Alright, so the other day I walked out to my car and, what do you know, a lovely shade of green was starting to creep up on the window seals and a bit on the paintwork near the trunk. Moss! My car tends to sit under a big ol' tree, especially when the weather's been damp for a while, so I guess I shouldn't have been too surprised. It wasn't a crazy amount, but enough to make me think, "Right, that needs sorting before it gets any worse." I definitely didn't want it messing with the paint or the seals.

Gathering My Stuff

I didn't want to go too wild with harsh chemicals, especially on the paint. So, I decided to keep it simple. Here’s what I rounded up:

• A bucket of warm water.
• Some regular car wash soap – the kind I always use.
• A soft brush – one of those with fairly gentle bristles, nothing that would scratch.
• An old microfiber cloth.
• And the trusty garden hose for rinsing.

I figured that lot should do the trick without any drama. The main thing is being gentle, right?

Getting Down to Business

So, first things first, I gave all the mossy areas a good soaking with the hose. The Pre-Soak, I call it. My thinking is, let the water start to loosen that moss up a bit. I let it sit for a few minutes, just to give it a chance to work its magic. You could see the moss already looking a bit less stuck on.

Next, I mixed up my car wash soap in the bucket and dipped my soft brush in. Then came the Gentle Persuasion part. I started scrubbing the mossy bits. I didn't go at it like a maniac, just gentle, circular motions. The key is to let the soapy water and the brush do the work. On the paintwork, I was extra careful. For the window seals, I could be a tiny bit firmer, but still, no heavy pressure.

Most of it started to lift pretty easily, especially after the pre-soak. There were a couple of slightly more stubborn patches, but I just applied a bit more soapy water, let it sit for another minute, and then went back with the soft brush. Patience is your friend here, trust me. I avoided any temptation to grab something sharp to scrape it – that’s just asking for trouble with your paint.

Step 3: The Rinse Off. Once I was happy that all the green gunk was loose, I grabbed the hose again and gave everything a thorough rinse. Made sure to get all the soap residue and bits of moss off the car. It’s quite satisfying seeing all that green stuff wash away!

I then gave the whole car a quick wash, just because, and dried it off with a clean towel to stop water spots. The areas where the moss was looked much better.

The Aftermath and Some Thoughts

And there you have it! The car looked a whole lot cleaner, and no more unwelcome green patches. I was pretty pleased with how it turned out, especially since I just used basic stuff. It didn't take too long either, maybe half an hour all in for the mossy bits.

I reckon the main thing to prevent it coming back too quickly is to try and park away from damp, shady spots if possible, or at least wash the car a bit more regularly, especially those nooks and crannies where moisture likes to sit. Keeping an eye on it and tackling it early is way easier than letting it take hold.

So yeah, that was my little moss-busting session. Pretty straightforward, really. Just need a bit of time and some gentle effort.