Cleaning one’s own car is possible, and cheaper compared to sending your car in a car wash such as those mechanized car wash. However, according to many professional and experienced car owners, washing one’s own car isn’t only about hosing down dirt and scrubbing.

According to many experienced car owners, car washing or cleaning requires a set of guidelines which assures that the car’s integrity won’t be jeopardized. This is because certain factors in car cleaning may cause slight damages on the car’s integrity, such as its paint job.

Here are some important tips on how to clean your car and maintain its "new car paint" look:

Tip #1: Place car in a shaded area

One important factor in which most car owners forget or doesn’t know is that before washing the car, it’s important to first place it in a shaded area. This is to avoid the formation of water droplet stains which is caused by water droplets drying too fast. So it’s very important to first place the car in a shaded area, such as inside the garage.

It’s also best to not place the car under a tree while cleaning. Trees normally drop debris such as leaves, dirt, and small branches which could add to the cleaning the owners have to do.

Tip #2: Choosing the best cleaning tools

After the car is placed under a shaded area, it’s time to organize the things that could be used in car wash. Some of the most useful things that can be used are buckets of water (2 is enough, while the other one is mixed with soap), a towel, a hose, and a sponge.

As for the towel and hose, car owners can choose from a variety of towels and hoses. One could use a typical garden hose, while others may also use as pressure washer hose, which is much useful according to many car owners. For the towel, a normal towel is enough, but many car owners have used a chamois or shammy towel, which is much more absorbent compared to typical towels.

Tip #3: Hose down excess dirt

Before actually cleaning the car, its best to first wet the car with a bucket, a hose, or a pressure washer hose. Other than just wetting the car, to get it ready for applying soap or any other cleaning agent, this is also used to hose off excess dirt.

If using a pressure washer hose, car owners suggest turning down the pressure. High pressure water jets can sometimes cause damages to the car’s paint.

Tip #4: Clean car per section

Many experienced car owners normally clean their car section by section. One way of doing this is from top, which the roof of your car, to bottom, which is the wheels. It’s also important that while cleaning other sections, hose down other sections so as to avoid water droplets drying too fast.

Tip #5: Dry with towel

If you’re satisfied with your cleaning, it’s time now to dry your car with the use of a towel. Any towel may do, but for many experienced car owners, a chamois or shammy towel is the best in drying one’s car. Other than its advanced absorbent technology, a shammy towel doesn’t leave anything behind unlike a towel which normally leaves small dirt. This can be seen clearly through the windshield.