Is the absorber bad for paint?

waterman

waterman

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Hello,

My friend just bought a new car. I have been trying to give him suggestions on how to keep it looking nice with no luck. He uses the absorber to dry his car, I offered to buy him some quality drying towels. He asked me why he would need the towels instead and I honestly couldn’t answer him. Is it really bad for the paint?

Thanks
 
The Absorber is bad for paint if you use it in a wiping motion. It is great for drying if you use it in a place and lift motion. I use it for drying the roof of the SUV. A wiping motion on glass and chrome is okay but I wouldn’t wipe on paint. It doesn’t have a nap that can lift and trap dirt and any spec of dirt can stay on the surface and grind into the paint.
I do like the way is absorbs water. Then you can wring it out and use it again.
 
I used it years and years ago and frankly got poor drying performance from it. As I learned more about the causes of marr ing and swirls I realized there's nothing protective about the construction of the Absorber to prevent potential marr ing. This is my experience with it any way.

Id use the thing around the house to attempt to dry surfaces. As for me personally, I chucked it long ago.
 
You are asking this question of afficandos that look at their paint a lot differently than the general public looks at their paint. I have friends in the neighborhood who use a squeegee to dry their car and they’re not gonna change, and it’s fine for them because they can’t even see the swirls that I can see in the paint. So it all depends on your perspective. An absorber is perfectly fine for the general run-of-the-mill guy that thinks of his car as an appliance and just considers it in good shape if it’s not massively dirty with mud. I’ve come to respect those people , this just isn’t their hobby. I would say if you’re going to use an absorber I would wash it out. rinse it about every two panels to make sure you’re not picking up any dirt that would scratch the car.But I think the absorber is fine as an entity.
 
Hello,

Thanks for your replies. My friend understands the work I go through maintaining my car and friends/family cars. The problem is he always wants his car to look the way it does now with 60 miles. I offered to coat or wax it for him and help maintain the paint. I just came to the conclusion that I will help him learn to properly wash his car and leave at that.
 
As long as he uses premium tools/ products, he shouldn't have a lot of trouble maintaining his paint
 
I think that’s a good plan , I know exactly what you mean when you say to teach him to wash it. I have a few people in the neighborhood that ask my opin, but I’ve learned that if I told him how I did my car , they wouldn’t want any part of that regimen or equipment purchase, like an orbital. So I tell them to use the touchless wash down the road and come back and wipe on every few months some type of spray sealant like blackfire si02, 303 graphene, or something easy that they can buy at the local auto parts store. I recently suggested to someone that they wipe on some Meguires fast finish and they were amazed and appreciative.
 
I used to use the Absorber for years and years before I knew the difference between a swirl and a squirrel.. Also keep in mind that my 1st 3 cars were white, making it even tougher to know how to spot a swirl for the 1st time. And it may sound weird, but back then it sure did the job..

I wouldn’t consider going back to it, but at the same time alot of it depends on how the person goes about using and maintaining it. For example not everyones just washed vehicle is nearly as clean as it should be, just like not everyone does the best job at putting their drying towels [absorber] back in it’s container only after ensuring it’s clean enough to use the next time. Worst case scenario is someone leaves it hanging outside and forgets about it until they see it on the ground a few days later.

If you want to find a middle ground where he still gets the benefits of the Absorber while providing a bit safer overall result, get him a Water Sprite. It’s a very similar towel, except the Water Sprite has texture to it as opposed to the Absorber which is completely flat.

Btw Autogeek sells both the Absorber and the Water Sprite. AG also sells the world famous California Duster.
 
Water Sprite is good. I have one and also a absorber. For the most part I use a extra large MF towel.





i have one and also a absorber
 
I’ve used a Water Sprite before too. It’s solid and extremely durable.
 
Hello,

Thank you for informing me of water sprite. I bought him some nice drying towels and a wash mitt.
 
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