Natural Sea Sponge

Spilchy said:
Those are lesser quality, most likely coming from the Bahamas. You want to stick with those coming from Florida's Gulf Coast.
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<insert huh? smilie here> I've heard (or read) where those sponges from the Mediterranean region (Greece) were the supposedly the finest, but never heard anything to differentiate Florida/Bahami(?). There are also "tiers" of sponges within those regions.
 
A quote from AutoGeek's website:

"Typically, sea sponges come from one of two sources: Florida’s Gulf Coast or the Bahamas. Sponges from the Gulf are far superior in quality"
 
I guess I would be interested in an independent source of that information. I'm not totally dismissing AG as a credible source of information for products they carry, but I don't know who writes the ad copy.

I can say in my internet search for natural sea sponges a while back, I found no information to confirm that statement. Several sources citing the superiority of the praising the qualities of the Mediterranean sponges, but it seems that the rest were lumped into a common group. <insert dunno smilie here> I'm no expert, just relying on the information I have available.
 
Mr. Clean said:
I'm no expert, just relying on the information I have available.
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Me too. <insert whatever smilie you want here>

Sponges from deeper water are usually better than those from shallow water. Maybe the Gulf Coast is deeper water than the Bahamas. I think the Mediterranean is even deeper. I'm no Oceanographer and too lazy to look it up. Just guessing.

There are yellow sponges, silk sponges and wool sponges each with their own characterisitcs making them good for specific tasks. When someone buys one online, unless it specifies, I'm not certain which one you're getting. So buying one at Home Depot wouldn't be too wise.

Like with any washing tool, just because it's a sponge doesn't mean you should use it. Just like something says it's a chenille mitt doesn't mean you go ahead and use it. There are criteria to follow when choosing one.
 
It's good to see someone post some subjective photos/information on this subject. Maybe it's just me, but I don't see how after viewing those photos anyone could justify using those things on their paint. I have used a natural sea sponge before, and I just wasn't too terribly impressed. And that was back in the day when I wasn't terribly concerned about marring and the like.

In any case, very nice post pogo. Thanks for the information.
 
Well I spoke via e-mail with a sponge person from Greece. I decided to purchase two sponges, this time harvested from the Mediterranean. I bought a fina silk sponge and a wool sponge based on my research. Unlike the ones we see here from Florida, these two I bought are 11 inches in diameter with a circumference of 21 inches. I mentioned I didn't like the ones from Florida because they were too small. These new ones will alleviate that pet peeve.

I was able to haggle a bit and bought them for 11 British Pounds a piece (@ $18 US each, plus @ $6 US total to ship) Still cheaper and much larger than the ones we get here from vendors.

I am always willing to try new items to help re-visit current opinions I have. I'll post back with pics and reviews. Who knows, this batch of sponge may sway me back to liking them. It was an educated impulse purchase!
 
chml17l said:
Seth-- How did you find you sponge person from Greece?
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Just guessing, but there is a guy from Piraeus.Attiki Greece on e-b@y that sells sea sponges. I know he does some shopping there (e-b@y) based on his DRAMM thread.

I'll be interested in the quality of the sponges. I'm not too anxious to do any international buying, but interested nonetheless. I don't know where my sea sponges originated, one (unopened) is from AG, but from a paint safety standpoint I am happy with the quality.
 
You're correct. I purchased from a very nice, accomodating woman from Greece who deals solely in sponges, nothing else. She has the pictures of the exact sponges I'm purchasing. Her feedback was 99.x% positive. I came accross Piraeus.Attiki from Greece who sold some sponges and some other stuff. However he was unable to answer questions about his sponges like what kind they were. Plus he doesn't have pictures of the exact sponge I'd be purchasing. She was more knowledgeable than he was. Those were the only two I could find from Greece on EBay.

She only deals with silk sponges currently because of their popularity but can easily obtain wool sponges from her supplier which she is doing for me.
 
Quick update. After speaking further with the woman from Greece, folks should only use wool sponges on the car. The silk sponges are not as soft, so I switched my order to 2 wool sponges.

So if you are looking around for larger sponges than what are sold by the vendors, only buy wool.
 
Well I tried my sponge today and here's my thoughts on it. I was a little concerned about marring after I saw the sand that came out of it, but after rinsing it I threw it in the washer as per Spilchy. I was going to use it on my wifes white mini van, but since I really wanted to see how well it worked, I used it on my red (recently polished and waxed) car. No marring that I could find and it did a really nice job cleaning. It seems to have a little more "bite" to it then my sheep skin mits and that seemed to help with a few bugs, and it also holds more water although the water squeezes out of it pretty quick. I like the way it sort of shapes itself around curves. All in all it was a positive experience but I'll have to keep using it for a while before I decide to replace my sheep skin mits. Here's a pic of the car after the wash. Sorry about the poor quality but it's a crappy camera.
spongewash.jpg
 
I have a sponge that is many years old. I just love how much soapy water it puts on the car. I probably would not use it as much if I had one of those cool foam guns.
 
Sorry to bring this one back again, but I just read a post in the car wash soap forum that got me re-thinking this sponge thing. Someone posted in there that they prefer to use sheep skin instead of MF because it glides easier and probably doesn't wear off the lsp as quick. With the sponge I noticed that it dragged a little on the paint, so now I'm wondering if I'm wearing the wax off faster. What do you guys think?
 
pogo123 said:
With the sponge I noticed that it dragged a little on the paint, so now I'm wondering if I'm wearing the wax off faster. What do you guys think?
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Personally, I wouldn't think that would remove the wax any faster. I think premature wax removal is more a result of harsh wash solutions and environmental / atmospheric conditions. Having the sponge drag a little on the paint won't remove the wax. It may increase the chance of marring. Just make sure your soap dilution in your wash bucket is accurate so you have the necessary lubrication.

If you're still having dragging issues and don't feel comfortable using it, then switch the sponge to your wheels, rocker panels, bumpers, door jambs, etc...

The sponge isn't for everyone. Personally I didn't have that issue. But at least you're giving it a try!
 
pogo123, funny my experience is the exact opposite. My sponges seem to "float" across the horizontal surfaces compared to sheepskin or chenille, while the sponges also seem to be holding more water. The weight of the sponge still feels less than either of the other two as well.

As for your question, since the act of washing requires a mechanical function, I suppose that anything you choose to wash with will lightly abrade the LSP to some degree, depending on the amount of vigor you put into the action. Is there enough loss of protection to be concerned with? Who knows and I don't know of any way to measure the fact. Is there an alternative - yes, you could use a touchless wash, but then those reportedly use stronger soap solutions...or you could choose just not to wash at all :D
 
Spilchy said:
I am always willing to try new items to help re-visit current opinions I have. I'll post back with pics and reviews. Who knows, this batch of sponge may sway me back to liking them. It was an educated impulse purchase!
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Spilchy- Its almost the end of the year and and im sure you put this to use after use, So whats the verdict and if you can do a review if time is permitted with pics(especially comparison in size of smaller sponge to your larger sponge)

thanks
migs:)
 
If you guys are looking for a sponge type washing tool you should really check out our new ShMitt! Its a man made foam wash Mitt that is the softest but most durable foam on the market, and its guaranteed not to arrive with any sand or shells in it!! There have been several great reviews of it so far and since its a mitt you don't have to hold on to it during the washing job when you might drop it!!. (oh and they are alot cheaper than the sea sponges too!!)
 
I've used sea sponges in the past along with other types of sponges. I've always been partial to sponges, but the anti-marring properties of sheepskin got me to convert. I haven't been 100% happy with sheepskin though. I ordered a ShMitt last night and will have it for this weekend. I can't wait to give it a whirl. I have two details scheduled. So, I should be able to give a thorough review.
 
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