IK Foam 9 Sprayer, worth it?

S

snowracer21

New member
Joined
Jul 21, 2018
Messages
35
Reaction score
0
I've been interested in a few of the IK sprayers for quite some time now.

One thing I quickly learned when I branched out into for-profit detailing is: a good spray bottle is worth its weight in gold. I can't stand leaky caps, poor spray performance, and failures in the middle of a job. I scrapped my old $1 generic spray bottles and replaced them w/ Kwazar dual action sprayers. Night & day difference!

I'm one of those types who would rather pay more for a higher performing product rather than a cheaper alternative and sacrificing performance. Always been that way whether it's power tools, performance parts, etc.

I currently utilize these, which I picked on on Amazon for about $10 per:

View attachment 65819

They seem to work just fine, not sure on durability as I've only owned them for about 6 months... the spray velocity is not anything special, and the carrying handle is quite flimsy...but it's $10.

I use these pump sprayers for:
  • Meguiar's Wheel Brightener
  • Optimum Power Clean
  • McKee's 37 Bug Remover
  • ONR 16:1 clay lube

I find that pump sprayers like the one I posted above are much more efficient to spread a lot of product quickly e.g. soaking wheels/tires for cleaning, spraying down the front grill of a truck to remove bugs, spraying wheel wells of pickup trucks with APC, etc.

I'm always trying to discover new and better/more efficient ways to work. I believe the IK Foam 9 sprayer would work very well at getting cleaners/degreasers in difficult to reach areas (wheel wells/suspension), and doing so while not having to crouch/kneel down. A few less times bending over, and a few minutes saved per detail will add up over time.

One question I had though:

What is the advantage of foaming the product? If I had Optimum Power Clean in an IK Foamer, would it do an even better job at cutting through grime than just a normal sprayer? What about wheel cleaners? I probably wouldn't use it for pre soaking prior to wash, as I already have a pressure washer and foam cannon.

Looking to hear what you guys have to say!
 
Well I can chime in as I have both the IK Foam 9 and the 1.5 foamer. I found the IK Foam 9 on Auto-Fanatics YouTube channel. He uses his to clean his wheels and because of the length of the wand he can get product all the way into the barrels, so there's one major advantage. Another advantage is this, because it's a larger bottle you can pump up more pressure thus giving you more work time between pumpings. Now you said you have a power washer and foam cannon and that's best for sure but what if you couldn't use that for whatever reason, the IK Foam 9 works great in that capacity, it's what I use mine for because we have underground parking and no access to running water, being able to pre-wash my car and let that foam do its thing and rinse off with my Worx hydroshot gives me the ability to have a truely clean car every time.

Now if your looking for something to do tires, wheels, wells, jams and engine bay I would suggest the 1.5, its smaller size is handy but be advised more pumping is needed due to its smaller size, plus it's about 1/3 the price too.

In closing there's a total of 3 different tips for these machines too. The one already inserted in there is the gray tip, slots right in the middle. This produces a foam that's not to wet nor too dry. Next up is the orange, more wet but not terribly runny and green, VERY dry and requires more pumping. Also the entire quality feel of these tools is top notch, you'll not be sorry using them, I sure don't!

Hope this helps you out

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
Klasse Act said:
Well I can chime in as I have both the IK Foam 9 and the 1.5 foamer. I found the IK Foam 9 on Auto-Fanatics YouTube channel. He uses his to clean his wheels and because of the length of the wand he can get product all the way into the barrels, so there's one major advantage. Another advantage is this, because it's a larger bottle you can pump up more pressure thus giving you more work time between pumpings. Now you said you have a power washer and foam cannon and that's best for sure but what if you couldn't use that for whatever reason, the IK Foam 9 works great in that capacity, it's what I use mine for because we have underground parking and no access to running water, being able to pre-wash my car and let that foam do its thing and rinse off with my Worx hydroshot gives me the ability to have a truely clean car every time.

Now if your looking for something to do tires, wheels, wells, jams and engine bay I would suggest the 1.5, its smaller size is handy but be advised more pumping is needed due to its smaller size, plus it's about 1/3 the price too.

In closing there's a total of 3 different tips for these machines too. The one already inserted in there is the gray tip, slots right in the middle. This produces a foam that's not to wet nor too dry. Next up is the orange, more wet but not terribly runny and green, VERY dry and requires more pumping. Also the entire quality feel of these tools is top notch, you'll not be sorry using them, I sure don't!

Hope this helps you out

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Thanks for the detailed review! I should clarify, I'm not trying to decide between an IK 1.5 & the much larger Foam 9...but instead trying to decide if I should bite the bullet and replace my current pump sprayers w/ an IK line up. I'd likely buy 3 or 4 IK 1.5 Multi's, and 1 IK Foam 9.

Another decision I'd have to make..should I buy one, or two IK Foam 9s? I prefer using Megs Wheel Brightener on most wheels, and OPC on plastic fender liners, so I feel it'd get really old, really quick having to constantly changed out chemicals in the Foam 9.
 
snowracer21 said:
Thanks for the detailed review! I should clarify, I'm not trying to decide between an IK 1.5 & the much larger Foam 9...but instead trying to decide if I should bite the bullet and replace my current pump sprayers w/ an IK line up. I'd likely buy 3 or 4 IK 1.5 Multi's, and 1 IK Foam 9.

Another decision I'd have to make..should I buy one, or two IK Foam 9s? I prefer using Megs Wheel Brightener on most wheels, and OPC on plastic fender liners, so I feel it'd get really old, really quick having to constantly changed out chemicals in the Foam 9.
Click to expand...
Well the IK Foam 9 has a draincock to make removing product easier BUT, whatever you do, make sure you release ALL the pressure before loosening that draincock! I forgot to once and I mean ONCE and the product came out like a firehose! I even lost the o-ring in there and it leaked because of it but luckily I found it, re-instslled and it was all good. These machines have several o-rings for a great seal and performance. Rest assured, if your looking for quality, look NO further. I can't comment on the 1.5 regular sprayer but I see reason to think it's not a quality machine as well.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
Yes changing out can be a pain go with multiples I use the 1.5 and have several. I love them for wheels and use them for frothe. The 9 will hold more, less pumping, get into tighter spaces with the wand. Main benefit to foam, for me, is dwell time. Will cling better and I feel it pulls away more grime. Never tried foaming apc, but works excellent with iron removers and wheel cleaners. Just make sure their dilutable. If I used more or had water restrictions the 9 would be in my arsenal.

happy cleaning:


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Another question:

Are IK sprayers (1.5 multi, 1.5 foam & Foam 9) chemical resistant? In other words, can I fill up an IK Foam 9 with Meguiar's Wheel Brightener 1:1, and leave it in there for weeks/months? Or must I empty the sprayer out after every use?
 
snowracer21 said:
Another question:

Are IK sprayers (1.5 multi, 1.5 foam & Foam 9) chemical resistant? In other words, can I fill up an IK Foam 9 with Meguiar's Wheel Brightener 1:1, and leave it in there for weeks/months? Or must I empty the sprayer out after every use?
Click to expand...

Are the sprayers you got from Amazon able to resist Wheel Brightnener for any lenght of time? I use that product at 4:1 dilution and it kills my chemical resistant sprayers on almost every use. I must go thorough about 30 sprayers per half-year just for that product. If IK sprayers can resist it, I will buy one for sure!
 
Calendyr said:
Are the sprayers you got from Amazon able to resist Wheel Brightnener for any lenght of time? I use that product at 4:1 dilution and it kills my chemical resistant sprayers on almost every use. I must go thorough about 30 sprayers per half-year just for that product. If IK sprayers can resist it, I will buy one for sure!
Click to expand...

knock on wood, but, I've had WB in the Amazon sprayers for probably 6 months, and they still work fine.
 
I'm not sure about chemical resistance, I'm sure the answer will appear here soon or you can ask The Rag Company directly, I know they sell them as well as Auto-Fanatic.

When I got my IK 1.5 I poured CG's Sticky Citrus mixed at 5:1 and it clogged up my foamer after 2 wheels. The problem there, which I didn't realize at the time, was that ratio was fine for a normal but a foamer needs a lighter ratio, something to keep in mind.

Btw a simple cleaning of the tip and that foam filter in there and pumping water through it fixed the issue.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top