Dust On, Dust Off

Keeping a tow vehicle or dinghy clean can be a never-ending battle. Wash the truck one day and by the time you reach your destination, it’s dirty again. So, out comes the bucket and microfiber towels and after an hour or two, the paint is shiny clean. But what if the only “blemish” is dust? Car buffs who display their prized vehicles at shows always have mega-expensive paint jobs and they know that keeping the dust off is important. Most turn to a California Car Duster (calcarduster.com) for quick touch ups. It works well when removing the thin layer of dust on your tow or dinghy vehicle between trips, and can actually work on the RV, although there’s way more area to cover.

The California Car Duster has been around since 1989, and it’s the one everyone wants to copy. Typically, knock-offs commonly found online and at discount stores are not very effective, and those owners who are knowledgeable about car detailing overwhelmingly turn to the Original California Car Duster.

Dust is lifted off the surface by 100% cotton strands that have a special wax baked into the fibers. These strands of red-colored cotton will last a long time and, as a matter of fact, the company says the duster will pick up more dust as the strands get dirtier. It’s possible to wash the strands, but the company also recommends against it. If you insist, wait until the strands only move the dust around. Then you can wash with soap and water, but the process will degrade the effectiveness of the duster. Trust me, the duster lasts long enough to amortize the small investment in buying a new one and the cost is worth the convenience afforded by fewer washing sessions.

I’ve been using the Original California Car Duster with a plastic handle (part #62443) for years and it seems to be large enough to clean my Ram 3500, dual-rear-wheel truck; it sells for $20.99. The duster can also be purchased with a wooden handle (#62442) for $27.99. I’m going to replace my current duster with the X-Large California Super Duster (#62557, $32.99), which has a wooden handle and is 30 inches long; the extra reach and larger mop head will make it more practical to cover the hood and roof of the truck as well as RV sidewalls.

Recently, the California Mini Duster caught my attention. It’s perfect for dusting dashboards and instrumentation, which otherwise requires reaching into the nooks and crannies of the dash with a towel, which most times just pushes the dust around. The Mini Duster (#62447) has a plastic handle and is 12 inches long — but the mop head is only 7 x 5 inches, which is small enough to reach into tight quarters. It’s also perfect for dusting mini blinds inside the RV. Basically, if there is dust in small places, the Mini Duster will reduce the effort by leaps and bounds. If you want the version with a wooden handle (#62446), the price jumps from $12.99 to $14.99. All the dusters come with carry bags.

One place the Original California Car Duster really comes in handy is for cleaning the top of the roll-up bed cover on my truck. I prefer not to roll up the dust when opening, so between washings I clean the material with the duster; it works like a champ. It only takes a few minutes to cover the big dually truck from top to bottom. If you appreciate driving clean vehicles, you’ll want a California Car Duster in your cleaning kit.