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Only just come across this. Does it make car cleaning easier?
Snow foam is really a pre wash treatment, it will clear a lot of the dirt but certainly not all of it so your car will still need to be washed afterwards to make it clean. Its ok to use and pretty good fun but for the cost of the lance and a good snow foam i dont think its worth it plus you need a pressure washer. You are better off buying a degreaser and a garden sprayer to apply it with.
Depends on how often you wash.
Go have a good nose around detail world forum.
Sheepskin mit, 2 bucket wash, clay, sealants, waxes etc
Go have a good nose around detail world forum.
Wow. I thought we were a bit odd for obsessing about push bikes, but these guys actually obsess about washing cars....
I don't bother with it.
Valet pro citrus prewash as a start, mix it with warm water for a better clean. Spray on. Leave it on 10 mins and the jet wash off.
As far as I can tell, snow foam does the same but it looks fancy when you snow the car. Other than that I don't know what the difference is really.
Some people will snow foam then pre-wash - seems overkill to me.
Detailing world is your friend if you can be bothered to read the thousands of posts on the subject.
Oh yeah forgot to add, you'll need a lance for the foam which can be expensive, whereas I got a 3 litre pump sprayer from Wilkos for 4 quid for the pre wash.
It is easier washing a car if the paintwork is in tip top condition. I used to use a clay bar to prepare the paintwork but now use a Farecla G3 Clay Mitt (£12.99) After using that your paintwork will be incredibly smooth. Makes washing car much easier.
Its not just as easy as claying though as you have to get it properly clean before you clay. And whatever you do dont drop the clay.. if it goes on the floor under no circumstances put it back on the paintwork.
Gather up your OCD and go to detailing world.
OK. Car is new to me and the most expensive thing I've ever bought (other than a house) so it seems right that I should at least try and keep it looking good.
The problem is that we live in the sticks and 20% of the traffic on the road to our house is tractors!
I've already got a power washer I'm just looking for a reasonable way to keep the cars fairly clean (new one will probably get a proper wash every 4 weeks in the winter). I've got better things to do than spend hours cleaning the car with a cotton bud 🙂
Just looking for the best result from 20 mins work.
I use the Autobrite snow foam lance on a Nilfisk pressure washer and Autobrite magifoam.
The idea is the same as cleaning a bowl with dried porridge/weetabix on it – do you put it in the sink and immediately start scrubbing? No, you immerse it in some water for a while and then come back later and just wipe the softened food straight off.
The problem with a car is that you can’t immerse it and plain water just runs straight off the vertical surfaces. So… foam.
You still have to rinse the snow foam off (carrying with it the worst of the stuck on crap) and wash as normal.
I used to use clay bars, waxes, ph neutral shampoos etc but not only is it bloody expensive, but time consuming when i'd much rather be out on my bike. I think it may be different if I had a garaged weekend car.
If you already have a pressure washer I would try using TFR (Traffic Film Remover) in the detergent tank. I normally mix it 1 part TFR to 3 parts water but just follow the instructions on the bottle and go from there. It's pretty cheap too - I think I got 4 bottles for £8 from screwfix. Just spray it on in low pressure mode and then blast it off a few mins later.
It will never be as good as a proper clean but it's pretty good as an in-between washes method.
For a full bodywork detail, once a year I:
1) pressure wash as above;
2) shampoo with a sponge, rinse and dry with a microfibre cloth;
3) clay bar;
4) polish; and
5) wax.
All in that's about 7hours... Neighbours think I'm ******* mental, but afterwards the whole car is like a sheet of glass and looks as if it just come out the factory.
For a normal wash I use Autoglym aqua wax and I can only describe it as magic in a bottle. Just spray it on after rinsing and before you dry the car and you'll get 90% of the results of a proper polish and wax.
All in that's about 7hours...
aaannnnddddd I'm out
All in that's about 7hours... Neighbours think I'm ******* mental
No sti7?!
Good info though thanks. think I may go the traffic film remover route to start with before spending on a foam lance.
Haha! The GF asked if I would do her car afterwards as well... I did not.
Wifes car gets clay barred twice a year. As its only a fiat 500 the times are a bit less than the 7hrs above. I have access to workshop facilities and cleaning products but mine goes
1) TFR spray allround
2) General wash using lance
3) Hand wash using 2 x bucket method
4) General wipe down with microfiber cloth
5) Clay bar each panel at a time
6) Polish - Autoglym super resin polich
7) Wax finiah of whatever wax I am using at the time.
Usually takes me 4-5hrs.
Then I take it indoors and put it on the ramps and give the underside a wipe down and make sure the waxoil I applied when new is all still protecting.
Its a fiat, what more can I do to make it last 😉
I wouldn't use the TFR as a general cleaner. It takes everything off your paintwork (Not quite as much as clay bar). You will end up with very dull paint if you use that all the time
Ahhhh.... right 😐
[i]but these guys actually obsess about washing cars...[/i]
[i]Those[/i] guys, you were saying...? ^^^ 😯
Guy at work using snowfoam, looks awesome when it's pluming out the cannon, seems to do a very good job.
here my step by step guide.
1. go to cashpoint - withdraw £5.00
2. drive to local hand car wash location
3. hand £5.00 to man
4. listen to radio 4
5. drive home
6. repeat once every 3 months.
Agree that you have to be careful with TFR - i.e. get the strength correct and don't spray onto baking hot alloys or bodywork. However I reckon the majority of those hand car wash places will have a healthy dose of TFR in the pressure washer tanks.. At least if you do it yourself you are in control.
That Clay Mitt looks brilliant.
Think I'll add that to be cleaning product collection
I think some people have reported that TFR can attack your window seals/rubbers with strong concentrations/ repeated use.
Keeping your car clean is all in the prep. You need to put in 2 or 3 serious cleans per year and get the paint spotless, clayed and well sealed. Its much harder for the dirt, mud and crap to stick to well clean paintwork and also much easier to wash off.
There was a time when i didnt have children...
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I use a couple of sponges on the end of a couple of Poles to wash my car....
DrP
I use a couple of sponges on the end of a couple of Poles to wash my car....DrP
Do they have to be polish or will any eastern european do?
Yep, £12, nearest car wash and they'll do the inside as well. Mind you, I do 60miles a day on B roads, and Ill give the car back at 3yrs old so I'm not too worried!
Cloud nine.... The gag doesn't really work if one is truly politically correct!
DrP
Gag would work better if one truly understood grammar.
Brilliant...
🙄
DrP
Just for closure I thought I'd update this.
Against my I ventured over to Detailing World - I really wish I hadn't 😳
My god that lot really do need to get out a lot more!
BUT, that said they are a very knowledgable bunch if you want to learn the best way to clean your [s]dust caps[/s] car and as of today I'm £50 worse off but in return I have received some Bilt Hamber Auto Foam and a foam lance for my power washer!
Just in case any of you were interested, I sprayed said AF (see I got the lingo) on two cars that had not been cleaned for a couple of weeks (and covered in country lane mud), left it for 5-10 mins then blasted off with the power washer. Result: 90% clean cars with no touching.
I am impressed 🙂