The 2 Bucket Wash Method for Spring Cleaning
The 2 bucket wash method is designed to prevent scratches and swirl marks. It's recommended anytime you wash and especially important for deep cleans. When washing you use two buckets, one bucket is the ‘rinse bucket’ with just water and the second bucket is the ‘soapy bucket’. You wash a section of the vehicle, then rinse the dirty mitt in the rinse bucket to clean it off then dip the clean mitt into the soapy bucket & continue washing the car.
This keeps your mitt as clean as possible so you aren’t scratching your car with dirty contaminants while washing. Ideally you should have a grit guard in both buckets or at least the rinse bucket to trap additional dirt.
Now let’s walk through a proper wash using the 2 bucket wash method with some other tips and tricks along the way.
Prepare Your Setup
Before we start we like to think of the phrase Mise En Place. “Mise en place is a French culinary term that means "put in place" or "gather". Having all our full setup organized, clean and ready to go will make for a smoother detailing process.
Setup Tips
- Wash your buckets, hose down your mitts and any other tools.
- Put soap in one bucket, soap on the mitt and soap inside of the mitt.
- Fill up your buckets before starting about 3 quarters of the way.
- Use the hose to get the bucket nice and soapy.
- Pro Tip: Use a dedicated third bucket for wheel tools.
Washing The Car with The 2 Bucket Method
Rinse the whole car before starting. We’re going to wash the car top to bottom, working on the car in 4 sections. Typically, the front, the back, and the lower rockers of the car are the dirtiest spots. If you’ve got caked-up mud, you’ll want to work those sections last so as not to get your wash mitt too dirty or use a second wash mitt. For the average detail, you should be okay.
As we are washing, we’re dunking the mitt into our rinse bucket first to clean it, followed by the soap bucket. If we catch something in the mitt, like a rock or a stick, we want to get that out. Otherwise, that will scrape all over our car. You can use the grate in a grit guard to clean the wash pad.
First, we’ll start at the roof, letting our wash mitt get really sudsy and soap up the car. When cleaning with the wash mitt, remember less is more. We aren’t scrubbing; we are cleaning gently. Wash half the roof and then move to the side of the car. Rinse it down and repeat the process on the other side.
Next, we’ll wash the front of the car, and finally, we’ll finish with the back of the car. The back of the car gets a lot of exhaust soot and other gunk. Walk around the car and check your work. Maybe a lower rocker needs a rewipe.
This is a good time to also clean the wiper blades. Pinch them with your mitt or towel to clean.
Drying The Car
- The most overlooked aspect of cleaning a vehicle tends to be the drying.
- Drying in the shade helps a lot. It decreases the chance of water spots.
- Any car, no matter how clean, will have some minimal amount of dirt. That’s why drying with a proper drying towel and drying aid it important to reduce the chance of scratching.
- Pro Tip: Throw away your shammy. A chamois absorbs water; it doesn’t pick up dirt, which means it pushes it around. Also, you don’t wash a chamois, so it can get and stay dirty.
The Best Way to Dry Your Car
Clutch Gloss and a proper drying towel will make a massive change in your drying process. Spray the car with Clutch Gloss to help prevent water spots, help as a drying aid by weighing down the water and add a pop of shine.
Be mindful that the side facing the sun will dry the fastest.
Clutch Gloss and a proper drying towel will make a massive change in your drying process. Spray the car with Clutch Gloss to help prevent water spots, help as a drying aid by weighing down the water and add a pop of shine.
Be mindful that the side facing the sun will dry the fastest.
Clutch Gloss Drying Aid & Quick Detailer
The perfect drying aid and quick detailer. It helps prevent water spots, adds incredible shine, and makes drying your car safer and easier. Simply spray it on after washing to weigh down water droplets and create a slick surface that glides your towel effortlessly.
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Platinum Quick Dry Towel
A massive 36” x 25” powerhouse designed to absorb water fast while gently lifting away lingering dirt without scratching. Get your car dry in half the time and streak-free. Pair it with Clutch Gloss for a flawless finish.
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Separate Wheel Towel
One trick we like drying to be extra thorough: Use a different microfiber towel for the wheels that will ONLY be used on the wheels. Designate it as the wheel towel. That way you're less likely to cross contaminate.
Door Jambs
Don’t forget to dry under the door jambs and under the trunk. If you forget to dry them, water can get down the paint. Side view mirror, license plates, any little crevices can be culprits.
Clutch Gloss is great here as well. Spray onto a towel and give them a quick detail. If they are mostly clean, then just the drying towel is fine.
