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      08-22-2018, 09:53 AM   #1
duluthtwo
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Foam Cannon

Okay, maybe I'm old school but i just don't get it. I use a small bucket, quality car soap and a micro fiber mitt.
Why wrestle with a pressure sprayer, attachments, special soap and still have to wash with a mitt? Seems like alot more work and time using a foam system. Maybe it's the cool toy factor to impress the neighbors. :
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      08-22-2018, 11:29 AM   #2
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I basically agree, however if you have a garaged car that never gets too fouled, with the foam cannon you can soap it - which if done properly will pull fine dirt off the car, surfactants in some of these car wash soaps are really good at using minimum friction to encapsulate; lift and pull dirt, then without even using a mitt just rinse and dry with a blower - wet dry vac blower and vacuum can dry a car probably better then towels. You do all that and you never apply any rags to the paint and minimize any chance of marking the paint.

If your car is like mine a daily driver, rain, snow, smashing into bugs at high speed, bits of tar splatter then it's just easier to use products and buckets and mitts.
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      09-13-2018, 03:53 PM   #3
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Because it's fun!

I mean truthfully you are probably right. There is probably a little bit of dirt loosening by spraying the car and letting the foam cut through and drag the dirt down off the paint, but it isn't going to make a world of difference. I drag out the pressure washer more because of water savings (uses far less) and I'm an environmentally conscience (sometimes) guy.
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      09-13-2018, 04:05 PM   #4
overcoil
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pz619 View Post
Because it's fun!

I mean truthfully you are probably right. There is probably a little bit of dirt loosening by spraying the car and letting the foam cut through and drag the dirt down off the paint, but it isn't going to make a world of difference. I drag out the pressure washer more because of water savings (uses far less) and I'm an environmentally conscience (sometimes) guy.
What brand of pressure washer ( electric, gas ) u know how many gpm ?
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      09-13-2018, 06:05 PM   #5
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One big thing the foam does is add more lubrication for the wash mitt - my foam cannon broke and I was easily able to tell. The BMW paint is soft and we need to be super careful when we wash, so more lube = less swirls. I'll never go back to not using one. A foam cannon attached to a pressure washer looks to be even better ...

be careful with using leaf blowers and shop vacs to dry your car - some do a very bad job of filtering the air, and it doesn't really work too well if you're equipment sucks (ha ha)
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      09-14-2018, 01:27 PM   #6
pz619
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ScottSinger View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by pz619 View Post
Because it's fun!

I mean truthfully you are probably right. There is probably a little bit of dirt loosening by spraying the car and letting the foam cut through and drag the dirt down off the paint, but it isn't going to make a world of difference. I drag out the pressure washer more because of water savings (uses far less) and I'm an environmentally conscience (sometimes) guy.
What brand of pressure washer ( electric, gas ) u know how many gpm ?
Mine is puny. I live in a condo along the coast line so my garage has power, but no water. We have a specific car wash stall that has water, but no power. I picked up a sun joe battery powered pressure washer that is about 1k psi and .8 gpm. It's technically inadequate for most formers but I bought a MTM and replaced an internal nozzle and now it does pretty well!

Edit: here is the link. https://www.amazon.com/Sun-Joe-SPX60.../dp/B01MRLX9LK
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      10-05-2018, 03:55 PM   #7
ClaytonLuke
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ONR followed by opt instant detailer & gloss enhancer while still wet is the fastest and best results I've ever gotten. I've tried just about every method and product/company. The foam canon looks cool and can be fun but it's a waste of time and product/water in my mind.
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      10-05-2018, 08:54 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by duluthtwo View Post
Why wrestle with a pressure sprayer, attachments, special soap and still have to wash with a mitt?
Because you get a higher quality car wash. Special soap is optional btw.
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      10-09-2018, 09:52 PM   #9
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My car wash DIY:
It will look stunning for about 40 mins of work..

For wheel cleaning (i usually do wheels first):

Spray all 4 wheels generously with:

https://www.amazon.com/Sonax-230241-...PYCM1JJZFPD57S

I wait till the wheels look like they are bleeding, than i use this to scrub them clean:

https://www.amazon.com/Brush-Hero-Wa...ds=water+brush

i foam the car with this:

Its not a ceramic coating, but it will look like you have one and water will bead like crazy if you follow all my steps.
https://www.chemicalguys.com/Carbon_...p/cws80404.htm

I than wipe down using:
On right hand:
https://www.amazon.com/AutoCare-Surf...lay+mitt&psc=1

On left hand:
https://www.amazon.com/MOTHERS-96880...=car+wash+mitt

I do a 1/4 of the car at a time starting with roof, I foam the whole car at first, than work sections applying more foam if needed. Rinsing both my hands in a 2 bucket system as I go around the car.

Once that is done, I rinse the car with water, than add 2 caps of this to the full water bottle and rinse the car:

https://www.autogeek.net/gtechniq-w1-g-wash.html

I than mist the car down with this:

https://www.autogeek.net/gtechniq-c2...d-crystal.html

And wipe it all in and dry the car with:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A8MZ7IA...i-a=B00A8MZ7IA
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