ONR Wash Media

dschribs

dschribs

New member
First time ONR user. It`s going to be my go to for washing my new vehicle this Winter.

I`ve been watching some You Tube vidoes tyring to get the process down. It still goes against everything I have ever learned about washing cars but....

What does everyone use in terms of wash media? MF, sponge, wash Mitt?

Basically what I`m wondering if it should be something different than I normally use w a traditional wash???

Thanks!
Dan
 
I second the bid red sponge. Sometimes I use the rinseless wash mitt that autopia and AG sells.



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I alternate between towels, micro chenille mitt(s) or LC Blue Sponge. I had big hopes for the sponge, but I am noticing a bit of fracture in the structure of it, so next I might just get the BRS. Typically it`s the sponge along with a towel or two for harder to reach areas, while also soaking my soft bristle brush in the bucket just in case.


I love the idea of using the sponge since it rinses/cleans off very easily and no need to have dirty towels sitting around waiting for more to accumulate to justify doing a load in the washer. Right now i got a few in a bucket, stinking up from the moisture and with dirt just sitting on the fibers which tends to semi/permanently stain the towels. I used to soak them in a bucket but the water goes bad quickly as well. Still trying to figure out the best way to "store" dirty towels until the next wash load.
 
Migue said:
I alternate between towels, micro chenille mitt(s) or LC Blue Sponge. I had big hopes for the sponge, but I am noticing a bit of fracture in the structure of it, so next I might just get the BRS. Typically it`s the sponge along with a towel or two for harder to reach areas, while also soaking my soft bristle brush in the bucket just in case.


I love the idea of using the sponge since it rinses/cleans off very easily and no need to have dirty towels sitting around waiting for more to accumulate to justify doing a load in the washer. Right now i got a few in a bucket, stinking up from the moisture and with dirt just sitting on the fibers which tends to semi/permanently stain the towels. I used to soak them in a bucket but the water goes bad quickly as well. Still trying to figure out the best way to "store" dirty towels until the next wash load.
Click to expand...

Once you go BRS with ONR you won`t look back. Wash weekly or even bi-weekly and it`s safe. Noticed no marring on the coated cars I am using it with.
 
The Guz said:
Once you go BRS with ONR you won`t look back. Wash weekly or even bi-weekly and it`s safe. Noticed no marring on the coated cars I am using it with.
Click to expand...

Awesome, thanks. Do you use 2 buckets with it or rinse in the same solution? I know Optimum mentions it`s ok to re-dunk in same solution due to ONR apparently dragging dirt to the bottom of bucket to keep it from floating around, but I`m not sure how accurate this is. I ask especially because I keep my 5-gal full of 4 gallons of mixture for easy prep and I wonder how good would it be to actually leave that solution with dirt in it for re use and also leaving the sponge in the bucket to "live" in the rinseless solution.
 
Migue said:
Awesome, thanks. Do you use 2 buckets with it or rinse in the same solution? I know Optimum mentions it`s ok to re-dunk in same solution due to ONR apparently dragging dirt to the bottom of bucket to keep it from floating around, but I`m not sure how accurate this is. I ask especially because I keep my 5-gal full of 4 gallons of mixture for easy prep and I wonder how good would it be to actually leave that solution with dirt in it for re use and also leaving the sponge in the bucket to "live" in the rinseless solution.
Click to expand...
I can`t speak for the Guz but I use one bucket with ONR and the BRS or the rinseless mitt. I haven`t noticed any marring. I usually wash bi-weekly.

Optimum says you can use the dirty solution all the way down to the grit guard but I always make up fresh solution.

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Migue said:
Awesome, thanks. Do you use 2 buckets with it or rinse in the same solution? I know Optimum mentions it`s ok to re-dunk in same solution due to ONR apparently dragging dirt to the bottom of bucket to keep it from floating around, but I`m not sure how accurate this is. I ask especially because I keep my 5-gal full of 4 gallons of mixture for easy prep and I wonder how good would it be to actually leave that solution with dirt in it for re use and also leaving the sponge in the bucket to "live" in the rinseless solution.
Click to expand...

One bucket. I modified the grit guard in the bucket. I took an inch off of it so it sits lower and I have access to more solution. I make about 4-4.5 gallons of rinseless and wash multiple cars or multiple times with the same solution.

The second bucket is solution for wheels and tires with ONR solution in that.

I had a video on the whole process and I accidentally deleted it off my phone. I need to make another one. Maybe this weekend.
 
Very soft, plush MFs with the longest nap I can find. Once it`s gone across a dirty area I either refold it or get out a clean one. I simply don`t touch my vehicles with dirty things.

But no matter how careful and gentle I do the rinseless washes, I still can`t avoid wash-induced marring unless I get the "big stuff" off first with a different method (and I generally do two separate steps before switching to the rinseless, both of which might be done more than once).

IME, rubbing abrasive stuff across paint under pressure causes marring, whether it`s "encapsulated" in some wash solution or not. No, the abrasive stuff doesn`t travel up into the nap of the wash medium safely away from the paint..it contacts the paint and mars it. Maybe it`s very light marring, maybe nobody else sees it. But the paint is still marred too much for me and such damage is really forever since the only way to fix it is to remove paint/clear. I know that *so* many people apparently have different experiences, but that`s how it goes for me.
 
I saw that Big Red sponge. I just can`t justify $20 for a sponge - that`s just crazy!. But then again - I don`t detail professionally.

Just this morning I bought a bunch of these to start down the ONR washing path.

Shine & Buff Waterless Wash Towel, 6 Pack

I got MF`s because everything I had read said if you are going to use one bucket w ONR - which is what I plan on doing - MF`s are the way to go.

Next time I order from D.I. I`m going to grab one of these now that I know you can use a sponge w one bucket

Lake Country Blue Grout Sponge | Free Shipping Available - Detailed Image
 
Accumulator said:
Very soft, plush MFs with the longest nap I can find. Once it`s gone across a dirty area I either refold it or get out a clean one. I simply don`t touch my vehicles with dirty things.

But no matter how careful and gentle I do the rinseless washes, I still can`t avoid wash-induced marring unless I get the "big stuff" off first with a different method (and I generally do two separate steps before switching to the rinseless, both of which might be done more than once).

IME, rubbing abrasive stuff across paint under pressure causes marring, whether it`s "encapsulated" in some wash solution or not. No, the abrasive stuff doesn`t travel up into the nap of the wash medium safely away from the paint..it contacts the paint and mars it. Maybe it`s very light marring, maybe nobody else sees it. But the paint is still marred too much for me and such damage is really forever since the only way to fix it is to remove paint/clear. I know that *so* many people apparently have different experiences, but that`s how it goes for me.
Click to expand...


I`ve accepted the fact that every single time one touches the paint,whether to wash or dry, there is a percentage chance that marring will occur, to me it`s about keeping that percentage low. Only way I`ll do a "surgical" wash is if I ever owned a black vehicle again, or if a customer is paying for it, THEN I`ll get my foam gun in one had and wash mitt in other with PLENTY of soap. After 5+ years, I`m still taking a break from a 3-4 hour maintenance wash procedure on a black SUV every single Saturday.
 
I found a use for those horrible AG Shamrock towels I bought years ago when I purchased ONR. I say "horrible" because while very plush they were essentially useless due to the level of shedding I experienced with them. However, as wash media the lint was not really an issue.

As for marring, it`s all a matter of finding those techniques, tools and products that provide results you can live with. There is going to usually be some level of compromise in each case with time, effort, money, etc. That`s an individual decision.
 
dschribs said:
I saw that Big Red sponge. I just can`t justify $20 for a sponge - that`s just crazy!. But then again - I don`t detail professionally.

Just this morning I bought a bunch of these to start down the ONR washing path.

Shine & Buff Waterless Wash Towel, 6 Pack

I got MF`s because everything I had read said if you are going to use one bucket w ONR - which is what I plan on doing - MF`s are the way to go.

Next time I order from D.I. I`m going to grab one of these now that I know you can use a sponge w one bucket

Lake Country Blue Grout Sponge | Free Shipping Available - Detailed Image
Click to expand...




The Blue Sponge works well, but it is not as soft as the BRS, just giving you a heads up. I have it and it`s my media as of lately, but I have to say I am disappointed in seeing it tear a little bit after a small amount of GENTLE( I squeeze it out veeeery gently and I never twist/wring it out) uses. I didn`t want to accept others` claims that they don`t last long but oh well, maybe it`s because I just leave it soaking in the bucket of solution . The BRS I`ve read lasts quite a while, so at $20 I`d say is a one in a while investment especially if it`s just for your personal vehicles.
 
I don`t see how people avoid marring with sponges, whether with a rinseless or a conventional wash. Too much pressure against the panel for me, I *never* press as hard as I`d have to for a sponge to conform to the vehicle`s contours even if I did figure out how to be sufficiently gentle on the flat areas. I do use them for undercarriage work though if only to get some use out of them.

Heh heh, I bet I sound like the Resident Nutjob when it comes to wash-induced marring, but sheesh, most of my vehicles have *hard* clear, and I do my washes as if performing neurosurgery...but I still sometimes get a little marring. When I wash the way Normal Autopian People do (and I`m still incredibly careful about it), the damage is *always* there in the right lighting. Eh, guess it wouldn`t be as big a deal if I could/would do a little correction every year or so, but that`s not gonna happen.

Migue- Heh heh...I`m *really* trying to get my maintenance washes done in only ~5 hours. Did pull it off on the A8 the other day, but OK... True Confession Time- I did a quickie on the undercarriage and only partially disassembled the underhood cladding, both of which will make for more work next time :(

Kean said:
I found a use for those horrible AG Shamrock towels I bought years ago when I purchased ONR. I say "horrible" because while very plush they were essentially useless due to the level of shedding I experienced with them. However, as wash media the lint was not really an issue.
Click to expand...

Hey, those are what I`m using (for the most part) too! Don`t care for the edges, but I can work around that. The linting shows up on my (white) Drying Towels, but seems to come off the vehicle OK. Nice to find a use for the things, huh?
 
dschribs said:
Just this morning I bought a bunch of these to start down the ONR washing path.

Shine & Buff Waterless Wash Towel, 6 Pack
Click to expand...

I bet it`s just a coincidence as I think the sizes are different, but those look a *LOT* like the ones I got at Wally World. Awful linting for me, but they worked better for Tom P.

I`ll be curious to hear how they work for you, it`s be swell if somebody compared them to the GG PFMs (hint hint :) )
 
Accumulator said:
Hey, those are what I`m using (for the most part) too! Don`t care for the edges, but I can work around that. The linting shows up on my (white) Drying Towels, but seems to come off the vehicle OK. Nice to find a use for the things, huh?
Click to expand...
Yeah.... It was really disappointing initially because other than the lint they were super soft and plush towels. I thought it was such a waste that I couldn`t use them. ....and that lint was beyond anything else I have ever experienced up to that point. I expected some given the characteristics of these towels (I have others that do to some extent) but this was at a whole new level.

They work great as wash media for me even with my admittedly cringe-worthy methods these days. Kinda glad I never returned them.
 
Accumulator said:
I bet it`s just a coincidence as I think the sizes are different, but those look a *LOT* like the ones I got at Wally World. Awful linting for me, but they worked better for Tom P.

I`ll be curious to hear how they work for you, it`s be swell if somebody compared them to the GG PFMs (hint hint :) )
Click to expand...

I`m hoping of they do lint it won`t be an issue since I`ll be using them for ONR washing. They got some pretty good reviews over on the Autogeek site. Also, I`ll be drying w a Waffle Weave - not w these MF`s.
 
The Guz said:
One bucket. I modified the grit guard in the bucket. I took an inch off of it so it sits lower and I have access to more solution. I make about 4-4.5 gallons of rinseless and wash multiple cars or multiple times with the same solution.

The second bucket is solution for wheels and tires with ONR solution in that.

I had a video on the whole process and I accidentally deleted it off my phone. I need to make another one. Maybe this weekend.
Click to expand...

Guz - I`d be interested in seeing the video. Message me if you post it.
Thanks!
 
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