With over 30 million licensed road vehicles in the UK, most of us will need valet parking at some point in our lives. It may seem like a lot of effort, but it’s important to keep your car clean, as this can reduce maintenance costs. If you don’t, you can also devalue your car when you come to sell it.
Cars are exposed to a variety of hazards, including bird droppings, road salt, and pollutants. These items can have a negative effect on a car’s exterior. Rust can develop when the paint deteriorates exposing the metal underneath, which can be expensive to repair. Knowing how to properly valet a car will keep it looking like new and reduce these maintenance expenses.
What you will need:
a pressure hose
soft sponge or soft woolen mitt
Prewash car shampoo
two buckets of water
quality car shampoo
medium hard sponge or cleaning pad
Brush
hard sponge or scrubber
suede fabric
car window cleaner
vacuum cleaner
car polisher
two soft cloths
Instructions on how to valet a car
The first thing to do when parking a car is to rinse and wet the car with a pressure hose. This will remove any loose grit and as the water soaks the rest of the dirt will loosen up. Avoid using a sponge at this point, as you’ll just end up rubbing the loose sand all over the surface of your car. Leave the car for a minute so the water has a chance to dissolve some of the dirt.
Prepare your car for the prewash by using a soft wool mitt or a soft sponge to gently wipe away all grit particles. Start at the top and work your way down so that the bumpers, which are the dirtiest parts, are tackled last. This way you won’t spread dirt around the car.
Prewash with a bucket of clean water and a quality car shampoo that doesn’t have a lot of bubbles. Avoid products with built-in polish as it basically seals the dirt under a layer of wax which makes it much more difficult to clean.
For the main wash, use a quality shampoo with a harder sponge or cleaning pad. Work the same way as before, starting at the top and working around and down as you clean. A tip for an effective wash is to use two separate buckets, one with clean water and one with the car shampoo. This way you will avoid contamination by grit when you rinse the sponge in the bucket of clean water.
When you clean your wheels and tires, you should first use a brush to clean away the main debris. After brushing off most of the grit, use a sponge or stiff scouring pad to wash the rest of the wheel. The next time you wash your car you should avoid using this brush and sponge on the body as you will probably scratch the paint with any grit left over.
Rinse all the shampoo from the car with clean water. Then lightly dampen a chamois cloth to dry the car. This cloth will not absorb water like a towel; polishes the water into small droplets that evaporate.
Use car glass cleaner to make your windows bright and clear. Work in circular motions on the window not forgetting to do both the inside and outside of the windows.
When you want to valet the interior of your car, you should start by taking out all the interior carpeting. Vacuum the dirt on the floor mats, and then continue vacuuming the rest of the car’s interior. Don’t forget the trunk and under the seats. Use a damp cloth to clean the dash and all other plastic areas. Do not use rinse aid as it can catch a glare on particularly sunny days. Lastly, you should open all the doors and use a damp sponge to clean the areas around the sides and bottom of each door, including the trunk.
If you want a really clean finish, you can polish your car with two soft cloths. Put a small amount of polish on a cloth and apply it to the car in straight lines. Use the other cloth to buff the polish. Two thin coats work much better than having too much polish on the fabric.
