Honestly, is foaming even effective? Isn't a simple wash mitt much better?

TroyM

TroyM

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I've been coming across many posts and pictures in the forum about foaming in the washing process. I can't logically understand the benefit of it? The foam supposedly sits there and lifts the dirt, etc.

Apart than the fact that it looks great and makes you feel better, is it even effective?! :)

Wouldn't a regular 2 bucket wash (including shampoo like Meguiar's Gold Class) with a washing mitt that really scrubs off the dirt and grime be much more effective? Or maybe even a pressure wash?

Any input would be appreciated. :xyxthumbs:

9263-how-properly-wash-your-car-bmw-foam-cannon.jpg
 
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I don't think foaming's designed to replace the traditional wash, it just seems like an extra step in the process that to me, is theoretically sound in serving the purpose advertised. It's a pre-soak, every says to pre-soak your car to get loose dust/dirt off and everyone supports keeping the car wet during your wash (which are both reasonable practices) but how can soaking the car in a concentrated, pressurized cleaning solution not benefit the washing process? It's certainly not a hindrance and it's more suds and solution on the surface of the car if you wash with a mitt while the suds are still present and clinging.

The skepticism is certainly valid, especially when time and money comes into the equation, however the science (for what a 22 year old who couldn't stand biology) seems sound to me.
 
The Reason for foam is to presoak and get the loose dirt off before you do the two bucket wash so there is chance of marring. When your doing a customer car it's worth it. For your personal its up to you. Yes it does make a big difference. When it soaking I take a brush to all the emblems and cracks to clean them out. When you foam and mix apc in with the soap helps get bugs off with less scrubbing and less chance of marring the paint. So yes it well worth it or none of use that do it for a living would waste our time doing it.
 
If foaming floats your boat, sail on...in your lovely white sea of marketing seduction.
 
I can say up to about a week ago I wondered the same thing with regards to doing a presoak. A few months ago I removed all the swirls on my car and put a coat of opti-coat on it. I don't wash the car at my house as I have very hard water. So I goto a manual car wash and hose everything I can off the car, then I dry it with a good MF and ONR. Up to now it's been working great and no more swirls. About one week ago I put about 1500 miles on the car in a matter of days and the front had tons of bug, pollen all over the car...along with a bunch of other stuff. So I goto the car wash and use their presoak that I never used before and as I was spraying the car down it looked like all the crude was just melting and running down the car. I was really amazed with how well it work(I plan to ask the owner of the car was what brand of presoak solution he uses) so I decided to go around the car one more time. Remember this presoak at the car wash was very very low pressure......when I went around for a second time and made my way back to the front bumper area 100% of the bugs came off with the limited pressure from the presoak.

So if you asked me now about doing a foam job or presoak prior to touching the car with anything I would say absolutely. After doing the presoak I hit it with high pressure wash and then HP rinse. Without touching the car I removed 95% of the dirt and crud...the other 5% was in the door jams and under the hood. I have very little chance of doing damage to the paint on my car this way. just my 2 cents
 
Foaming can get into nooks and crannies that you normally can't get into.
 
For first time polishing it does not really matter, you are going to polish it anyway.

But for maintenance, you foam wash, let it sit for couple of minutes, blast with high pressure, it will absolutely reduce risk of dragging dirt when you do manual wash.

Dont forget to use good soap with lots of suds and cleaning power. Totally worth it.
 
:dblthumb2::iagree:I personally have a foam gun i have used it and found that the results from presoaking is amazingit really cuts down your labour.
 
The first time I saw a picture of a car completely foamed it created a mental image in my mind that the car was REALLY getting cleaned. Even the picture you posted above makes it look like the car is getting SUPER cleaned.

If it creates that kind of image or message to me in my mind, a guy that knows a little about car detailing I figure at a minimum it's doing the same for Joe Average. To this point, you can use this type of image creation specifically for marketing reasons to show customers that you go above and beyond what the average detailer does to get their car clean.

That's the marketing side. The other side is that as long as the foam or suds clings to the surface then the cleaning agents do in fact have more "Dwell Time" to soften, dissolve, loosen, emulsify, any surface dirt so it can more safely be removed from paints that are scratch-sensitive.

Plus... it looks cool...


:)
 
I just purchased a AG HD foam cannon a few months back. It does take more time to drag out the pressure washer but it is certainly worth it.

I use it as a presoak. I foam a dry car, let dwell and rinse off with a 40 degree nozzle. Then, I go into a normal two bucket wash process.

By the time I get to my two bucket wash, there is barely any dirt/grime on the surface of the vehicle. This means (And this is important) when I am running my wash mitt over the surface, there are much less abrasive particles between the mitt and the paint. This is a good thing when it comes to reducing swirls.

So, IMO its worth it to do a presoak if you have time and the means to purchase a foam cannon.

Drew
 
silverfox said:
If foaming floats your boat, sail on...in your lovely white sea of marketing seduction.
Click to expand...

If it blows wind up ur skirt ...FOAM ON !!!!!

I do it let it soak then use my favorite mitt and lots of soap and water to wash everything off. Neighbors look at my garage and see foam coming out and wonder whats up...
 
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I foam, but I DO realize it's effect is marginal, but even if it improves dirt removal or something by even 1%, I'm going to go for it.
However do note this, the snow foams in the UK, and you can search up actimousse or chemical guys no touch snow foam, genuinely work like a touchless wash, which we unfortunately can't get over here, though I'm looking into other pre-wash things that work to the same effect, like auto finesse citrus power (which works fantastically to get rid of like, 80-90% of the dirt on the surface), but it comes as a ready to use spray and it does get damn expensive
 
The effect is extremely dependent upon your product. As I have pointed out before, the products in the US tend to be extremely mild and are often also used as a regular bucket wash shampoo. Chemically these have very little effect, a scientific consideration would not have you believe they would have a massive effect. In practice, a regular bucket type shampoo will have minimal benefit compared to simply using a high pressure water jet - such a mild product has no chance of cutting through oily films such as those resulting from vehicle exhausts. Do some reading on the UK forums and you will see that products for use in a foam cannon/lance are rarely the same as those used for a hand wash. Most will use elevated alkalinity which makes a big difference when cutting through traffic films. In so doing, the products become irritant and would not be safe for a lot of skin contact (as in a bucket wash). Some products will go to an extreme and use lots of caustic soda to make a seriously alkaline product - these will make another big difference and there will be a night and day difference when comparing the results with a foam like this compared to a mild pH, shampoo, type product.

All the best
 
That is correct. The higher alkaline products can be sprayed, allowed to dwell, and pressured washed off with good results. Widely used on grimy trucks and cabs.

The neutral shampoo aerated through a foam cannon/vance will need some a additional step with a wash media.

Mr Megane said:
The effect is extremely dependent upon your product. As I have pointed out before, the products in the US tend to be extremely mild and are often also used as a regular bucket wash shampoo. Chemically these have very little effect, a scientific consideration would not have you believe they would have a massive effect. In practice, a regular bucket type shampoo will have minimal benefit compared to simply using a high pressure water jet - such a mild product has no chance of cutting through oily films such as those resulting from vehicle exhausts. Do some reading on the UK forums and you will see that products for use in a foam cannon/lance are rarely the same as those used for a hand wash. Most will use elevated alkalinity which makes a big difference when cutting through traffic films. In so doing, the products become irritant and would not be safe for a lot of skin contact (as in a bucket wash). Some products will go to an extreme and use lots of caustic soda to make a seriously alkaline product - these will make another big difference and there will be a night and day difference when comparing the results with a foam like this compared to a mild pH, shampoo, type product.

All the best
Click to expand...
 
TroyM said:
Wouldn't a regular 2 bucket wash (including shampoo like Meguiar's Gold Class) with a washing mitt that really scrubs off the dirt and grime
Click to expand...

The word bolded in red above from your original post is why foaming helps.... Less "scrubbing"... Will it clean your car? No. Will it remove some of the debris to minimize what you have to remove with mechanical agitation (at the risk of swirling).

FYI: never "Scrub" your paint
 
Deep Gloss Auto Salon said:
The word bolded in red above from your original post is why foaming helps.... Less "scrubbing"... Will it clean your car? No. Will it remove some of the debris to minimize what you have to remove with mechanical agitation (at the risk of swirling).

FYI: never "Scrub" your paint
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This.....
 
TroyM said:
I've been coming across many posts and pictures in the forum about
foaming in the washing process.


Wouldn't a regular 2 bucket wash (including shampoo like Meguiar's Gold Class) with a washing mitt
that really scrubs off the dirt and grime<<<{:eek: :nomore:}...be much more effective?


Or maybe even a pressure wash?<<<Be nice to own one!

Any input would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
I get, what I consider, the best of both: "Foam-Worlds"...with Meguiar's D110 Hyper-Wash...
@~ 8.5 ph...not too alkaline for my personal Health & Safety.

Foam/Suds(?):
Are they only as "good in/for cleaning"...
as the surfactants that are in the car-wash shampoo solution?

I've heard that at least some, if not all, surfactants may produce foam/suds...
But isn't it nice to have some good ol': Coconut Diethanolamide (DEA)...
added to a product such as: D110 to assist in producing copious amounts of foam.

That, and Meguiar's choice of 'anionic surfacatants' for D110...could very well be for you, OP...
The: Car-wash-shampoo/Pre-soak/Snow-foam: "Deal-maker"


:)

Bob
 
FUNX725 said:
I get, what I consider, the best of both: "Foam-Worlds"...with Meguiar's D110 Hyper-Wash...
@~ 8.5 ph...not too alkaline for my personal Health & Safety.

Foam/Suds(?):
Are they only as "good in/for cleaning"...
as the surfactants that are in the car-wash shampoo solution?

I've heard that at least some, if not all, surfactants may produce foam/suds...
But isn't it nice to have some good ol': Coconut Diethanolamide (DEA)...
added to a product such as: D110 to assist in producing copious amounts of foam.

That, and Meguiar's choice of 'anionic surfacatants' for D110...could very well be for you, OP...
The: Car-wash-shampoo/Pre-soak/Snow-foam: "Deal-maker"


:)

Bob
Click to expand...

At a pH of 8.5, realistically it is barely alkaline at all - some would consider it so minimally so as to describe it as neutral. In mineral rich areas, your water supply can be at that level. Practically it will not have enough alkalinity to do much good. Consider that many ready to use APCs on the market will have pH in excess of 12 - this will be approximately 10000 times stronger than the alkalinity providers at pH 8.5. I would honestly say you need to be well above pH 10 before you will see any big improvement in greasecutting power.

Coconut Diethanolamide is in all manner of products (think washing up liquids) but would be considered a secondary surfactant - it isn't what gives the flash foam necessary, rather it stabilises the foam. The anionic you refer to is what gives the flash foam, but again, these are ubiquitous and there wont be many high foam products which do not contain one or other anionic primary surfactant. What I am saying is that there really is nothing particularly special about D110.
 
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