What is Waterless Washing? 

Waterless washing simply put is a method of washing your car that doesn't involve running water and wash buckets. Instead, this method uses specific waterless wash cleaning solutions that are sprayed directly onto a vehicle as cleaning and lubrication aids to safely wipe off dirt/grim with multiple microfibre cloths - and then buff the finish clean while drying at the same time. 

A great example of a waterless washing solution is our Waxit Waterless Wash Kit. 

 (Waxit Waterless Wash Kit)

Why use a Waterless Wash?

In many cases depending on where you live, there are water restrictions in place that prevent private car owners from using running water at their residence to clean their vehicles. This is where a waterless wash can be a fantastic solution to those restrictions. 

Waterless washing can also be a substantially safer and more affordable option than using third party car wash services and automatic/self-service car wash facilities that are notorious for inflicting swirls and scratches on automotive paint. 

Beyond that, in the case of older classic cars, a waterless wash with its minimal liquid can be a far better option to avoid rust caused by water sitting and corroding the metal panels over time. 

 (Kwazar Venus Foamer 2L)

How do you Safely and Effectively Perform a Waterless Wash? 

Following the points below together with a bit of practice should ensure that your waterless wash result is safe yet effective. 

1. Follow the manufacturer's recommendations and mix your waterless wash product to the correct dilution ratio in a spray or pump action bottle. 

2. Be liberal with your solution and spray a generous amount ensuring that your panel is evenly coated with the product. 

3. Work one panel of your vehicle at a time in a top to bottom method around the car out of direct sunlight and on cool panels.  

4. Once the waterless solution has been sprayed on your panel use single swipes of your first cloth with minimal pressure in one direction at a time, while then turning to your cloth to a clean section for each additional swipe until you’ve lifted the dirt/grim of the entire panel section. 

5. Then use a second clean microfibre cloth to buff the panel streak-free and continue from panel to panel always ensuring that you are wiping with a clean section of your cloths for every additional swipe or pass. 

6. Continuously switch to new cloths as your used cloths become full and you’ll need about half a dozen cloths or more depending on the size of your vehicle and it’s level of grime or condition. 

What are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Waterless Washing?

Some great advantages of using a waterless wash it’s that it’s a far more eco-friendly solution opposed to using large amounts of water and allowing the detergents and grime to wash into drains and natural water supplies. 

Another advantage is that a waterless wash can be performed almost anywhere both indoors and out, as there is very little mess, detergent, or grime that will fall to the ground or need to be cleaned up. 

Furthermore, as most waterless wash products such as CarPro Ech2O in our Waterless Wash Kit come as concentrated solutions, it’s also an extremely economical method of cleaning a vehicle without the need of more equipment such as wash buckets and mitts, hoses and pressure washes or even drying towels, but just a spray bottle and some microfibre cloths. 

The real disadvantage of a waterless wash is that it does have its limitations and should not be used on vehicles with excess caked-on dirt and grime, in which the vehicle should be thoroughly rinsed down before physically cleaning the surface. 

Beyond that, it’s important that a proper technique is used to ensure that a safe and effective result is achieved. 

Other Factors to Consider and Conclusions. 

The dirtier the vehicle or panel is, the smaller sections you should work, for example, the lower panels of a car that always tend to be the dirtiest. 

You can safely and effectively use a waterless wash on all vehicle trims including paint, glass, plastics, rubbers, and metal. 

In many cases depending on the environment and the desired level of outcome, it may be worth using a quick detailer such as Nv BOOST v2 or CarPro Elixir to give the vehicle a final wipe down to eliminate any streaks and boost its overall appearance. 

In an ideal situation a traditional safe car washing method with a pressure washer, rinse buckets and multiple stages of cleaning will always tend to be a safer and more effective process. However in an ever-changing world with many factors and concerns to consider, a waterless wash can be a better solution based on various situations and scenarios.

(NV BOOST v2)