Foam guns not enough?

**mikenap** · 06-23-2009, 10:28 PM

Recently, I`ve been seeing a lot of details where a foam gun was used prior to a 2 bucket wash. Just curious why a foam gun and clean wash mitt would require a second wash. From what I gathered from the AG car wash guide, you could use a foam gun as a presoak or stand-alone wash. Any reason why no one does the stand-alone?

**Setec Astronomy** · 06-23-2009, 11:26 PM

I`m not sure what you`re referring to, but for me (and I think most other foam gun users) the foam gun becomes the first bucket (for applying the wash). I still use the second (rinse) bucket in the same way I would if I was using the two bucket method.

**mikenap** · 06-24-2009, 06:22 AM

What you say makes sense to me, but the reason I`m asking is if you go to the Pro Before and Afters and check the write-ups for LI Detailing`s Porsche Carrera and ASDS Porsche Turbo S, both say they start with the foam gun, followed by a 2 bucket wash. I always thought the foam gun would be enough, especially if you spray foam and run your mitt right behind it. Maybe just different methods for different people, but I want to make sure that just the foam w/ a rinse bucket and grit guard will work the same as the 2BM. Thanks.

**David Fermani** · 06-24-2009, 06:50 AM

Originally Posted by mikenap

What you say makes sense to me, but the reason I`m asking is if you go to the Pro Before and Afters and check the write-ups for LI Detailing`s Porsche Carrera and ASDS Porsche Turbo S, both say they start with the foam gun, followed by a 2 bucket wash. I always thought the foam gun would be enough, especially if you spray foam and run your mitt right behind it. Maybe just different methods for different people, but I want to make sure that just the foam w/ a rinse bucket and grit guard will work the same as the 2BM. Thanks.

Enough in terms of lubricity, but not in terms of a stand alone unit to clean your vehicle. OTOH, I`m a firm believer that if the vehicle is pre-sprayed with a high pressure washer (even better after the foam treatment), you`ll spray away the super abrasive particles so that your wash medium (Sponge/BHB/Mitt) will instill the most minute level of marring possible. The high pressure acts as the 1st bucket in a 2 bucket wash my way. Alls the 1st bucket is doing is rinsing/flushing away the abrasive particles caught in your wash media after you`ve already scraped them against the surface taking them off vehicle. If this abrasive matter is removed from the vehicle prior to touching (friction), you reduce your potential for marring in my opinion.

**215Detailing** · 06-24-2009, 07:14 AM

Alot of people use the foam gun as a PRE-SOAK application, also you may get a better understand for junkman2000 on youtube under video Car wash & waxing 101 part 1 & 2 Hope this helps

**imported_Jakerooni** · 06-24-2009, 09:32 AM

Dave nailed it on the head. I`ve never used the foam gun to actually wash the car. It`s a pre-soak to loosen up and remove alot of the contaminat`s on the surface. The foam gun will not remove road film. It`s not meant to. But it gives you a cleaner surface to begin your friction wash with. there are very very few cars that I think could be cleaned up with the foam gun alone. (new cars on the lot would be about it that have never seen road time) Consider it a pre-soak like your laundry LOL. It just an extra tool in the aresenal not a end all wonder wand of car washing.

**Got Wax** · 06-24-2009, 09:53 AM

And, funny enough, this is the "Technology" of many "Touch-Free" tunnel washes. They run the car through and the equivalent of a foam cannon hits the car, rinse then five guys swarm the car with terry towels and grind the remaining film into the paint. Voila....scratches, marring and a new detail customer!!

Andy

Originally Posted by Jakerooni

Dave nailed it on the head. I`ve never used the foam gun to actually wash the car. It`s a pre-soak to loosen up and remove alot of the contaminat`s on the surface. The foam gun will not remove road film. It`s not meant to. But it gives you a cleaner surface to begin your friction wash with. there are very very few cars that I think could be cleaned up with the foam gun alone. (new cars on the lot would be about it that have never seen road time) Consider it a pre-soak like your laundry LOL. It just an extra tool in the aresenal not a end all wonder wand of car washing.

**Accumulator** · 06-24-2009, 10:01 AM

I use foamguns for every wash. Noting that I do *not* use a pressure washer (due to overspray concerns), I find that some degree of mechanical agitation is necessary.

The foamgun presoak can be of some value, but it doesn`t do all that much with the shampoos that I use.

*IMO* (and different people do things differently) the primary benefit of a foamgun is to provide constant flushing and lubrication of the surface while it`s being washed, thereby reducing the chance of marring. The presoak/etc. stuff isn`t the primary purpose for me, not by a long shot.

**B-52GUNNER** · 06-24-2009, 10:07 AM

I use the foam as a pre-soak - let it dwell a bit to give the soap time to work on bugs and other contaminants, then rinse and wash with the 2 bucket method.

**Got Wax** · 06-24-2009, 10:17 AM

My standard is a citrus spray then foam gun spray and dwell

Andy

**mikenap** · 06-24-2009, 11:18 AM

Originally Posted by Jakerooni

Dave nailed it on the head. I`ve never used the foam gun to actually wash the car. It`s a pre-soak to loosen up and remove alot of the contaminat`s on the surface. The foam gun will not remove road film. It`s not meant to. But it gives you a cleaner surface to begin your friction wash with. there are very very few cars that I think could be cleaned up with the foam gun alone. (new cars on the lot would be about it that have never seen road time) Consider it a pre-soak like your laundry LOL. It just an extra tool in the aresenal not a end all wonder wand of car washing.

I think maybe I phrased my question in a way that`s a bit confusing. I`m not looking to use a foam gun to do the work for me, but instead use as bucket #1 in the "friction wash." Without going back, I think Setec also uses it in this manner. So I was thinking, in this order, pre-soak then rinse car. Then more foam for the friction wash, with a bucket and guard to rinse the mitt. No bucket #1.

The reason I`m asking is I never seem to get good suds to stick to my mitt from the shampoo I use, so I thought this would pile suds directly to the car. With the WG Auto Bathe I use, I get suds in the bucket just fine, they just don`t stick to the mitt well. Thought the foam gun would help in this respect. Thanks for all the replies so far.

**Accumulator** · 06-24-2009, 11:24 AM

mikenap- I *think* I`m following you now, and that`s kinda what I do on certain vehicles.

If they aren`t *too* dirty I`ll use the foamgun with a BHB (*NOT* a mitt!) and I can often skip the wash bucket. I can sometimes also skip the rinse bucket, but I have boosted water pressure and I couldn`t do that at my previous shop (with normal pressure).

The BHB rinses infinitely more clean than a mitt and I`d never try this with any other wash medium. Mitts retain far too much dirt and turn into scratch machines.

I switch to mitts *after* doing the BHB-centric prewash, which gets the "big stuff" off but doesn`t remove all the filmy stuff.

**mikenap** · 06-24-2009, 02:18 PM

Thanks Accumulator, that`s exactly what I was talking about. I looked back and it appears you and Setec both do what I described, although you`re a bit more in depth with the BHB. Unfortunately, all my spending on detailing supplies has been shut down by the wife, so I`ll have to do without one of those for now. So will my microfiber mitt have a greater chance of marring than a sea sponge, grout sponge or BHB? I`m kind of stuck with it.

**Got Wax** · 06-24-2009, 02:22 PM

"Friction" Just sounds like it`s leaving scratches!!:nervous2:

Andy

**Accumulator** · 06-24-2009, 03:27 PM

Originally Posted by mikenap

..will my microfiber mitt have a greater chance of marring than a sea sponge, grout sponge or BHB? I`m kind of stuck with it.

The problem with mitts and sponges is that they don`t allow foamgun output to flow through them freely enough to carry debris away as well as a BHB.

Holding the mitt up so it`s not in firm contact with the panel will help in this regard..think of it as using only the tips of the nap.

The only problem with MF as opposed to sheepskin is that MF sometimes retains certain types of gritty dirt more readily. So rinse rinse rinse and agitate the mitt while doing so.

I simply don`t know how people use sponges without marring (not saying they don`t work for others, just that I don`t get it). I used seasponges for quite a while and such wash media just don`t work out marring-free for me :nixweiss I always ended up getting some speck of abrasive stuff trapped between the sponge and the paint and it would then cause a scratch.