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Are prewash and snow foam gimmick (car washing)?

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Pete2

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I usually use a bucket with some car shampoo, and a hose, to wash the car. Wet it down first, then dip the soft brush in the shampoo and go for it. Rinse it off a side at a time.
Do the pump up sprays for prewash and snow foam make things easy or are they a gimmick?
 
Yes and no

I could clean my car the traditional way and get it just as clean, however the amount of swirls in the paint would be astronomically higher than doing the snow foam prewash process. I also find there’s less effort needed when it comes to getting hands on to do the contact wash. I use a bottle that attaches to the Karcher though rather than one of those pump up jobs

It depends on how much you love your car. I do it for mine, but I wouldn’t do it on a Series III Land Rover that spends its life scraping up and down country lanes

I tell you what is an absolute game changer though, and that’s the spray on stuff that cleans alloys. Regardless of if you do the snow foam process that should be on the list!
 
Exactlty as above, I use snow foam via a Karcher every wash on mine. However I also clay 2 or three times a year and wax every couple of months.
 
I Use a cheap snow foam from Home Bargains and a spray gun for the hose.

One like this but mine is yellow.


1759689022496.png

I rinse the car then spray the snow foam on and let it sit on the car while I clean the wheels with a brush and some of the snow foam in a bucket. It gets washed every two weeks or so.

Due to where I live is manky again in hours sometimes.



1759689251147.png
 
I use a product called "Hydro" for my motorbikes, then i bought a pressure washer having got fed up of pumping. Still use the fluids, they work well with my Bosch cheapo pressure washer.
 
After watching the below video I bought the MJJC Foam Cannon and the Autobrite Magifoam. I used it once on my Transporter van and was very disappointed with it, however last week I used it on my bike after a 2800 mile trip around Europe and it worked fantastically. It's the quickest and most efficient cleaner I've ever used on a bike and I've been washing bikes for 51 years! 👍

 
Snow foam system works great,it slumps and takes most grime of so does not scratch as much,when you wash by hand.
It really works if the car as been ceramic coated etc,pretty much foam mine and rinse then leaf blower it dry
 
I take mine to the car wash. I know im probably funding illegal immigrants but thats someones job to stop not mine. They do a good job for 7 quid so, for me, its not worth spending on the tackle
 
These pre-wash stages are very useful for getting as much dirt off the car as possible before going in with the contact wash. Not only does it make cleaning the car easier, it reduces the chances of damaging the paintwork.

However, when it comes to snow foam, a lot of people are drawn to products that apply a thick a foam as possible, and smell of vanilla infused blueberries. Many of these products don’t actually do much in the way of cleaning.

I use Bilt Hamber Touchless through an Autoglym foam lance and I’d say it removes probably over 90% of dirt from the car. If you don’t have a pressure washer, it can be applied using a pump sprayer.
The stuff doesn’t smell of much and the foam is pretty lame, but it really cuts through the grime. Whatever’s left on the car is nicely softened and easily wiped off during the contact wash.

I only washed the car today, and it was fairly dirty, so before the snow foam, I went round the lower third of the car with a diluted all
purpose cleaner applied using a pump sprayer.

Another way of reducing scratches is to use a suitable cloth, pad, or mitt for the contact wash. A brush will be very good at cleaning, but it will also scratch the paintwork. I use a chenile (noodle) mitt.
 
If your car is either new, or has had paint correction, then snow foam/pre-wash is a great idea if you want to avoid swirls. If you have always washed your car with a sponge & bucket then it's a waste of money as the swirls are already there.
 
I personally find the "seal" is the best.

I use the auto Glyn 3 step kit and the seal makes rain run off.

Something satisfying about the snow foam though
 
Claypole said:
These pre-wash stages are very useful for getting as much dirt off the car as possible before going in with the contact wash. Not only does it make cleaning the car easier, it reduces the chances of damaging the paintwork.

However, when it comes to snow foam, a lot of people are drawn to products that apply a thick a foam as possible, and smell of vanilla infused blueberries. Many of these products don’t actually do much in the way of cleaning.

I use Bilt Hamber Touchless through an Autoglym foam lance and I’d say it removes probably over 90% of dirt from the car. If you don’t have a pressure washer, it can be applied using a pump sprayer.
The stuff doesn’t smell of much and the foam is pretty lame, but it really cuts through the grime. Whatever’s left on the car is nicely softened and easily wiped off during the contact wash.

I only washed the car today, and it was fairly dirty, so before the snow foam, I went round the lower third of the car with a diluted all
purpose cleaner applied using a pump sprayer.

Another way of reducing scratches is to use a suitable cloth, pad, or mitt for the contact wash. A brush will be very good at cleaning, but it will also scratch the paintwork. I use a chenile (noodle) mitt.
Click to expand...
+1 for the Bilt Hamber
 
As above it depends how fussy you are about your paintwork.

Ideally you need to remove as much dirt/grit as possible before you touch the car with *anything*. Otherwise it acts as a fine abrasive, which is not a good thing.

A decent snow foam will remove surface grit better than hosing with water, but it won't magically make the car clean and shiny. You still need to wash the car afterwards (e.g. using the 2 bucket method).
 
Auto Glym Polar blast snow foam ( ph neutral ) on dry car
Go have cuppa for twenty odd minutes
Swill off with hose
Apply ph neutral car shampoo, ( Auto Glym ) soft mitt, rinsing in clean bucket of water often before applying more shampoo
Swill off with hose
Finish off with a decent Detailing towel 👍👍😜
 
Beaver said:
Auto Glym Polar blast snow foam ( ph neutral ) on dry car
Go have cuppa for twenty odd minutes
Swill off with hose
Apply ph neutral car shampoo, ( Auto Glym ) soft mitt, rinsing in clean bucket of water often before applying more shampoo
Swill off with hose
Finish off with a decent Detailing towel 👍👍😜
Click to expand...
Literally my process from start to finish
 
If you are happy with the results with your soapy sponge I’d not bother going down the rabbit hole of valeting equipment. It’s an expensive experiment getting the right chemicals and jet washes 👍🏻
 
I think chiming in with a cheap option is becoming my 'thing' 🤣

I don't have a foam bottle for my pressure washer and since I was unsure of the connection type to buy one - and wary of using the pressure washer on my motorbike, I bought one of those 'demon foam' applicator things that just goes on the hose (common hozelok type connector).

I must say it's really not bad for a cheapie. Turned up full, the foam is fairly thick and it does help loosen the dirt & dead bugs so they come off a lot easier. With both the bike and cars I just foam & leave for 5 mins (twice if lots of bugs/dirt) then rinse before a quick once over with shampoo & a noodle mit and a final rinse.
So yes, it just adds another step beyond the basic wash & rinse - but I'd rather be sat waiting for it to soak or stood squirting the hose than crawling around with a sponge scrubbing dead flies off haha

I've pried out the cap & refilled it a couple of times when I've picked up other foam solutions on offers etc, all worked pretty much the same but I rather like the banana fragrance in the demon stuff!
 
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