Unabsorbant microfiber towels?

S

shadaloo

New member
I bought some really plush and fluffy microfibers( I would guess they're at least twice as thick as the stuff you find at Walmart/target) at a local dollar store and they seem to repel water for some reason. After I had washed them in the washer and was ready to hang them up to dry, they didn't feel wet at all. The other microfibers I use were very wet...


Am I missing something here? How do they not absorb water? I thought the whole purpose of microfiber was so that it could absorb more...Maybe I need to wash them in Dawn...
 
Re: Unaborbant microfiber towels?

That seems to be weird. If you washed them that might help but never heard of something like that happening. Does it say they were coated with anything?

Personally on my car I would never use microfiber towels from a dollar store. Thats just the way I am.

Would love to know the name of the place and maybe do they have any info on them when you bought them?
 
Re: Unaborbant microfiber towels?

It could be the material your MF is made of, or the mfg. process. Does it say 100% microfiber? If so, you might have something that's all polyester. If you happen to have a polyester suit ( :eek: ) you could see how not absorbent it is. The MF should be between 60/40 and 80/20 polyester and polyamide.
Also, if the cloth is not made "right" it won't absorb liquids or have dirt etc. cling to it. MF used in making some furniture and tablecloths are this type, as it doesn't stain as readily due to the liquid beading up and rolling away.

There don't seem to be many "rules" about mf, so there can be big differences between brands, but both may still say they are "microfiber." All microfiber has to be is a fabric with strands less than one denier. (Very thin strands.) No rules on how it has to be made or what it is made of.
 
togwt said:
Towel Washing Directions:
Use hot (120oF<) water and add 1-2 ounces to a standard size (8 gallon) load, for larger loads or heavily soiled laundry, add 3-6 ounces. As a pre-spotter: dilute 1 part concentrates with 3 parts water, apply to stain and launder as usual.

Do not use fabric softener (most contain silicone that the towel will adsorb and it will weaken the towels static charge and clog the fibres thereby reducing their effectiveness) towel will also treat the fabric softener as if it was dirt by trying to store the tiny particles of the softener in the towel fibres. This will clog up the micro fibres and render the towel ineffective. Add a teaspoon per towel distilled white vinegar in place of a softener, the vinegar doesn't coat the fibres but instead works to eliminate detergent residue. Vinegar (Acetic acid, pH=2) works well in the rinse cycle to make your towels softer. Detergent is an alkaline (pH=12, the opposite of acidic on the pH scale).

When you wash your towels (or anything for that matter) there are small amounts of detergent left behind, when your add Vinegar it balances the pH of the solution and helps removes the excess detergent from the wash. Do not wash micro fibre cloths / towels with other non- micro fibre fabrics, as they will pick up lint from other fabrics.

Air dry or you can dry micro fibre cloths / towels in any dryer on low heat, remove them before they are still damp (cuts down on static charge) just be sure that the dryer does not dry at temperatures above 235 degrees F as a synthetic Microfiber will melt if heated too high. Colours may bleed during first washing.
JonM
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Try this
 
I'm certainly no authority on MF towels, but I think I remember reading that some fabrics, including some MF towels are treated with a softening agent at the factory. This gives the impression of the fabric/towel being much softer than it truly is.
Boiling the towels might even be necessary to remove such a product although just washing them a few times might do it.

For the aggravation it may cause you, it might be worth just buying some new MF towels.
If you think they are bugging you now, wait till you try to dry your vehicle, clean a window or remove a QD. :)

Charles
 
Re: Unaborbant microfiber towels?

Big Leegr said:
It could be the material your MF is made of, or the mfg. process. Does it say 100% microfiber? If so, you might have something that's all polyester.... All microfiber has to be is a fabric with strands less than one denier. (Very thin strands.) No rules on how it has to be made or what it is made of.
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Ok, now this is a typical example of a post made by someone who has absolutely no clue what he's talking about. Just info copied from sites with bad info. example: many mention "Polyamide" as if it's some sort of special fiber, in reality polyamide is the generic name for Nylon. They don't call it Nylon because they are not using DuPont Nylon and use a cheaper yarn.

Labeling a towel 100% microfiber does not indicate content, it indicates the size of the yarn so it serves no real purpose. Microfiber refers to yarn size so the content can be polyester, poly/nylon, cotton, or any number of other fibers.

Mentioning denier size is also deceiving because denier was developed as a system of measuring silk strands, it's based on weight. Silk, polyester, cotton, etc. a ll have different weights for the same mass. Think of a 2x4 made of oak and another of balsa. Both measure exactly the same but certainly don't weight the same. The more accurate measurement used by the textile industry today for non-silk yarns is dtex (pronounced "dee-tex") which refers to the diameter in microns of a strand of yarn.

Do yourselves a favor and don't try to get technical, just use what you like.

Anyway, back to the original post... most likely the towels you bought are finished chemically to replicate a softer feel to "fool" you into thinking they are a nicer quality. Most of these finishes are silicone so this stops any liquid from being absorbed or adsorbed depending on the fiber. You may be able to wash it out after a while but it may take many washes in hot water.

I find it hard to understand why anyone who loves detailing would spend tens of thousands on a car but go out of their way to buy the cheapest towel they can find. You get what you pay for!
 
Re: Unaborbant microfiber towels?

DFTowel said:
I find it hard to understand why anyone who loves detailing would spend tens of thousands on a car but go out of their way to buy the cheapest towel they can find. You get what you pay for!
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I say this all the time on a BMW forum that I post at....you pay huge amounts of cash for a car, then look for the cheapest product to protect it!
 
The cheap microfiber towels I buy never touch the paint but are used to clean the inside of the rim, or for any real dirty parts.
 
Stephan said:
The cheap microfiber towels I buy never touch the paint but are used to clean the inside of the rim, or for any real dirty parts.
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I have found that its better to get some Costco or likes of that, terry cloth towels for this than buying cheap MFT....if all you are going to do is real dirty jobs....cheap MFT don't seem to hold up for do-do..IMO

I buy a bundle of white terry towels at Costco...I think its a dozen...for about 12 bucks they are durable for those type of jobs...just my take on it
 
Re: Unaborbant microfiber towels?

DFTowel said:
Ok, now this is a typical example of a post made by someone who has absolutely no clue what he's talking about. Just info copied from sites with bad info. example: many mention "Polyamide" as if it's some sort of special fiber, in reality polyamide is the generic name for Nylon. They don't call it Nylon because they are not using DuPont Nylon and use a cheaper yarn.
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I don't believe I ever mentioned what polyamide was or wasn't. If you look at a "typical" MF towel, you will see either "100% microfiber" or a % of polyester and polyamide, no mention of Nylon, regardless of it being a name brand, so there wouldn't be cause to mention Nylon being another name to use.

Labeling a towel 100% microfiber does not indicate content, it indicates the size of the yarn so it serves no real purpose. Microfiber refers to yarn size so the content can be polyester, poly/nylon, cotton, or any number of other fibers.
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I believe this is what I said:
Big Leegr said:
There don't seem to be many "rules" about mf, so there can be big differences between brands, but both may still say they are "microfiber." All microfiber has to be is a fabric with strands less than one denier. (Very thin strands.) No rules on how it has to be made or what it is made of.
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I didn't mention that it could be cellulose like yours, but then I didn't say it had to be only polyester/polyamide.
(Although I seem to be mistaken about the term for "small size." Sorry.)

Looking at what you've mentioned vs. my "absolutely no clue" comments, I don't think there are any gross errors made by me. I do think the comment about having no clue etc. was uncalled for, though. :(
 
Re: Unaborbant microfiber towels?

I use cheap microfibers, so I am really getting a kick out of these replies.

/too obscure?
 
Hey DFer! I love your towels man but lighten up.He never said anything out of line.Big Leegr is FAAAAAAAAAAAAAR from ignorant.
Now I'm staying out of it. :passout: Rick
 
Thanks for the replies guys/gals. I think there may be something on them as when they get wet, they become squishy and slippery.

As far as using cheap mf goes, I don't really care. Despite being on a detailing board, I'm just gonna live with them. Its not worth polishing my car for 10+ hours/3times year just to have a perfect finish.
 
The better/nicer micros not only enhance the appearance of your car(believe it) but they make the job of removing products easier. Hence you spend less time detailing the car.:passout:
 
I'll take my chances :redface:

Besides,thats why I use DG AW, takes about 5 minutes to spray my car and maybe another 10-15 to wipe it all off. Wait overnight and I'll have a glistening car :rockon
 
shadaloo said:
Besides,thats why I use DG AW, takes about 5 minutes to spray my car and maybe another 10-15 to wipe it all off.
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You might want to consider spraying a panel with the AW, spreading it with a towel and wipe it off that panel.
I think that's the recommended way to use AW and I know it's the way I use it.
When you spray the entire vehicle before wiping the AW off, doesn't it start to dry on the first sections you did?
 
shadaloo said:
Its not worth polishing my car for 10+ hours/3times year just to have a perfect finish.
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If you take care of your car regularly, other than the time spent washing it,you don't need to spend 10+ hours a year maintaining the finish.
More like an hour at a time 3 to 4 times a year.

Keeping the finish nice is pretty easy. Bringing back a neglected finish is what take a lot of work.

Charles
 
CharlesW said:
You might want to consider spraying a panel with the AW, spreading it with a towel and wipe it off that panel.
I think that's the recommended way to use AW and I know it's the way I use it.
When you spray the entire vehicle before wiping the AW off, doesn't it start to dry on the first sections you did?
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I guess it might if you're conservative with the amount of AW you use but I use like 4 squirts/panel to make sure I cover every last inch. I never really had an issue with drying but I do notice that if I use a little and leave it there long enough, it dries invisible, like its being absorbed into the paint :confused:
 
shadaloo said:
I guess it might if you're conservative with the amount of AW you use but I use like 4 squirts/panel to make sure I cover every last inch. I never really had an issue with drying but I do notice that if I use a little and leave it there long enough, it dries invisible, like its being absorbed into the paint :confused:
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Your choice. :)
I just thought following the manufacturer's instructions, (on the bottle), might be the way to get the most benefit from the product.
Hey, if it works for you and you are happy, then that's all that really matters.:bigups
 
As Charles said, if it works for you, great, but you are using WAY to much AW. Optimal results are had with less product. You save money/product, get better results and I don't see how it would take any more time. But, that's the great thing about this hobby, you can do what you want.
 
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