# Fairy liquid, is it bad to use?



## Hondahead1991 (Feb 19, 2011)

Only new to all this but when I run out of shampoo for my car I just throw a bit of fairy onto my noodle mitt.. I heard its too strong and rough on the paint work but wanna know the truth if I'm doing any damage.. Everytime I wash it it gets a spray with demon shine


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## R0B (Aug 27, 2010)

you wont get a good response to that on here im afraid.


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## Hondahead1991 (Feb 19, 2011)

What do you mean? Sorry if it's in the wrong section but I was just wondering


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## ryanuk (Jun 22, 2007)

Not good mate! just get a good shampoo


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## stewartmak7 (Oct 26, 2009)

The fairy strips any protection you may have on the paint and can in time actually dull the paintwork .


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## Dan J (Jun 18, 2008)

it will strip any protection on the paint, and is very high in salts which will dry your paint out and as said above will eventually dull the paints finish. as said above get yourself a good quality shampoo and re-stock before you run out so you dont have the temptation of reaching for the fairy liquid.


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## apmaman (Jun 8, 2010)

In short, no. It's not the best stuff to use because it can eat away at whatever protection your car has on it. Plus its fairly expensive compared to dedicated shampoo's (Well, most!)

However, if you are wanting to strip everything off your car on the cheap it's a good way to go about it, then apply your wax or whatever and use a car shampoo that will maintain the protection you've applied.

So for when you want to get all the old protection off, yeah its ok if you dont have a big budget but I wouldnt use it for washing the car regularly.


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## Tlionhart (Dec 27, 2010)

To give you an example some body shop repairs actually use fairy liquid as a concentrate to T-cut paint work, its aggressive. 
I was always told, if its good on your skin, then its good on your cars paintwork...don't think so. lol


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## Hondahead1991 (Feb 19, 2011)

So it's def worth going out and stocking up on good shampoo then? Thanks for the advice  won't be using it anymore.


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

Nothing wrong with it, it is a degreaser though so will eat away at your wax. It won't rot the car or cause rust or anything like that.


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## Aaran (Sep 18, 2007)

also its a great degreaser before using a pannel wipe on a ca your about to spray  (jsut as long as its not in primer lol!)


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## Tlionhart (Dec 27, 2010)

yep! There are a lot of detailing sites that sell products. Elite car care, a sponsor on here has FAB products for sale. I've been a fan of Chemical guys citrus wash and Dodo juice sour power. They have been the best I have ever used. If you don't want to do that, then Autoglm body shampoo is just as good and is in your local halfords. 
Just a bit of advice, the real cheap stuff in supermarkets or Halfords can strip wax, so its just an idea to spend a little bit more and get results, whilst not taking off a weekends effort of wax. 
If your using fairy liquid once just to strip wax of the car then its not a prob, but as a regular wash it is bad and can eventually effect the paintwork.


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## fizzle86 (Apr 1, 2010)

Get urself to the dublin meet next week! Well worth the trip pick up loads of info there


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## amiller (Jan 1, 2009)

Not sure it is terrible for your paint. All shampoos contain salt at some level even though Fairy gets a bad rep for containing it.

Better to get a good PH neutral shampoo though with some good cleaning agents.

Not sure about Fairy stripping protection either. Probably some of the inferior LSPs, but not the Collinits, Meguairs etc.

:thumb:


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## M4D YN (Nov 24, 2007)

its meant for cleaning dishes,if you cant be bothered to buy a decent shampoo,i would re-think on why buy a car and treat it poorly,decent products are pretty cheap


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## mjd (Dec 18, 2006)

I always have a bottle handy for scrubbing really grubby tyres and trim with a brush. Does a sterling job when used neat and then rinsed off. Never used it on paintwork though.


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## spursfan (Aug 4, 2009)

mjd said:


> I always have a bottle handy for scrubbing really grubby tyres and trim with a brush. Does a sterling job when used neat and then rinsed off. Never used it on paintwork though.


Same here, take wheels off, clean tyres with hot water and fairy liquid, FK1000p on rims, FK108 on tyres and then back on car...job done:thumb:


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## Hondahead1991 (Feb 19, 2011)

M4D YN said:


> its meant for cleaning dishes,if you cant be bothered to buy a decent shampoo,i would re-think on why buy a car and treat it poorly,decent products are pretty cheap


Calm dwn, I Nly use a bit if I'm running out of car shampoo.. I think washing it with fairy isn't exactly treating it badly.. Not washing it at all would be treating it badly.. I don't want stupid advice like urs m8 thanks nyway.


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## Mr Yellow (Apr 30, 2009)

I am not really sure what to tell you guys... 

The company I work for has been formulating cleaning products for 30 odd years. Washing up liquid and hand shampoo for cars are REALLY similar. The two products are often almost interchangeable they are so similar. Admittedly, cheaper washing up liquids will have salt as a necessity to obtain viscosity but we are talking about a couple of percent at most. By the time you dilute this for use it is practically zero - you will find more salt in your water supply.

I am trying to do some enlightening on here because there seems to be a lot of 'myths'. There are a whole load of products out there which play upon these and there are a whole load of products which are making absolutely huge margins because of it!


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## Eddy (Apr 13, 2008)

Get your self stocked up with a good shampoo mate, its the one thing you always need to have some of. Dodo Juice BTBM and Zaino are my favs.

To be fair though, if you ever run out and you need to wash your car, just get some Autoglym from your local halfords, its pretty good stuff.


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## M4D YN (Nov 24, 2007)

Hondahead1991 said:


> Calm dwn, I Nly use a bit if I'm running out of car shampoo.. I think washing it with fairy isn't exactly treating it badly.. Not washing it at all would be treating it badly.. I don't want stupid advice like urs m8 thanks nyway.


now its stupid,cause you dont like it,dont put your self on an open forum then you idiot :thumb:


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## Eddy (Apr 13, 2008)

x12yhp said:


> I am not really sure what to tell you guys...
> 
> The company I work for has been formulating cleaning products for 30 odd years. Washing up liquid and hand shampoo for cars are REALLY similar. The two products are often almost interchangeable they are so similar. Admittedly, cheaper washing up liquids will have salt as a necessity to obtain viscosity but we are talking about a couple of percent at most. By the time you dilute this for use it is practically zero - you will find more salt in your water supply.
> 
> I am trying to do some enlightening on here because there *seems to be a lot of 'myths'*. There are a whole load of products out there which play upon these and there are a whole load of products which are making absolutely huge margins because of it!


Very interesting post, and the bolded part is very true!!

Sponges springs to mind.


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## Guest (Feb 26, 2011)

I've it to degrease and do a full detail, and used it on grubby alloys, and protected after.

The Aldi/Lidl carnuba wax car shampoos are great and cheap.:thumb:

Sometimes I use Johnsons Baby bath. Foams well, smells nice, kind to your hands, no salt, pH neutral and adds a lovely gloss to the car.

Shoot me down if you want, but try it first :thumb:


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

x12yhp said:


> I am not really sure what to tell you guys...
> 
> The company I work for has been formulating cleaning products for 30 odd years. Washing up liquid and hand shampoo for cars are REALLY similar. The two products are often almost interchangeable they are so similar. Admittedly, cheaper washing up liquids will have salt as a necessity to obtain viscosity but we are talking about a couple of percent at most. By the time you dilute this for use it is practically zero - you will find more salt in your water supply.
> 
> *I am trying to do some enlightening on here because there seems to be a lot of 'myths'. There are a whole load of products out there which play upon these and there are a whole load of products which are making absolutely huge margins because of it!*


x12yhp, I have sat out of this thread for as long as possible, and to be fair, there is no point preaching to the converted. You are correct washing up liquid has advanced just as has car shampoo, we all know of people that have used washing up liquid for YEARS on their cars to no detrimental effect.
*To the OP, the real reason not to use washing up liquid vs a car shampoo is 1) car shampoo will be more effective 2) chances are it will be cheaper .
*
Here's the thing this wax stripping lark? It is so easy to try at home on a spare panel, piece of metal, even glass, now then in other threads you may observe members wishing to strip wax from their car for a fresh 'detail', well they only have to run into the kitchen and grab the washing up liquid ...job done? I don't think so 

Don't begrudge people making a profit, the taxes paid on the profits are what keep the economy going :thumb:


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## Derbyshire-stig (Dec 22, 2010)

AnilS said:


> I've it to degrease and do a full detail, and used it on grubby alloys, and protected after.
> 
> The Aldi/Lidl carnuba wax car shampoos are great and cheap.:thumb:
> 
> ...


Ive also used baby stuff when caught out, never found it caused any damage but not sure id use it week in week out either though.


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

Derbyshire-stig said:


> Ive also used baby stuff when caught out, never found it caused any damage but not sure id use it week in week out either though.


Not when you compare it to the price of a dedicated car shampoo :thumb:

Here are the ingredients in Asda baby shampoo 
Aqua , Sodium Laureth Sulfate , Cocamidopropyl Betaine , Decyl Glucoside , *Sodium Chloride* , Glycerin , Sodium Benzoate , Potassium Sorbate , Fragrance , *Citric Acid* , *Sodium Hydroxide* .

Even remembering my basic chemistry, sodium chloride is salt, sodium hydroxide is caustic, citric acid you may find in some wheel cleaners


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## Guest (Feb 26, 2011)

Avanti said:


> Not when you compare it to the price of a dedicated car shampoo :thumb:
> 
> Here are the ingredients in Asda baby shampoo
> Aqua , Sodium Laureth Sulfate , Cocamidopropyl Betaine , Decyl Glucoside , *Sodium Chloride* , Glycerin , Sodium Benzoate , Potassium Sorbate , Fragrance , *Citric Acid* , *Sodium Hydroxide* .
> ...


Thats why I quoted Johnsons:thumb:. Its not brilliant, but better than the supermarket stuff. I would point out also, thats its used very occasionally


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## Chufster (Nov 21, 2010)

I do think that a lot of people here are looking to spend money on their hobby, therefore spending quite a bit on boutique cleaning products, when much cheaper comparable stuff can be bought in Tescos.

Flash APC in a trigger spray, £1 at Tescos, put it in a dark bottle, call it super advanced ****pit cleaner and charge £7.99. Some people would pay and be convinced it was better than the £1 version.

This is obviously not the case with all products and I myself have a cupboard full of Autoglym, Dodo Juice etc.


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## Derbyshire-stig (Dec 22, 2010)

Avanti said:


> Not when you compare it to the price of a dedicated car shampoo :thumb:
> 
> Here are the ingredients in Asda baby shampoo
> Aqua , Sodium Laureth Sulfate , Cocamidopropyl Betaine , Decyl Glucoside , *Sodium Chloride* , Glycerin , Sodium Benzoate , Potassium Sorbate , Fragrance , *Citric Acid* , *Sodium Hydroxide* .
> ...


Must be a strong concentration of the chemicals mentioned as it strips a baby`s skin lol, joking aside for how often ive done it im not worried lol, also there is less citric acid in that then normal hair shampoo most people use, ( I notice citric acid in things as it reacts to my psoriasis)


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## Eddy (Apr 13, 2008)

Speaking of Johnson's baby bath, when I was on the ttforum, it was very widely done on that site, there were loads of members who used it and were convinced it was as good as normal car shampoo.


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## Mr Yellow (Apr 30, 2009)

Avanti said:


> Not when you compare it to the price of a dedicated car shampoo :thumb:
> 
> Here are the ingredients in Asda baby shampoo
> Aqua , Sodium Laureth Sulfate , Cocamidopropyl Betaine , Decyl Glucoside , *Sodium Chloride* , Glycerin , Sodium Benzoate , Potassium Sorbate , Fragrance , *Citric Acid* , *Sodium Hydroxide* .
> ...


OK but this is where a little information leads to a lot of misunderstanding.

1)Sodium chloride is salt. It is probably there at a couple of percent or less. When you put it in a bucket with water it will be at a couple of percent again so that is a couple of percent of a couple of percent... that is 4 parts in 10000. There will be more salt in most people's water supply. So this is ruled out as a concern.

2) Citric acid. Citric acid is one of the weakest acids about. It is so weak that citric acid in pure form is NOT even considered irritant. Chances are it will be present at no more than a few percent (notably because its max solubility is quite low). More than this, citric acid is a key component in fruit. Yup, you ingest it all the time. Lemon juice, for example, will be higher in citric acid content than your shampoo.

3) Sodium Hydroxide. Yes, this is caustic. It is nasty. It will strip paint. BUT, did you look to see how much is in there? Sodium hydroxide is a cheap and cheerful pH modifier. You add tiny amounts in order to get the pH correct. Tiny amounts could well mean parts per million levels.

The ingredients you read about do not need to be present in dangerous levels. Even if you add in parts per million or lower, the detergents directive dictates that you need to state them. Now, looking at number (2) and (3)... your chemistry should have had you realising that one is an acid and one is a base. Chemistry 101 is that acid plus base = 'salt' plus water (in this instance, salt is sodium citrate, which is a good thing, and not sodium chloride). These two added together in the right quantities (i.e. to get a ph between 5 and 9) will be totally HARMLESS.

Analysing is a very good thing but don't do it if you don't know the basics well enough. All that happens is that you scaremonger needlessly.

ps. You didn't pay any attention to 'fragrance'. Fragrances are often based on or carried by very potent solvents. Again, the levels are so low as not to be of concern (from a chemical perspective) but if you want to worry about the things discussed above, you really should make darned certain that none of your products has an artifical fragrance!!


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## Mr Yellow (Apr 30, 2009)

Eddy said:


> Speaking of Johnson's baby bath, when I was on the ttforum, it was very widely done on that site, there were loads of members who used it and were convinced it was as good as normal car shampoo.


Now, inspite of what I have said, it is possible to use different surfactants based on usage. Washing up liquid and car shampoo are both middle ground in terms of sensitivity. They do not need to be really really gentle. Baby shampoo really does. So, for instance, you would not use dodecyl benzyl sulphonic acid in a aby shampoo but you would in a washing up liquid or (non wax) car shampoo. It is not dangerous but it is concentrated and very effective as a surfactant... so it would run the risk of leaving a baby with dry skin.


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

x12yhp said:


> The ingredients you read about do not need to be present in dangerous levels. Even if you add in parts per million or lower, the detergents directive dictates that you need to state them. Now, looking at number (2) and (3)... your chemistry should have had you realising that one is an acid and one is a base. Chemistry 101 is that acid plus base = 'salt' plus water (in this instance, salt is sodium citrate, which is a good thing, and not sodium chloride). These two added together in the right quantities (i.e. to get a ph between 5 and 9) will be totally HARMLESS.
> 
> Analysing is a very good thing but don't do it if you don't know the basics well enough. All that happens is that you scaremonger needlessly.


Been saying similar for ages but people who have little to no understanding of chemicals don't understand chemical compounds and chemical bonds.


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## Mr Yellow (Apr 30, 2009)

bigmc said:


> Been saying similar for ages but people who have little to no understanding of chemicals don't understand chemical compounds and chemical bonds.


This is just one of those things that comes from the availability of information to all. Misunderstanding happens but the problem is when someone is stubborn with that.

A lot of what goes on and is discussed on this forum is very subjective. The chemical reality is not. The chemistry is the chemistry, it is a science. How you use it and make the most of it, that is the art which people on here are so good at.


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## CTR De (Feb 10, 2011)

never put the stuff near my car matey


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## Guest (Feb 26, 2011)

Tlionhart said:


> To give you an example some body shop repairs actually use fairy liquid as a concentrate to T-cut paint work, its aggressive.


I would like to see some proof of that please as fairly liquid is *not* abrasive!!!!!


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## Mr Yellow (Apr 30, 2009)

Did you realise that a combination of air and water have led to such things as the grand canyon and the white cliffs of Dover?

If you are going to buy into all these silly, totally unscientific arguments, I would advise you make sure no air or water gets near your vehicle - between them they have caused more damage through corrosion than everything else put together.


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## bretttf (Feb 25, 2008)

x12yhp said:


> Did you realise that a combination of air and water have led to such things as the grand canyon and the white cliffs of Dover?
> 
> If you are going to buy into all these silly, totally unscientific arguments, I would advise you make sure no air or water gets near your vehicle - between them they have caused more damage through corrosion than everything else put together.


Out of interest what do you use as a car shampoo?
Or which ones do you advise?


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## Leodhasach (Sep 15, 2008)

This is getting a bit silly. I think we've established that Fairy or similar isn't going to melt your paintwork, and most of us here regularly keep our LSP's topped up anyway so it isn't really an issue.

For me though, it's about peace of mind. Car shampoo, in one form or another be it BTBM from a trader on here or Simoniz or AG from Halfords, is cheap enough and plentiful enough to not have to consider using anything else!



G220 said:


> I would like to see some proof of that please as fairly liquid is *not* abrasive!!!!!


Seconded, the logic of that comment confused me.


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## Guest (Feb 26, 2011)

Leodhasach said:


> Seconded, the logic of that comment confused me.


I refused to get drawn in to the whole "good for paint" argument this time but comparing it to an abrasive polish is just nonsense.


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## Leodhasach (Sep 15, 2008)

G220 said:


> I refused to get drawn in to the whole "good for paint" argument this time but comparing it to an abrasive polish is just nonsense.


Exactly, you wouldn't wash your dishes or your hands with T-cut :lol:


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## macc70 (Oct 20, 2007)

Fairy is spot on stuff. My good lady wife swears by it. Oh and it takes wax off


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## Mr Yellow (Apr 30, 2009)

bretttf said:


> Out of interest what do you use as a car shampoo?
> Or which ones do you advise?


We make our own (sorry, for now it is only sold in commercial quantities). Wax based one is based on non-ionics, amphoterics and the cationic wax. The non-wax is the more effective product and ditches the cationic in place of an anionic (in this case SLES).

Practically speaking, after years of fiddling with products, it does not make much difference. Our users tend to be very unbiased, all they care is that it works. If things work they don't complain. On here, people are always trying new things and they are trying to find differences and discover faults. Over all these years of testing and giving products to customers to test we have learnt one thing ahead of anything else... if someone wants to find a difference, they will. Most people will find differences between identical products if you tell them that they are different.

I think I might just give up this attempt at enlightenment.... less hassle and more money to be had!!


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## xcJohn (Jan 23, 2011)

I use really filthy engine bays and arches and such-like. 

The chap across the street from me uses it every Sunday on his two cars. I'm yet to see his paint melt of or something equally as horrible happen. 

I use BTBM, Hyperwash or BS&C personally. Each to their own though!


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## Brazo (Oct 27, 2005)

I can always recall my father chastising me when I was a child as I had washed his car using fairy liquid. His reasoning was it would strip the wax from the car.

Problem was he had never waxed or polished his car (so I later learnt)

I have washed my own with fairy (known as a 'dawn' wash - american fairy liquid) prior to the application of zaino back in 2005. It did no harm

I suspect repeated use could harm trim - maybe?

Either way there are more appopriate products on the market so why not use them?


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