Washed w/ Dish Soap

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My wife decided to wash her car today and used Costco's Kirkland Signature Environmentally Friendly Dish Soap in "freshly squeezed citrus scent". She didn't realize that I had some Gold Class carwash in the garage cabinet and that it is different than dish soap.

So here's my question: how much do you think that stripped-off the NuFinish polish that I had applied a month ago? I was hoping I wouldn't have to do it again before Winter.
 
Originally Posted By: barlowc

So here's my question: how much do you think that stripped-off the NuFinish polish that I had applied a month ago? I was hoping I wouldn't have to do it again before Winter.


Me... I'd put on another coat. Normally dish soap is a bit strong compared to a good car wash soap.
 
I watched my new next door neighbor wash his Navigator with a hose of running water, a grout sponge and a bottle of dish washing soap - no bucket.

Wet panel, soap up sponge, scrub off dirt, rinse, go to next panel, repeat. You can wash a car in no time! He doesn't believe in using car wax, the clear coat, you see, eliminates the need.

I was speechless .....
 
That's what I thought. I want to clay it anyway, but was going to wait until spring to do that. But given that I've never clayed it, now and again in the spring is probably what I'll do.
 
Im guessing ur wife knows where the gold class is now?! She gets credit for washing it at least..most women i know couldnt be bothered..see if the water still beads..i know its not a perfect test...worse comes to worse clay and wax prior to winter..
 
It stripped it. I use dish soap for that purpose when I want to clean and re-wax my car. If your paint is truly clean then water will bead regardless so thats not a good test.
 
Depends. NF is pretty durable. It may have stripped it, but it reduced your protection at the very least. Check beading or to be safe, apply another layer of NF.
 
Originally Posted By: Rolla07
Im guessing ur wife knows where the gold class is now?! She gets credit for washing it at least.

She now knows that there's a bottle of car wash soap to use in the garage cabinet. And she does indeed get credit for washing it. She felt bad because she knows I work hard to keep our vehicles looking nice and running well.
 
Some companies want you to use dish soap to wash to take off all of the existing wax. You need to recoat after thanking your wife for a good effort and maybe a subtle reminder of using the proper soap next time.
 
Rewash with Gold Class and apply a spray wax of your choice every 3-4 weeks in between regular wax jobs. That's what I do. Paint looks like new!
 
My father drove a show truck for Jimmy Dean Sausage a few years back. Him and his co-driver washed the truck with Dawn on a weekly basis (and before a show if it was really dirty). After 5 years, when they turned the truck in the paint looked as good as the day they bought it.

Now this goes against everything I've ever been taught about waxes, and what soaps to remove them. But I gotta admit, It never seemed to hurt the trucks paint. Maybe Dawn is not that bad after all?
 
Originally Posted By: Propflux01
It never seemed to hurt the trucks paint. Maybe Dawn is not that bad after all?
no one ever said it would "hurt" the paint, that is ridiculous to think it would. The truck just had no protection from elements, which probably did not matter being a show truck. I assume it rarely ever saw rain, snow, salt, etc.
 
About a month back or so I remember seeing some Dawn soap in my parents pantry. I thought great, I'll use that when I wax their car. So I go to wash the car a few weeks later, grab the soap and look at the bottle. It says Dawn Hand Wash soap. I used it anyway but it was super mild and produced a ton of suds. I then went over it with some Ultima detailer so it turned out nice and shiny. I also used a new grout sponge for the first time. It was ok but the sponge still looked new afterwards and the car was filthy.
 
Nu-Finish is among the most durable products out there. Having said that it would still be worth your time to put an additional coat on the (clean) car because the protective coating has been compromised.
 
Originally Posted By: dwcopple
Originally Posted By: Propflux01
It never seemed to hurt the trucks paint. Maybe Dawn is not that bad after all?
no one ever said it would "hurt" the paint, that is ridiculous to think it would. The truck just had no protection from elements, which probably did not matter being a show truck. I assume it rarely ever saw rain, snow, salt, etc.


It did. It traveled with trailer to shows all over the country. It was an 18 wheeler
 
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