Spottless Wash?

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Kern Co. California
I live in the desert and the water here is horrible. The water is about 500-600 TDS (total dissolved solids) which from what I understand is very high. I purchased a DIC-20 CR Spotless system and it works very well, but the resin doesn't last long at all. I contacted the company and with the TDS I have, they say I will only get approximately 10 washes at best with it before having to replace the resin. I added another inline cartridge filter and seem to get about 12-15 washes now before having to replace the resin. Anyone found a good way to extend the resin? Or found a better way to get spot free washes with bad water?
 
Do you have a filtration system for your house? That is a lot of TDS.

I used to live in a area with high TDS plus iron. I had a Berkeley filter system installed.

It sounds like your water is overloading the new filter system.

Another idea is to use a good car shampoo with high lubricity. Optimum car wash is a great choice.
 
I do not have a filter system on the house, and have used Adams car shampoo and Meg's liquid gold concentrate. In the summer time, even washing in the evening without direct sun, the heat dries the water so quick its very hard to keep up with, that is one reason I went for the spotless system.
 
I have had the same system for 6+ years now...need to use a pressure washer to extend resin canisters life. If using hose then 10 washes sounds about right. Also, I usually wash the vehicle first without being hooked up, then rinse down with DI water...that helps a lot. Hope that helps.
 
In order to achieve the look you want you need to get rid of the dissolved solids somehow.
Whole house filter...
DIC-20 systerm described above...
Dry it real fast technique to wipe it off....

One way or another you need to get those solids out of your water or off of your car.
 
Originally Posted by Redright9
I do not have a filter system on the house, and have used Adams car shampoo and Meg's liquid gold concentrate. In the summer time, even washing in the evening without direct sun, the heat dries the water so quick its very hard to keep up with, that is one reason I went for the spotless system.




Adams makes a great shampoo. Good choice. Adams also has a product called H2O Guard and Gloss. You use this while the car is still wet after the final rinse. It is hydrophobic so water will run off. Water sheeting is what you are looking for. Finish drying with a good microfiber towel made for drying and buff with a plush microfiber towel. In the heat you will have to work on a small section at one time.

https://adamspolishes.com/shop/exterior/waxing-and-glazing/adam-s-h2o-guard-gloss.html
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted by PimTac
Originally Posted by Redright9
I do not have a filter system on the house, and have used Adams car shampoo and Meg's liquid gold concentrate. In the summer time, even washing in the evening without direct sun, the heat dries the water so quick its very hard to keep up with, that is one reason I went for the spotless system.




Adams makes a great shampoo. Good choice. Adams also has a product called H2O Guard and Gloss. You use this while the car is still wet after the final rinse. It is hydrophobic so water will run off. Water sheeting is what you are looking for. Finish drying with a good microfiber towel made for drying and buff with a plush microfiber towel. In the heat you will have to work on a small section at one time.

https://adamspolishes.com/shop/exterior/waxing-and-glazing/adam-s-h2o-guard-gloss.html

Both great products, and depending on how dirty your vehicle is you can do a Rinseless wash doing one panel at a time.

https://adamspolishes.com/shop/exterior/carwashing/adam-s-rinseless-car-wash.html
 
Thanks for all the advice and help! I do use one of those little Ryobi electric pressure washers too, but still only get 10-15 washes out of it. I also use Kenotek showroom shine as a drying aid too... Honestly I am thinking my best bet is a filter for the house. Any suggestions on a house filter? What about a better place to buy the resin for the CR Spotless? Right now I have been buying the cubic foot (enough to fill the canisters three times) for $200+ .
 
Are you on a well? There are a number of house filters to choose from. A reputable pump guy would know. You need to get your water tested so the appropriate filter can be picked.

Our old house had high iron and tannic acid. We had a filter system installed next the the pressure tank. It backflushed collected iron on a timed schedule to keep the filter media in good shape. There was a limestone additive that had to be replenished a couple times a year.

The size of the filter was about the same as a standard acetylene welding gas tank.

After we had it installed we felt better health wise. The excess iron was having a effect on our health, particularly the stomach.
 
I am not on a well. One good thing is our city tests its water and sends reports to all the residents so I can get the latest test result and see what's there. From there, sounds like I should contact a pump person to start looking into a proper filter system...
 
I have looked into that kit before... my question about it is this... With that kit, I use the entire cubic foot of rein at once instead of filling my cartridges three times. Going by the math for gallons treated on their website, their system will allow 1200 gallons of water to be used instead of only 400 with the cartridges. But again, If the same cubic feet of resin does a one time 1200 or I fill my cartridges 3 times at 400 each, what am I saving??
 
I am very happy with Optimum No Rinse. A three gallon bucket is usually enough for the entire car, minus the wheels as I find it doesn't clean the wheels and tires all that well. Spotless finish every time and I'm not even all that careful with it, I don't use a two bucket method, for example. It's pretty cheap too as it comes up less than a dollar per wash if you use the recommended dosage.
 
Originally Posted by KrisZ
I am very happy with Optimum No Rinse. A three gallon bucket is usually enough for the entire car, minus the wheels as I find it doesn't clean the wheels and tires all that well. Spotless finish every time and I'm not even all that careful with it, I don't use a two bucket method, for example. It's pretty cheap too as it comes up less than a dollar per wash if you use the recommended dosage.


Same here although I use Ultima wash concentrate which can be used for different purposes. Even an interior detailer. I like trying different products esp sealants but I've been sticking to this one lately.
 
I suppose you could put an ounce of vinegar in your 5gal bucket to precipitate out the solids.

I don't know if I would do that for a rinseless wash. They tend to be spotless anyway, because of the mechanical action of wiping the finish.

If nothing else, you could buy 2-3 gallons distilled water for the rinseless wash.
 
When I lived at my parents (on well water) I used to use a pump-up sprayer with 50% White Vinegar and 50% tap water. I would wash the car, rinse the car with the hose and then spray down the car with the 50/50 mix and then wipe down the car. Even in direct sunlight I would have no spots whereas with the hose by itself I would always have spots because the water was really hard.

Just in case that helps.
 
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