I've got a bottle of ECH20 coming for Christmas per the recommendations I've been seeing here.... can't wait to try it. Although I might have to wait til the warmer weather now. Not sure about detailing a bike in a freezing garage.
I've been using F11 but only because my brother swears by it and keeps re-filling my bottle. Seems to work well enough but IMHO feels like a bit of snake oil and WAY too expensive.
Is there anything I should watch out for or do before wiping the bike down with the ECH20? Especially if there's been F11 applied? And, any suggestions for treating the paint afterwards? I've always used just a good Mothers carnuba wax, hand applied.
I'm thinking I'm gonna start between 1:15 and 1:20 as a good starting point.

Thanks in advance!

 

I use ECH20 as my regular wash, and as a detailer. I use it as a waterless wash at 10:1. I find it takes a bit of time to buff it out at this strength, so it get it clean, but I don't buff it out. Then i dilute to 15:1 and use as a detailer and do a quick spritz and it's way easier to buff out to a really nice shine.

ECH2O will do a great job for you and I wouldn't worry about those products on there. It's not a high octane wash like RESET by CARPRO, it won't hit waxes and oils as hard....but if you are using as a wash and don't plan on doing any decontamination, clay barring, or correcting prior, I think you'll love it and you'll love the results....it's a pretty lubey wash....but for a bike, beware, it doesn't do well for bugs, you have to do a bug and tar remover prior if you have lots of bugs

as for temp, I wouldn't do it less than about 40 degrees, I've been reading a lot about temps and detailing products and some are more chemically potent at higher temps, iron removers are a great example....it may be ok, but my min temp in my garage is about 50

last tip.....I use distilled water, maybe overkill, but it eliminates the variable of minerals and iron in the water

 

Sorry... double post...

 

Thanks CaffeineBuzz!
Man... if your bike is any indication of how ECH20 works, I think I'll be happy! So you use it as all three? Wash, waterless wash and detailer?
Any thoughts on what a good sealant or paint protection to use after? Or should I just stick with the wax for now?

 

here's how I understand the terminology

a wash is just about anything....two bucket method, waterless, or rinseless....it can mean any kind of wash as far as i can tell
rinseless means you mix up a solution, like a few gallons in a bucket.... then soak an MF, use the MF to clean a panel or section at a time, but no need to rinse, just wipe dry
a waterless wash is where you'll mix up a small amount, like in a spray bottle, spray it on the panel or section you are doing then gently lift it off with an MF

ECH2O can be used as a waterless wash, which is how I use it as a wash
I can also be used as a detailer

I have not tried it as a rinse-less wash or as a clay lube, but it can be used for all of these purposes

Dilutions:

• 500ml makes up to 2 Gallons of Waterless Spray (1:15) I do 1:10
• 500ml makes up to 3.25 Gallons of Quick Detailer (1:25) I do 1:15
• 500ml makes up to 5.25 Gallons of Clay Lubricant (1:40)
• 500ml makes up to 26 Gallons of Rinse-less Wash (1:200)

As well, there is an Elixir by Carpro that I have on the way.....it's a mix of this ECH2O and a topper....the way I get the story is that it's not unusual for detailers to make their own potions and this one got popular and picked up by Carpro.....I talked to the detailer who helped with the formulation about 2-3 weeks ago for about 2 hrs, I had some q's on a forum like this and he invited me to call, great guy and he was pretty generous with time and advice

It's a detailer for getting off dust and prints only or as a final step after a wash of any sort.

 

I second the ECH20 as being a great product. I use it at the 15:1 ratio, and it works really well, and buffs out easily and leaves a nice glossy shine. For me, it does work well as a bug remover, but my bike is ceramic coated, so even plain old water works okay to remove bug guts. On a non ceramic coated bike, a good bug and tar remover will be necessary, like CaffeineBuzz stated.

I also second using distilled water. I use it to mix the ECH20 in the spray bottle, and I also use it when I wash my bike using the 2 bucket method. I fill a 2 gallon pump up garden sprayer with distilled water (always use a new sprayer that has never seen chemicals, and use the sprayer for this purpose only), and I give the bike a "final rinse" before blow drying the bike with my leaf blower. Works like a charm, never have any water spots since I have been using this method. Distilled water is cheap at Wallyworld, or the grocery store, about 99 cents a gallon last time I bought some.

To the OP, CaffeineBuzz and eaglefan1 are very knowledgeable and are always willing to give good advice. I learned about the ECH20, using distilled water, the 2 bucket washing method, and other good quality detailing products from reading their posts. If you have any questions about detailing, they are the ones to ask, you will never get bad advice from them.

 

Eagle is the man… just not a talky as I am… I’m fairly new to the game… but Eagle is the real deal… he has been a great mentor

 

Thanks Gents,

Very helpful info indeed. Yeah... I first heard about ECH20 from eaglefan and CaffeineBuzz actually. Just looking at better and more efficient ways to take care of my bike and make it look better.

 

Man you guys are going to make me blush.
I have gotten a lot of great advice when I was doing my 5 different steps of audio on my old bike, and the motor work. I just try to help others when I can and "Payback".
Trying out new detailing products is half the fun of detailing, especially when the new stuff works like it should. Always here to help when someone needs it. You guys have put in the work to perfect your craft also. The better you get at it, the more fun it is, to me anyway.

I have a BMW suv M series getting dropped off after Christmas to get coated. If you guys were closer you could help! Guess what color??? Yup

 

So I’ve been using the ECH20 diluted about 15:1 to wipe the bike down in between washes. Love this stuff how easy it is to use and can’t beat the price. Question though, do you think it’s okay to spray on a black engine to use as an engine brightener?