Can You Use Dawn Dish Soap on a Car? | Car Detailing Tips
Going off of conventional wisdom, it seems like a no-brainer that dish soap would work wonders for cleaning a car. After all, if it's designed to clean tough, stuck on food, why wouldn’t it work to clean off bug guts, dirt, or whatever else is on the car’s paint? However, if you ask mostly anyone, they’ll tell you the same thing—that you cannot use dish soap on a car. Why? Because, allegedly, it is bad for the paint, strips away protection, and weakens the exterior. But is that true?
As a professional car detailing business, we’ve taken the time to try and test every product we can get our hands on–including dish soap. And guess what, you can use dish soap to wash mostly any car! But, it isn’t always the best idea–it works wonders in specific cases, and can be ill-advised in others. That’s why we’ll explain what using dish soap does to a car, and the specific cases in which we ourselves use dish soap for detailing purposes!
What Dish Soap Does To The Paint
Because of the unique properties of dish soap, its effect as a car cleaning agent is also unique. While it won’t damage the clear coat of the car’s paint (unless you leave it to dry on the car), it will strip away everything else. If there is any wax, sealant, coating, or protection on the paint, glass, or wheels, consider it gone the second you wash with dish soap. Without a coat of wax or an alternate form of protection, your paint can then become vulnerable to UV rays, and be very non-hydrophobic. But, this can be a good thing, depending on what you plan to do with the paint after washing.
When To Use Dish Soap
If you plan on adding a new layer of protection to the paint after washing, such as a wax, sealant, or coating, washing with dish soap can actually be a good idea, as it will clear away any old wax that might be clogging up the paint and impacting the paint’s shine and look. Alternatively, before any paint correction, polishing, or scratch removal service, cleaning with dish soap as one part of a full paint decontamination process can help clear the paint of old residue and leave an easy to work surface.
However, if you are simply washing your car on your own, like in your driveway or at a car wash station, using dish soap might not be the best idea, especially without a good drying process. If any soap dries on the paint, you might be opening yourself up to issues such as clear coat deterioration, and will put your paint at risk. And, if you don’t follow up the wash with a wax or coating, the paint is also left bare and vulnerable, especially in areas with a lot of sunlight or harsh weather.
And that’s it! If you’re hungry for more detailing information, check out the rest of our blog, where we explain the ins and outs of properly cleaning a car, and give away our secrets as a mobile detailer, for free! And, if you live on the South Shore or Cape Cod in MA, we’d be happy to help make your car look and feel like new again. If that sounds good, give us a shout here, and we’ll contact you shortly!
