Six household cleaning products that can cause ‘lasting damage’ to your motor – costing £1,000s in repairs
YOU could be unknowingly causing huge damage to your car by using household cleaning products to remove everyday dirt and grime.
Household cleaning tools could be covertly stripping protective layers off your vehicle, and it might cost thousands of pounds in the long term to correct.
A new survey by Autoglym found consumers are resorting to these harmful products: scouring pads, scrubbing brushes, unwanted clothing, washing-up liquid, caffeine shampoo, laundry detergent and even floor cleaner.
Repairing the damage caused by these unconventional and detrimental home methods could be costly, with a typical car respray averaging £2,000 to £5,000.
The worst culprit is washing up liquid, with 48% of UK car owners admitting to using dish soap on their vehicles.
The liquid detergent intended to remove stubborn grease and burnt-on-food, strips the protective layers on the car’s bodywork leaving it vulnerable to damage from the elements.
The survey suggests that some car owners have used scrubbing brushes (12%) or scouring pads (6%) to clean their cars, which scratches the paint work.
But even the 34% that said they used dishcloths, are in danger of leaving minor scratches from tough fibres on the car’s surface.
19% say they have used ‘an item of clothing’, 7% have turned to ‘laundry detergent’, and 5% have used ‘shower gel’.
The annoyance of having to clean stubborn bugs and tar during the car wash process could become easier for vehicle owners, if they used specialist treatments rather than household ones.
Laura Fippen, Head of Technical Services at Autoglym, commented: “None of these household products have been developed with car cleaning in mind, and some of the scouring pads and brushes could even be causing lasting damage.
“The good news is that consumers can quickly rebuild essential layers of protection by using products specially formulated to be used on cars.”
Fippen says using simple preventive measures can ease the burden in future. “Using a specialist car shampoo and adding protection – such as a wax or a ceramic treatment – means removing stubborn dirt at the next wash becomes much easier.”
Appropriate products, such as Autoglym’s Ceramic Wash & Protect (£25.00) is a specialised ceramic car shampoo that delivers a deep clean and leaves a durable water repellent layer of protection.
But even the interior of the car should be treated carefully, giving a powerful clean as well as a gentle one.
Autoglym’s All Purpose Cleaner (£15.49) is a good choice to stop the last resort of left over washing up liquid.
