As noted before, when washing a plane or getting ready to detail a plane, two applications for getting that aircraft clean will apply. The method most of us are familiar with is the wet wash, the process in which water is directly applied to the aircraft either with mild pressure via a pressure washer or a standard garden hose. Wet washing has become much more of an environmental issue in resent years. Many airports are now treating the water that is used to wash aircraft as waste water, thus many airports no longer allow wet washing practices or have established wash racks where all wet washing will need to occur. Please be certain to check with your local airport manager's office for their rules and regulations on washing aircraft.

Anytime your working on an airfield and around aircraft it's always Safety first! Make certain you read the first aircraft article posted here in November of 2004. This article covered many safety issues! Secure the aircraft and make certain it cannot move during your service. Make certain all ports and openings are protected and make certain anything you cover, you remove after your work is complete! Your work should never effect other aircraft or others property. Also, make certain to use caution working on or near both pneumatic boots and bright work as products may stain these surfaces and when working with water and landing gears�pressure washer can cause some very costly damage to the bearings and fittings in these areas. We recommend that you clean and detail landing gear areas by hand to insure you are not causing damage to those areas. Anytime you are using pressure washers near aircraft, keep a safe distance from the surface and always see manufactures advisory for maximum PSI recommended for that aircraft. Pressure washers and aircraft can be a dangerous mixture�use extreme caution!

First lets talk about some of the Products and equipment needed for this service.

• All the prep products and supplies mentioned within the last article.
• Appropriate area to wash while considering all airport, local, and EPA issues.
• Safe and effective ladders/scaffolding or man lifts that are the needed size for the job.
• A good quality wash product that is safe for aircraft finishes.
• A high quality nylon brush and high quality wash mitts.
• A minimum five-gallon wash bucket with a grit guard in the bottom for added protection.
• A painter extension pole to secure the brush on.
• Special paint rated squeegee for removing excess water from surfaces when complete.
• A good supply of micro fiber towels.
• Windscreen cleaner
• A tremendous amount of common sense.

The water you use on aircraft is a very important step. The last thing you want to do is get hard water spots all over an aircraft finish! In my opinion using tap water is a very poor choice and you will need to perform some due diligence on this topic!

Aircraft are sensitive machines and while their paint is tough�it has very weak kinks that can cause damage that is irreversible. Product selection should be a major concern, using the wrong product could not only limit your success, it could cause damage to the paint of the aircraft or worse, damage to the structure of the aircraft.

As noted in the last aircraft article, the initial prep work is everything. Get the dirty areas cleaned by hand as explained earlier and this step will not only make your work turn out much more professional, it will also save you time from having to re-clean areas that you missed!

Your set-up and prep is complete�now where do you start? I start on the high points of the aircraft. This will be the tail section or possibly the wings on a tail dragger aircraft. I pay close attention to wind direction, if you clean the tail and then the wings and the wind blows over spray onto the tail section as you clean the wings, you just created more work for yourself

I like to get the tail sections complete top to bottom on both sides and then move onto the fuselage. This allows you to move to the high points within the same time frame saving you from having to move your ladder/scaffolding or man lift. When you move these items around aircraft it simple means more of a chance for damage so I move as little as possible when within striking distance of any part of the plane!

On a single engine aircraft, I start from the nose at this point heading back to the tail. I prefer to clean the entire cowling area and then rinse! I travel down the fuselage, breaking the body of the aircraft into washable/reachable sections. I work from top to bottom leaving the belly last within each section. Remember, if you performed a good prep, that belly should be pretty clean at this point and you are simply removing the streaks left behind during the prep process.

If you're working on a jet, I start on the rear area, washing the fuselage and engine cells and just forward of those points. Again rinse as you go, don't leave your soap to dry on the surface! I then do the fuselage above the wings and in front of the wings. When working around the windows�never�I mean NEVER brush the windows. Leave the windows for the last stage and do by hand with the correct cleaner(s). Now finish up the fuselage and the nose section. I finish the body then rinse and finalize that side of the body by washing the entire nose section, saving you a little effort once you get to the opposite side of the aircraft.

An important note- When your doing this first side, reach over the center of the aircraft and down the other side a fraction, this will allow you to wash the other side and rinse without pushing soapy water back onto the opposite clean side that you just finished.

Now I work on the wing on that side of the aircraft. I prefer to start at inboard side of the wing on the front section using overlapping brush strokes. I again continue to the wing tip and if solo I prefer to rinse. I then repeat these steps on the rear of the wing�this is usually where there is a great degree of grime. Again I rinse and also I prefer to rinse from the front side of the wing back using the slope of the wing helps. Make certain you do not splatter the fuselage with soapy water, you have already cleaned the body and you don't want to repeat your steps. Rinse the surface again and move to the bottom of the wing.

I like to spray a light amount of water of the lower sections first and if you did your prep, the dirty areas should be pretty clean. Caution should again be used when using pressure washers near landing gears as noted earlier. I again start at the front inboard and work towards the wing tip. Rinse and repeat on the rear sections of the aircraft. The flaps will usually be dirty and smeared with bugs and gunk so make certain you spend some extra time on the flaps and ailerons!

Congratulations, one side of the aircraft is washed�now repeat this steps on the other side and you will have a clean plane! When you have completed the wash this is the time to remove excess water so that spots and dust don not get trapped on the paint surface. On small aircraft or even large, I like to use the California Water Blade! This does a great job of removing water and when used in conjunction with a shammy or micro fiber you can dry a plane quickly. On larger aircraft we like to use a large 30" water blade that have been designed especially for this purpose!

If the aircraft has boots or bright work, I start drying this area first as these areas can be sensitive to water spotting even when high quality water is used!

Now walk the aircraft�get close and touch the surface. Look for any missed spots and clean as needed. This is also a good time to remove any ports or vents that were covered. I have a check off list that allows me to walk the aircraft and check EVERYTHING! Again, don't forget, remove any and ALL covers that you may have applied and inspect the aircraft to make certain all product containers, tools and cleaners are removed from the aircraft, especially on, in or near the engines!