Wash Mitt

[truckk]

Hello
What´s the best brand and model of wash mitt ?
thanks

[Desertnate]

I would say you should look for the best type more than brand/model.

I like the chanile (i.e. noodle) looking microfiber mitts. I have bought them from places like Target/WalMart, reputable brands off Amazon, and from this site and the only difference between them is the color. The materials and build quality were identical.

Get one that is soft and well made. Keep it clean and it will serve you well for a very long time.

[Accumulator]

truckk- Heh heh, IMO the answer is "the one that you like and that doesn`t mar your paint", but I guess that`s not too helpful!

I would CD-test any choice just to be sure it really is soft enough though (remember to "test it the way you use it", i.e., wet).

I just buy Sheepskin Mitts from reputable vendors (alternative- buy OTC and inspect first-hand) and I`ve never had any problems. Thumb or thumbless/etc. are just personal preferences.

The Sheepskin Mitt from Griot`s is a bit different from most others...more "whispy" strands, really *really* gentle but a bear to clean if it picks up something nasty like tar. It`s lighter in color too :D It`s genuinely (a little bit) special, so if you want to splurge on a boutique product it`s maybe worth a look.

Griot`s (and others) also offer a smaller one for wheels, and IME it`s quite good (I like it more than I expected to). Soft enough for some "regular paint" use too, at least for non-critical duty on relatively hard paint.

The Sheepskin ones from other sources are *so* similar functionally that I for one have never really developed a preference and I`ve never received a bad one from anybody (although some wear out faster than others with the abuse/neglect that mine are subjected to). If I were RWing BMW Jet Black I might feel differently!

I`d tuck the cuff inside the mitt to avoid contact with the paint. I don`t wear mitts "like gloves" but rather fill them with shampoo solution, hold them shut at the cuffs, and whisk them gently across the paint (never "scrubbing") while the shampoo seeps out. [Regulars know to INSERT all my usual Foamgun stuff HERE..] IME dirt doesn`t really "migrate up the nap away from the paint" or "get caught up in the nap so it can`t mar the paint" (well, it does that a little bit), so remember that when a mitt gets contaminated with abrasive dirt it becomes sandpaper.

MF mitts can be good *IF* "very gentle" is OK, and as long as you`re not cleaning off the kind of stuff that`ll really stick to the MF. I seldom use them for conventional washing. Some of mine lint like CRAZY, including the otherwise nice ones from Pinnacle.

I *UTTERLY HATE* the "dreadlock"/"Muppet" type mitts, but some people do like them.

Synthetic Sheepskin is often a scratch-machine so I`d sure avoid that. Even the ones from Big Names, a while back Meguiar`s sold one that was simply *AWFUL*, a straight up Marring Machine.

[Accumulator]

..I like the chanile (i.e. noodle) looking microfiber mitts..

Heh heh...See? SEE?!? I knew somebody here would post that, and it happened before I even hit "Reply" :D

[Accumulator]

I`m guessing nobody uses *cotton* chenille mitts any more..the ones from Viking are fine IME, but I hardly ever use them any more.

[Bill D]

I only use sheepskin mitts. Be sure to use multiple mitts—I designate certain mitts for certain sections of the car—-to avoid wash induced marring.

[Stokdgs]

I have had great results like Desert Nate above, using the Chenille type mitts..

In my experiences with them, they rinse very easily in the wash soap bucket, hold a lot of soap in them, and I just dont seem to scratch vehicles with them easily or at all..

And of course as has been already said above, it is used with care on paintwork, not like you are scrubbing down the very dirty german shepherd, garage floor, etc., the tub after very dirty kids got done, etc..

It is Paintwork, subject to scratches that now have to be removed, softer in some colors, harder to correct in others, etc..

Tried all the microfiber, wool, etc., versions well over 10 years + ago, and was never fond of how limp they go and how to me, they were so inefficient after getting wet and doing that..

Chenille = thicker easier to hold onto and not drop, very efficient for me, in cleaning long, straight, panels, etc., and having a lot of soap in them to keep the already wet areas lubricated..
The lighter color ones, especially that dayglo orange color, makes it easier to spot anything on it that is NOT orange and then take it out before it touches the paint..

Good luck with your research !
Dan F

[Accumulator]

I`m *all about* light colored Wash Media! As Stokdgs noted, it`s important be be able to see whether they`re contaminated. Well, unless you use a zillion mitts the way Bill D does. (I`m sorta teasing him since I just se the same two mitts for the whole vehicle, but I do all the heavy lifting with BHBs first.)

This is veering off-topic into Wash Technique, but IMO it`s important to *NOT* cover large areas at a time no matter how much solution your mitt holds.. If (more like "when") a mitt picks up a speck of something abrasive, it`s better to have a little one-inch scratch than something that`s one foot long.

[Bill D]

Yeah the instant I think the mitt is contaminated I switch to a new one. Most of the time I get away with using 4 to 6 mitts on a typical midsized car. Adjust as needed.

[BudgetPlan1]

Currently diggin` the Rag Company Cyclone Mitts or the Kami Sponge. Used the Gyeon Smoothie Mitt for a while and they were good but they seemed to get a little crispy by the end of the season.

[Accumulator]

Y.. Most of the time I get away with using 4 to 6 mitts on a typical midsized car..

Hey, that`s (far) fewer than I would`ve expected, but then I bet you don`t let things get too bad between washes either.

[Bill D]

Hey, that`s (far) fewer than I would`ve expected, but then I bet you don`t let things get too bad between washes either.

Nope never let things get too bad. My environment here in general is pretty clean too.

[Desertnate]

Heh heh...See? SEE?!? I knew somebody here would post that, and it happened before I even hit "Reply" :D

Ha! I didn`t know you were one of *those* people who used sheepskin mitts. And I was just starting to think I liked/respected you! (just joking!)


Currently diggin` the Rag Company Cyclone Mitts or the Kami Sponge. Used the Gyeon Smoothie Mitt for a while and they were good but they seemed to get a little crispy by the end of the season.

I`ve used something similar to these and the sheapskin ones mentioned by Accumulator and picking/washing grit from them was a never ending battle. I was just wating for a bad scratch. With the chanile/dreadlock mitts I like fact there is no where grit to hide and what does end up the mitt either falls away easily in the rinse bucket or is easy to blast away with the hose while I`m washing. I keep my cars really clean and should they get really bad I`ll power wash them beforehand to get the really bad stuff off before I ever touch them, so really debris is never a problem.

[Accumulator]

Ha! I didn`t know you were one of *those* people who used sheepskin mitts...

Heh heh heh, that was good :D

I only use the mitts after first pressure washing and then doing a few passes with the BHBs (as in, I basically wash the car thoroughly before I switch to the mitts). That undoubtedly colors my opinion about which mitts to use (and how to use them) since any "big stuff" is long gone before I reach for a mitt. I just use mitts for the "road film"/etc. and I bet that colors my opinion.

Analogy apropos to Dreadlock Mitts: would you rather brush your teeth with a toothbrush that has 20 thick bristles, or one that has 220 thin bristles?

Eh, maybe I like that analogy because with the BHBs "more is better!" certainly applies with regard to the bristles.


I keep my cars really clean and should they get really bad I`ll power wash them beforehand to get the really bad stuff off before I ever touch them, so really debris is never a problem.

As with Bill D, I figured you don`t let things get too bad.

I, OTOH, well...sometimes they do get pretty dirty between washes :o Especially during winter.

But yeah, using a pressure washer firsth is great, best thing I`ve tried since the foamgun. Wouldn`t want to wash without either of `em and I never do.

[mc2hill]

For me it depends on what I am washing and why - I use a microfiber mitt (currently using a Microfiber Maddness mitt) on my maintained cars with Rinseles washes, for cars that are to be corrected I use a `dread head` mitt, and on my mother-in-laws Grand Marquis I use a MF covered sponge (she has HUGE oak trees over her driveway, and this has a very low nap so not too much tree debris gets trapped).
Mike Phillips recently posted a good thread about microfiber `tools` on the AutoGeek site.