There are many factors that contribute to exterior wash product selection. Are your trailers painted, aluminum, stainless steel, or even FRP cladded? Will you clean tractors with polished aluminum, or only fleet rigs? Are there limitations imposed by wastewater treatment facilities? Rather than change anyone’s method of operation, we offer products that excel in any area of washing, regardless of methodology.

One Step Trailer Cleaner

John-Henry NO DOUBT® is truly a one-step stainless trailer cleaner for all but polished aluminum. Unlike most acid aluminum brighteners, this product is buffered, allowing for spectacular washes at a safe pH. When applied to stainless steel surfaces, there is no need to rinse off quickly so as to prevent rusting. In fact, you can walk away from the trailer after applying the product, and pressure wash it later.

NO DOUBT can also be used to clean tractors – same conditions apply as above, but with one more. Glass surfaces must be cool, or preferably in shade/under roof, when washing. Dilutes up to 9:1 with water.

Aluminum Brightener Acid

While several variants of this type of product exist in the wild, let’s narrow the discussion to transportation cleaning, and more specifically to tank cleaning. There are generally two types of aluminum brighteners used, with the essential acidic components as follows:
1. Ammonium Bifluoride / Sulfuric Acid
2. Hydrofluoric Acid / Phosphoric Acid

John-Henry ALUMINUM BRIGHTENER® is a true HF/Phos Acid product (as in #2 above). The materials selected for this prestige formula deliver extra-fast wetting and penetration while reducing etching on aluminum surfaces. This product is also very concentrated, with up to 50:1 dilution.

John-Henry LUMINATE® is similar to Aluminum Brightener, but even more concentrated and higher foaming.

Exterior Detergent

John-Henry offers a variety of alkaline exterior wash products, each one designed for a specific purpose.

Pre-Soaks are designed to wet and penetrate soils rapidly, as they will not spend much time on the surface being cleaned. John-Henry BRUSHLESS® is a stellar performer in this arena. When excessive oily residues accompany road dirt, John-Henry T-N-T® (truck and trailer wash) does the job.

Bug Removers are also Pre-Soaks, as they perform best when allowed to stand for a while prior to pressure washing. They have but one job – that is to begin to solubilize or emulsify crusted critters. John-Henry MAXIM® gets the job done.

Degreasers, as the name implies, go a step further in soil removal. Hydrocarbons do NOT react to high alkalinity or caustics, as do animal fats and vegetable oils. Thus, alkaline detergents such as pre-soaks and bug removers, perform poorly as degreasers. John-Henry MAGNUM® offers spectacular emulsification properties, as well as a high glycol ether (butyl) content for solubilizing oil residues. For applications where you absolutely must have that old school “caustic and butyl,” use John-Henry YARD DOG®

Two-Step Washing is generally defined as the application of an acidic surface prep, followed by an alkaline detergent, then a pressure rinse. There are several application methods, but the effect is the same. The most popular method is the application of acid ALUMINUM BRIGHTENER®, followed by an alkaline detergent, such as BRUSHLESS®. Typically, concentrates are pre-mixed, and applied by low pressure devices, then allowed to stand for a few minutes before pressure washing.

When using specialized pressure washers or tunnel drive-thru systems, chemicals are applied at much higher dilution rates, minimizing chemical costs and increasing efficiency (faster washes). For these applications, exceptional performance and economy is achieved with JOHN-HENRY #1 and JOHN-HENRY #2.

Do you have a client that needs some serious wowing? John-Henry WASH-N-WAX® is a foaming bucket wash and wax product with superior water beading properties. Just 4 oz per gallon leaves a durable wax-like finish.

Not done yet? Impressing a client, that is… Spray down and wipe your tires with John-Henry TIRE BRIGHT®. This amazing 20% Silicone fluid is fast-drying and leaves a show-stopping gloss. Apply more than once to build up the silicone content!!

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