Micrfiber Towel lint left on car after removing wax or drying. WHY?

mc2hill said:
Don't buy throw out the towels until you have tried boiling them.

Often washing them is not enough to remove all the residue. In a pot of boiling water add a capful of vinegar (optional), then boil one towel at a time for 1 to 2 minutes. Let them cool a little and run them through a normal wash.
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Thanks, I'll try anything at this point.

I have not boiled them yet, but I have washed them in VERY hot water and double rinsed.

I'll give the vinegar a shot. I mean I'll use the vinegar and then have a shot of Jack Daniel's.:dunno:
 
I don't think boiling is going to do anything for your linting problem, or vinegar either. Think of it this way, those fibers are micro, which means they aren't going to be very strong, and are going to break off easily. It's not a matter of cleaning them better--more fibers are going to keep coming off.

Or how about this analogy...when you wash your clothes, you always wind up with some stuff in the lint screens of the washer and dryer, right? Maybe the first time you wash you have more, but you always have that stuff, right? Meaning every time you wash more and more lint comes off...until your clothes are threadbare and worn out. The same thing is happening to your MF's...those microfibers are shedding every time you use and wash the cloth...not just once and then it stops. Or I could just be rambling with no idea what I'm talking about.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
I don't think boiling is going to do anything for your linting problem, or vinegar either. Think of it this way, those fibers are micro, which means they aren't going to be very strong, and are going to break off easily. It's not a matter of cleaning them better--more fibers are going to keep coming off.

Or how about this analogy...when you wash your clothes, you always wind up with some stuff in the lint screens of the washer and dryer, right? Maybe the first time you wash you have more, but you always have that stuff, right? Meaning every time you wash more and more lint comes off...until your clothes are threadbare and worn out. The same thing is happening to your MF's...those microfibers are shedding every time you use and wash the cloth...not just once and then it stops. Or I could just be rambling with no idea what I'm talking about.
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Hey, at this point, most anything makes sense. Seriously, what you say does make sense, but whenever I wash a bunch of them in the washer, and then put them in the dryer, not a spec of lint is on the screen! I supose they are waiting to attach to my car finish.
 
I think the micro fibers simply are too small to be caught in your screens...either that, or as I mentioned before, they are mechanically removed from the towel as you are wiping the glass/car.
 
I use 100% cotton baby diapers to wax as well as removing wax, polish or sealant. I have not had a lint issue when used but when I use MF lint is present.
 
Witchdoc said:
I use 100% cotton baby diapers to wax as well as removing wax, polish or sealant. I have not had a lint issue when used but when I use MF lint is present.
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Where does one buy 100% Cotton Baby Diapers today?
I used then when my kids were little tykes, but now they are all adults with kids of thier own, and use Pampers!
 
By the way UPS just delivered my order of Cobra Microfiber cloths a little while ago.

Should I wash them?
Should I use as is from the box?
Should I boil them?
Should I use vinegar?
Should I use cold or hot water in the wash?
Should I use detergent?
Or,
Should I send them back??
 
This is from a 2007 Forum, that's 5 years ago, and seems folks are having the same problem today.
Read on.....................


@#$& MicroFiber Lint

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I washed by themselves, did a separate rinse in vinegar and dried with blue balls on no heat. (and yes cleaned lint trap first)

Towels came out looking great very fluffy.........Problem is they lint like mad.
I don't think there is anything more frustrating than waxing the car and having those little lint strands on the surface. Its especially maddening on the glass.

First how do you get that %$% off ? Spray the car with water ???
Second are Cobra towels just more prone to linting?
Third I assume some of this problem is from static, is there any way to reduce the static charge of the surface?
 
Huck cotton towels are the best I've used on glass. They are specifically made not to shed fibers. "Lint", or shed fibers, may be an annoyance while detailing, but are of extreme concern in the operating room.
 
I've tried to battle them, but I think the best way to fix the problem is to change up the technique a little.

It seems like when I'm leaving lint it's when the towel is battling some resistance on the surface. Sometimes this means using two towels. The first towel gets the most resistance and will probably leave a little lint. The second towel should glide smoothly and remove any lint. Sometimes a VERY light mist of a quick detailer to prime the first pad helps out as well.
 
I have some cobra and so far no lint, I also have some Adam's that I do get lint from.
 
I dont own any cobra towels but i have quite a few of the premium and very fluffy ones from chemical guys and i have never run into any lint issues when doing glass or paint. Have you tried washing yours in a dedicated microfiber detergent? I use the CG wash and they come out fluffy and lint free every time.
 
Why do you guys keep coming back to this being a washing problem? If the wash is supposed to remove the lint, how did the lint get there in the first place? Well, the lint was in the towel in the first place, so how is washing it going to make any difference?

I mean, if you cleaned up bird crap with your towels, and then you were getting bird crap on your paint, then I'd say you have a washing problem. But this isn't a washing problem, it's a towel/technique problem (as myself and another poster have noted--high-friction wiping can pull fibers from the towel).
 
jhkunkel said:
Where does one buy 100% Cotton Baby Diapers today?
I used then when my kids were little tykes, but now they are all adults with kids of thier own, and use Pampers!
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Target, Walmart, Babies R'Us? :dunno:
 
Never had a problem with any towel other than the old green monster's that linted like you know what. Never use cheap towels, but have made an investment in quality towels. Old towels become my dirty work towels. Some old terry cloth for grunge jobs, etc.

IMO. Ditch the simple green and use a low heat setting on the drying. Check filter on dryer also to avoid picking up prior use, etc.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
Why do you guys keep coming back to this being a washing problem? If the wash is supposed to remove the lint, how did the lint get there in the first place? Well, the lint was in the towel in the first place, so how is washing it going to make any difference?
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If washing gets the lint out why do dryers have lint traps.
 
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned this yet - but sounds like yet another job for the Master Blaster....
I don't have a MB, but I have one of those smaller hand held ones, and it works as well for that purpose on the exterior.
 
I think that some of this linting has to do with the condition of your paint surface. I would imagine that a very clean and slick surface would not grab as much lint as a paint surface that has more contaminants on it. Just a thought.
 
GMtruckguy said:
If washing gets the lint out why do dryers have lint traps.
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You're proving my point for me, if towels have lint that comes out, how is washing going to help? Maybe the OP needs a lint trap on his car?

You guys make it sound like the towels absorb lint from the air and then it needs to be washed out...other than loose material from mfg that might need to be washed out when the towel is new, the shedding of microfibers from MF towels is an ongoing process, just like skin flaking off your body. You can shower it off, but it still keeps flaking off all the time. Some brands/batches/styles of towel are better/worse, but it's still a natural process to shed fibers.

If you take a shower and wash all the dead skin off your arm, then stand there and scratch it, you're going to get more skin flakes off. If you wash your towels and get all the loose fibers out, if you use the towel you will loosen more fibers.
 
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