Use a squeegee to dry a car?

[3for3]

Is it OK to use a squeegee to dry the entire car, or will it cause the wax to prematurely wear off?

It would seem to me that the friction from the rubber squeegee would be tough on the wax, wearing the wax down sooner. What are your thoughts or experiences?

Also, one of my cars is black, so I am wondering if a squeegee would cause fine scratches that show up on dark colored vehicles.

 

[Chris142]

Thats a common thing to see at the gas stations around here. People washing their car with the squeegee.

I'm sure its not a good idea especially with a black car.

 

[anonobomber]

I wouldn't recommend doing that. I used to and it was impossible to avoid scratching the car using that method to dry it off. Now I use a backpack blower and blast 90% of the water off the car and then finish off with a waffle weave towel.

 

[3for3]

Originally Posted By: anonobomber
...Now I use a backpack blower and blast 90% of the water off the car and then finish off with a waffle weave towel.



That is awesome, I never thought of that. I am going to look for a backpack blower. Thanks.

 

[LotI]

I got one with a wash kit. It is worthless.

Best way I found is to run a smooth stream of water(laminar flow)over the car as a final rinse then use the The Absorber , an artificial chamois. Mine is probably 20 years old.

 

[hotwheels]

I use a squeege on the windscreen and windows, and on my shower stall doors. If there are any abrasive particles on the finish, a squeege will likely pick them up and cause scratches.

hotwheels

 

[widman]

No way to use a squeegee on paint without scratching it. Glass is a lot harder than paint.

 

[Bluestream]

Originally Posted By: 3for3
Originally Posted By: anonobomber
...Now I use a backpack blower and blast 90% of the water off the car and then finish off with a waffle weave towel.



That is awesome, I never thought of that. I am going to look for a backpack blower. Thanks.


Use a leaf blower

 

[19jacobob93]

I always use a synthetic chamois to get the heavy off and then a micro fiber cloth to get it completely dry. I thouroughly hose the car down a couple of times to get rid of all the grit to minimise scratching.
I use Nu Finish once a year wax, haven't waxxed it in at least 6 months and it still beads up like the day I did it

 

[Rat407]

I've been using this Wiper Blade for years. It gets the heavy water off then I finish with a microfiber towel.

 

[aquariuscsm]

Originally Posted By: 3for3
Is it OK to use a squeegee to dry the entire car, or will it cause the wax to prematurely wear off?

It would seem to me that the friction from the rubber squeegee would be tough on the wax, wearing the wax down sooner. What are your thoughts or experiences?

Also, one of my cars is black, so I am wondering if a squeegee would cause fine scratches that show up on dark colored vehicles.



I use a water blade to do that. Works great! Then I use a microfiber towel or mitt to get the remaining water.

 

[raytseng]

If your paint is smooth and your wax is good, there shouldn't be that much water that you need to wipe off. So it's a factor of did you spend time to really wax/detail your car that makes subsequent washes faster.
Take your car around the block, hopefully you have a hill, majority of it should just come off. And you can get the rest with the above mentioned means, absorber or waffleweave dryer or a waterblade/specially designed squeegeeblade.

You need to be careful that your car really is clean before using , cause it's the dirt getting dragged that causes more damage and counterproductive to your effort to care for your car.


The Blower folks have their following and also detractors as that is going to be unfiltered air so you're blowing some dust/pollen or even dirt particles onto the water and surface, and some of it is going to stick.

 

[NHGUY]

Performance tool sells a cheap blower/vacuum that's perfect for that.It spins like 25000 RPMs.

 

[aquariuscsm]

Originally Posted By: raytseng
If your paint is smooth and your wax is good, there shouldn't be that much water that you need to wipe off. So it's a factor of did you spend time to really wax/detail your car that makes subsequent washes faster.
Take your car around the block, hopefully you have a hill, majority of it should just come off.

The Blower folks have their following and also detractors as that is going to be unfiltered air so you're blowing some dust/pollen or even dirt particles onto the water and surface, and some of it is going to stick.


I use a leaf blower to dry my engine bay after I wash it.

 

[ecotourist]

Originally Posted By: LotI
Best way I found is to run a smooth stream of water(laminar flow)over the car as a final rinse then use the The Absorber , an artificial chamois. Mine is probably 20 years old.


I do something similar to this. I use a very slow stream to wash the majority of the water off (sounds improbable but it works) and then finish drying the paint with a chamois, and the glass with newspaper. My chamois is probably 20 years old too.

But I like the idea of using a leaf blower and may try that too.

 

[Eddie]

I just air dry mine at 50 mph.

 

[Lapham3]

My hand held blower doesn't quite make it, but the backpack does great

 

[Michael_P]

I have a California water blade which works well. No scratches.

 

[Joel_MD]

Yeah, I have had one of those California Water Blades for more than ten years. I use it to get 80% of the water off and then finish up with microfiber. If you mist a little quick detailer on the wet car the squeegee glides even better.

I imagine my drying technique imparts some minor scratches, but these are not concours show cars; just my daily drivers. I polish the paint every couple of years and they look better than 95% of the cars on the road that are the same age.

 

[2010Civic]

A squeegee will definitely scratch the paint.