the storage tank is cleaner.
Once you have clean rainwater to use, ready the things you need for this task, then begin. Pour the rain water on the car, then apply shampoo. When applying shampoo to the car, make sure to first apply the shampoo to a wet microfibre mitt. Also, make sure to inspect the mitt for abrasive debris between soaping.
In case your ride is heavily soiled, get another bucket filled with rainwater. If your rainwater collection system is connected to part of (or the entirety of) your house’s water supply system, you can activate the pump or water pumps in your home so that the rainwater flows out of a tap that has a garden hose attached to it.
As to where you should begin and end, the best approach would be to start from the roof. Work down to the side panels. The last part to clean should be the wheels. Rinse the car with rainwater afterwards.
What makes rainwater great for washing the car is the fact that, in its purest state, it does not contain the same minerals, salts, and other sorts of contaminants that you can find in ordinary tap water. As such, you need not worry about any unsightly stains or watermarks when you use filtered rain for this very important task.
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