How do you wash your plane?

[larryb]

I'm curious as to how the membership washes their plane. Do you do it at the wash rack or in the hanger? What products do you use? What about waxing?

Myself, sometimes I take it to the wash rack. But lately I've been giving it a sponge bath in the hanger because it's faster and easier. Just a bucket of clean water and a few hand towels.

Larry

[bnicolette]

Hi Larry,

When washing the plane I opt to take it outside and use a hose, mild soap and carbonex where needed. However, I generally only do this twice a year. Usually after a flight or if I don't have time, in between flights I will totally spray and wipe the plane down with Meguiars Final Inspection:

http://www.meguiarsdirect.com/product_detail.do?q=4745

I also wipe down the wheel wells with Spartan SD-20:

http://www.sri-supplies.com/sd-20.html

[jetdriven]

I wash it like a car with SImple Green Pro HD and tons of water. Fly and dry. I think these waterless wash solutions scratch the paint with the dirt.

[Wistarmo]

Dri Wash n' Guard. Order their stuff online. Been using it for 15 years. Would definitely recommend trying it.

[jrwilson]

I wash it like a car with SImple Green Pro HD and tons of water. Fly and dry. I think these waterless wash solutions scratch the paint with the dirt.

I'm not positive about Simple Green Pro HD, but I think simple green might be a problem for Aircraft. Could accelerate corrosion, at least according to the Simple Green website FAQ section. Simple Green reccomends the use of their special "Extreme Simple Green Aircraft and Precision Cleaner." Who knows though, could just be a way to market something more expensive for a specialized application.

[JoeSpeed]

Get a 30-50 gallon plastic drum that you can transport with your car or truck. I place mine on an external hitch haul. Then get a low power electric pressure washer. The smaller the better as you do not need much pressure just enough to spray water for rinsing.

With this setup you can wash your plane when you want and can take your time.

[DrBill]

I have a bottle of Simple Green for Aircraft. Several years ago they offered it really cheap as a test and it works well. I still have 1/2 the bottle because I use it sparingly.

We have a young learning pilot who will wash your plane on the rack for $50. He does a good job. I do that perhaps once or twice a year. In-between, I use the Simple Green and some well washed terry cloth towels.

If I have to do it, I move it outside the hangar and only when it's warm.

BILL

[Dale]

I don't like to hose the plane down. To much chance of water getting where I don't want it. I wet a good terry cloth, wring out the water and wipe the entire plane down first to knock off any loose grit or grime on the plane. I then use wash n wax, which is as close to a dry wash as you can get. I spray down small sections with wash n wax at a time and use a slightly damp clean terry cloth to work it in to do the final cleaning and put down a layer of wax. I then take a completely dry terry cloth to buff it out to a nice shine.

I found this product by searching here on Mooneyspace by other Mooney pilots who highly recommended it. I also saw people around my airport using wash n wax and I liked the nice shine it gave their airplanes. I have been using it since I got my Mooney and I have been very happy with it. It is easy to use, does a great job cleaning the plane and leaves a wonderful shine. I also tried their leather cleaner and protector and I was shocked at how clean it got my leather interior. It was unbelievable. Wash n Wax is a wonderful product which is specially formulated for airplanes. They also have many other products for your plane such as the leather cleaner and belly wash. I hope this helps. Good luck..

[DonMuncy]

At RBD they don't allow plane washing at your hangar. Naturally, I wouldn't do anything against the rules. But if I did, I would wait until just before dark on Sunday evening after almost everyone has gone. Fill my five gallon bucket with water from the hose bib at the end of the hangar row, mix up a solution of mild soap and use sponges to wash the plane down in the hangar. Then pull the plane down to the hose and rinse off the soap. Quickly pull it back in the hanger and towel it off.

[231Pilot]

No wash rack at SLC. Plane picks up dust in the hangar in very short periods of time. I have a bucket, a sponge, and cases of bottled water in the 24oz size...only $4.24 a case at Sams or COSTCO, so I buy about 8-10 cases at a time and keep them stored in the hangar. A thorough wash takes about 3.5 cases. I just drop the empties off at the recycling bin on my way home.

[Oscar Avalle]

i use a sponge and simple green. Once every six month I have it waxed and polished.

[yvesg]

In Canada we don't wash airplanes. Two much work scratching away the ice and it kills the paint job!

[Hank]

Aerocosmetics Wash and Wax, several cotton hand towels. No water necessary, leaves a smooth, unscratched surface behind, and holds up well.

[jetdriven]

I'm not positive about Simple Green Pro HD, but I think simple green might be a problem for Aircraft. Could accelerate corrosion, at least according to the Simple Green website FAQ section. Simple Green reccomends the use of their special "Extreme Simple Green Aircraft and Precision Cleaner." Who knows though, could just be a way to market something more expensive for a specialized application.

Pro HD is purple, and is the same MSDS formula as the Simple Green Extreme for aircraft. it used to have the Boeing spec on the label, but they took that off when they introduced the aircraft version. Either way, I would not use the green Simple Green. Vans RV guys use that to etch aluminum before priming.

[Jeff_S]

I don't like to hose the plane down. To much chance of water getting where I don't want it. I wet a good terry cloth, wring out the water and wipe the entire plane down first to knock off any loose grit or grime on the plane. I then use wash n wax, which is as close to a dry wash as you can get. I spray down small sections with wash n wax at a time and use a slightly damp clean terry cloth to work it in to do the final cleaning and put down a layer of wax. I then take a completely dry terry cloth to buff it out to a nice shine.

I found this product by searching here on Mooneyspace by other Mooney pilots who highly recommended it. I also saw people around my airport using wash n wax and I liked the nice shine it gave their airplanes. I have been using it since I got my Mooney and I have been very happy with it. It is easy to use, does a great job cleaning the plane and leaves a wonderful shine. I also tried their leather cleaner and protector and I was shocked at how clean it got my leather interior. It was unbelievable. Wash n Wax is a wonderful product which is specially formulated for airplanes. They also have many other products for your plane such as the leather cleaner and belly wash. I hope this helps. Good luck..

Not sure if this poster was referring to Wash-Wax All or not, but that's what I use and it does a great job. A thorough once-over twice a year, with a good belly scrub using Wash-Wax All Belly Wash during annual when the belly is off and it's easier to clean. For regular maintenance, I just spritz all the leading edges (bug collectors) after every flight or when needed. Having the layer of Wash-Wax All on helps get the bug parts off really fast.

[N201MKTurbo]

If it is bad to hose down a Mooney, what happens when you fly it IFR in heavy rain OMG!

[1964-M20E]

I do not know. My former plane's paint was so poor and it slept outside I never worried about washing. :-)) I guess I need to lear a new routine now. :-)

[Becca]

I wash it like a car with SImple Green Pro HD and tons of water. Fly and dry. I think these waterless wash solutions scratch the paint with the dirt.

By the way, Byron used to be a towel dry sort of guy, it took repeated prodding to point out that for just as much time you could take a nice little flight and get the plane just as dry

[flight2000]

If it is bad to hose down a Mooney, what happens when you fly it IFR in heavy rain OMG!

+1 Had to leave mine on the ramp numerous times in the rain. I do not fear the garden hose...

All kidding aside, I wash mine on the ramp and then use Simple Green in between to help keep the bugs from getting out of control on the leading edges. Easy enough to dry with a few circuits around the pattern. I also tape off the static ports while washing, just don't forget to remove it...

Brian

[jrwilson]

I don't like to hose the plane down. To much chance of water getting where I don't want it.

After I fly somewhere near the ocean I like to hose the plane down well with fresh water to hopefully rinse out any saltwater to avoid corrosion. I spray around in the gear wells and all over, the more water the better. Maybe it is paranoia, maybe it doesn't actually do anything, but I would think getting fresh water everywhere and rinsing out saltwater would be a good thing, especially if, like Dale, you live near the ocean. Just fly and dry afterward. A few squirts of LPS 2 on the easily accessible moving parts and good to go.

[BigTex]

I Generally don't allow water to touch my plane. I'm a big believer in the Arrow Magnolia products. I mix up a spray bottle of their Aero Glaze Dry Wash and then wipe it off with Dupont Aerospace wipes. If I have some really tough spots, I use Carbon-X and it removes just about any hard to remove grease spots. Then come back with Poly-Glide polish to really shine things up. This combination really allows my Imron paint to pop. Just to complete the cleaning, I use Plexus on the windows with Dupont Sontara window wipes.

[Dave Marten]

In the hangar, 5 gal bucket, mild soap, sponges. Towel dry. Simple green for belly. Wax a couple times per year with meguiar's. An eager 4 year old really helps with hard-to-reach places!

[WardHolbrook]

For what it's worth, I'd be very careful about using any automotive or household cleaners that I didn't know the pH of on airplanes. There are some cleaners on the market that are VERY caustic (pH 12+) and aren't something that I'd be using on anything made out of aluminium. Also, be very leery of using pressure washers on airplanes, The pressure can spread lap joints and force caustic cleaner up between the seams - that's not something that you'd want to be doing if you're interested in having a corrosion-free airframe. Not too long ago, Cessna sent out an informational service letter (SEL-51-01) entitled "Standard Practices - Structures - Use of Corrosion Inhibiting Compounds". The product it recommends for cleaning is "Extreme Simple Green Aircraft & Precision Cleaner, or approved equivalent". Just saying...

[Lood]

I wash only when really necessary using a bucket, very soft broom and micro fiber cloths. I like Mequiars' products and I wax and polish about once a year. Using the bucket method, it is actually amazing to see how little water is needed to wash an airplane.

[Dale]

If it is bad to hose down a Mooney, what happens when you fly it IFR in heavy rain OMG!

I don't believe I said it was bad to hose down your Mooney, I simply prefer not to do it. Since I hangar my plane, it is easier to simply take a wet terry cloth and wipe it down.

Prior to owning this m20k I owned an m20e. I found that when hosing down the plane water would gather in the gas tank caps. We always had a problem with the o rings in those caps and they tended to leak. This was more of a problem when we were not hangering the plane. Consequently, i got use to not hosing the plane down and simply wiping it down with a wet cloth. Obviously, water did not tend to gather in the caps or other places when the plane was flying.

Planes are made to take a decent amount of exposure to the elements. However, keeping a plane constantly exposed to the elements seems to coincide with increased maintenance costs and wear on the paint and interior. Hosing or dry washing your plane is simply a personal preference, not a requirement.