Foam gun, how much product v liquid?

alpha1

alpha1

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If I put a small amount of product in my bottle, it seem that more water is released and the soap doesn't stick to the vehicle. It just seems to run off from the car.

Am I thinking, half product, half warm water? for this to stick to the vehicle? Also, do I give it a little bit of a shake first to mix all together?

When it's nearing the end of the bottle, it just pours straight off, when its not starting to be thick, do I completely stop and refil?

Thanks!
 
Usually it's 1-2 oz of soap to the water. Sounds like your dulition ratio may be off on the gun. You have to adjust it to your liking. I use the next to last on my gilmore gun.
 
I bought the knock off gilmour because I wanted to see if it was worth the difference, so my dial settings are different.

I use 1oz CG MaxiSuds II to 32oz water, I also fill 3/4 with warm water first, then add soap, then shake then gently top with water.

I don't think 50/50 is a good idea, unless you're trying to waste soap.. you didnt mention which soap you were using. I'm sure that could have some function in this.

I use dial setting 2, which is a full bottle per vehicle and I usually end up dousing the front end multiple times as I have some left over, and I wash the front bumper last.
 
1-2 oz of soap added to the water to fill it up. Foam guns aren't the best for clinging foam, foam cannons usually perform better in that area.

Which soap?
 
fill bottle mostly full with water. Add 2oz of product. Shake to foam up. Set throughput to max. Spray. Best ur gonna get.
 
It all depends on the dilution rates of the soap. On my Gilmour I use 2 oz CG Citrus to 32 oz water. For Optimum I need to go up to 4 oz. I've found the best setting for me is #2 on the gun. I also make sure to shake up the solution before getting started. You'll have to experiment but half soap is certainly not necessary.
 
larry33 said:
fill bottle mostly full with water. Add 2oz of product. Shake to foam up. Set throughput to max. Spray. Best ur gonna get.
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:xyxthumbs: Forgot. Good tip. Fill the container up FIRST with water. Then add the soap. SHAKE.
 
I don't add water to the tank, why are you guys adding water? The soap to water ratio is controlled by the dial.


Sent from my Alien ship
 
HD.Detailing said:
I don't add water to the tank, why are you guys adding water? The soap to water ratio is controlled by the dial.
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Incorrect. The "dial" controls the tank to hose ratio. That means if you've set it to 4 oz per gallon, that's the ratio hitting your paint at any given time. If your shampoo calls for 1 oz per gallon of dilution, you will need to put 1 part shampoo to 3 parts water in your tank.
 
This is for the Foamaster? I was unaware of that too and was putting the product straight into the tank.
 
Blade said:
Incorrect. The "dial" controls the tank to hose ratio. That means if you've set it to 4 oz per gallon, that's the ratio hitting your paint at any given time. If your shampoo calls for 1 oz per gallon of dilution, you will need to put 1 part shampoo to 3 parts water in your tank.
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I just put it on A (1oz/gallon).. no water needed and the directions do not state to add water
 
HD.Detailing said:
I just put it on A (1oz/gallon).. no water needed and the directions do not state to add water
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I actually called chemical guys this afternoon after thinking about this question and they told me pretty emphatically that it needs to be diluted in the foam gun. They said 2 oz soap and top off with water. They said do not use it straight under any circumstances.
 
Using Karcher foam gun

foam_bottle_06_litre_karcher_foam_bottle_spray_lance_2641847_7.jpg


I'm using bilt hamber foam liquid:

bilthamber-autofoam-424_600.jpg


I use the setting on max too, shall I be lowering this a bit?
 
HD.Detailing said:
the one I have dilutes it too
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The Foamaster II dilutes the soap automatically. That is: A=1oz./gal., B=2 oz./gal., C=4oz./gal., D=6oz./gal., E=12oz./gal.
Quote "Turn dial to desired mixing rate letter to siphon chemical. This will automatically mix chemical with water at the factory pre-set dilution rate selected on dial." Un-quote.
 
Rsurfer said:
The Foamaster II dilutes the soap automatically. That is: A=1oz./gal., B=2 oz./gal., C=4oz./gal., D=6oz./gal., E=12oz./gal.

Quote "Turn dial to desired mixing rate letter to siphon chemical. This will automatically mix chemical with water at the factory pre-set dilution rate selected on dial." Un-quote.
Click to expand...


That's what I thought but then I called CG to ask them about using Mr Pink in a Foamaster II whIch I had been using straight and they told me that even at the highest dilution the Foamaster II doesn't dilute it enough.
 
fotomatt1 said:
That's what I thought but then I called CG to ask them about using Mr Pink in a Foamaster II whIch I had been using straight and they told me that even at the highest dilution the Foamaster II doesn't dilute it enough.
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You would think that the manufacturer would know better than a soap company. Maybe Mr. Pink is too thick and needs to be diluted.
 
bad information is spread often.. I'll stick with the manufacturer's instructions too.
 
Well since the highest dilution the Foamaster is going to do is 1:128 you have to dilute the chemical in the mixing canister if you want to hit the target dilution ratio of anything higher than that.

Chemical Guys website said:
Mr. Pink is super concentrated for a 1:4000 dilution ratio. This means you only have to add 1 ounce of Mr. Pink to a 2 gallon bucket to achieve a perfectly clean surface.
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Chemical Guys, as usual, can't keep their own info straight. 1:4000 dilution ratio and one ounce in a two gallon bucket are miles apart. Their specifications table lists the dilution as one ounce to two gallons of water (that would be 1:256); that in itself can be slightly different than one ounce in two gallon bucket - there's enough room for interpretation in the words that you can interpret that as being 1:255, not that that difference matters much when mixing up shampoo to wash your car.

The other issue with using shampoo straight in the Foamaster is the shampoo perhaps being too thick to be siphoned or siphoned remotely accurately. I've never tried myeslf, so it may work just fine. But assuming you care about hitting the stated dilution ratio of the manufacturers, this is only going to work for 1:128 shampoos.

I personally like to do the math to hit the final dilution ratio and make premixes for use on the 2:128 setting in general. On any of the middle settings you can also change to a stronger or weaker mix on the fly. I used to use the 4:128 setting for Gold Class, which is a 1:128 shampoo, but making a premix for the 2:128 setting allows you to use less premix per gallon moving through the nozzle - on larger or dirtier cars this means less or no refilling of the mixing canister.
 
you'll have to play around with the ratio/dilution. 3 ounces of soap and the rest water has worked well for me...
 
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