Are you interested in learning how to wash your car without a house? There are options for waterless car wash products that anyone can use! If you’re a quick detailer, this is the post for you! Find out all the different ways that you can use waterless wash products to get rid of those dirt particles and not leave swirl marks on your car!
Find out the best waterless car wash solutions that you can easily do at home! It’s time to clean your own car and make it shine with these simple methods!
This is a sponsored post by Armor All. All opinions are my own. Here’s how to wash car in apartment without water!
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As a child, I loved washing my father’s semi truck. It took a long time to clean, and I had to do right or I’d have to do it again, but when I was done I felt a sense of pride as my father paid me $20 for washing his truck for him. It was also fun to play with the water hose, soapy water, and the long-handled scrub brush.
But, most of all, I enjoyed the satisfaction that comes from working hard and exerting yourself physically, something my father was a great example of himself.
Being a parent now, I desire to develop a strong work ethic in my children, allowing them to feel that sense of pride which comes with working hard physically and doing a job well.
Even though you shouldn’t pay kids for doing chores normally, washing the car is one of those extra chores which can be monetarily compensated as you’d pay someone else to do it normally, too, and I’d love to eventually pay my kids for doing this, all by themselves.
But, right now we live in an apartment complex, so washing our car with a bucket and hose is out of the realm of possibility.
Any outdoor water hook-ups at our current place have the stems removed or are otherwise capped. We also don’t own a hose, because, why would we own a hose?
So, like most Americans in need of a car wash who don’t own a hose, we head to the local car wash station every other month or so. It does a decent job and we move on, though I hate paying for them, which is why my husband usually takes them to get washed, and not me. He also cares more about how our cars look as a big-time car lover.
But, every time we pay for a car wash, it robs my kids, and myself, of cleaning our vehicles ourselves and experiencing the fun and satisfaction that comes with doing it yourself.
Cleaning Solution for the Exterior of your Vehicle
However, I was at Walmart picking up our groceries and went past the automotive section and saw an entire endcap dedicated to these new Armor All products that let you wash your car without water! They are the Ultra Shine Wash Wipes, Ultra Shine Wax Wipes, and Ultra Shine Tire & Trim Shine Sponges which are only available at Walmart.
I picked up all three products, eager to wash my car with my kids! My daughter Alison was especially excited to wash our car, but she’s always been my little cleaning helper.
Before we washed the outside of our big blue suburban, we cleaned out the interior, as it had been neglected all winter and in desperate need of a good interior cleaning!
We flipped down seats, pulled out stuff in the trunk, wiped down the hard interior surfaces, vacuumed with my trusty vacuum in all the little nooks and crannies (which was plugged into my neighbor’s outdoor outlet and an extension cord), and took out a bunch of trash.
My daughters also used glass cleaner on the inside of the windows, and the outside.
It was such a huge a huge improvement when we were done! But, cleaning out the interior of the vehicle took most of an evening and it was getting dark/bedtime, so we did the outside of the car the following day.
How to Wash Car in Apartment Without Water
The best way to wash your car without water in an apartment, where you don’t have a garage, is to wash it on a cool day and wash it in the shade or under a carport, if possible. This will prevent streaks and other marks.
Armor All Ultra Shine Wash Wipes
Then start with the Ultra Shine Wash Wipes, which are large wet wipes you pull out of a resealable package. Simply glide them over your vehicle to get it clean, rotating to a new wet portion as you use it.
We used several for our large suburban (more than really needed as my kids all needed their own wipe and did the same areas a few times) with plenty of wipes left over to use again in the future.
My girls were pretty grossed out by the stuff they scrubbed off:
For dark vehicles, like ours, it is recommended to follow it up with a microfiber cloth to remove any extra streaks, but it wasn’t super necessary for us as the Wax Wipes took care of any missed streaks for the most part. But, there was no need to rinse after using these wash wipes!
Armor All Ultra Shine Wax Wipes
After we gently washed and scrubbed away the dirt and grime with the wash wipes, we pulled out the Ultra Shine Wax Wipes. Very similar to the wash wipes, they are large wet wipes with a protective wax coating you apply to the outside of your vehicle. Per the instructions, we glided them over our vehicle in one smooth wipe in one direction.
After we did our whole vehicle, our car looked pretty darn good! Shiny, clean, beautiful! But, we weren’t done yet!
Armor All Ultra Shine Tire & Trim Sponges
The Ultra Shine Tire & Trim Sponges, which come in their own small packages inside the larger box, are these wet soft stretchy yet durable sponges that are all sudsy and ready to go to clean your tires and trim.
I scrub in all the nooks and crannies of the hubcaps, wiped the outside of the tires, which was super easy with the flexible sponge. I was able to clean two of our large tires with one sponge too!
I wiped the tires down with a microfiber cloth after scrubbing them and they looked pretty incredible once I was done! I made sure to wash my hands afterward, and we were done!
The whole process didn’t take very long (maybe 20 minutes max), didn’t require a hose, bucket, or soapy water to wash our vehicle, and it’s now looking pretty great! And I didn’t even have to leave home to get it done, spend time waiting in line, or spend a bunch of money on a car wash.
Look at that gleam!
I loved not having to drag buckets of water everywhere and the less water consumption is nice for the water bill, too. A lot of people will just take their car to the car wash, but I really think that I do the best job. I might be a little picky….but I have an efficient way that I like to clean.
If I’m able to get the whole car clean in a short amount of time no matter what type of car, I’m down to make that happen! There’s nothing quite like the feeling of a clean car, done in the easiest way possible.
Forget having to buy a ton of cleaning products and use what I used! Be sure that you also have a clean microfiber towel or a microfiber wash mitt so that you can get rid of as much dirt and steaks as possible.
If your car gets as dirty as mine, good luck! I know these products can clean it – trust me!
And my kids and I can take satisfaction in knowing that we did that! We made our car look nice.
As my kids get older (and taller) they’ll be able to wash the entire vehicle by themselves. For now, I am grateful for their help, and the pride they take in a good cleaning job.
If you live in an apartment and want to try waterless car washes you can do at home (and for much less than at the car wash place) then be sure to take advantage of the $2.00 off any one (1) of the Armor All Ultra Shine Wipes from Walmart, while supplies last!
This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and Armor All, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #LessTimeMoreShine https://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV
Christina Stuck says
How was it getting bugs off? I drive 600 miles a week and wash my car weekly mainly because of all the bugs!
Katelyn Fagan says
It won’t be able to get all of the tough bugs and thick mud off. I think those would require something that has more scrubbing powet than the cloth and your hand provides. But it did great for everyday pollen, dust, dirt, etc and some minor bugs. 🙂
Chelsea @ Life With My Littles says
This is awesome! Such a great option for apartment living, and a great way to get your kids involved!!
Katelyn Fagan says
Exactly!! I am super excited about it!
john core says
great
Jessica wiliam says
Wonderful. Thank for sharing useful information that shows to wash car. Now I can know the way which is suitable for my car.
Jessica wiliam says
Maintaining the cleanliness of your car is important not only for aesthetics but also to keep it in good condition.
Jessica wiliam says
Pollutants such as dirt, pollen, bird droppings, road grit, and splattered bugs can accumulate on my car and damage the metal and paint of my vehicle. Therefore, it is advised to wash my car at least once every couple of weeks.
Jessica wiliam says
We know that using car-washing services on a regular basis can be quite expensive. It is a solution to wash cars at home with VERY BASIC tools and products! It is not only environmentally-friendly, but it also has the same impact as water-based washing.