How much soap in foam gun?

V

ViperGuy21

New member
In the next 5 days I'm hoping to have a brand new Gilmour foam gun in my hands, and can't wait to put it to use. And therein lies my question, how much soap should you really put in the bottle? Specifically, how much Chemical Guys Citrus Wash and Gloss should I put in there. I want to be very careful with this one as I don't want to use too much and strip my lsp's. Can anyone give some answers to these questions, and any pointers you might have in using a foam gun.
 
I just use a cheaper OTC soap and add a good 3 to 4 ounces. I would say around 2 ounces would normally be plenty in a quart gun. The gun I have has a mixer on it so you can also adjust the ratio of how much mixture you suck out of the container. As much as I add I run it on about the 3rd hole or middle setting. I run around the car once, give a couple minutes to dwell. Then run around again a second time, without rinsing in between, until the gun is empty. Let it dwell some more then rinse it all off and then proceed to my wash routine.

By just using the gun and the wash and gloss I don't think you have to worry about stripping the lsp. I haven't used the soap you mentioned but since it is a wash and gloss I would guess it has some kind of wax added into the soap. Someone else can probably explain that better than I can.
 
Thanks for the tips!
it doesn't have any wax, the "gloss" is just gloss enhancers. If used at ~1oz/5gal it won't strip. At 1oz/gal it will strip waxes and some sealants
 
Fill the resivor with water FIRST. Then add 1-2oz of soap. Then SHAKE it up. Then find the sweet spot on the mixer setting. I have the brass slider. For me its the next to last setting. Then watch your neighbors look and think WTH is that? Have fun.
 
Works extremely well on cleaning the screens and "fake plastic" white wicker furniture in my screened in porch. When i do the porch or if I am doing a heavy cleaning on the car before a new LSP I add 2oz of Meg's APC.


EDIT: this year I am going try the foam cannon in the porch.
 
I have a Gilmour also and use the slider on the next to the last setting too. it's fun, but you will definitely be going through a lot more soap. want thicker foam- use more soap. I love the look on neighbor's faces when they see me laying down a thick foam blanket on a ride. they always view it as a luxury treatment for their vehicle.
 
PA DETAILER said:
Fill the resivor with water FIRST. Then add 1-2oz of soap. Then SHAKE it up. Then find the sweet spot on the mixer setting. I have the brass slider. For me its the next to last setting. Then watch your neighbors look and think WTH is that? Have fun.
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Awesome, thanks for the advice!
 
trashmanssd said:
Works extremely well on cleaning the screens and "fake plastic" white wicker furniture in my screened in porch. When i do the porch or if I am doing a heavy cleaning on the car before a new LSP I add 2oz of Meg's APC.


EDIT: this year I am going try the foam cannon in the porch.
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Hadn't thought about using it for other cleaning purposes...cool idea! Thanks!
 
tropicsteve said:
I have a Gilmour also and use the slider on the next to the last setting too. it's fun, but you will definitely be going through a lot more soap. want thicker foam- use more soap. I love the look on neighbor's faces when they see me laying down a thick foam blanket on a ride. they always view it as a luxury treatment for their vehicle.
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Does it take more than one full canister to foam the whole car or should I be able to cover the whole car in one go?
 
ViperGuy21 said:
Does it take more than one full canister to foam the whole car or should I be able to cover the whole car in one go?
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usually one canister does it. a thicker foam on a larger truck or van will take some more. you will learn how much or little foam you like to work with. obviously a light foam will go further around than a heavier foam before a refill.
 
PA DETAILER said:
Fill the resivor with water FIRST. Then add 1-2oz of soap. Then SHAKE it up. Then find the sweet spot on the mixer setting. I have the brass slider. For me its the next to last setting. Then watch your neighbors look and think WTH is that? Have fun.
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Exactly!
 
tropicsteve said:
usually one canister does it. a thicker foam on a larger truck or van will take some more. you will learn how much or little foam you like to work with. obviously a light foam will go further around than a heavier foam before a refill.
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Sounds like a plan! Thanks!
 
Regulars here know that my wash regimen is pretty much all about using the foamgun. Note that I don't put a lot of value in the presoak, though I do it, but rather consider the primary benefit to be how it can provide constant flushing and lubrication at the point of wash medium-to-paint contact. *THAT* is what allows me to basically eliminate wash-induced marring and is why I use the foamgun.

I mix up gallons of concentrate and fill the foamgun with that. The mix I use doesn't really provide "thick foam" but rather the sort of soapy suds that work with my wash regimen. I mix:

~6-7 oz. shampoo with enough water to make a gallon of mix.

I use the two-three strongest settings on the foamgun. That combo of mix concentrate and foamgun setting doesn't appreciably affect my LSPs.

If using the foamgun the way I do, I'd sure replace the awkward pistol-grip with a shutoff valve (which I operate with my thumb). Eh, I'd probably replace it period, I just find it less comfortable than a shutoff.
 
Accumulator said:
I mix up gallons of concentrate and fill the foamgun with that. The mix I use doesn't really provide "thick foam" but rather the sort of soapy suds that work with my wash regimen. I mix:

~6-7 oz. shampoo with enough water to make a gallon of mix.
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Accumulator has shown me the value/ease of doing this. However, I'm 4 - 5 ozs in a gallon of water - - depends on which soap I'm mixing up. I refill my Gilmour from that gallon container. I use about 1 quart of this brew per car when washing. So, I guess I'm at ~1 oz of soap per wash from the Gilmour gun. The Gilmour is typically set at max output. I foam half the car at a time: wash> rinse> repeat on the other half. I generally use the traditional wash bucket method, so there's another ounce of the same soap there.
 
tom p. said:
I'm 4 - 5 ozs in a gallon of water - - depends on which soap I'm mixing up....[and]... The Gilmour is typically set at max output..
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Noting that of course that shampoos differ and the foamgun setting factors in...I used to use a weaker mix similar to Tom's, but ramped it up for better cleaning of really dirty vehicles and found it didn't strip my LSP so I stuck with that.
 
Yeah, if the vehicles are seriously toxic, I'd up the soap amount, too. No need to skimp there.

(I'm always trying to get away with the least amount of a chemical possible and get the result I seek. I guess that's opposite of the sledge hammer thought process where more is better!)
 
Heh heh, if I ever start washing more often I suspect I'll be dialing it back. But as it is I think the stronger mix is working better for me, though it's hard to really tell since by the end of the wash the vehicles are simply clean.
 
Accumulator said:
But as it is I think the stronger mix is working better for me, though it's hard to really tell since by the end of the wash the vehicles are simply clean.
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No one is ever going to question your strategy and your technique is far more evolved than most others :)
 
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