What makes MF get a bit crunchy over time

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chefwong

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My wash mitts....over time, they just don't feel supply soft...

Just for the helluva it, I put my wash mitts on fairly hot water from the pot, did a MF wash in the washer and even threw it in the dryer which I rarely do with the mitts....I generally just put them on the gritguard and they are dry by the next wash session.

Is it shampoo/buildup in the MF that I'm not not realizing. Granted the MF mitts are pretty -soft- once wet, it just have that nice fluffy softness when dry these days.
 
Are you saying you machine wash them after use, but don't usually put them in the dryer? Or you DON'T usually machine wash them, and just let them dry after the (car) wash?
 
What are you washing with?

I always wash my MFs on cold with something like Rags to Riches to help breakdown any sealants and prevent them from becoming hydrophobic. If they’re really dirty I’ll use a free and clear detergent and dry on low heat or air dry. It’s my understanding that drying with high heat causes the fibers to melt which leads to the crunchiness.
 
Mitts get machined wash with the MF's used, etc. I normally don't put the mitts in the dryer as the towels dry *faster* without since there is no inner core of the mitts that have more water and extend drying times, etc....

The fibers on the mitts ain't exactly hard, it's just not as super soft. I posted I just put them into the -dryer- as IME, drying via the dryer does make the MF more supple and fluffy vs air dry
 
I use mostly MF wash pads like "the bone" so I hear you on the drying since they have a sponge core, but I have a lot of them so I just pile them up (after they've dried out on the grit guard) until I have enough for a load of laundry. That way I don't have "mis-matched" items in the dryer, even so I just dry them until they are warm, then let them dry for a few days on a rack. They never get "crunchy" for me, but I do have a water softener which I'm sure helps with that.
 
I’m a believer that drying microfiber in the dryer promotes softness while air drying doesn’t.
 
There also comes a time when it might be a good idea to buy some new mitts. How many years have you had them?
 
Some Paper Napkin Math
Per car or by day...

52 Weeks in a Year
+ another 34 Weeks

That puts us at 86 Weeks
X 2 Cars + Mixed Garage Queen Usage

In the summer, I might have done 2-3X washes in a single week (Yikes)

So 86x2+another 40Times for Good Measure. It has seen 212 Car Washes since I flipped for a fresh sponge circe July, August of 2022
 
Wait a minute--you only have 1 MF wash mitt that you have 212 washes on?? What kind of 'Geek are you, I think I have about 212 pieces of wash media that have less than 1 wash on them!
 
For my Wash buckets, it's really just rotation of TRC Cyclone Mitt or the XL Pad. I use the pad way more than the mitt but the mitt still feels like new. My issue with the MF is the pads....Pads are used on bodies, mitt is uses on door mirrors, door cups, sills, trim, gril, etc. But all have seen some sort of use during any wash. Pads being used for at least 80% of the body.


I presume it's the same material as the mitt,..but there is a noticeable difference on the fiber softness. Well, noticeable to ask

I need to look at these closer. When I just typed in same material ....maybe it's not the same density, long, short piles, etc....
The pads aren't Brillo but they don't feel supple
 
As far as wash media, I’ve been using my current batch of around 16 mitts[I actually have about 20, but only 16 fit in the bucket] for about 5yrs. some of them are even older.

But as I’m sitting here next to a couple of stacks of microfiber towels that I just washed it’s evident that microfiber doesn’t stay soft forever. So just like this left stack of towels is strictly for interior use, while the right stack is what I deem paint worthy, why wouldn’t the same apply to wash mitts? The point is maybe it’s not a bad idea to buy a new batch of wash mitts after a few years.

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Not in disagreement MF ages over time....

Well, given the frequency of how I use them, maybe I'm aging them quicker...
But the mitts is still just as supple as it was 19-20 months ago when they removed out of the packaging.
Heh, maybe it's the shampoo that is drying out the towels.
I gotta say, my hands are sometimes dry to the point I borrow some lotion from the wifeys stash and it's always after washing the cars..
 
I used to get dry hands from washing too but I found my regular use of the foam gun has eliminated that
 
Bill D - Isn't your method just as much as a contact wash and exposure to skin/shampoo just the same...
For me, which I think we've discussed, while I don't do rinse less and I need plenty of water....I could never get the method of foam fun in hand and running a mitt down the panel.
Just too cumbersome with my 3/4" Hose that is Uber thick and almost as heavy and thick as a 1" hose. I would probably cause more damage having the hose touch the panel for the umteeth time doing your wash style
 
i always rinse and squeeze out my wash mitt with water for any residual car shampoo after i'm done using them. sometimes the same mitt/microfiber towels can vary from batch to batch and degrade quicker than others (it happens). if you have done everything possible to try and remedy them with no favorable results, demote them to less sensitive areas or use it around the house and toss it. if i get a year of use out of a wash mitt that's fair. it's not worth the risk to keep using them and have to spend hours to undo (polishing) the damage (marring). nothing lasts forever, it is what it is...
 
Optimus Grime said:
What are you washing with?

I always wash my MFs on cold with something like Rags to Riches to help breakdown any sealants and prevent them from becoming hydrophobic. If they’re really dirty I’ll use a free and clear detergent and dry on low heat or air dry. It’s my understanding that drying with high heat causes the fibers to melt which leads to the crunchiness.
Click to expand...

Not to many dryers will get hot enough to melt the polyamide (the nylon/plastic) in MF.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Yeah agree with [mention]Eldorado2k [/mention]. Hang drying my mitts make them feel crunchy.

I wash on warm as warmer the water helps break down sealants/waxes/polishes. Not afraid to use wal hot if needed. 2 rinse cycles.

I dry on low/medium/ high depending on size of load for 10/15 min and then hang dry. My MF feels much softer when I do this.

I’ve been doing this on same batch of towels I’ve been using since 2019. The all are still great.

I feel bad for my stock pile of new ones just siding their in their hoarder pile. I hope MF doesn’t go bad…


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Coatingsarecrack said:
I feel bad for my stock pile of new ones just siding their in their hoarder pile. I hope MF doesn’t go bad…
Click to expand...

If I understand you correctly, you shouldn’t have a problem. I sometimes mistake heavily soiled waterless wash towels for interior towels and a few of them mistakenly get washed in that load, but when they come out of the dryer it’s very easy to tell they don’t belong with the interior batch because they still look & feel like new towels and go back to the good stack.
 
What microfiber detergent are you using?

When I switched over to Rags to Riches, I noticed my older microfiber towels and mitts become much softer after being treated with RTR. Some of those towels were on the brink of being thrown away. RTR is also keeping them soft.
 
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