What am I doing wrong?

P

phatrs

New member
Whenever I used any of my microfibre towels, with either polish, wax or detailing spray, I can see microfibres stuck to the paint afterwards. It’s almost as if I’m over drying the surface and it’s breaking the microfibres.

Has anyone else experienced this?


Ben
Current: ‘19 VW Golf R
Past: ‘05 RS 225 Cup
 
That`s not unusual with lower quality towels. They shed fibers. Costco yellows were pretty bad for some.
 
That is fairly common with many (inexpensive) microfiber towels.
Washing before use "may" help alleviate some of the linting.
I have found (best practice) to use mf towels labeled NO LINT.
I have a few different mf towels I use . Towels that lint are annoying!
 
IME it`s not all that uncommon with high-quality MFs either.

Sooner or later, *all* of my plush MFs seem to lint (and some of my WWMFs too), but with some it takes a long, long time...and a few of mine (PFM for Glass) aren`t linting yet, so hope springs eternal.

Other than those PFMs, I don`t have *any* plush MFs that don`t lint at least a little bit, enough that I never use them on glass.
 
phatrs said:
Whenever I used any of my microfibre towels, with either polish, wax or detailing spray, I can see microfibres stuck to the paint afterwards. It’s almost as if I’m over drying the surface and it’s breaking the microfibres.

Has anyone else experienced this?


Ben
Current: ‘19 VW Golf R
Past: ‘05 RS 225 Cup
Click to expand...

Ben,
Is the paintwork you are using these towels on smooth ?? If it is say for example, rough enough to need a Claybar first, then this would also be a reason why your microfiber towels are leaving lint behind..

I have only Korean made towels - a lot of them - purchased a while ago before all the Chinese, etc., products flooded the market.. I never get linting with any of them..

How are you washing your microfibers ? Using a made for Microfiber soap ? How are you drying them ? What temps ?? How long ??

Will Never use Costco yellow microfiber for anything I don`t want scratched..

Good luck with this !
Dan F
 
The car is brand new, and I gave it a light polish first. The paint feels very smooth.

I usually wash the cloths in 95C water in the washing machine with a soap that has no additives or softeners but it’s not specifically for microfibre towels.

Then I hang them to dry as I don’t have a dryer.


Ben
Current: ‘19 VW Golf R
Past: ‘05 RS 225 Cup
 
JRW67 said:
Could the wash water be damaging your towels 95C =203F
may be too hot?
Click to expand...

I’ve read when micro fibers loose their absorbency you can boil them to bring some life back.

What kind of towels? I bought some not inexpensive but cheaper than AG and TRC. Again wasn’t cheap but saved some money from amazon. Bunch of lint lickers.

I now only buy TRC and griots towels. Definitely don’t skimp on your MF’s


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Coatings=crack said:
I’ve read when micro fibers loose their absorbency you can boil them to bring some life back.,,
Click to expand...

Yeah, I`ve read that countless times (though I`ve never tried it myself, only having used the similarly hot "Sanitize" cycle). One of my MFs (from Germany, IIRC) even said to boil it before the first use to improve its effectiveness.

MF melts at a pretty high temp, so I`ve never understood recommendations to wash in moderate temps, though a reputable member here said that using that Sanitize cycle messed with his MFs, so it appears to be another of those YMMV! things.
 
Accumulator said:
Ron Ketcham- Ah, interesting. What about the PP cycle makes you go that route?
Click to expand...

-AND-

Ketch said:
​Fibers of microfibers do not withstand high heat.
Click to expand...

That`s why I *dry* mine on "Delicate"/low heat, but for the *washing* I have to launder in Hot or they don`t get clean.

Only one of my washers has a PP setting, and it doesn`t effect the Temp (as best I can tell), just the agitation.

Eh, my MFs seem to last forever so I guess I`m belaboring a moot point, but our discussions are often enlightening ;)
 
Perm Press wash cycle water is not near as hot of water---Heat and the surfactants in the detergent -----more heat--more reactivity, IE-cleaner but usually damaging to the fabric blend.-However, the PP cycle normally won`t remove most staining- which is in reality no big deal. Just as a buffing pad showing staining after cleaning does not negatively affect the ability of the pad to do it`s job. Reason, that stain left is nothing more than like the dye used when producing the pad or the towel--the dirt is gone--you are just observing the non-important stain.
 
Ron Ketcham- Ah, OK, thanks for explaining. And I agree that staining is often (usually?) not of functional importance.

I gotta say though, washing in really hot water doesn`t seem to damage my MFs, and if I *don`t* use hot they just don`t come out right; they`re more stiff and my Drying Towels aren`t as absorbent. Maybe it`s just related to diffs between different MFs...OR...maybe it`s why mine always end up linting (as in, they`re really getting damaged after all, just as you said!). But overall it`s a case of not fixing what isn`t broken since my MFs, like my sheepskin wash mitts, seem to last a lot longer than people expect `em to.
 
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