Have you ever looked at a leaf blower and wondered if it would dry your car quickly? It may not have sprung to your mind, however, if it has, we can assure you that you are not alone in this.
It might seem like absolute insanity to some, but like a mark of true genius to others. Many car owners may avoid trying this out in fear that the leaf blow could potentially do some damage to their car.
This is a real concern, and very valid, as if you do not use it properly you could do some damage to your vehicle, so it is important that if you do decide to use this as a technique, that you do use it properly.
And, that is why we are here, we are here to not only answer the question of if using a leaf blower to dry your car is genius or insanity, but also to tell you how to do this properly and safely if you do decide to try it out.
To The Point – Can You Do It?
Let’s start off by answering the most burning question here; can you dry your car with a leaf blower?
Well, the short version of the answer is yes you can use a leaf blower to dry your car.
It does have advantages, such as that you do not touch the pain, so you are less likely to scratch the paint, or for swirls to appear on the car.
However, you cannot use any old leaf blower, and you certainly cannot just finish up using it for its assigned job and then turn it to your freshly washed car.
You need to also use a leaf blower that has an air filter in it, and do not point it immediately at the ground, if you do then you will end up spraying dirt onto your nice clean car, rendering the entire process you have just been through totally moot.
Why Would You Use A Leaf Blower?
You may have a leaf blower in your garage, and you feel like you might be able to get a little extra use out of it. You could use it for other less typical tasks, such as this.
Leaf blowers are also often used to clear snow. People also use them to clear lint out of dryer vents.
So, why not use it to dry your car?
On the other hand, why would you? Well, the primary aim of doing this is to completely avoid touching the car’s paint job.
If you are reading this, there is quite a high probability that you are someone who is concerned for the clarity and beauty of your cars’ paintwork.
You also understand the importance of preventing scratches, nicks, and swirls in the paintwork too.
If you didn’t care, you would just leave your car to air dry, or probably use a towel to dry it! God, No!
You see, whenever you touch the paintwork on your car, even if you use a soft and squeaky clean microfiber towel, you will be facing potential risks.
No matter how gentle you are, and what you use, there is always a chance you could damage the coating.
We cannot avoid this when we wash our cars. Okay, if you are a little extra you could probably use a snow cannon to fire the soapy water at the car, but actually washing it… you need to use a mitt.
We usually think this way about the drying process too, as most of us, at least those of us who really care for our cars, will use microfiber towels to dry it after a good wash.
But, deep down we all seek out a way to eliminate the physical contact during the drying process.
This is why leaf blowers can be a helping hand in your garage.
Using a leaf blower will allow your car to completely dry out without even touching the paintwork slightly. This makes scratches from wiping, and paint swirls become a problem of the past.
This is not the only good thing that comes from using a leaf blower; however, these things are pretty quick when you use them to dry your car. Well, it is as fast as using a microfiber towel at least.
Let us not forget you can also use the air pressure from your leaf blower to get access to different areas such as your wing mirrors.
How Can You Safely Use A Leaf Blower To Dry Your Car?
We bet after learning this you will be eager to try it out. The idea of being able to dry your car without inflicting any damage to the paint job is glorious.
So, let’s give you a simple lesson on how to do this!
The simplest trick to this is using the leaf blower at an angle (instead of head on) to push the water off of your car.
There is a method to this ‘madness’ though, you do not want to just push the water around the car after all.
So, start off at the top of your car, on the roof, and start pushing the water down the car.
Next you will want to move onto the bonnet and sides of your car, pushing the water down them.
Do not forget to keep a watchful eye out for any pockets of water that build-up in wing-mirrors, door seals and so on.
Once you reach the bottom of your car, avoid using that same downwards angle, this time point your leaf blower to the side.
By doing this you are not forcing air into the ground which could force dirt, debris and dust to bounce up onto your shiny new car body.
Is Any Leaf Blower Okay To Use?
At this point you are probably wondering if you can use any old leaf blower, just pull out whichever you have in your garage right now and use that. Well, we wouldn’t recommend doing that.
You need to be thoughtful about what leaf blowers will be safe for your car.
Firstly, you should only use a leaf blower which is fitted with an air filter if you are going to use it to dry your car.
Using an unfiltered leaf blower presents the risk of you simply blowing dirt all over your nice clean car.
Not only will dirt and dust being blown all over your car make it stinking dirty, but it could also cause scratches.
That is the opposite of what we are trying to do here!
Also, if you are using a gas-powered leaf blower then you should only ever use this if you are washing your car outside.
Gas-powered leaf blowers produce harmful gasses, and inside your garage there will not be enough ventilation for you to use it safely.
If you are adamant about using a leaf blower indoors, then please, use an electrical one!
Pros
Everything in life will have benefits. No matter what it is, even the use of a leaf blower for this purpose.
So, let’s see what the advantages are.
- Leaf blowers are a fast option. Using this tool to dry your car will always be faster than hand drying it. If you have a high-powered blower and your technique down to a point, you could finish this job in mere minutes!
- There is no contact with the paintwork. Contact with paintwork is one of the most prominent issues we find, it can cause all sorts of problems as we have noted in our discussions above.
Even if you are really careful and gentle, you do risk even the slightest bit of grit or grime scratching at your paint job. Even if this does not end up happening, enthusiastic drying can result in paint swirls.
Leaving your car to dry in the hot summer sun is okay, but this can still do damage, and it takes forever, so blow-drying it is simply the best option!
- Using a leaf blower, you will be able to access otherwise awkward or tricky spots.
When you dry with microfiber or towels, there will be difficult places to reach that you may miss, under door handles, around the wing mirrors, and if you are vertically challenged – the top of the roof.
You might think your car is perfectly dried but suddenly as you drive off, smears appear as the water leaves these spaces. Leaf blowers blast that water from awkward spots, so there is no potential for streaking!
Cons
Wherever there are benefits there will also be downfalls too, nothing is perfect, and when you are blow-drying your car with a leaf blower, there are going to be some downsides.
So, let’s explore these, so you are aware of troubles you may face, and can start thinking about how you can minimize these downsides.
- Using a leaf blower does risk blowing out debris. These tools are made to move leaves around, not to dry your vehicle, so they are prone to blowing out a tonne of dirt.
This might attach itself to your car, thus undoing the whole washing job you just did. They really need to make a blower for this specific purpose!
- The large size nozzle type often found on leaf blowers are not really suited to this type of delicate work. They can be hard to maneuver and being able to manage the direction of the air can be a challenge.
- It is not impossible for you to end up scratching your car using a leaf blower. While they are a great technique to avoid scratches easier. These tools are not made for this purpose, and so, the tips of their nozzles aren’t exactly car compatible.
Meaning, should you accidentally jab your car, you could end up damaging the paintwork.
- Let’s not miss out the most important and obvious thing as well. Leaf blowers really are quite LOUD! They are very noisy, much noisier than using a microfiber cloth! So, you will be putting up with a lot of noise by using these.
Tips To Help You Use A Leaf Blower To Dry Your Car
Now we know that while it might sound crazy, you can indeed use a leaf blower to dry your car.
However, you should be careful about how you do it. You are probably thinking of getting up to go and check your leaf blower now.
But, WAIT!
Let’s give you some tips on using a leaf blower to dry your car first. It is essential that you have all the information you need to be able to do this properly and safely.
- If you are going to use a leaf blower for this, you need plenty of power in it. This is why it is best to use a blower that has a good 200mph wind speed. If you do not, it won’t give you a sufficient wind force to do this.
- Before you whip out the old leaf blower, consider a quick rinse and dry. If your car is very dusty, try saving time by giving it a hose down and then using a leaf blower. You will be able to remove any lingering dust without having to use a sponge, and it is fast too!
- Before you get started, make sure that the blower’s air filter on the inside is clean otherwise you will just be blowing more dust all over your nice clean car.
- Some of us have corded leaf blowers, if this is the case, be cautious, and maybe get someone to help you out. The cord could easily drag over your car as you use it and scratch up your paint job.
Also, some leaf blowers are backpacked, if you use this, make sure you do not bash it into your car as this can result in scratches too!
- Get some good ear muffs, you want to protect your ears when you are using one of these. These machines are very loud and while you might not find the noise too bad, over time being around this too much noise can damage your ears.
Don’t sacrifice your hearing for a clean car!
- Only clean your car during the day, of course, it really is your decision when you decide to do this, but it is un-neighborly to decide to whip out a loud leafy blower in the middle of the night to start blow-drying your car.
Try to use this during a time of day when you won’t be risking creating enemies out of your neighbors.
- Always be vigilant of areas on your car where water might collect and hide. Leaf blowers are great at getting all those sneaky water droplets out, but you should always double-check crevices under handles and wing mirrors.
It is best to avoid streaking later on.
- Finally, do not use your leaf blower pointing it at the ground, you do not want to rise any dust or dirt onto your nice clean car. While your floor might not look dirty, it could be covered in dust just waiting to coat your still-damp car.
Prevent this best by either only using your blower on a wet floor or with it pointed at an angle so that it doesn’t whip any dust up. For a double measure, have a wet ground and point it at an angle!
To Conclude
Yes, it sounds totally crazy, but in fact, the concept of using a leaf blower to dry your car may not be as insane as it may sound.
While this tool is not actually made to do this job, it can do it very well, and will make a quick job of it.
Give it a go, but make sure you are cautious and use this correctly, you do not want to be doing any potentially avoidable damage to your car!
