Why do you foam

R

reparebrise

New member
Why do many participant here do this?





What are considered the advantages? How do you contain the run off? Why do you do or not do it?
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The idea is for the foam to break up and float away some of the dirt from the paint, so that the mechanical cleaning process is less likely to rub that dirt against the paint and cause marring. Where does the foam go? Well, wherever the rest of your wash and rinsewater is going.
 
It cuts down on marring somewhat, but mostly I just feel more comfortable/enjoy the process more. I find that I have to dunk the mitt less often and overall my washes go faster and easier.
 
themightytimmah said:
It cuts down on marring somewhat, but mostly I just feel more comfortable/enjoy the process more. I find that I have to dunk the mitt less often and overall my washes go faster and easier.
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+1 to that sentiment.



at the very least it makes the washing process feel smoother. :xyxthumbs
 
What is the difference between foaming or power washing? Yes, I know the difference, but from what I’ve seen on here is those that foam will power wash the car afterwords most of the time. Does foaming really remove the dirt or just some of it? To be honest I feel it’s more of a fade, and doesn’t really add enough to the detailing process to justify the time or cost.
 
crofa said:
To be honest I feel it’s more of a fade, and doesn’t really add enough to the detailing process to justify the time or cost.
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It speeds up a wash...tremendously.
 
during peak car care season i foam my cars like twice a week and they stay spotless....i rarely even wash with a mitt....only if it rains or i went through some puddles and there is alot of grime on the paint do i wash with a mitt....



the foam just picks up light dirt and dust and it drops right off...a good rinse with the pressure washer and i am done....
 
The pressure washer I use has a tank for soap and a special attachment for foaming. This makes things SO much easier.



1. You no longer have to transfer soap from the bucket to the car with a mitt, PITA.

2. You can presoak, where as if you tried to presoak with the mitt application, you already have materials touching a dirty car in order to transfer soap. May cause marring.

3. It significantly reduces surface dirt.



Most of the time I don't even need to touch the car with a wash mitt. Just foam and rinse. But I drive straight from garage to garage and never park in the elements.



I find that if I foam soak my wheels I don't have to touch them with any brushes, the dirt will powerwash off. If I just try and power wash them it takes 3x as long.



Foam saves time and work. Thats what its for.
 
crofa said:
What is the difference between foaming or power washing? Yes, I know the difference, but from what I’ve seen on here is those that foam will power wash the car afterwords most of the time. Does foaming really remove the dirt or just some of it? To be honest I feel it’s more of a fade, and doesn’t really add enough to the detailing process to justify the time or cost.
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think of it more as pretreating the dirt

yes you need a mitt or powerwash after to finish

it will soften the dirt helping to reduce marring



F.Y.I. foam guns are only about $30 shipped from amazon

and they save time



and I have used a foam gun for 15+ years so IMO it is not a fad
 
When I use the foamgun in a way that speeds up the wash, I get marring; doing *anything* in a remotely time-efficient way always leads to marring for me :(



But when I use it in a time/labor-intensive manner it greatly *reduces* the wash-induced marring.
 
I used to foam but I've come to believe that it is more of a gimmick then anything else. I two bucket with ONR and don't see any or much marring. Plus I was going thru soap like a mofo using a foamgun.
 
I foamed for the first time with the Gilmore gun I picked up on Amazon.



In summary, my impression is that it did save me time, but it also increased the amount of soap I used.



I can't say with certainty that the car is any cleaner for it, but the initial foaming plus rinse down did take away some visible dirt. Is this, coupled with the 3 minutes saved worth the cost of the gun, materials, and water? For me, I would say yes, but its borderline in its value. Therefore if you are someone on the fence about getting one I'd recommend not; however, if it looks interesting to you, you may want to give it a shot.



For reference, I used cheap RainX shampoo which I buy for $5 for 64 oz. Biodegradable and foams well.
 
dark 5.0 said:
Whats the most popular foam gun out there? Can I find them in stores?
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you can also find them at any of our forum sponsors (AutoGeek, DetailersDomain, DetailedImage). also, don't forget the 10% off autopian discount... :)
 
I like only filling a rinse bucket and using the gun in place of the soap bucket. A rinse bucket on each side with three mitts each. Very fast technique for me. I find a ton of time saved by not returning to the soap bucket and by not having to rinse the mitt to release dirt. I know six mitts sounds crazy but "time is money."
 
ROFL 6 mitts. I honestly think thats a great idea. The most time efficient method would probably be a foam gun and enough mitts so you can agitate a section and toss it in the bucket, and move on to the next one. I'm sure I'll have more than two washmitts someday.
 
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