Washing in freaking freezing weather

Under the dishgloves, use wool inserts. They work well even when wet.



Here is a tip. Cotton kills.



I was raised in Michigan when the weather was actually really mean in the winters. We were made aware at a very young age, that cotton is a very poor insulator. This effect increases as you exert yourself and begin to sweat. Cotton loses its insulative properties and becomes a conductor instead.



Layering is the way to go. However my advice is to layer with synthetics (polys). UnderArmor though a bit pricey is durable, designed to layer, wicks exceptionally well, washes easily, and fits nearly any shape. Check it out. Yes. I understand you don't need to worry about freezing to death, however the concept is the same. I think they have thin gloves that would fit inside your dish gloves. Remember to get cold weather UnderArmor not warm weather.



Next subject.

ALways pay those that provide for you. If you use utilities such as water, heat, power, etc, make sure to reimberse the provider. Not only because it is reasonable, ethical, and responsible, but because it helps teach you the basic cost structure of the detailing business.



Final subject.

I detailed cars at a young age. I also noted some disrespect due soley to my age. I reacted by letting my work do the talking. And. Yes. I paid for my utilities and garage space. People become aware of these kind of things very quickly and respect you for it.
 
Yea, i tryed underarmour yesterday and its great. I have used under armour for baseball, lacrosse and snowboarding but i never thought about it with detailing. I put under armour mock turtleneck on along with a long sleeve t 2 sweatshirts and i was quite warm. I didnt keep my hands warm too much but i lived, i may purchase a wool glove lining or something. And i wore my hiking boots which helped a lot i just switched shoes back to my running shoes when i was finished washing.
 
MobileJay said:
Hell if I would have started detailing when I was 14 I'd be doing hella good by now. Keep it up.

About the cold now. With the water, yeah its going to be cold and this might sound weird but its true. When I fill my bucket and start to wash the water is freezing on my hands. After about 5 min. when I put my hands back in the water I think my hands have gone numb by this time so the water actually feels warm and its very nice. The clothes, layers (as some have mentioned) is the way to go.
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Find a self serve with warm water. It cost more to wash but it's worth it.



Derrick
 
JoshVette said:
I've used ONR enough, it's okay if the car is relatively clean and not heavily soiled. Good for winter times I guess....
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That's what I was thinking too since I've seen ONR mostly used on garage queens and high end exotics that are almost never driven.



I got some ONR to try out, but I'll work with some unconspicous areas first with it. I'm so used to hose and bucket wasing with soap, anything else just seems weird and the wrong thing to do. It'll be nice to use for the winter, but I don't know how well it'll work. I'm just willing to give it a try since many others claim it's good.
 
Washing in the winter is nothing new or complicated. There is no use in trying to wash if its below freezing, Ive tried it and it just doesnt work.



I wear boots that have Gore-Tex in them.. Cant beat the water proofing or insulation of boots with Gore-Tex.



I wear neoprene gloves and use warm water from the bath tub in my bucket.



Jeans with Long-johns and a fleece sweater with under armor..



Im getting some ONR for Christmas so Ill be moving to the garage for my winter washings from now on.



I cant believe your dad would charge you to use the house water. You just trying to make some money on the side.
 
"I cant believe you dad would charge you to use the house water. You just trying to make some money on the side"



I am glad to see his dad charging him for water/electricity. It serves as a good lesson to his son that there are MANY expenses associated with running a business.
 
As for washing in the winter, I'm from the CLE area so I know a decent amount about cold weather and detailing off and on throughout it. Under armour is definitely the way to go! My legs for some reason never get cold so I usually just settled for cotton/poly sweats and I recently got a pair of Merrel Gore-tex trail runners and they're amazing! Rubber dish gloves may also be an option although I usually just grit and bare it through the wash and besides I'm usually using QEW and the only time I might use a hose it's in the customers garage or my own to clean out the wheels and wells.



As for the age thing, keep your head up and let your work speak for itself. Pay respect to people who deserve it and you'll get respect. I started detailing at 16 and I'm 22 now and I've gotten a lot of respect because of my work ethic and letting my work speak for itself and my character.
 
Labster said:
As for washing in the winter, I'm from the CLE area so I know a decent amount about cold weather and detailing off and on throughout it. Under armour is definitely the way to go! My legs for some reason never get cold so I usually just settled for cotton/poly sweats and I recently got a pair of Merrel Gore-tex trail runners and they're amazing! Rubber dish gloves may also be an option although I usually just grit and bare it through the wash and besides I'm usually using QEW and the only time I might use a hose it's in the customers garage or my own to clean out the wheels and wells.



As for the age thing, keep your head up and let your work speak for itself. Pay respect to people who deserve it and you'll get respect. I started detailing at 16 and I'm 22 now and I've gotten a lot of respect because of my work ethic and letting my work speak for itself and my character.
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CLE? do you mean Cleveland?

cause im from Cleveland also

also my one question how do you guys use onr with a wash mitt like do you put it in a bucket and dunk in, or do you dilute it ?
 
ggk said:
CLE? do you mean Cleveland?

cause im from Cleveland also

also my one question how do you guys use onr with a wash mitt like do you put it in a bucket and dunk in, or do you dilute it ?
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You mix ONR with water in a bucket just like regular car wash soap...
 
weekendwarrior said:
"I cant believe you dad would charge you to use the house water. You just trying to make some money on the side"



I am glad to see his dad charging him for water/electricity. It serves as a good lesson to his son that there are MANY expenses associated with running a business.
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This is true but it's his own kid, not some random person he's letting use his utilities. There is plenty of time to learn business cost/sense after the age of legal employment.
 
I disagree. It is the best time to do so. The younger you are when you learn the infrastructure of business, the better you chances of becoming succesful later in life.
 
Learning and doing are two different things, though. I should have specified. Learning at a young age - great. However, I don't think enforcing those rules is necessary to learn it, especially when you're just a kid looking to make some extra bucks. Regardless, this could be argued forever as it's just an opinion.
 
BuffMe said:
Learning and doing are two different things, though. I should have specified. Learning at a young age - great. However, I don't think enforcing those rules is necessary to learn it, especially when you're just a kid looking to make some extra bucks. Regardless, this could be argued forever as it's just an opinion.
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I respect your opinion, and am not saying you are wrong by any means (we are all entitled to our opinions). I think it is good to teach teenagers (and after all, this kid is 15) money management skills - and to have them apply those skills to their own budget (even if it is with their weekly allowance). This kid also seems to have a passion for car detailing, and this may end up becoming a career for him down the line. He might as well learn as much as he can about doing it now. I bet by him learning to recognize where his expenses are, and budgeting for his expenses now at an early age, if he does eventually own his own business, his chances of success will probably be greater.



I just think that if more young people learned budgeting skills, we would have less instances of them getting into trouble with credit card debt when they go off to college, cars getting reposessed when they are in their 20s, and they would be less likely to take on a mortgage that they can not afford as young adults. **end of rant**
 
Ahh heck, my dad would of bought everything I needed to detail my own car, much less someone elses when I was 14. I would like to think I have turned out to be pretty successful with my life even though my dad didnt make me pay to use his water. But this isnt what this thread is about so we dont need to Hi-jack.



I love washing my Jeep in the winter when its cold out. My neighbors give me tons of crazy looks but you can bet I have the only clean Jeep on the roads! Well, it usually stays clean for a few minutes at least.. Then it snows ans salt flies everywhere. :rolleyes:



I think its crazy that a car is probably the second most expensive thing someone will own(House being first) but they dont take care of it. They never wash them, dont research ways to take car of them, let the inside go to ruin, etc, but when we Autopians detail ours non-stop they think were crazy. :hm
 
I love the way i am raised because im completely different then my moms side of the family. My dad told me when i was to be different then my cousins. I come from a wealthy family but it was obtained through my grandfather being smart and not my cousins. One of my cousins did so many drugs when she was in high school it seems like she is mentally handicap and the other barely graduated high school and is an idiot, he is given everything. Me and my father always look at each other and smile when my uncle asks him, "here nick take a few hundred you'le need to buy some food or something" this happens more often then needed.



I know this probably seems a little stupid in your guys opinions but right now i am in this to learn, sure i love some extra money on the side but all the money i get from detailing goes into the bank to buy more supplies and savings. I am planning on making this my career and moving to a high end place like palm beach (after i graduate college and possibly get my MBA).



Also, i know i will probably get a lot of crap when i say this but im looking at a property. The property has a 4 car garage on it and a lot of land. There is no water running to it so i could possibly pick it up cheap. i would also put car storage on the land so i could pay the mortgage if i didnt detail enough cars that month. I also know my quality isnt the best it could be but i am working very hard on that.
 
Gosh, when I was 15 I wasn't even thinking about college, much less looking at land! I must say that land is something I wish I had alot of right now.. Almost everything is being turned into a road or it is bought up and going to waste.. Thats just in my neck of the woods though.



Neoprene is wetsuit material, so it will allow your hands to get wet but it still keeps them warm. Thats why alot of people recommend that you wear rubber gloves under them to keep you hands dry. Ive always heard it keeps you warm to pee in a wetsuit, but you dont need to be peeing on your hands. :grinno:
 
HAHAHA! Yea, ive never been told to pee in my wetsuit lol.



I guess the reason i might want to buy property is all my life i have been surrounded with beautiful cars. I will not say that we do not own great cars but i feel that it is my life goal to own a supercar/exotic. I figure the sooner i get started and start saving for a ferrari or an aston martin the sooner i will have it. Also, in my garage there isnt that much room to detail. and to make the room we would have to take all of my dads fixtures and stuff out of it (which we are doing soon due to the store closing after 75 years of business and 2 generations of Wendells) and also 4 cars and i do not think it is good to move all the cars out of the garage every time i detail a car. Also, i just cannot imagine being able to walk into your own clean space and do what i love in there (detailing).



to end this and to try to stop people from poking fun at me and telling me i cannot do this, i know that it is highly unlikely that this will happen. And if it doesnt happen i will have learned a heck of a lot (which i already have) about real estate and building a garage.
 
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