Doesn’t hand washing a car take forever? Yes. I think it’s worth it, but let’s see if a rinseless car wash is a more efficient way of getting our cars clean. If you’d like to get into washing your own car without spending a ton of time or money, keep reading.
All Products Discussed in This Post:
This post contains links to products that I may receive compensation from at no additional cost to you. View my Affiliate Disclosure page here.
- Optimum No Rinse Rinseless Wash
- P&S Absolute Rinseless Wash
- McKee’s 37 N-914 Rinseless Wash
- The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge
- The Rag Company Gauntlet Drying Towel
- P&S Detail Products Beadmaker
- Turtle Wax Graphene Spray Wax
- The Rag Company Spectrum 420 (blue, grey, and black)
- Chemical Guys El Gordo Professional Extra Thick Supra Microfiber Towels
- 32oz HDPE Spray Bottle and High-Output Trigger Sprayer
- P&S Professional Detail Products Brake Buster
- Soft Bristle Wheel Brush
- Wheel Brush for Wheel Wells and Barrels
- Detail Factory Tire Brush
- Meguiar’s Hyper Dressing D17001
- Tire Dressing Brush
What is a Rinseless Car Wash?
Rinseless Car Wash
A rinseless car wash is a car washing method based around a specialized cleaning solution, typically mixed with water, to safely remove dirt and grime from your car’s exterior without requiring a large amount of water for rinsing. Unlike traditional car washes that require soap to be rinsed off the car after washing, a rinseless car wash allows you to apply the cleaning solution directly to the car’s surface, then use a microfiber towel or similar tool to wipe away the dirt and grime along with the solution, leaving a clean and shiny finish. This makes rinseless car washing an environmentally friendly and water-saving alternative to traditional car washing methods.
You’re going from the wash step, straight to the drying step, without rinsing!
Traditional Car Wash
A traditional car wash is what most people consider a normal car wash with hoses, buckets, sponges and towels everywhere. The main points to pay attention to are that you’re pre-rinsing the car with water before you wash and post-rinsing the car after you’ve washed the car and before drying.
What is the difference between waterless and rinseless car washes?
A waterless wash applies a spray solution directly onto your car’s dry panels and wipe it off with a towel. On the other hand, a rinseless wash involves mixing a solution into a bucket of water and using it to wash your car like you normally would, but without the need for a hose to rinse it off. These options are convenient and eco-friendly, making them a great choice for you if you’re looking to minimize the amount of time spent washing your car or for a more sustainable way to maintain your car’s appearance.
Why You Should Consider Ditching Water for Your Car Wash
I’m considering adding a rinseless car wash process as an option for two big reasons:
- Saving time so washes can happen more frequently
- Able to wash car during during Midwest winter
Some other reasons that may be beneficial for you are:
- You live in an apartment or condo and don’t have access to a hose
- There are water restrictions in your area
The Rinseless Car Wash Products
Links
- Optimum No Rinse
- P&S Absolute Rinseless Wash
- McKee’s 37 N-914 Rinseless Wash
- The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge
Optimum No Rinse
From what I can tell, Optimum No Rinse (commonly referred to as ONR) is the original rinseless car wash solution which started all of this. Because of that, I had to try it. It’s been bragged about for it’s versatility as more than just a car wash solution. This is something that interests me as I’m trying to build an A-to-B detailing blueprint that’s simple and takes advantage of multiuse chemicals and tools.
P&S Absolute Rinseless Wash
P&S Absolute Rinseless Wash is new and takes a different approach to a rinseless solution. You’ll notice that this has the consistency less of a traditional rinseless wash and more like a rinseless lotion. This does not completely dissolve in water, but disperses very well. I love other P&S products like P&S Detail Products Beadmaker and P&S Detail Products Brake Buster so I will give this a shot.
McKee’s 37 N-914 Rinseless Wash
Lastly, there’s McKee’s 37 N-914 Rinseless Wash. This is very similar to Optimum No Rinse, although ONR has a small amount of protection in it and McKee’s 37 N-914 Rinseless Wash has no protection in it; it’s meant purely for cleaning. Depending on the use, not having any protection in it is nice when you’re prepping your car for new wax, sealant, or coating, you don’t want additional protection to get in the way.
Dillution Ratios
| Use Case | Dilution Ratio | Water (32 oz bottle) | Rinseless Car Wash (32 oz bottle) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rinseless Wash | 256:1 | 32 oz | 1/8 oz |
| Waterless Wash | 16:1 | 24 oz | 1.5 oz |
| Pre-Soak | 64:1 | 32 oz | 1/2 oz |
| Clay Lube | 64:1 | 32 oz | 1/2 oz |
| Window Cleaner | 256:1 | 32 oz | 1/8 oz |
| Interior Cleaner | 256:1 | 32 oz | 1/8 oz |
| Drying Aid | 16:1 | 24 oz | 1.5 oz |
The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge
The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge is an interesting idea considering we used to laugh at people that washed their cars with sponges. Foam technology will obviously evolve over time, but is it currently at the point, along with chemical technology, that we should be washing our cars with them?
What I’ve Done so Far
One of my big reasons for wanting to try rinseless washing was so that I could wash my car during the winter here in Missouri without the need to go to an auto wash. Since we’ve recently crossed that threshold from “hey, it’s not that cold” to “please don’t make me leave the house” I started playing with rinseless washes.
I’m washing my cars in my two car garage that has insulated and drywalled walls and an insulated door. This helps keep the temperature manageable, although I’m not able to be out there in shorts and flip-flops. I’m still working in jeans and a hoodie and on a really cold day maybe a beanie. But, there’s no wind and since I’m moving around a lot I warm up and get comfortable quickly.
I’ve been washing my cars; a white 2013 Honda Pilot and a pearl white 2013 Hyundai Azera. Both were protected using two layers of Turtle Wax Graphene Spray Wax 18 months ago and get P&S Detail Products Beadmaker after every wash. Protection is still present on both cars, but in better condition on the Azera as I don’t drive as much as my wife. I would like to do a strip wash on both to set a new foundation with Turtle Wax Graphene Spray Wax again, but time hasn’t allowed that.
The Rinseless Car Wash Process
I’m trying out three different rinseless wash solutions (Optimum No Rinse, P&S Absolute Rinseless Wash, and McKee’s 37 N-914 Rinseless Wash) so I had to figure out a process to follow with all three. This allows me to really experience each product in a similar way to see which one I enjoy using more.
The process I came up with:
Prepare for Your Rinseless Car Wash
- Fill 5 gallon bucket with warm/hot water from kitchen sink
- Add 3oz of rinseless solution and mix
- This provides a little stronger dilution than suggested. I’d like to add a bit more than suggested to make sure we’re minimizing the chances of scratching.
- Manufacturer suggestion is a dilution ratio of 256:1 for rinseless washing which would mean putting 2.5oz in 5 gallons. Adding 3oz to 5 gallons is a dilution ratio of around 213:1.
- Fill two 32oz spray bottles from the bucket and top with high-output trigger sprayers
- This uses about half of a gallon of the 5 gallons I made
- Dunk the The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge in the bucket
Clean the Car
- Clean door jambs and gas filler area first with spray bottle and a not-so-nice microfiber towel
- I use very broken in Chemical Guys El Gordo towels
- Using the best practice path for washing a car (start with the roof and work your way down and around) I started by pre-soaking three three panels so the rinseless solution has time to work
- Wash one panel with The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge flipping when necessary
- Spray another panel with spray bottle so there’s always two panels ahead that are soaking
- Work around the car until entire car is clean
- The car will be clean, but wet at this point
Dry the Car
- Start the drying process by following the same path you cleaned the car in (start with the roof and work your way down and around) by spraying a panel with P&S Detail Products Beadmaker and drying/spreading with The Rag Company Gauntlet Drying Towel. Level and finish the panel with the low-pile side of a blue The Rag Company Spectrum 420.
- Dry door jambs and gas filler area with same process
Clean the Wheels
- Take The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge out of the bucket and put in wheel cleaning tools
- Clean wheels by spraying rinseless solution on wheel wells and P&S Professional Detail Products Brake Buster on tires and wheels
- Go easy spraying P&S Professional Detail Products Brake Buster as we’re not rinsing with a hose or pressure washer
- Use Wheel Brush for Wheel Wells and Barrels to clean the wheel barrels. Dip into bucket to rinse and tap on bucket rim to remove excess water. Clean wheel wells.
- Use the Detail Factory Tire Brush to clean the tires
- Use the Soft Bristle Wheel Brush to clean the wheels
- Spray rinseless solution on wheels and tires to rinse off the P&S Professional Detail Products Brake Buster
- Spray Meguiar’s Hyper Dressing D17001 diluted 4:1 on wheel wells and tires
- Dry wheel well and tire with black The Rag Company Spectrum 420
- Really scrub the tire with the low pile side to work in the Meguiar’s Hyper Dressing
- Spray P&S Detail Products Beadmaker on wheel and dry with grey Rag Company Spectrum 420
- If there’s any overspray on the fender around the wheel lightly spray rinseless solution and dry again with The Rag Company Gauntlet Drying Towel
How Did it Go?
This rinseless car wash process took longer than I expected at an hour and a half, but I just started so hopefully some efficiencies will show up the longer I do it. The cars look very clean just like a normal wash, but I did struggle to get bugs off the front of both cars. I had sprayed the front bumper cover area and the mirrors multiple times to help keep them wet to hopefully loosen the bug guts, but there’s still some there. I also had some oily, tar-like stuff on the lower rockers behind the front wheels of my Azera that would not come off without aggressive agitation.
Optimum No Rinse Rinseless Car Wash
Optimum No Rinse ended up being my favorite for a few very subjective reasons. I washed my Azera with ONR.
- ONR looked like it did more work than the others. As soon as I sprayed it on a panel I could see the dirt move around.
- ONR felt better on the panel. Using the same dilution ratios and tap water for all three, when ONR was on the panel The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge felt like it was gliding and others felt a bit more grabby.
- Although, they all felt grabby during the drying process without P&S Detail Products Beadmaker. It’s possible you could just spray the rinseless again also using it as a drying aid.
- ONR smells the best. None of them smelled great straight from the bottle, but when Optimum No Rinse was diluted and being sprayed and wiped on panels its smelled amazing. It was definitely a positive addition to the wash process. I’m a fan of good smells while detailing my car.
McKee’s 37 N-914 Rinseless Car Wash
McKee’s Rinseless Wash was similar to ONR, but without the positives I pointed out above. I washed my wife’s Pilot with McKee’s. It’s possible the lesser performance of McKee’s is due to the lesser protection on the Pilot vs the Azera.
- This did loosen some of the dirt on the surface after spraying, but it wasn’t as obvious as ONR was.
- McKee’s felt good on the panel, but not as good as ONR. Again, this was probably due to there being better protection on the Azera which ONR was used on.
- I did not like the smell of McKee’s. I don’t think it’s a “bad” smell, something like a green apple Jolly Rancher, but it’s not what I want to smell while detailing my car. It smells like candy straight from the bottle and smells a little worse when it’s diluted and in use. I am not a fan of smelling candy while detailing my cars.
P&S Absolute Rinseless Car Wash
P&S Rinseless Wash is different than both ONR and McKee’s in that it’s more like a rinseless lotion because of it’s thicker consistency. This does not dissolve in water due to the way it’s made, but it will disperse well in your bucket with stirring. You may see some small globs of Absolute still floating around and that’s ok. I washed my Azera with Absolute a few weeks after washing with ONR.
- This did a great job of loosening the mess that was on the back of the car. The rest of the car didn’t seem like it was getting loosened at all, but came clean with a light wipe from The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge.
- I used Absolute on the same car I cleaned ONR with. ONR was used first on my Azera when it was very dirty and Absolute was used a few weeks later when it was lightly dirty. Absolute wasn’t as slick as I thought it would be. It wasn’t bad here, but I’ve heard many times how crazy slick Absolute is when washing and I didn’t have the same experience. It falls somewhere between ONR and the McKee’s.
- This smelled the worst of the three. It smells like a lotion straight from the bottle and smelled like a mix of dirty diaper and public bathroom while I was washing. I plan on using it one more time and if it smells the same I’m done with it. It was not a good experience.
Conclusion
Is a Rinseless Car Wash Good?
I’m going to continue with a rinseless car wash through the winter so I’ll do a part 2 once the season’s over with more thoughts. All three allowed me to clean my cars in my garage in the winter with no hose which is what I was after. All three provided the same outcome of a relatively clean car. So, if you’re looking to get into rinseless washing any of these three should work.
Best Rinseless Wash
My current favorite is Optimum No Rinse. The was experience was just better. From the scent, the cleaning power, and how it felt while wiping ONR was the best. I’m going to rotate in McKee’s 37 N-914 Rinseless Wash and P&S Absolute Rinseless Wash just to make sure my initial thoughts don’t change.
The Rag Company Ultra Black Sponge is interesting. If used to gently wipe the surface for cleaning I like it because the thickness of the sponge should disperse any pressure you add which should help prevent scratching. The “fingers” on the sponge should also move as you wipe adding an additional buffer of softness. The downside is hard to reach areas like behind and around your door handles depending on your car. You really have to squeeze the sponge in there and may be better off having a microfiber towel in your rinseless bucket just for spots like this.
Rinseless Car Wash Process
This process took about an hour and a half to wash a larger 4-door sedan and around an hour and 45 minutes to wash an SUV. This is including set up, washing the paint, drying, and washing and finishing the wheels/tires.
- Using one bucket still makes me nervous. I’m not sure if it’s because the two-bucket wash has been ingrained in my soul for a long time or if one bucket is truly not a good idea. With a rinseless wash solution it’s supposed to encapsulate the dirty stuff in the bucket and pull it to the bottom, but I don’t know how much I believe that based on what I saw. Moving to a two bucket rinseless wash or the Gary Dean method is definitely something I’m going to try.
- I used two 32oz HDPE Spray Bottles with High-Output Trigger Sprayers to pre-spray the car to allow the rinseless solution to soak, loosen, and breakdown whatever was on the surface before following up with the contact wash. To help save time I’m considering using an iK Multi Pro 12 Wand Sprayer for the presoak phase so that I can quickly get solution on the entire car.
- I would like to wash the wheels and tires first still. My thought is to add a dedicated wheel bucket to the existing wheel process with two gallons of water and one ounce of rinseless solution. This I would do before touching the rest of the car like a normal water wash.
- I would like to find something to help spot clean the front bumper area, side mirrors, and lower rockers better. My thought is:
- Presoak all panels with rinseless solution
- Wipe entire car down
- Spot clean front bumper, side mirrors, and lower rockers as necessary with dedicated cleaner and microfiber towel
My Plan for the Rinseless Car Wash
I like the possibility of having a waterless solution that I can use to quickly “dust” the car or to spot remove a bird’s bombing run from one of my cars. Especially for my car because it sits in the garage and barely gets driven due to me working from home. If I could save time by doing a quick waterless dusting instead of breaking out the pressure washer every time I’d be able to clean it more frequently. This would most likely be a 32oz HDPE Spray Bottle and High-Output Trigger Sprayer with a rinseless solution diluted 128:1 and a couple microfiber towels staged together so I can quickly grab them and get to work. I think this also creates an “APC-Lite” for general exterior, interior, and other cleaning which is great for stretching a solution to multiple jobs and removes the need for a high amount of chemicals.
I will definitely continue to do a rinseless wash through the winter so I can look at a clean and shiny car even during the cold and grey season. The current protection from Turtle Wax Graphene Spray Wax is lasting a long time. I will continue using it while we have these cars. From an annual detailing plan I should be good with the following flow:
- Early Spring: Strip wash, chemical and mechanical decontamination, apply two layers of Turtle Wax Graphene Spray Wax and top with P&S Detail Products Beadmaker
- Spring-Summer-Fall: Rotate rinseless wash and full water wash
- Winter: Rinseless wash
Stay Connected
Follow mrkz|GARAGE everywhere