Lots of lint after quick detailing -- What am I doing wrong??

[SF Space Grey]

Hi all,



I just got a new car and really enjoy washing it once or twice a month. I've only done it twice, but both times, after my final step of applying quick detailer / spray sealant, I notice that the car is covered with lint. We're not talking large lint here, but tiny individual fibers, maybe 2-3mm long each, on every square inch of the car, but only visible on the top panels (hood, roof, trunk). It's not noticeable from more than five feet away, but up close, when the light catches it, the whole finish looks... textured... in a really unattractive way. The QD is supposed to be the final finishing touch, leaving the car spotless and glossy. But adding all this lint pretty much defeats the purpose. I'm desperate for a solution here. What am I doing wrong? Any ideas? Here's my process:



* Wash with ONR using two bucket method and microfiber chenille mitt

* Blot dry panel by panel using waffle weave MF drying towel

* spray a little QD on plush MF towel

* 1-3 sprays of Red Mist Tropical per panel

* with light pressure, spread RMT over surface of panel by moving plush MF back and forth in one direction

* flip MF towel and wipe gently until product flashes off

* enjoy tons of lint glinting in the sunlight on my freshly washed car



I know that using cheap MF towels is a bad idea, so I've tried this one (DI Microfiber Ultra Plush Two Sided Towel - 16" x 16" | Free Shipping Available - Detailed Image) and this one (http://www.detailersdomain.com/Uber-Quick-Detail-Microfiber-Towel_p_573.html). Both were pre-washed with a very small amount of arm & hammer detergent (no fabric softener, etc.) and air dried.

 

[911fanatic]

Lint is from your towels, plain and simple. Get some towels like these from Autoality. We sell the same towels and they are more than plush enough, won't mar the paint and are reasonably priced.

 

[Dan]

You say air dryed, like hung out to dry? That might be contributing as a dryer does a good job of vacuuming out the lint.

 

[SF Space Grey]

You say air dryed, like hung out to dry? That might be contributing as a dryer does a good job of vacuuming out the lint.

Yep, hung to dry. I was thinking that a dryer might be rough on the fibers, breaking them and contributing to the lint. Thanks for the advice though, I'll try the dryer (maybe with no heat... just air fluff) next time and see if that helps.

 

[SF Space Grey]

Lint is from your towels, plain and simple. Get some towels like these from Autoality. We sell the same towels and they are more than plush enough, won't mar the paint and are reasonably priced.

Thanks for the rec. I'm resistant to the idea of just buying more and more towels in the hopes that one doesn't have this problem. My girlfriend already makes fun of me for having so many. The ones I already bought were highly rated, which makes me think I'm doing something wrong or all towels do this. Am I right that I need a plush towel for this? Should I be using two separate plush towels--one to spread the QD and another to lightly buff? Is Red Mist Tropical especially good at pulling lint out of the towels?

 

[ihaveacamaro]

Thanks for the rec. I'm resistant to the idea of just buying more and more towels in the hopes that one doesn't have this problem. My girlfriend already makes fun of me for having so many. The ones I already bought were highly rated, which makes me think I'm doing something wrong or all towels do this. Am I right that I need a plush towel for this? Should I be using two separate plush towels--one to spread the QD and another to lightly buff? Is Red Mist Tropical especially good at pulling lint out of the towels?

What type of towels?



I have two types of Microfiber towels for rinseless. The cobra towels and Adam's towels. Neither of these lint... ever.

 

[Accumulator]

..I'll try the dryer (maybe with no heat... just air fluff) next time ..

I dry all my MFs on low or medium and I've never had a problem.

... The [MFs} I already bought were highly rated, which makes me think I'm doing something wrong or all towels do this...

Most plush MFs lint a little bit, but some are a lot worse than others. Plenty of "very good" MFs lint like crazy for me but most of the ones I'm using now (thinking especially about the ones from PakShak) aren't bad in this regard.

.. Am I right that I need a plush towel for this?

Plush ones are generally safer than WWs, but (noting that I'm a fanatic about not instilling marring ) I use WWs and do the QDing as part of the drying process.



I generally do it this way- I blow off most of the water (you could just soak up most of it with your drying towel), then I spritz on a little QD. I wipe off the QD along with any remaining water and then buff *very gently* with another WW. I use *very* soft WWs, the softest I can get (again, most are from PakShak but I have some identical ones from another vendor).



So *I* use WWs for this, thus avoiding the lint issue. But I'm very careful to make sure the vehicle is truly clean before I do this; any residual dirt will result in marring as the WWs don't cushion things as well as a plush MF would.

Should I be using two separate plush towels--one to spread the QD and another to lightly buff?

I generally use two towels for anthing like this. I also fog the surface with my breath before that final buff (imparts a tiny bit of moisture from the condensation).

Is Red Mist Tropical especially good at pulling lint out of the towels?

Never used that, but I don't think the QD has anything to do with it.



Oh, and Welcome to Autopia!

 

[SF Space Grey]

What type of towels?



I have two types of Microfiber towels for rinseless. The cobra towels and Adam's towels. Neither of these lint... ever.

I put links to the towels I'm using in the OP. I think using towels for rinseless washes is less likely to cause linting than what I'm talking about--sliding a damp towel across mostly dry paint. Have you used your towel for QD / spray sealant application with no problems?

 

[Richard Grasa]

My towels would lint when they were new and not washed yet. But since I read a recommendation to wash them before the first use to get any manufacturing nasties out of them I no longer have the issue. I dry mine on low heat and have not had any problems.

 

[Kean]

Thanks for the rec. I'm resistant to the idea of just buying more and more towels in the hopes that one doesn't have this problem. My girlfriend already makes fun of me for having so many. The ones I already bought were highly rated, which makes me think I'm doing something wrong or all towels do this. Am I right that I need a plush towel for this? Should I be using two separate plush towels--one to spread the QD and another to lightly buff? Is Red Mist Tropical especially good at pulling lint out of the towels?

I would suggest buying in sample quantities initially when trying new towels. I’ve been burned in the past buying a larger order of towels that I thought were a safe bet. Some of those shed so badly that they were essentially useless (even after multiple washes). I even had issues between batches of what were supposed to be the same product.



btw, although my experience is relatively limited in this regard, the towels at PakShak have been pretty consistent performers for me so far.

 

[Accumulator]

I would suggest buying in sample quantities initially when trying new towels. I’ve been burned in the past buying a larger order of towels that I thought were a safe bet. Some of those shed so badly that they were essentially useless (even after multiple washes)....

Heh heh, that reminds me of the "Shamrock" MFs I bought (for both myself and my pal with the MKII Jag). Oh man do those things lint like crazy

 

[C. Charles Hahn]

Yep, hung to dry. I was thinking that a dryer might be rough on the fibers, breaking them and contributing to the lint. Thanks for the advice though, I'll try the dryer (maybe with no heat... just air fluff) next time and see if that helps.

The dryer shouldn't cause a problem if you use either the "extra low heat" or "air only" setting... in fact it might help extract whatever is causing the linting issues. That's how I've always dried my towels, anyway.

 

[Kean]

Heh heh, that reminds me of the "Shamrock" MFs I bought (for both myself and my pal with the MKII Jag). Oh man do those things lint like crazy

....bingo. I also had purchased some other Cobra towels in that order with the same issue. I don't recall their name but they were gray with a black border (ones side was plush and the other side had a short nap). They also shed horribly but nothing like those Shamrocks. I haven't purchased any towels from AG since. ....thankfully, your recommendation to try PakShak worked out great for me.

 

[SF Space Grey]

Guys, thanks for the warm welcome and all the tips! I know everyone loves PakShak towels, so I'll check them out if machine drying doesn't work on mine. One thing I'm wondering, though, is who actually makes these microfiber towels? Isn't there a good chance I'll just be getting towels from the same manufacturer(s) as before? For example, these: MICROPAK 16" x 16" "Fire on Ice" Ultra-Plush Micro Fiber Towel look exactly like the Detailers Domain towels I'm already using.



If I can't get this sorted out, maybe I just need to use a less plush (lower nap) towel for QD application?

 

[Ron Ketcham]

In the dark ages, back when there was little such products and accessories, etc as today, we learned to understand "static electricty".

We would take a "metal chain" and "ground" the vehicle, since the bodies were steel and running a buffer over that paint, on the metal, would create static electricity.

Today, started about 20 years ago, cars now have not only steel, but various plastics, etc in the body.

Very hard to create a "ground" for today's vehicles,(due to the construction and assmebly of the vehicles) but there are other ways to reduce the static electricity charge.

Rubbing by hand, using a machine that "polishes", all create a static charge in the body of the vehicle.

Washing the vehicle after polishing will remove most of the charge, however, it should not be done after the application of a sealant-(discussed last night on chat, how water stops the crosslinking of the sealant, etc), and reduces any dust or lint from being drawn to the vehicles paint surface.

One way a very intelligent student to my old companies detail training course came up with was to mix up a solution of something like an anti-static laundry product and wiping the vehicle down first.

Not really sure about that one.

Then, there is the issue of the "tires" on the vehicle, that's right, the "tires", as some will not only generate static charges (ever touch some cars when they have been driven and get a slight shock when you touched the door handle?), so if they have built a charge in the body, they may very well hold that charge, which one then enhances when doing the buffing/polishing process.(Dunlop and Firestone had these issues in some tires, made in some plants)

There is no one simple answer, it requires that each car is approached in a detective manner, know the vehicle, etc.

Sorry, I can't give you a certain, for sure answer to the concern, just some things to consider.

Grumpy

 

[pwaug]

If I can't get this sorted out, maybe I just need to use a less plush (lower nap) towel for QD application?

Been using 360 GSM Towels for my first wipe then the 600 GSM Towels (very fluffy, very long nap) from MicroFiberTech with no linting problems. Towels were washed with HD Kleen and machine dried on low before use.

 

[imported_WCD]

Dryer not a problem. Use low to med. heat, but do not put them in too long- can melt and curl towels when too hot or too long. Fibers come on towels from factory- no way around this. Wash before using. Towels are finicky..I have some that do not ever lint on paint, but if I use them on glass...lint! Almost like a positive/negative charge science experiment.



That said, are you sure they are from the towels and not the mitt?

 

[Kean]

Dryer not a problem. Use low to med. heat, but do not put them in too long- can melt and curl towels when too hot or too long.

....can't say I have ever encountered that problem those times I left mine in my dryer longer than I normally do. However, border stitching on some were a different story (shrinkage). If I recall correctly from past discussions on this topic, MF material can generally withstand temperatures well above what most proper working dryers will ever reach. .....no?

 

[Accumulator]

..If I recall correctly from past discussions on this topic, MF material can generally withstand temperatures well above what most proper working dryers will ever reach...

Correct.



Not that I'm recommending it, but I've accidentally dried MFs on the same "high" setting that I use for cotton towels, and I didn't notice *any* damage whatsoever.



Hey, some MF makers/vendors recommend *boiling* their MFs! That's pretty hot comared to any (properly functioning) household dryer.



One thing though...you know how MFs "wear", in the sense that while they're not "threadbare" or anything they're still just not "grabby on your fingers", like they just aren't quite the way they were when they were newer? While I don't think it's a case of being damaged by the heat of machine-drying, I do think that the more wear they're subjected to *including getting tossed around in washing machines and dryers* the more quickly they start to wear. So I wouldn't be washing/drying them with longer/more aggressive cycles than necessary.

One thing I'm wondering, though, is who actually makes these microfiber towels? Isn't there a good chance I'll just be getting towels from the same manufacturer(s) as before?

IIRC, there are only a few manufacturers of MF towels. And yeah, it's entirely possible to get identical towels from different sources; I have WWs that are *exactly* the same other than the color and the vendors even said "yeah, they're the same as those other ones" (props to honest vendors who come right out and say their products are the same as the other guys).



If you stick with certain-to-please vendors you should be able to expect no (unpleasant) surprises. The folks at PakShak, for instance, would probably *want* to know if somebody were dissatisfied with their stuff (ditto for Detailer's Domain).



I've contacted vendors about towels that dissatisfied me, and they took care of it.

For example, these: MICROPAK 16" x 16" "Fire on Ice" Ultra-Plush Micro Fiber Towel look exactly like the Detailers Domain towels I'm already using.

Well, that, as they say, is a clue You contact DD about the linting? Wonder what they'd say :think:

If I can't get this sorted out, maybe I just need to use a less plush (lower nap) towel for QD application?

Heh heh, maybe that'd just result in smaller/shorter MF fibers linting all over! But well, maybe that'd be better :nixweiss



Eh, as I said I use WWs for most of my QDing. But I've also used plush ones from PakShak (their "ultra plush") with no lint issues. They do lint enough that I don't use 'em on glass, but on my paint it's never a problem.

 

[SF Space Grey]

Just for anyone who searches and finds this thread later, my linting problem was completely solved by drying my microfibers in the dryer on low heat. At the same time, I also switched from Dodo Juice Red Mist Tropical to Optimum Car Wax as my last step, but I doubt that was a factor.