Monday, March 5, 2012

Duragloss 431 Truck and Equipment Wash - Review

Hi all this time round I will be testing Duragloss 431 Truck and Equipment Wash or also known as Duragloss 431 Duragloss 430. I used this product to clean the fuel filler flap, rim holes for the lug nuts and to strip the car of wax and/or oils before applying a coating on the car. I heard that it also can be used to clean off algae and many other uses.  The following is what is printed on the label.


"Duragloss TEW is an industrial strength cleaner formulated to remove dirt, grease, road film and diesel smoke without harming the vehicle's finish.  The non-butyl cleaner is safe for use in pressure washing equipment and is biodegradable."




NOTE: Avoid contact with highly polished aluminium


* Dilution ratio depends on the type of surface cleaning.
We recommend as follows:


a. General Cleaning (1part TEW to 10 parts H2O)


b.  Medium Soiled Cleaning ((1part TEW to 5 parts H2O)


c.  Heavy Soiled Cleaning (Use Full Strength)


First to be cleaned was the fuel filler flap.  All I did was to wet the surface thoroughly then sprayed Duragloss 431 Truck and Equipment Wash directly to the surface.  Then I used a soft bristled children’s toothbrush to agitate and loosen the dirt.  Then I rinsed completely and thoroughly. 

Before Cleaning

Before Cleaning
Sprayed with Duragloss 431
All the dirt is easily removed and lifted away

Using the brush to agitate and loosen dirt

Rinsed and cleaned
Beautifully cleaned


Hinges were cleaned out very well


Rubber seal edge cleaned out well

Second to be cleaned was the holes on the rims where the lug nuts was (the 2 holes in the 2 & 5 O'clock position were cleaned).  With this I did the same as well, I wet the surface to be cleaned then I sprayed Duragloss 431 Truck and Equipment Wash directly into the holes to be cleaned.  Here I let the product dwell for about 30seconds then proceeded to use a soft bristled children’s toothbrush to agitate and loosen the dirt.  I found that the toothbrush worked very well in this application because it was small and flat enough to get the whole toothbrush into the hole.  Much easier than to remove the whole rim to have it cleaned even though it would have been a more through and clean method.  Then as usual I proceeded to rinse the rim. 

Couldn't get the toothbrush in all the way but it cleaned well
Would get much better results if I took the whole wheel off

All wheel holes cleaned

Thirdly Duragloss 431 Truck and Equipment Wash was used to strip the car of any wax or oils prior to any coating.  Previously I used a strong detergent to achieve this but wasn’t so happy with it as it took about 2-3 washes to completely strip it of any wax or oils.  So how I came about to test  Duragloss 431 Truck and Equipment Wash was that it was recommended to me to use this product instead of a detergent.  The first and second test done previously was actually an after thought of “what else could I clean on the car to test this product?”  For stripping wax and oils with Duragloss 431 Truck and Equipment Wash what I did was to fully wet the bonnet the spray an even mist of the product from top to bottom (the instructions did say to spray from top to bottom).  Then I proceeded to wash the car as normal using my normal wash media.  By you using “your normal washing motion” this will mix the product with the water already on the car and strip off any old wax or oils.  Then after rinsing the bonnet you can see that Duragloss 431 Truck and Equipment Wash completely stripped the car and what was left was a large sheet of water on the car which made the car look like it had another layer of clear coat on it.  This was the result that I was looking for, not to mention only one pass was needed and I didn’t have to mix another bucket of detergent to do the job.  Thus the whole process was much faster and easier.  Personally I think this is a great product to use to strip old wax and oils from the car.  Getting it ready for a new coat of wax, sealant or coating.  This would help to ensure that your LSP or coating will have the best chance of bonding to the paint.  I have tried many way to "strip" the car.  By far this was the easiest and most effect way I have found or used so far. 

You can see that the water stuck is alike beautiful layer of Clear Coat

Missing water around the wiper nozzle shows that the water is stuck to the bonnet

I was very pleased with the results of all three tests which was done.  I found that the product was easy to use, it didn’t have strong odors and wasn't too harsh on the hands if used at 1:10 ratio, but this is subjective since everybody has different levels of sensitivity.  But as usual the use of gloves would be advised.  But make sure to rinse well as it needs more water to be rinsed clean compared with Duragloss Ultimate Orange.  Another great product from Duragloss with satisfying results at a very reasonable price especially if you are living in Malaysia.  Highly recommended.  Currently the price for 500ml is RM25.00