Foam sprayer vs regular sprayer

[acuRAS82]

Can anyone fill me in with their experience of the foam sprayers (such as IK 1.5) versus the regular sprayer? Is there any real purpose to have both? What is the foam sprayer really meant for?
I got the IK 1.5 foam sprayer recently. I had planned on using it for wheel cleaners (Mckees Foam Wheel Cleaner). But then I realized with winter coming, it would be nice to not have to pull a trigger 100 times when I pre-soak for RWs. So I tried the foam sprayer will WG Uber in QD dilution and I guess it sort of worked. I wouldn’t call it a foam, but it spewed the solution out as I pumped. I wouldn’t call it a great spray of the stuff, but eventually got the job done.

It’s unclear to me if the normal sprayer would greatly outperform the foam sprayer for non-foamy solutions (about 98% of the solutions I use). IK says it can be used with any product. but obviously the more soapy products like APCs are going to perform better.

Will I see any real benefit dropping another $30 for the regular sprayer and letting this foam thing collect dust, or should I just ride the foam-train through winter even if it’s not the best performing RW pre-soak sprayer?

 

[Finick]

I bought both of them at the same time. I like the foamer for cleaning wheels and tires (I imagine most people that buy it have it for this purpose.)

The regular 1.5 is nice, but I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily worth 30 dollars if you’re just looking for something that’ll get the job done. I had a cheap one from Home Depot (7 bucks or something) that got the job done just fine.

The IK 1.5 has a nicer spray pattern, and that’s about it. The cheap one feels every bit as sturdy. The nicer spray pattern was worth it, to me.

But if you’re not that worried, just grab a cheap one. They work fine, and they’ll last awhile if you just use something like a rinseless wash in them.

Alternatively, I also have the worx hydroshot which is a nice little tool for if the car is dirty when it’s cold out. I wouldn’t wash my car with it (takes too long) but i specifically bought it to blast off gunk during the winter with ONR and to clean my wheels/tires when the hose is turned off.


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[fightnews]

Can anyone fill me in with their experience of the foam sprayers (such as IK 1.5) versus the regular sprayer? Is there any real purpose to have both? What is the foam sprayer really meant for?
I got the IK 1.5 foam sprayer recently. I had planned on using it for wheel cleaners (Mckees Foam Wheel Cleaner). But then I realized with winter coming, it would be nice to not have to pull a trigger 100 times when I pre-soak for RWs. So I tried the foam sprayer will WG Uber in QD dilution and I guess it sort of worked. I wouldn’t call it a foam, but it spewed the solution out as I pumped. I wouldn’t call it a great spray of the stuff, but eventually got the job done.

It’s unclear to me if the normal sprayer would greatly outperform the foam sprayer for non-foamy solutions (about 98% of the solutions I use). IK says it can be used with any product. but obviously the more soapy products like APCs are going to perform better.

Will I see any real benefit dropping another $30 for the regular sprayer and letting this foam thing collect dust, or should I just ride the foam-train through winter even if it’s not the best performing RW pre-soak sprayer?

Yes 100%. I have a bunch of the regular ones. They're great they have different tips for different spray patterns. So much better for any type of waterless wash type products. I have a foamer too. It does make great foam with a lot of products but I really don't see the point?

Like you mentioned the foaming gel wheel cleaner. What good does it do to foam it? I feel it would work way better as the thick liquid it already is. I put some pad cleaner in it recently. It foamed it up great but the foam just doesn't work as good as the liquid on pads. The only reason I could see someone buying one is if the don't have a foam gun or cannon whatever and they want to spray some foam soap on the car before bucket washing.

 

[fightnews]

I bought both of them at the same time. I like the foamer for cleaning wheels and tires (I imagine most people that buy it have it for this purpose.)

The regular 1.5 is nice, but I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily worth 30 dollars if you’re just looking for something that’ll get the job done. I had a cheap one from Home Depot (7 bucks or something) that got the job done just fine.

The IK 1.5 has a nicer spray pattern, and that’s about it. The cheap one feels every bit as sturdy. The nicer spray pattern was worth it, to me.

But if you’re not that worried, just grab a cheap one. They work fine, and they’ll last awhile if you just use something like a rinseless wash in them.

Alternatively, I also have the worx hydroshot which is a nice little tool for if the car is dirty when it’s cold out. I wouldn’t wash my car with it (takes too long) but i specifically bought it to blast off gunk during the winter with ONR and to clean my wheels/tires when the hose is turned off.


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I have to strongly disagree. I don't know the cheap ones from the home depot but the cheap ones I got before the IK stink. One of them stopped spraying completely after one use. For me the IK's are no comparison to the cheaper ones.

 

[Finick]

Yes 100%. I have a bunch of the regular ones. They're great they have different tips for different spray patterns. So much better for any type of waterless wash type products. I have a foamer too. It does make great foam with a lot of products but I really don't see the point?

Like you mentioned the foaming gel wheel cleaner. What good does it do to foam it? I feel it would work way better as the thick liquid it already is. I put some pad cleaner in it recently. It foamed it up great but the foam just doesn't work as good as the liquid on pads. The only reason I could see someone buying one is if the don't have a foam gun or cannon whatever and they want to spray some foam soap on the car before bucket washing.

The only time foam is more beneficial (imo) is when it allows a product to dwell longer than it otherwise would. I’d imagine something like M37 wheel cleaner is to vicious to work great inside the foamer. Thin products tend to work best.

I also find it easier to get quicker and more even coverage with the foamer, with less hand fatigue. I could use a regular pump sprayer (I’ve tried) but they eat up a ton of product very fast.

But power clean 10:1 in the ik 1.5 makes for a great maintenance cleaner. The foam clings and lets it work before I agitate it. Brake buster is also a popular choice.

Of course, you could make the point that if I’m going to agitate why does it matter? I’d say it probably doesn’t. But I’m going to use a pump sprayer either way, so I opted for the foam one.

One of my favorite things about the foamer is that it eliminates the atomization of the product when I spray it, so I’m not worried about holding my breath or breathing in whatever I’m spraying. To me, that’s the biggest benefit. Just a quality of life thing.

I have to strongly disagree. I don't know the cheap ones from the home depot but the cheap ones I got before the IK stink. One of them stopped spraying completely after one use. For me the IK's are no comparison to the cheaper ones.

Luck of the draw, I guess. I tend to not have issues with any of my stuff. I still have the original sprayer that came with my wheel brightener bottle. Two years later and still spraying.

In terms of build quality I noticed no real difference in the body between them, just the better spray pattern on the IK.


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[SWETM]

The benefit as I see it is the longer dwell time with foam solution. But in the winter months it's not so much needed IMO. To get the wheel wells and tires I can use a foam pump pressure spray bottle. Otherwise a regualar one is what I prefer. With a foamer you need to be doing much more of pumping than with a pump pressure spray bottle. As you use the air in the bottle to also create the foam. And if where to use a WW or RW I don't see any benefit with useing a foamer with those solutions. But with a quality pump pressure spray bottle you get it evenly coverage and much easier to use than a spray bottle or foamer. It usually covers the surface faster with the pump pressure spray bottle so you move it much faster when you spray on the solution. Or you will over saturate and go through much more of solution. I use a pump pressure spray bottle with the prewash during the winter months at the coin-op wash bays. If I where to be foaming I would get me the bigger pump pressure sprayer as the iK9 or iK12. Or I would be tired of all of the pumping needed LOL. The foamers are awesome when you do the engine compartment or do the tires and sometimes i use it to ad foam in the nooks and crannies and use brushes to clean them a little extra. Otherwise the prewash foam from the foamcannon handle this.