Car detailing is the process of cleaning the exterior and interior parts of a car. In fact, it is nowadays used to refer to cleaning any type of vehicle, such as trucks, buses, and vans. One thing that makes this seemingly easy task difficult is the presence of different types of surfaces in an automobile.

Take for instance, a car. The interior surfaces, such as seat upholstery and mats, are soft. The engine components are strong and sturdy. The external parts, that is, metal body and windshield glass, are hard surfaces – but these are brittle. In other words, cleaning a vehicle involves cleaning different types of surface.

The problem starts right here with the choice of cleaning machine. A cleaning machine used to clean soft surfaces is not ideal for cleaning hard surfaces and vice versa. The end result is that the cleaning workers end up with using multiple machines to clean even a small car.

This article deals with car detailing and provides tips to make the process faster and more efficient. The most important aspect of the cleaning process is the type of cleaning machines. The curious thing about this is that almost all types of cleaning machines can be used for the process. But, no single machine can be used for carrying out the entire car detailing process.

Efforts are ongoing to find a single machine that can be used to clean all kinds of surfaces in an automobile. A partial solution has been achieved with the launching of mobile car wash equipment. Before dealing with these machines, it is better to see how common cleaning machines, such as carpet cleaners, pressure washers, and steam cleaners, can be used for car detailing.

Carpet Cleaners
Carpet cleaners are top machines for cleaning the soft interior parts of vehicles. These are used to clean car mats, carpets, and seat upholstery. Two things must be checked when buying carpet cleaners as car detailing. First, the machine should be able to provide heated output. Second, the machine should be equipped with low-flow technology. It is also better to use separate cleaning wands to clean carpets and seat upholstery.

Steam Cleaners
Steam cleaners are suitable for cleaning glass such as windows, and inside cleaning such as dashboards and steering wheels. The most important thing to check when using these machines as auto detailing is that the exposure of the vehicle surfaces to the output of the machines has to be limited. Overexposure to the high output temperature might lead to damage of the surface.

Pressure Washers
Pressure washers are used as mobile car wash equipment for cleaning the hard external surfaces and engine components. The output pressure level of the machine should not exceed 1500 psi, and the flow rate should remain as low as possible to conserve water and prevent the possibility of fines due to waste water disposal and run off.

Steam Car Wash Machines
Steam pressure cleaners are pressure washing machines specially made for car detailing. These can be used to clean most of the surfaces on the exterior of an automobile. The pressure level never exceeds 1500 psi and flow rate is as low as 0.5 GPM. These machines ensure that the cleaned surfaces are clean and water run-off does not cause much of a problem. Another specialty of steam car wash machines is the output temperature, which ranges up to 250°F. car detailing