Question regarding foam gun and CG CWG

Q

qbmurderer13

New member
Hey guys, I got some stuff on the way including a gilmour foam gun and some CG CWG. I saw that CG recommends 1/2 oz per 1-2 gallons for just a wash and 2 oz per gallon for a concentrated wash that removes heavier stuff. The lowest setting the gilmour gun has is 1oz per gallon, I was wondering if this would be too concentrated and remove the wax I recently got on about 2 weeks ago. Should I use a less concentrated car wash with my foam gun for whenever im just washing the car?
 
Just cut it with water in the jug. 1 oz. CWG:24 oz. Water at 10:1 setting on the Gilmour gives you 240:1 ≈ 1/2 oz. per gallon
 
Awesome, thanks. I suck at math lol How did you calculate that 240:1 = 1/2oz? Just for future reference so I can figure out how much water to put to achieve 2oz/gallon.
 
qbmurderer13 said:
Awesome, thanks. I suck at math lol How did you calculate that 240:1 = 1/2oz? Just for future reference so I can figure out how much water to put to achieve 2oz/gallon.
Click to expand...



1 gallon = 128 oz., so 240:1 is pretty close to 1/2 oz/gallon.
 
Alright so just to make sure im doing it right, if I were to use 12oz of water with 1oz of soap that would equal to 1oz/gallon.



And if I were to use 2oz of soap with 12oz of water I would get 2oz/gallon?

I could also get 2oz/gallon by using 4oz of soap and 24oz of water, would that be better or would I just be wasting more product?



Sorry for the questions, just getting into this biz. :)
 
I need help with ratios as well.

I've been using 3oz's of shampoo in 32 oz. of water in a Gilmour at the highest setting, then the 2BM with 1oz of shampoo in the wash bucket.

It seems to work great, but it still dries up on the car pretty fast.

Is this too heavy? Am I potentially stripping off my LSP?



I've used Optimum Car Wash, Z7, Sonus, and DP's shampoo and enjoy them all.

I did not like Meguiar's Gold Class or the green stuff at Target.



I read BigAl3's link to the Gilmour Shampoo test, but it seemed more of a review and rating thread as opposed to getting the mechanics right.



Does anyone have any simple and definitive answers on this?
 
The Gilmour gun has 5 settings, 1, 2, 4, 6, and 12 oz/gal. That means it mixes in 1, 2, 4, 6, or 12 ounces of what's in the cup per gallon that comes out the nozzle.



There are some soaps that are thin enough to put into the cup straight, while others (Meg's GC for example) are just too thick to properly draw up the siphon tube without being diluted.



Although I strive to get the "bucket" ratio out of the foam gun, some others (Accumulator, Spilchy) seem to dilute the wash much further than that. Another consideration is if you are using the gun at the 6 or 12 setting you'll be emptying the cup that much faster.



If I'm using a shampoo that dilutes at 1oz/gal, I like to mix it up at 1/4 of the cup (8 oz shampoo and 24 oz water, if you have the 1 qt cup). Then if you put it on the middle hole (4 oz/gal) you get your 1 oz/gal at the car. If you notch it over to the 2oz/gal hole, you'll get 1/2 oz/gal at the car, and you can notch it up the other way to get 1.5 or 3 at the wide open setting, say, for wheels.



I get a little confused as to where I am setting-wise with the brass gun, and if I ever buy another foam gun, I'm going to try the Foamaster II, with the lettered adjustment wheel.
 
Thanks to everyone for the links. I slowly read the ratios thread on Detailing Bliss to get it to make sense. For some reason, my brain just isn't making this simple for me.:think2



This concept may be old hat for some, and I may have hijacked the OP on this thread, but I feel this subject is confusing yet important enough that others will get something out of it as well.



I have the Gilmour 2 (quart size with the lettered settings).

This summer I attended a detailing workshop sponsored by Detailer's Domain. The detailer explained the foam gun in a simple manner. He uses the gun at the highest setting "E" and adds 3oz of soap per quart. So basically each wash is 3oz of soap or ABOUT 1:10 (soap:water).



Seemed good enough for me! And that's how I've been doing it. I personally don't mind emptying the container at a faster rate and prefer to mix only the soap I am using for that day. My main concern is not stripping or weakening the LSP.

After doing some math, I realized I'm using about 1oz or soap per 114oz. A little on the heavy side, but I guess I'm ok.



After taking into consideration the previous posts and links, I'll either go forward with "C" or "E".



For shampoos recommending 1oz per gallon:

"A" - too viscous to use straight

"B" - still too viscous for my taste

"D" - too lazy to do the math in this case!



"C" = 4oz fluid rate per gallon water = 1oz soap+3oz water (4oz fluid) = 8oz soap+24oz water (to fill 32oz "C" container)

"E" = 12oz fluid rate per gallon

12 / 4 = 3

(E empties the container 3 times faster than C)

8 / 3 = 2-2/3 so approximately 3oz soap + 29oz water to fill the "E" container. ABOUT a 1:10 ratio! Or use a 'light hand' to fall a hair under the 3oz.





Based on using just 24oz of fluid to fill the container....

"E" = 12oz fluid rate. 1oz soap+11oz water gives me 1oz shampoo on the car per gallon. So 2oz of soap to fill a 24oz "E" container.

1oz to 11oz is 'again' ABOUT 1:10 ratio.



I'm thinking a lot out loud here to help things make sense.

I encourage anyone to chime in to correct me, add ideas, simplify things, share their techniques or approach.
 
When doing the initial foam I usually use 1 oz of megs APC and 1.5 oz of Megs Purple wash. Foams great and works as a great pre treating wash for bugs and road grime.
 
I don't mean to add fuel to the confusion fire, but since CG CW&G is concentrated, I cut it 1:1 with water. I then fill my foam gun full of CW&W. I pre-soak using the lowest setting 1oz./128. Then I flood each panel as I wash at the same ratio.



1. Am I stripping my sealants/wax off at this ratio?

2. It was my understanding that CW&G stripped sealants/wax off at 2 oz./128 so that's what I used several weeks ago to start fresh. Is this the proper ratio to use for stripping? I did follow my wash with an IPA wipedown to remove any glossing agents left behind.



Thanks for your help!
 
jb1 said:
I don't mean to add fuel to the confusion fire, but since CG CW&G is concentrated, I cut it 1:1 with water. I then fill my foam gun full of CW&W. I pre-soak using the lowest setting 1oz./128. Then I flood each panel as I wash at the same ratio.



1. Am I stripping my sealants/wax off at this ratio?

2. It was my understanding that CW&G stripped sealants/wax off at 2 oz./128 so that's what I used several weeks ago to start fresh. Is this the proper ratio to use for stripping? I did follow my wash with an IPA wipedown to remove any glossing agents left behind.



Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...



I personally thing that is way too much, (not to mention expensive). I think it depends on what you want to do with it. I use mine as a presoak, and still use the two bucket method. So 3 oz into 64 oz (or 1:20) at setting C gives me plenty of suds. I'm not sure how much will remove the LSP through the foam gun, but I worry even at my ratio if I let the solution sit on the car just a little too long I will lose some. I was struggling with all of this too, and got lots of varied advice. I found the mix I was happy with by experimenting and stuck with it.
 
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