The TRUTH about Disaster Details (and why we don’t do them) | Podcast #86

"Disaster Details" have, no doubt, helped elevate awareness of detailing online. From TikTok to KZbin, videos of satisfying transformations have garnered millions of views -- and they've inspired people to detail their own rides as well. The question is, are the techniques in these videos sound?
Far from criticizing those who actually clean nasty cars, this video is a discussion about disaster details themselves....are they common? What techniques can we learn from the videos we see online, and what's best to AVOID? And what to do if YOU run across some nasty mold, or mouse feces -- or old paint? This is a fun discussion and we would love to get your thoughts...comment down below!
Oh, and here's that video about the old patina truck: • How to wash a Patina f...
Web site:diydetail.com/
Podcast:bit.ly/DIYDetailPodcast
Facebook Diy Detail: bit.ly/DIYDetailFacebookGroup
#autodetailing #diydetail #yvanlacroix #carwash #claytowel #detailing #detalingtip #howtodetailacar #detailing101

[@timothyrogers5188]

Disaster detail that changed my life was actually my wife’s car I did this time last year, took me three days to complete. I jokingly started a mobile detailing business, (as a joke, I can’t stress that enough!) to supplement my income and it absolutely exploded into real business for me. I’m a full time Firefighter so I work 24 on 48 off. I detail almost every off day that I have now, with numerous repeat monthly clients. I have to tell this quick story while I’m rambling. I tried your rinseless wash damp towel and my air tool trick on a new clients interior couple days ago and was actually laughing out loud while cleaning the interior of that vehicle. That trick absolutely blew my mind a shaved so much time off of my detail, it is now a staple in my interior details. Did a Youkon Denali XL yesterday, full interior and exterior with decon and your five year ceramic. Took me 6 hours, a year ago that would have taken me two days. Love you guys and your amazing products, thank you for the information you put out and the products you have that are now helping me support my family.

[@diydetailofficial]

Wow, thanks for sharing

[@phishy96]

What i learned from my disaster detail on my silverado, after i finished cleaning it. Spent 3 days almost. NEVER let my kids and my wife back in my truck. Its stayed clean ever since.

[@diydetailofficial]

Lol

[@Pittsburgh-412]

Lmao 😂

[@jamesfitzpatrick1052]

Indeed 😂

[@chrissemsch8781]

One thing I’ve learned since I started detailing is that the dirtiest cars are owned by the cheapest stingiest people.

[@diydetailofficial]

lol that can be true but not always

[@bstewartexecutivecarcare3797]

When someone asks me how much I charge I give them a startling price but I have to see the vehicle before I can give them a closer price. Also I charge more for SUVs and vans than a compact car. Then it depends on what they want done to it, just a wash or full blown paint correction. You guys have given some good advice here 👍✌️☮️

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you.

[@Pack-zi1gt]

I found my way to detailing through Pan the Organizer, and eventually I found disaster detail KZbin channels as well. I found them entertaining but I noticed that I wasn’t learning very much. The techniques they used didn’t really help me. I’m sure there is a time or space for their techniques, so I mean no disrespect to those content creators. But for me, I have not found a need do something like, drench my car electronics in an APC then steam the heck out of everything. My interest in those channels eventually faded as I grew to love detailing and needed to know about techniques, products and efficiency. DIY Detail gave me the confidence and knowledge to polish then coat my own vehicle. Thank you for all the great content.

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you, they are fun entertainment.

[@Juicefree]

Mad detailing is my favorite detailer Hands down ...he is the real deal

[@diydetailofficial]

Excellent

[@ABetterMeee]

The fact that Nick comes from journalism and talks about fake news and content on YT while his headset keeps exposing the fake background made me ask myself one question: in the words of Louis CK, what is the meaning of this?! 😅 All joking aside, all thanks to Nick and Yvan for this great content. You guys have added and keep adding value to the world of detailing. Keep up the good work!

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you. His background without that is a little distracting.

[@jamesfitzpatrick1052]

I just wanted to say thank you for doing what you do. I have learned so much from you both. I'm looking to start a part-time gig for the next few years. I'm looking to retire at 55 from a 37 year career and move full time into detailing. I have been a professional sign and automotive painter my entire career. I am all about the meticulous details. The future looks bright. Sending good vibes from Chicago!!

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you. I will be teaching at Car Supplies Warehouse in April

[@jamesfitzpatrick1052]

Could you be so kind as to provide a link to that class? I am very interested. Thanks so very much.

[@diydetailofficial]

You will need to check their website

[@dancoates3566]

I have a franchise side to my business and I get quite a lot of these booked as a Mini or Full Valet (which means getting them done in 1 or 2 hours).

[@diydetailofficial]

Wow

[@BXGreen]

Great conversation guys!

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you.

[@craigschwent8698]

If you have a paint thickness gauge, what should be your "No Go" depth be, either on single stage or modern clear coat. If you don't have a paint thickness gauge, what would you consider a light test spot for an older car with thin single stage paint?

[@diydetailofficial]

Don’t remove more than 5 microns

[@ToddLandholm-ch2ng]

I’ve had a couple others as well they had a car that a mechanic owned and had oil and grease all over the inside of the car and I was able to clean that car out and I bought a Monte Carlo I took the carpet door panels and seats from a Buick Regal that was in a junk yard and cleaned them up and swapped out from my car and it turned out nice and the seats made the car ride smoother.

[@diydetailofficial]

Good plan

[@felixf5211]

Based on this video, I looked for disaster details. A remarkable number of subs. Would have never thought. I suspect that many are young people. Started watching one video with a car covered in salt slurry. Essentially what most cars look like around here in the middle of a bad winter. Maybe it's a big deal to someone in Arizona.

[@diydetailofficial]

Salt spray can make a car look horrible. kzbin.info/www/bejne/q6PcppioaLOogq8si=w-0qj-Hk3WmfJRQv

[@iam1smiley1]

I've been a detailer for 34 years and love doing vehicle's that need a miracle, not a detail! I keep super low overhead and charge accordingly.

[@diydetailofficial]

Right on

[@jah1952]

Hi, to remove the 5 year coating and reapply with the ‘stack’, would I need to wet sand or can I just use either wool or waffle pad with gold standard polish and do a few passes? Then would it be fine to redo coating or does previous coating have to be fully removed?Thanks.

[@diydetailofficial]

Simply a few passes with the gold pad will prepare it .

[@toddn.3123]

I watched this last night and I was just thinking that it's pretty crazy I haven't gotten a disaster car with mold or something considering I live in the rainy Pacific Northwest. I kid you not, this morning I see a voicemail waiting for me with someone that had a truck at a body shop returned with the interior moldy. If there was spots of mold in a cup holder that's one thing, but I'm not going to attempt to clean the interior covered in it. I know mold can get everywhere, and it would be impossible for me to clean deep under the dashboard or within electronics... not to mention under the seats within the foam. I just gave them a link to a Mold removal specialist that I found on Google. This is the first time I've ever had to turn anyone away, feel really odd, but I know its for the best. That said, I've done a few "hunting trucks" that was pretty close to disaster vehicles. Mostly just muddy and full of shot gun shells. No joke.

[@diydetailofficial]

Good move

[@chrisoo8998]

💯 you are right the others are not educational just for show and it's fake. I had a old car with mould now i know why i used to get headaches while driving

[@diydetailofficial]

Hopefully headaches were the only side effect.

[@stetsonscott8209]

I've done a few disaster details, as I worked as a catch-all employee for a repair shop/gas station. In 2009 I didn't know anything about detailing besides what I had figured out myself, which meant I took the air gun to some really gross rides without a mask. I'm not sure what cigarettes, carpet glue, shoe grime, fast food, dried latte, and cosmetics do to the lungs, but I'm sure it aint great. When it's gross I just tell myself "at least its not the pigs from mythbusters." These days, the repair techs think I look like I'm cooking meth from all the PPE.

[@Pittsburgh-412]

Lmao 😂

[@diydetailofficial]

Smart man, PPE exists for a reason.

[@thejefftompkins]

Thanks for another good video. I like almost all your content, but you do seem to critique your "competition" on youtube. I think this is unnecessary. I started watching the detail geek and he got me into an understanding of how to really detail a car. That led to me getting all the toys to do it myself. I've since found you guys and have been happy to start using your products. You allude to it in this video, but without the other detailing videos, you might not have an army of future customers. Again, love your content and look forward to more tips and tricks. I'll be trying out the stack coating method on my wife's new crosstrek. Thanks!

[@diydetailofficial]

We are not criticizing, as stated in the video, they are responsible for getting many people into detailing, plus they are fun to watch. The point of the video is to let people know that there is more to detailing than disaster details.

[@ktms1188]

Hey you don’t have a the 4000 pad cleaner in stock still? I wanted to buy it from you but couldn’t wait any more : (

[@diydetailofficial]

We have problems keeping it in stock.

[@ATGriz]

I have been selling cars for 17 yrs and some used car trade ins are disgusting inside. Btw just purchase $165 of your goods. Keep up the good work. Beard is looking good Yvan. Getting long.

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you.

[@GoTMLGo1967]

Can the “non scratch dish pad” be used on interiors? Green on one side, yellow sponge on the other?

[@diydetailofficial]

Not a good idea

[@Poconogreyhound]

I have one of these I'm doing tomorrow. sister in law asked if I can fully clean the outside of the her SUV. Don't think she has washed it since last fall. She lives by a train yard so I'm probably going to go through a full bottle of iron-x

[@diydetailofficial]

Enjoy

[@chrissemsch8781]

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES take mould lightly. If you have any lung issues don’t do the job. Your health is more important than a $1000 job. At a minimum us a N-95 or even a half mask P-95 and long gloves.

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you! Safety first

[@grapple2019]

My 1 and only disaster detail, my daughters car. She’s kept it mostly clean since.

[@diydetailofficial]

Sounds like it was worth doing

[@adamcordeiro47]

I'm 5 seconds in to this video but I just want to say I make a living doing disaster details. I detail in Australia and basically every vehicle I do is a massive Landcruiser wagon that has had kids in it and never been cleaned.

[@diydetailofficial]

That’s not what we consider disaster details. Those are rough, the typical KZbin disaster detail is basically an abandoned vehicle.

[@talkingwithcars]

Disaster projects should be done on a time and material basis to guarantee you are not hurt

[@diydetailofficial]

Agreed

[@craigkaeding3203]

Is there gonna be a pre-order option for your new polishers?

[@diydetailofficial]

Possibly, we are seeing if it’s possible

[@super8mate]

Rough pricing for the DIY rotary polisher coming soon?

[@diydetailofficial]

$249

[@cxv6367]

I should have done a disaster vid on my Vett, had mould growing on seats and steering wheel.

[@diydetailofficial]

Mould isn’t something to play with.

[@ocdetailing303]

What color is the mold? If it's white and "chalky" it's actually outgassing from the plastics. Common on SOME Mopar (2015+) and more commonly on vettes 2012-2018 years due to inferior plastic blends. If its not this, disregard

[@jonmadill9001]

Madill F? With Nick? I’ll stick to detailing thanks😂

[@diydetailofficial]

Good

[@1stfrompuertorico568]

Ready

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you.

[@gspam154]

KZbin detailers that use SuperClean on the interior for a maintenance wash (not a disaster detail) make me cringe.

[@diydetailofficial]

Agreed

[@troywasacase5741]

Unfortunately yes but it's always on the inside and in the trunk that's for my disasters are

[@diydetailofficial]

True

[@ToddLandholm-ch2ng]

I’ve done one of the nightmare detailing jobs of a life time. A truck from a feedlot! Manure all over the inside of the truck. It was a money maker for the used car dealership I worked for. So it can be done.

[@diydetailofficial]

Yikes, did you have any PPE on?

[@ToddLandholm-ch2ng]

@@diydetailofficial I used car shampoo and carpet cleaning supplies back in the late 80s I had a carpet cleaner that was able to extract the water out it was a mess.

[@ToddLandholm-ch2ng]

@@diydetailofficial imagine what I could do today with the products that are out there now?

[@jricoc3475]

I've been watching all of Yvan's videos since I was introduced to him last year, via Pan. The content is always must-watch. Appropriately enough, I started blocking guys who use Disaster Details Thumbnails from me feed. If you can't be honest in a thumbnail, why should I believe anything you present in a long-form video?

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you.

[@darryl_quinn]

Hey Yvan and Nick 😁

[@diydetailofficial]

Thank you.

[@unodetailing]

You are great guys but we do a lot of those. We do recovery vehicles, and also we clean vehicles were people commited suicide. BUT we don show videos, we dont expose customers.

[@diydetailofficial]

Excellent.

[@carljackson6942]

You are out of 5.25 inch red pads, will a 6 inch pad work on a 5 inch DA

[@diydetailofficial]

It can

[@TheDesertdawg1]

I would like to hear your opinion chem-x and his detail jobs.

[@diydetailofficial]

Ive never watched that.

[@TheDesertdawg1]

@@diydetailofficial I know it’s not paint correction, but the protection and ease looks worth while. Considering it for my RV.

[@Trance786]

I know one YT channel that yall are talking about lol 😆

[@diydetailofficial]

There are many

[@Trance786]

@@diydetailofficial Can’t say no names lol

[@Erix7810]

I’ve stopped working on minivans. You only lose your ass on them.

[@diydetailofficial]

Not all minivans are disaters

[@Erix7810]

@@diydetailofficial very few mini van owners want to pay 480+

[@bling2332]

Nope. Hard pass on these disaster details. People dont want to pay, or will trash it again within the month. Not worth my time with a busy schedule. Everyone is different tho.

[@diydetailofficial]

Agreed

[@wescat2]

Reminds me of the Hoarders shows. You could tell they were staged after the 1st season.

[@diydetailofficial]

Yes

[@thetriplea6293]

RWD

[@diydetailofficial]

Great

[@dariusiam4all]

First what are you calling a disaster detail? I just did one today. Oh I'm sorry I guess I staged it. You also said they are all the same process... so is what you do. Without routines you fail. Remember that you were a newbie once and you probably started with a disaster job or two. I subscribe to DIY but I'm losing respect.😢

[@diydetailofficial]

We mean the KZbin disaster Details that are done for entertainment.

[@dariusiam4all]

@@diydetailofficial I understand that but

[@TheBreakfastLover]

There's one where a KZbinr somehow "found" a six-figure supercar "abandoned" in a forest. But when you watch how easily it cleaned off with a simple rinse, it was obviously staged.

[@dariusiam4all]

@@TheBreakfastLover Maybe that is what you meant but this video comes across as arrogant.

[@statusquoreject]

Would be great if you guys can do a video on the best PPE equipment to use for dirty detail jobs. Most people will just go on Amazon and buy generic mask/respirators and things and most of them are just cheap made in China junk that don't effectively protect your health. It'd be great if you guys can recommended some proper PPE equipment and brands so we know which stuff out there actually protects our health.

[@diydetailofficial]

Good idea.