Why is it unsafe to use foam when washing a car?

The process of washing a car, as you know, includes several stages - including the application of shampoo to more effectively clean the body of dirt. It would seem that there is something complicated in the procedure: I spread the foam over the surface, waited ... So, wait a minute. And how long do you have to wait? The answer to this and other popular questions is in the material of the AvtoVzglyad portal.

Every day it gets warmer outside, and there are fewer and fewer customers at traditional car washes with live employees instead of soulless machines. Drivers, who are keen to save money, quietly “move” to self-service stations or take out washing machines from garages: in winter, it’s not a pleasure to do “swallow” bath procedures with your own hands, but in spring or summer - why not?

As practice shows, in order to wash a car well, it is not at all necessary to trust its professionals. You can cope with the task yourself, the main thing is to have hands growing from the right place, a bright head and an understanding of the process. What kind of understanding are we talking about? For example, do you know how long you need to keep active foam on the car body?

Before applying the foam to the car, it should be determined whether preliminary cleaning of the body with water is necessary in a particular case? If there is plenty of dirt on the car, then it is better to knock it down (and let the car dry out). In other scenarios - say, a thin layer of dust - you can do without water, since there is a risk that it will dilute the already diluted chemistry. In general, efficiency will be significantly reduced.

Do not dilute shampoos with water too much: it is important to follow the proportions recommended by the manufacturer. Means for contactless washing are applied to the car from the bottom up - they are then removed in the same sequence. “What about time,” you ask. Professional cleaners claim that chemistry lasts 1-2 minutes, but there is an important nuance here.

So, if you “bath” the car yourself and know that the shampoo used is of high quality and properly diluted, then you can safely follow this recommendation. The same products that are poured into the machines at self-service car washes, as a rule, are very diluted. In addition, there is no certainty that they are safe and "working": after all, everyone strives to save money, and the owners of car washes are no exception.

Therefore, when carrying out water procedures at self-service stations, maintain a “foamy” pause of 3-4 minutes. This time is enough for chemistry to cope with its task. Well, if it fails, it means that the body is too dirty. Or - the second option - at the sink they use not special car shampoos, but liquid soap from a hardware store.

Some are interested in what happens if you keep the foam, on the contrary, for too long. With a quality product - nothing, it just drains to the floor. If you use a cheap product, then there is a risk of damage to the paintwork. The fact is that foam for contactless washing always contains alkaline (less often acidic) components, and it is impossible to know how many of them are in a dubious shampoo - whether its composition is safe.