Wax question

[Bricks]

Hello. On my Rainmaker I think I’m getting wax spots. The water on the hood and windshield is either thick and filmy, or it beads up and waxy spots are left when the wax is on. I can’t seem to find an in between.

The sides seem fine. Could this be that the top nozzles are too far away? What’s the biggest 1/8” nozzles I can use? Could the rinse cycle be close enough on the sides to rinse the wax off, yet leave a light film of wax for the water to bead and run off? I tried a bigger tip because I had a pink one.It didn’t make a difference.

 

[Greg Pack]

I'm not familiar with the rainmaker but you should attempt to completely rinse the wax off the car, not leave any residual wax solution behind. My understanding is that waxes are cationic and if put on at a strong enough concentration a microscopic layer will "stick" to the car via static electricity, and rinsing should not take it off. If you can see a waxy film rinse more or reduce your wax output. If you can't get it to bead at all you need to see if the vehicle is indeed clean, or if the paint is so oxidized that it won't bead.

 

[Bricks]

I'm not familiar with the rainmaker but you should attempt to completely rinse the wax off the car, not leave any residual wax solution behind. My understanding is that waxes are cationic and if put on at a strong enough concentration a microscopic layer will "stick" to the car via static electricity, and rinsing should not take it off. If you can see a waxy film rinse more or reduce your wax output. If you can't get it to bead at all you need to see if the vehicle is indeed clean, or if the paint is so oxidized that it won't bead.

Thanks. I had an older guy tell me that the wax just kills the soap.

 

[STXCW]

Too much wax also isn't a good thing. In our area, we have very hard water. We add a hard water rinse before the finishing products to help rinse and dry better.

 

[Greg Pack]

Wax does indeed help knock down suds but that's not the purpose of it. A good (wax/sealant/CCP, whatever you want to call it) can enhance the appearance of the surface and offer UV and other mild environmental protection to the paint. The better ones leave a smooth feel and offer protection that can last weeks. On a microscopic level the wax can fill the valleys in the paint. The smoother surface will reflect light better, making the car appear shinier.

If I recall you're relatively new to the business. If you want to describe your wash passes some of us might can offer some input. As for me, I use a STRONG alkaline presoak, followed by a high pressure rinse. Some autos have a high pressure wash but just like in the self serve side the suds don't offer any appreciable cleaning and just frankly interfere with the overall process. Whether the car comes clean will largely depend on the presoak setup. After the HP rinse that's when ideally you would apply a wax. Low pressure wax is preferred (more efficient andf can be applied at a stronger dilution) but a good high pressure works also. When the wax hits a clean car at the proper strength you will see the behavior of the water change and it will start to bead or break off the vehicle surface. Follow that up with a spot free rinse and blower and that would be what I consider the standard basic car wash

 

[Bricks]

Too much wax also isn't a good thing. In our area, we have very hard water. We add a hard water rinse before the finishing products to help rinse and dry better.

I do that too at one of my washes. I’ll say this to reply to you both. At the wash I got In June, they had the tfw going on right on top of the high ph Presoak. Nope, bad idea unless low ph tfw. I tried to do the same thing at the other wash I bought mid 2021 (I am fairly new to this business) and it made for a smeary wash. To me, the tfw is very important and must not be put on ps. I use a low ph detergent wash to rinse off the high ph ps, then add the tfw. That alone makes the water start to bead. I’m still having tiny spots at one wash, and it might just be the softener and a lackluster SFR pump.