Ever Wash Your Truck In The Rain?

[Matt_]

So my truck is pretty dirty right now... and im outside mowing the lawn. I'm thinking "maybe i should give my truck a quick wash". And then it starts drizzling so im thinking "crap i better hurry up and finish cutting the lawn, guess i'll wash my truck tomorrow".

 

And then i continue thinking... cause there's nothing else to do when cutting the lawn.... for a quick 'wash', why not wash it in the rain? (assuming it's not going to continue raining for a few days, that'd be a waste)

 

Seriously... im not talking about a "detail/read a news paper in the reflection clean". Im talking about the "my truck has a ton of dirt or road grime on it that i want to get off" type of clean.

 

I've noticed in the past that if my truck is clean, and it rains, and i DONT drive my truck while its raining, it stays pretty clean. I know that rain water is not really clean.. but sometimes its cleaner than your truck! And the majority of uncleansiness that kills your truck in the rain is due to road grim and other crap thats kicked up by your tires and other cars around you in the rain.

 

So what are your thoughts? Say your truck is really dirty and it starts raining... and tomorrow is supposed to be a great day out and you want to do stuff OTHER than wash your truck tomorrow. Why not grab a bucket of soapy water and wipe down your truck while its raining and let mother nature wash the suds away? Consider it a method of "going green"

[ZZ327]

I havent done it too my own, but I have grabbed a towel/ no soap. and wiped off my dirty company truck so I wouldnt have to pay for a car wash!!!

[brims]

I've thought about it, but never did it. If it's raining hard, you wouldn't need to rinse it. The rain water is clean, but not for the first little bit of time as it's getting all the crap out of the air. But if it rains long/hard enough, the water should be pretty pure.

[Silverado_Monkey]

I've thought about it, but never did it. If it's raining hard, you wouldn't need to rinse it. The rain water is clean, but not for the first little bit of time as it's getting all the crap out of the air. But if it rains long/hard enough, the water should be pretty pure.

 

 

I've done it before (in my youth). It works great! You look like a whack job out in your driveway, but screw it! All you have to do is dry it right away when the rain finally stops...

[omegafiler]

Nope, rain around here is usually quite dirty. Just not worth it. At least with a black truck! With a black truck, you'd better clean it good or not clean it at all.

 

I'll wait until it stops raining or just move it into the garage to clean it up. This is also assuming it's going to stop raining fairly soon and get at least a day or 2 of no rain.

[Matt_]

good to hear im not the only one who's thought of this

 

one of the biggest benefits would be when its really hot in the summer and you dont want the soap drying on the paint... instead of washing one panel at a time so you can spray it off before it dries- it'll be a continuous rinse.

 

Hmmm, better idea:

 

 

... oh now the gears are turning ...

 

A "car wash" sprinkler system that you put around the perimeter of your car/truck that sprays a continuous mist while you wash your truck so the soap won't dry. So you can wipe down the entire truck in one shot... and then when you're done, disconnect the sprinkler system and use your favorite nozzle for that final "spray down" to get all of the big stuff off

[spikesputnik]

Yes I've thought of it too. Rain seems pretty "clean" in these parts, plus with rainwater there's no salt from my softener to leave spots as bad.

[jvmorgan]

Interesting idea I might say...go for it if you can get some clean rain water.

[txab]

Usually when it's raining here, thunder and LIGHTNING are included. So no thanks.

[Stevens03]

I'd never do it on a black truck, but light colored.. I've done it for a quicky,... then pulled them into the garage and towel dried.

[Irv]

I guess I would if the truck was filthy dirty?

It would also have to be warm out and at night or else my neighbors would definitely think I have lost it They, including other acquaintances all say I am going to wash the paint right off it if I wash it anymore!

[VMax2007]

Yes I've thought of it too. Rain seems pretty "clean" in these parts, plus with rainwater there's no salt from my softener to leave spots as bad.

 

 

You run soft water to your outside spigots???

 

My outside spigots, as well as my kitchen cold, bypass the water softener.

[Matt_]

Yes I've thought of it too. Rain seems pretty "clean" in these parts, plus with rainwater there's no salt from my softener to leave spots as bad.

 

 

You run soft water to your outside spigots???

 

My outside spigots, as well as my kitchen cold, bypass the water softener.

 

 

At my parents house we had to run soft water to one of the outside spigots... where we lived our well water had an extremely high iron content, to the point where you wouldnt want to wash your car with it!

[spikesputnik]

Yes I've thought of it too. Rain seems pretty "clean" in these parts, plus with rainwater there's no salt from my softener to leave spots as bad.

 

 

You run soft water to your outside spigots???

 

My outside spigots, as well as my kitchen cold, bypass the water softener.

 

 

Yes, but not the sprinkler system which is 95% of out door H20 use.

[VMax2007]

Yes I've thought of it too. Rain seems pretty "clean" in these parts, plus with rainwater there's no salt from my softener to leave spots as bad.

 

 

You run soft water to your outside spigots???

 

My outside spigots, as well as my kitchen cold, bypass the water softener.

 

 

Yes, but not the sprinkler system which is 95% of out door H20 use.

 

 

Well that makes more sense. My sprinkler system is run off of one of my outside lines, it does not have it's own dedicated line.