How do you fill your buckets for washing?

SOAP first = all foam... I fill up 4 gallons water, drop in soap, spray hard to foam it up...
 
FUNX725 said:
1.) My Grandfather taught me how to fill a bucket up with water when I was very young...and that "process" has served me well. :)
2.) The idea of: When to add soap to a bucket...doesn't ring a bell to me......I don't use "soap" to wash my vehicles.
3.) Foam must have some value, as it often appears as a subject discussed in conjunction with the Gilmore Foamaster.
4.) There must be a difference between soap-foam and soap-suds.....or is there?
5.) Maybe Grit Guards could be the deciding factor in that debate.

:)

Bob
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LOL wow I created a monster thread. Been a while since I did that on any forum (and I'm on a lot). Ok ok, I know it's not "soap", that's just what I heard it referred to years ago and it stuck. As far as 4, guess I was typing a little fast because I'm not sure what soap foam is either, oops. Yeah I meant suds of course.
 
Hoytman said:
Flash,
While I understand you don't like juggling buckets, let me throw this out there for you to ponder.

Try and invision seeing a person under water in a pool. If that person has hair (LOL) it will usually float upward, and/or side to side as the person moves around. Their hair suspends and doesn't lay against other hairs.

If we apply this analogy in the same manner to fiber washing mitts, only on a much smaller scale, this suspension allows the fibers to have more space between other fibers. The dirt particles when agitated against a grit guard then tend to float free and away from the fibers.

Blasting with a hose, while it could work to remove some of the heavier particles of dirt, will not remove the lighter particles of dirt trapped in the fibers. The only way to free them would be to place the mitt under water, suspending the fibers, and at the least sloshing the mitt around if a grit guard isn't available. In fact, along with agitating against a grit guard or something similar, I would add that I think it's also important to slosh the mitt around after contacting the GG.

Call it over thinking things, but if you add dirt to a glass of water and then slosh the water around, some of the dirt particles will remain high in the water column until being allowed to settle, which will not happen in a short amount of time.

Depending on how particular you, or a customer would be, determines your approach. I prefer to err on the side of caution.
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If they arent blasted out by a hose... Those same smaller particles if any that would float to the top would be redeposited onto the mitt as you pull it out.


OP, this is my method.

CEE DOG said:
1. Keep the grit guard and mitt out of the bucket until after you mix your solution.

2. Place 3 to 3 1/2 gallons of water in your bucket. (you don't want to put the soap in first as it will be difficult to mix and will all turn into suds and ruin your mix.

3. Pour the required soap amount in the bucket depending on the recommended dilution. Rinse the measuring cup you used int the bucket to make sure you got all the soap into the bucket (particularly important with higher concentrate soaps... Not a big deal with ones that use like 4 oz instead of 1 or half an ounce)

4. Place your clean arm in the bucket and stir. This is important to thoroughly stir the solution. ESPECIALLY with higher concentrate soaps as not mixing a little of the soap will make an exponentially larger difference in your mix strength.

5. Pull your arm out and while the whirlpool is still circulating hit it with a hard spray for a second with the nozzle pointing in the direction that it speeds the whirlpool rather than slowing it.

Don't spray enough to make the suds overflow the bucket.

Remember the suds don't matter - they just look cool
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silverfox said:
When using non-rinseless products, I prefer low foaming, very high lubricity shampoos...I don't see the advantage of foam and suds, all over the place.

I first fill my designated wash-only bucket 3/4 full with water, then pour in shampoo (and I always add 1/2 oz of ONR to the mix)...then stir with one hand, then continue filling until I have 4 total gallons. The ONR cuts water spotting a minimum, and also adds lots of lubricity to any shampoo. Once I started adding ONR to my conventional wash routine, water spotting has been almost entirely eliminated, and it gives the shampoo an extra kick with added protection.

I want that wash pad to glide over the paint without any pressure whatsoever.
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This is how I have been doing it for a couple of years now exactly. I never turn the pressure up high enough on the hose to create any suds - they just get in the way and screw up the dilution ratio IMO. Good post silverfox!

FUNX725 said:
3.) Foam must have some value, as it often appears as a subject discussed in conjunction with the Gilmore Foamaster.
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The only value that I can possibly think of that the foam itself has is that you can see it. That would be good if you are going for a visual effect, other than that, can't think of anything. The reason foam guns do anything (if anything) is because the base product is supposed to be breaking down some of the heavier dirt (at least I think that's the reasoning). Then when you rinse, it washes off some of the top layer of crud. Personally, I have found skipping the foam and just using a pressure washer is much more effective. :)

DLB
 
I started using the 2 bucket method after seeing it here so much, and sprung for 2 AG buckets with lids and ggs. I use my old cheapo bucket with a grit panel in for wheels now.

I fill the rinse with plain water, and the wash with 3 - 4 gallons, then the soap, and make foam with a blast from the hose. Lately, have been using the ONR more often instead of the soap and hose.

Flash, I put both buckets in a plastic garden wagon. The only problem is my driveway is sloped, and there's no brake on the cart.
 
dtuna42 said:
SOAP first = all foam...

I fill up 4 gallons water, drop in soap, spray hard to foam it up...
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The method you listed is also in my e-book.... when washing your car with a normal car wash method you want a bucket filled with a uniform soapy water mixture, not a bucket full of suds. Thus add your water, pour in your soap, use your hand or some clean instrument to mix the water and soap solution, then for suds blast the water solution in the bucket as your last step.​

I think I have a video on this floating around on the Internet somewhere from 2006...

:)
 
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