Washing our truck?
- Thread starter jjoerger
- Start date
I use blue corral car wash a good wash mitt and a kitchen sponge w/the scrubber. Get the cheap ones the are not as aggressive and wont scratch. Dont push hard though. I generally uses gunk engine degreaser. I wax with super glaze made by "the wax shop" been using this wax for 20 yrs, great stuff. really easy to use leaves no residue or marks on black. Blue magic for the shiny stuff/alum. Then a coat of super glaze. For them pesky love bugs, actually all bugs. hydrogen perox. in a spray bottle will harmlessly melt them away. dont spray it everywhere. then a lite scrub, rinse good. STP "son of a gun" under the hood. Spray on after the degreaser. spray all your stuff that needs protectant, tires, mudflaps, door handles. Do this and let soak in then wash the vehicle. That way you wash away all the residue. Rinse the engine really good. Rinsing really good will help when it comes to drying. Keeps my truck lookin pretty good for a 6yr old truck.
bluejaybee
Veteran Expediter
We have to be so precise in our description around here. Now I know you know what I am talking about, but to be precise, there is really no handle there at all. It is merely a cut out area in which to insert your hand for the purpose of tilting your hood.
Now....do you accept that description????
bluejaybee
Veteran Expediter
Well, Peterbilt, unlike Mack's, doesn't have an ornament. And if the ornament has to relate to the name of the truck, it maybe a good thing it doesn't. Hehehehe!
Last edited:
bluejaybee
Veteran Expediter
Are you talking dry box? If so, I never have. Mine has what looks like some kind of oily treatment on it. I am sure they all have the same thing. Never really thought of actually washing it out. Maybe if I had ever got mud or dirt in it. Is there an advantage to washing it out?
Regarding not being satisfied with commercial truck washes... I prefer to use only Beacon Truck Washes. I've had good luck with them... I don't believe there are any truck washes that you should just pay and walk away and expect a good job. Beacon lets you and seems to almost want you (most of the time) to be near the truck and watch their crews. I have no problem with telling a wash crew (in any truck wash facility) that they missed a spot or need to hit a spot again.
The back doors will collect the road grime from the way the air flows, and the water spray flows ups from the road. Have a truck wash put some brightener on the truck and scrub it. do that 3 or 4 washes in a row and then have the truck washed regularly. Some of you may be freaking out reading this, but it gets the job done. Brightener is simply a nice word for acid in most cases. it dulls aluminum and really doesn't do any wonders for decals, so watch where it's used and make sure the rig has a very good rinse from top towards the bottom. many tractor owners will find they have bad build-up on the back wall of the sleeper, this is really where brightener needs to be used on a regular basis- not a frequent basis- just a regular basis to keep the grime under control. This will also help to keep the cat walk behind the sleeper clean of grease.
It never hurts to try to frequent the some of the same truck washes when you go thru their area- if you have the time. This will help build some trust in the crew and crew leader that you like their work... and they will work harder to keep you coming back. Don't be afraid to fire off an e-mail (good or bad) to the "contact us" spot on a wash facility's web site... or track down and call the district manager.
Scrub brushes on poles work well, but you'll find you'll still like to have a step ladder handy to get by the top of the doors. You can get different types of brushes to go on the ends of the poles too.... then you can use certain brushes for certain area's on the truck, wheels, sides, frame/mechanical workings. Some brush makers make different bristles with different colors so bear that in mind too- that way you won't use 2 yellow brushes with 2 different bristle styles to wash your cab doors. Just thought I'd mention that as well.
If your really ambitious, get an extension ladder and climb on top and lay on your belly and wash the top edges by hand. just as ambitious and more expensive is Scaffolding... works even better- and it's safer.
Commercial truck washes have high turnover rates, for most of them, their crews come and go just as much as their customers do.... so it's best to be out there observing them. and making sure it's done the way you want. I usually follow and/or observe one or 2 guys. For the watchful and observant ones- it's fairly easy to spot them within minutes of the start of the wash. Don't let them blow water into your window stripping or windshield edges too much. Same goes for sleeper vents and back door edges. I go in and pay, and go right back out. Wear some shoes you don't mind getting wet, same goes for shirt and pants/shorts... as the spray from other wash wands will tend to give you an natural spray.
Some places won't tilt the hood and hit the hood unless you tell them and/or do it yourself.
Hope this helps.
BBB
The back doors will collect the road grime from the way the air flows, and the water spray flows ups from the road. Have a truck wash put some brightener on the truck and scrub it. do that 3 or 4 washes in a row and then have the truck washed regularly. Some of you may be freaking out reading this, but it gets the job done. Brightener is simply a nice word for acid in most cases. it dulls aluminum and really doesn't do any wonders for decals, so watch where it's used and make sure the rig has a very good rinse from top towards the bottom. many tractor owners will find they have bad build-up on the back wall of the sleeper, this is really where brightener needs to be used on a regular basis- not a frequent basis- just a regular basis to keep the grime under control. This will also help to keep the cat walk behind the sleeper clean of grease.
It never hurts to try to frequent the some of the same truck washes when you go thru their area- if you have the time. This will help build some trust in the crew and crew leader that you like their work... and they will work harder to keep you coming back. Don't be afraid to fire off an e-mail (good or bad) to the "contact us" spot on a wash facility's web site... or track down and call the district manager.
Scrub brushes on poles work well, but you'll find you'll still like to have a step ladder handy to get by the top of the doors. You can get different types of brushes to go on the ends of the poles too.... then you can use certain brushes for certain area's on the truck, wheels, sides, frame/mechanical workings. Some brush makers make different bristles with different colors so bear that in mind too- that way you won't use 2 yellow brushes with 2 different bristle styles to wash your cab doors. Just thought I'd mention that as well.
If your really ambitious, get an extension ladder and climb on top and lay on your belly and wash the top edges by hand. just as ambitious and more expensive is Scaffolding... works even better- and it's safer.
Commercial truck washes have high turnover rates, for most of them, their crews come and go just as much as their customers do.... so it's best to be out there observing them. and making sure it's done the way you want. I usually follow and/or observe one or 2 guys. For the watchful and observant ones- it's fairly easy to spot them within minutes of the start of the wash. Don't let them blow water into your window stripping or windshield edges too much. Same goes for sleeper vents and back door edges. I go in and pay, and go right back out. Wear some shoes you don't mind getting wet, same goes for shirt and pants/shorts... as the spray from other wash wands will tend to give you an natural spray.
Some places won't tilt the hood and hit the hood unless you tell them and/or do it yourself.
Hope this helps.
BBB