Do we really need two 5 gallon buckets?

I've been thinking about buckets and the usage of soap etc. I have one bucket for a rinse bucket, 5 gallon. It just makes sense to have a large bucket full of water due to dirt concentration per gallon of water, but what about the wash bucket? I've been using a 3 gallon bucket to cut down a little on soap consumption. Any negative effects to this?:waiting2:

 

Nope, not at all. I actually use the bucket from Lowe's for my wash bucket and the bucket from Home Depot as my rinse bucket. I never really use 5 gallons of water for each bucket.

 

I like the 5 gallon bucket size with just a few gallons of water. Keeps everything in the bucket instead of on my feet and the driveway when I am dunking and swirling.

 

I put about 3 gallons of soap solution in the 5 gallon wash bucket, and 3 gallons of water in the rinse bucket. I'm sure most people don't fill their 5 gallon buckets more than 4/5ths full, or else it just becomes to much of a PITA to lug around.

 

I know that a lot of people swear by the "two-bucket method", and I used that method for a while, but I think it's almost overkill. I think an alternative solution is a Grit Guard with the "one-bucket method". I think the "two-bucket method" is also overkill when you're going to clay and then polish after the wash.

 

I use the two bucket method just to be on the safe side. Is it over kill? Maybe. I have always assumed that everytime we touch our paint either washing, claying, qd'ing, etc. we are putting tiny swirls in our paint that will eventually affect the shine to polished out. My guess is the more careful you are , the less tiny swirls you are putting on the paint and the longer time your paint will go before losing its shine. So using a rinse bucket may help you in that case. For those that want to be even more cautious, they will use a foam gun. I know some people who use two rinse buckets, one for the top half of the car and one for that bottom half. It all depends on how far you want to go to put off the need for polishing.

 

You could get a foam gun and eliminate the soap bucket or you could just use the hose to rinse out your media after each panel to eliminate the rinse bucket...just an idea. Sometimes I don't even use a bucket. I will pressure rinse, foam cannon, then keep the hose in my hand as I wash each panel to rinse the media. That's my NO bucket method and it work pretty well.

 

my car only requires about 1.5 gallons of wash liquid when im washing it. I use a 5 gallon bucket, but never have made 5 gallons of wash water. My rinse bucket however is a blue bucket from target.

 

I should have mentioned in my earlier post that I have a foam cannon so I guess that's why I don't see the use of a 2nd bucket. I do only use 1 bucket when I ONR wash still though.

 

I use the two buckets and will keep on using the two buckets. I don't mind It at all...:thumb::dance:...:thumb:

 

I don't use the two bucket method either, personal preference.

 

With the hard clear like on your Vette, you can probably get away with not using the two bucket method. If you had a Honda or an Infinity, you may decide to switch to the two bucket method.

 

That is the oxymoron of Vette paint. It is very hard to correct, yet it scratches easily. Don't ask me why, but it does.

 

I'm with Buddy. The cars I do weekly maintainance washes on I use a foam cannon AND two bucket method because if it's getting scratched its my fault. I feel wierd about charging clients for polishing when I put the scratches there. Kind of ironic, eh?

 

The vette mars very easily as BLK45 has posted so I can't get away with anything. Also I own two other cars and all the other vehicle I owned through my life I have only used the one bucket method. Like I posted above it seems to be personal prefrence.

 

Yeah I never fill up my wash water to a full 5 gallons, just to save soap consumption. Usually 2.5 gallons of wash water is sufficient. Rinse bucket gets filled to the full 5 gallons. Just my preference.

 

I use the 2BM as well, but never fill the buckets all the way up, just enough for me needs.

 

That is strange. My 2000 Eclipse has hard paint but is fairly resistent to marring.

While the hard paint makes it a little hard to correct, I am guessing the hard paint is why I never have a problem with holograms and buffer trails even when I compounded with wool. I wish I could say the lack of holograms and buffer trails is due to my outstanding rotary abilities but I know the truth deals more with the paint than my rotary skills.