Foam Gun more hype than helpful

[ronmart]

I've now used my foam gun 3 times and I've got to say that it is cool, but overall I think it is more hype (and current fad) than it is really helpful.

Without question, it is cool to get your car all foamed up and know that it is loosening the dirts bond to your car. However, unless you have a covered car port or a wet bay in your garage, you lose that benefit by the sun beating down on your foamed up car and creating a greater potential for water spots.

I don't have the luxury of such a garage, so I have to work in the sun. I try to work at less sunny times of the day, but my most effective technique thus far for avoiding water spots is simply not to let the water stand on the car for any length of time. As a result I wash quadrants of the car at a time and dry immediately. Naturally this means when I'm finished with Q1 and wet down Q2, I get a little water on Q1 so there's extra drying involved. However, it works and I don't have problems with spots.

The problem with the foam gun is that you can't use the quadrant technique. It just blasts foam everywhere, and you shouldn't leave it on your car without rinsing it off so the quad method just isn't an option.

This means you are back to foaming down the whole car and trying like hell to work super fast. However, problem #2 comes up - I only have one hose. This means I have to switch between the foam gun and the rinse nozzle which slows me down.

Lastly, this isn't going to make dirt magically dissapear (dust yes, but not dirt) so you still need to wash your car with your favorite device (mitt, sponge, BHB, etc...). Either way, you've basically added a step to your car wash process by foaming. Since washing takes time, you'll generally feel the desire or need to re-foam areas before you wash them by hand.

Overall, I found that I used twice as much soap, I spend about 15 minutes longer washing (foaming & nozzle swaps), and the liklihood of spotting shoots up exponentially over my quad method. In the end, I'm simply unimpressed for daily use. Yes it is cool, and yes I'd love it if I had the ideal garage conditions, but in the end this is another device to go to the detail graveyard at my house (but I do hear it is great for cleaning lawn furniture - UGH!).

I purchased the Wolfgang 1qt version from AutoGeek
I used the middle setting
I tried it with both Griots Garage Car Shampoo and Meguiars Gold Class
I tried it on 3 different cars (2 dark and 1 light colored)

For those who are like me and who love hearing about cool new products, but hate wasting money or time on things that are more hype than reality I say pass on this one. If you live in my area, I'd be happy to let you come by my house and try out mine to see for yourself (bring your own soap though). This thing is a waste of money!

P.S. I wouldn't be surprised if you could get almost the same effect using a new Miracle Grow fertilizer sprayer (don't use it on your car if you've used MG in it!!!! )

[themightytimmah]

Yeah if you've gotta work in the sun, Optimum No Rinse and Distilled water is the only way to go.

That said, I'll never go back to the old bucket method as I do my washing in the shade. I find it actually saves me time, as I just flick the selector on the FG to the no soap option to rinse from panel to panel, rather than switching to a rinse nozzle. Once the whole car is rinsed, I turn off the water, take off the nozzle, then turn the water back on and go for a sheeting rinse.

[Setec Astronomy]

You can still work in quadrants with the foam gun, or even smaller areas--if you can't keep from blasting the whole car at once you must have some hellacious water pressure--try throttling down your faucet a little. As Timmah said, you can rinse with the foam gun, either by rotating the orifice rod so you're not siphoning, or disconnecting the cup portion from the trigger handle with the quick-disconnect built into the gun. Or you can put quick-disconnects on your hose. I think one of the real values of the foam gun is on the sides of the car, where you can actually get some soap on the dirt before you wipe it, as opposed to trying to slosh it on with a mitt and mostly wiping dry. I think that's mostly why the foam gun seems to use more soap--you are actually using some on the sides of the car.

OTOH, to each his own, there certainly is some more rigamarole to using the gun.

[Bill D]

I'll second that. I wash outside in the FL heat and must wash and dry in sections. I gladly go through the trouble because it saves me the potential time later on I'd have to spend removing clear to correct defects induced by bucket washing alone.

[jsatek]

I have a foam gun and am not thrilled with it either. I always apply a little Z8 or 425 after a wash anyway to remove any water spots. For me the foam gun is just a toy that legnthens my wash time. I haven't noticed any cars being cleaner or clean quicker or less marring. I have shut off valves and quick releases on my hose.

[chml17l]

The foam gun is like any other detailing tool in that your results will vary depending on how you use it. Results obtained can be very technique dependent so no it's probably not for anyone who thinks it will give them improved results (less marring) without investing more time not less in the whole wash process.

[Accumulator]

The legitimate "hype" is that you can use the foamgun to avoid wash induced marring and the resultant need to abrasively polish.

As noted it *does not* make the wash quicker/easier, it provides added protection against marring. At least the way *I* use it. I've never foamed an entire vehicle. While some people use it that way, and/or to make the wash go faster, that's not *IMO* the point in using one.

If you want to use it to make the wash go faster, use it in conjunction with a BHB, with the "jiggle" method I've previously described. You're working inch-by-inch this way and won't get suds all over. You can wash a very dirty vehicle, without marring the paint, in a fairly short period of time using this approach (but it's physically and mentally demanding).

I have boosted water pressure in my shop and I do sections of panels when I wash. By directing the foam at the point of contact between the wash media and the panel I don't get foam any place except where I want it. FWIW, I have other vehicles parked *very* close to the wash bay these days and I don't get any water/suds/etc. on them unless I'm careless when I rinse.

I too used it a few times, thought it was a toy, and put it away. But then I started really *thinking* about it and developed a conceptual understanding of how it could contribute to the wash process. Then, I must've used it a few dozen times before I attained a modicum of expertise with it..For that matter, I've used it for a long time and it was only this past winter that I really figured out how to use it with a BHB.

[buzzb]

If anyone wants to get rid of their foam gun at a good price, please send me a PM. I'll try to reply later today.

Thanks!

[blackf0rk]

[sarcasm] I hate my foam gun. I use it for cleaning cloth interiors, and it just doesn't work. It makes it more difficult, and time cnsuming. Not worth it IMO. [/sarcasm]

Use the foam gun for what it's for...for puting suds on the paint to reduce marring. Anything else is just gravy.

[Perm]

Living the UK..... we do not suffer from the heat as much !!!
I love my foam gun........ great fun to use ( Fun being the whole point of detailing !)

I agree however that I can not hand on heart say that the car is cleaner because of using a foam gun prewash first.

Perm

[RCBuddha]

Originally Posted by ronmart

I don't have the luxury of such a garage, so I have to work in the sun. I try to work at less sunny times of the day, but my most effective technique thus far for avoiding water spots is simply not to let the water stand on the car for any length of time. As a result I wash quadrants of the car at a time and dry immediately. Naturally this means when I'm finished with Q1 and wet down Q2, I get a little water on Q1 so there's extra drying involved. However, it works and I don't have problems with spots.

How about a getting a canopy? Optimum No Rinse works fine in the sun if you have no shade. I think ONR might be better solution for you, it can be dried once you make the pass with your wash media.

The problem with the foam gun is that you can't use the quadrant technique. It just blasts foam everywhere, and you shouldn't leave it on your car without rinsing it off so the quad method just isn't an option.

Sure, if your working in the midday sun. I think a canopy and working in the early morning should take care of that.

Overall, I found that I used twice as much soap, I spend about 15 minutes longer washing (foaming & nozzle swaps), and the liklihood of spotting shoots up exponentially over my quad method.

Really? I use about 1-2 ounces of soap in my quart-sized foam gun. I then top off with water, swish around so it dilutes some, and then use the foam gun as I'm going over each section. I'm able to do an SUV with one diluted quart of wash solution.

[autobahn]

I'll never wash with anything but the foamgun ever again.

You can easily wash in sections, and rinsing for me is the same as with any other nozzle, I take it off to do a flood rinse. You can easily shut the foam off or disconnect the foaming apparatus from the nozzle.

The foamgun's "killer play" is on bugs. Before, I'd have to pretreat the bugs with a bug and tar remover to get their guts off, now a good soak with foam loosens them enough to come off in the wash.

Nobody's ever said the foamgun makes washing take less time, or be easier. What the foamgun does is make marring a thing of the past during a wash. It also loosens tough dirt, so you don't have to agitate as much. Yes, it requires some more shampoo than a normal wash, but you can find such good deals on shampoo these days at the "warehouse clubs" that it's almost irrelevant.

If you're not happy with your foamgun, I think plenty of people would be willing to buy it from you.