Are sea sponges the best for washing your car’s paint?

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bwnmke67

New member
I recently had a conversation with a guy that owned a dark blue F430 Spider. He told me he uses a natural sea sponge exclusively to wash all of his cars. I found this interesting, and this is a big assumption but, I would think with the advances in MF and the many synthetic mitts and sponges on the market, a natural sponge would be rendered obsolete, right?

Regardless, it got me thinking and I did a little research. Apparently, the characteristics of a natural sea sponge make them a very suitable medium to wash a vehicle with or any delicate surface for that matter.

  • The cell structure of a sea sponge makes them extremely soft when wet. In fact, they are often used to wash newborns and infants because they are so gentle on sensitive skin.
  • The many pores help the sea sponge feed by filtering water in the ocean currents. They trap what they need and release what they don’t
  • They are very durable and can last years with proper use and quality car soaps
Anybody have experience using sea sponges? Information seemed to make sense and after reading a good article on the topic, I think I’m going to give one a try – I could do a review on it later perhaps. In the meantime I would like to get your feedback.
 
if you use sea sponge, make sure you soak and rinse NUMEROUS times before use. due to sand and "flaking" sponge
 
As RonK mentioned they must be rinsed MANY times to remove sand and grit. They are not inexpensive either. I'd go to Lowe's and get grout sponges instead. Cheap, clean, and disposable.
 
The best wash media is one that doesn't scratch your paint. Autopia offers a host of different quality washing sponges and mitts.

I personally love sea sponges and think they do an excellent job.
 
All natural sea sponges go through a very rigorous cleaning process after they are unloaded from the sponge boats at the docks in Tarpon Springs, Florida but always remember you’ll should wash and rinse them very well before use to remove any leftover sand or any other abrasives that may be trapped in them when you get them. Once you rinsed thoroughly, you can’t beat the quality of these sponges when washing a vehicle.
 
i just ordered a dozen 1" thick m/f towels from cg to start doing the gary dean method. his way just makes sense to me.
 
glfahlc1 said:
i just ordered a dozen 1" thick m/f towels from cg to start doing the gary dean method. his way just makes sense to me.
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This method is what I use a lot. BUT if your car is really saturated with dirt and contaminates you want to rinse it down heavily with a waterless wash spray and possible some APC on the lower panels. Trying to get all the main dirt off with out scratching your paint like you will if you just run a towel across literal dirt.
 
zoomzoom mazda5 said:
All natural sea sponges go through a very rigorous cleaning process after they are unloaded from the sponge boats at the docks in Tarpon Springs, Florida but always remember you’ll should wash and rinse them very well before use to remove any leftover sand or any other abrasives that may be trapped in them when you get them. Once you rinsed thoroughly, you can’t beat the quality of these sponges when washing a vehicle.
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Used to use em on my JB bmw. THen switched to PB dreadlock mitt.
 
Thanks for the input. I know that many sea sponges manufactured specifically for auto use are conditioned before being released on the market. However, it may not be a bad idea to take additional precautions.

Not sure comparing a sea sponge to a grout sponge is comparable. One is synthetic and lacks important characteristics you want for washing your car, not cleaning grout.

I have had many issues with wash mediums creating swirl marks in my paint and am adamant about eliminating this problem.

I found the following article was really good on why sea sponges are great for washing a car.

squidoo.com/why-a-natural-sea-sponge-is-the-best-product-for-washing-your-car-or-truck

I'm hoping this may solve my issue
 
Grout sponges are designed to pick up, move and carry away grout to prevent marring or scratching of the newly tiled surface. Grout contains sand particles. Grout sponges do an amazing job of moving those sand particles across a new tile floor, especially glossy ones, without marring or dulling the surface.

The most advantageous characteristics of a grout sponge are:

1. Hold tons of wash solution
2. Rinses Clean.
3 Soft and kind to paint.

I believe they are as comparable as synthetic can get to a sea sponge.
 
zoomzoom mazda5 said:
All natural sea sponges go through a very rigorous cleaning process after they are unloaded from the sponge boats at the docks in Tarpon Springs, Florida but always remember you’ll should wash and rinse them very well before use to remove any leftover sand or any other abrasives that may be trapped in them when you get them. Once you rinsed thoroughly, you can’t beat the quality of these sponges when washing a vehicle.
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I'm not aware of the cleaning processes which take place, but I have used 3 sea sponges over the course of a decade plus and I have always take care to repeatedly soak and rinse my sponges before use. I do not recall seeing much, if any, sand/grit during my own cleaning process, so they must be doing a pretty good job during the initial processing.

I use a variety of wash media including the "dreadlock" MF mitts/sponges, chenille sponges/mitts, sheepskin, grout sponges (have I missed any? :)) and while all work well, I agree that the natural sea sponge cannot be beat. Sheepskin are my least favorite and grout sponges are largely relegated to the lower panels. They are pricey, but IME their durability softens the initial purchase price shock.
 
I'm considering dumping the Grit Guard and washing with 5 sea sponges instead. I own two black cars. Don't pity me. :D

1 for top surfaces
2 for side surfaces
2 for lower 1/4 panel surfaces

The Grit Guard is good in theory, but grit still remains afloat in the solution. The only way to keep the grit below the Grit Guard is not spin or draw the mitt upward out of the bucket.

Do a test with a dye capsule and you'll see it with your own eyes.;)

Using a clear bucket, insert a dye capsule beneath the Grit Guard fin to hold it down. Slowly fill with 3 gallons of clear water. Wait for capsule to dissolve. The dye color will remain on the bottom. Work your mitt over the grit guard as usual by spinning it and draw it out. Notice how lifting the mitt draws the spinning solution upward. Vortex.

Give me some feedback.
 
The difference is that most dirt particles are probably heavier than water and will therefore sink to the bottom. Dye is not.
 
Of course they are heavier, but they are light enough to be disturbed by the turbulence caused by swishing the mitt and lifting it out.

Do a test in clear water using dirt particles and give me some feedback. :)

The dye only proves that a vortex is formed by swishing and lifting. It's weight is irrelevant.
 
I feel the same way that grit gaurds are basically useless to try and keep dirt away from the mitt. I use them but I mainly just use them to scrub the face of my mitt off on them when put in the rinse bucket to try and dislodge any dirt on the mit from last wash
 
I have used a sea sponge for quite some time with great results, consistently. I do not use a grit guard anymore either after switching to the sea sponge as my primary wash medium.

The sea sponge allows you to employ a technique I found very effective.

  • Fill the rinse bucket almost full, more the better
  • When rinsing the sea sponge, gently squeeze it out a few times towards the top of the rinse bucket (benefit of the sea sponge, no rubbing necessary, everything is released)
  • On the final final squeeze, compress the sponge down completely so it fits in the palm of your hand (will work with a large sea sponge). Once in your hand, it's virtually unable to absorb any bit of the surrounding water which may contain particulates.
  • Go back to soapy water, let the sea sponge soak up all that goodness, and continue washing the car.
  • When returning to the rinse bucket, the particles have settled to the bottom and repeat the process.
After finishing the wash, complete a thorough rinse in clean water and set the sponge to dry. Very low maintenance, highly effective, very durable, best wash product IMO.
 
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