Today I did some detailing...

MetzgerMeister

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas.....



That's after 5 minutes of dwell time

Harcrid

I have never been that much into cleaning the car myself but I fear I may be slowly getting the detailing illness. I hope I can shake it.....

TestTransmission

Steam cleaner?safe to use on alloys?

Curran

TestTransmission wrote: »

Steam cleaner?safe to use on alloys?

Should be provided you have no flaking paint on them!

TestTransmission

Is it worth the effort?

Curran

Dunno...never had the need to try!
Have the necessary products to hand.

MetzgerMeister

TestTransmission wrote: »

Is it worth the effort?

I bought a Karcher steam cleaner a while back thinking it would be of huge use and reduce a lot of the effort. It's not really what you think, especially since you would still have to wipe away the dirt as the pressure just isn't strong enough.

It would be very useful to clean a dusty engine bay but don't rely solely on it to blow dirt and grease away.

MetzgerMeister

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas.....

That's after 5 minutes of dwell time

How did it come out initially?

I'm still not impressed with the snowfoaming effort I had with my own snow foam. Was very watery. Yours must have been much thicker coming out? After 5 minutes of sitting, my car would be snow-free.

MetzgerMeister

Deleted User wrote: »

How did it come out initially?

I'm still not impressed with the snowfoaming effort I had with my own snow foam. Was very watery. Yours must have been much thicker coming out? After 5 minutes of sitting, my car would be snow-free.

It came out as usual like melted marshmallow. I'm a part-time detailer so there'd be something wrong if it didn't come out thick :P

I just have it at its usual setting - almost full plus and only 1 or 2mm open at the nozzle. WHen I say almost full plus, turn the top to full plus and come back 1/6 of a turn.

randy hickey

KKV, why don't you bring your snow foam lance over the road to Padraic in Flawless Detailing beside you there in Drogheda?
Let him run it on his pressure washer and see what happens.

Very strange you mention Flawless Detailing! I was actually just going to ask if anyone here had ever heard of him/them/it.

I see the car driving around a fair bit with 'FLAWLESS DETAILING' written on the side. I think it's a black estate car? It has green writing in an italic font (and no offence to the chap if he's a boardsie or likely to read this, but the car decalling is a bit pointless without an address or number). Usually see it around Mell. Nice looking car.

Anyway, no, I won't ask him. I'd imagine detailing as a job is a pain in the ass without people taking up your time so they can do their own detailing. I'll never hire the chap as I'm into DIYing it, so I'd feel terrible taking up his time with it.


I was actually going to ask if perhaps anyone can recommend an alternative to Cotton Candy Snow Foam that might be worth a look at? I've had pretty dire results with it (compared to what I should be getting, anyway) so I reckon I should give something else a lash.


Was also wondering if anyone can help out with buying advice on a machine polisher? The DAS6 850w comes recommended, I believe:

http://www.detailingshed.com/machine-polishing/241-kestral-das6-power-dual-action-polisher.html

But what do I actually buy? Is it just that? Or do I need extra pads or such? Any accessories that are essential (or that just make life easier)?

randy hickey

Well KKV, I use this snow foam:




Which gives me foam like this:




It's actually the product I started the Snow Foam thread with!

If you're near Dublin anytime soon you're welcome to drop in and I'll give you a sample to try out.Hell,bring your lance along and I'll run it on my PW.

randy hickey

randy hickey wrote: »

If you're near Dublin anytime soon you're welcome to drop in and I'll give you a sample to try out.Hell,bring your lance along and I'll run it on my PW.

You'd want to be careful saying things like that - I might actually take you up on it!


I read that thread alright. The stuff seems good if it works as in your pictures. My fear is getting more dribbly watered down 'foam' again, but sure I suppose there's only one way to find out, and that's to bite the bullet and see how I get on.

(although it'll be next week before I get a chance as my bank balance is getting dangerously low at the moment ).

Curran

Best checking your lance first!! Cotton Candy through those lances is known to work. If it doesn't, nothing else will.
My offer still stands if we can manage to arrange a time suitable to both of us!

Sidewayslarry

@ KKV - I know some people suggest that you need the dial on the top of the snow foam lance turned up to the full on '+' but in my experience of the PA snow foam lance (Autobrite lance) you need to turn the dial fully to the '-' position. The + and - on the PA lance refers to the amount of water you want to flow, and not the amount of foam you want to flow which is why it seems backwards. Try it out with the dial turned fully to the - position and then see how it works. I was never a huge fan of Cotton Candy but I have seen other guys get great foam from it so it should be foaming up for you especially with a new lance.

markc1184

Sorry if this is not the right thread for this but when you guys are using snow foam, do you add anything into the mixture like tar remover etc? I was reading a few threads lately on other sites were people had added other products into the snow foam mix but never seen any ratios mentioned. Is it a good idea to add tar remover to the mix or should it be avoided and if so, what sort of ratio should be used or is it a case of trial and error. I'm using the CleanCar.ie super snow foam and lance if that makes any difference.

MetzgerMeister

The lance I have I got from detailer.ie in 2010 and I have always used Meguiars Hyperwash as s snow foam and I have always gotten excellent foam from it, never any clog or anything due to running cold water through it after each use.

I haven't a clue what brand it is because there never was a stamp or brand on it but the almost full minus means that the foam comes out in a strong, thick, melted marshmallow consistency.

Mark - I have never put anything into the bottle along with the snowfoam solution nor would I put tar remover in with it. It just doesn't sound right and I wouldn't be comfortable doing it. Also, it would only serve to dilute the tar remover so it wouldn't be as effective as using it on its own.

randy hickey

markc1184 wrote: »

Sorry if this is not the right thread for this but when you guys are using snow foam, do you add anything into the mixture like tar remover etc? I was reading a few threads lately on other sites were people had added other products into the snow foam mix but never seen any ratios mentioned. Is it a good idea to add tar remover to the mix or should it be avoided and if so, what sort of ratio should be used or is it a case of trial and error. I'm using the CleanCar.ie super snow foam and lance if that makes any difference.

If you add Tardis to your snow foam it will simply emulsify and be ineffective - this is why it is recommended that you use it on a dry car.

As for chucking other chemicals like,for example, a citrus cleaner into snow foam, this can have the unintended and dangerous consequence of creating toxic gases.

TBH, I've been that soldier, and I've stopped doing it, just in case!

I've been playing with the lance a fair bit (well, when i got it, anyway, havent used it since I cleaned the car that time, and posted exhaustively about it on here :pac: ) But I adjusted the nozzle on top from one extreme to the other, and variations of in between the two.

I think I posted a video before of the best I got out of it, and it was still fairly watery (in comparison to what others seem to be able to achieve with the same kit). It also goes through the bottle like it's no one's business. Ye guys were saying you'd get two saloon cars done with a single bottle (sorry, when i say bottle, I mean the attachment to the lance, not an actual bottle of snow foam that you'd buy).

A single full bottle was getting me about 3/4 of the way around the Rav before I had to return to the house to mix some more up and go again.


So there's obviously something wrong somewhere along the way.

Mc Love

Really need to try out some of the suggestions on here, hoping it's dry enough to get to try it out tomorrow! Otherwise I'm in the same boat as kkv.

Surprised by the fact the meguiars hyperwash gave good results as I've mostly got watery results from it

Mc Love

Had a try out today, had about an inch of cotton candy, added a small bit of hyperwash, cleaned out the lance with water first! No joy, the closest I got was the dial nearer the (-) producing thicker but still not the consistency others have had the luck with!

Suppose I could try taking the lance apart and try that option otherwise I'll have to buy a new one

MetzgerMeister

I['d say there's something up with your water :pac:

randy hickey

McLove, what part of the country are you in?

It's not Santa Cruz, CAvan is it?

MetzgerMeister

randy hickey wrote: »

McLove, what part of the country are you in?

It's not Santa Cruz, CAvan is it?

Hardly! Santa would'nt cruz in Cavan for fear his wheels would be (St.) nicked while he was in the shop getting cookies :pac:

Sidewayslarry

Deleted User wrote: »

I've been playing with the lance a fair bit (well, when i got it, anyway, havent used it since I cleaned the car that time, and posted exhaustively about it on here :pac: ) But I adjusted the nozzle on top from one extreme to the other, and variations of in between the two.

I think I posted a video before of the best I got out of it, and it was still fairly watery (in comparison to what others seem to be able to achieve with the same kit). It also goes through the bottle like it's no one's business. Ye guys were saying you'd get two saloon cars done with a single bottle (sorry, when i say bottle, I mean the attachment to the lance, not an actual bottle of snow foam that you'd buy).

A single full bottle was getting me about 3/4 of the way around the Rav before I had to return to the house to mix some more up and go again.


So there's obviously something wrong somewhere along the way.

Definitely something very wrong. If the gauze was clogged you would be using less snow foam than usual, so thats not the issue here. I've been using a PA lance now for over 5 years and I've never experienced a problem like that. Might be worth contacting the supplier and see does a replacement lance work better? Or if you knew someone else with a similar lance you could try to eliminate whether it is the lance or not? What power washer did you say you were using?

The other option would be to try out a different snow foam in case it was a bad batch of foam possibly.

Mc Love wrote: »

Had a try out today, had about an inch of cotton candy, added a small bit of hyperwash, cleaned out the lance with water first! No joy, the closest I got was the dial nearer the (-) producing thicker but still not the consistency others have had the luck with!

Suppose I could try taking the lance apart and try that option otherwise I'll have to buy a new one

The lance shouldn't be broken as there is very little to go wrong with these lances - there is no moving parts in them, and generally the only hassle they give is the gauze clogging in them, but even this can be easily rectified by blowing compressed air through it or by running hot water and apc through it.

Definitely worth stripping and seeing if the gauze is blocked.

Another possibility is that if the lance hasn't been used for a prolonged period of time the gauze can actually rust and completely block things up.

Sidewayslarry

Sidewayslarry wrote: »

Definitely something very wrong. If the gauze was clogged you would be using less snow foam than usual, so thats not the issue here. I've been using a PA lance now for over 5 years and I've never experienced a problem like that. Might be worth contacting the supplier and see does a replacement lance work better? Or if you knew someone else with a similar lance you could try to eliminate whether it is the lance or not? What power washer did you say you were using?

The other option would be to try out a different snow foam in case it was a bad batch of foam possibly.

Well I was going to try out a different type of snowfoam and go from there.

I admit, it would be handy to get someone else who has the same lance to see if they ran into the same problem with it. If there's anyone in a 30-40 minute radius of me, who didnt fancy taking a gander, I'd happily pop out to them with my lance and snow foam to see how it worked out for someone else.

It's quite frustrating, in all honesty. So far it's the only real thing that's giving hassle.


I use a Nilfisk C120, by the way. Apparently it's a grand machine and should be able to snowfoam with ease.

Sidewayslarry

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Well I was going to try out a different type of snowfoam and go from there.

I admit, it would be handy to get someone else who has the same lance to see if they ran into the same problem with it. If there's anyone in a 30-40 minute radius of me, who didnt fancy taking a gander, I'd happily pop out to them with my lance and snow foam to see how it worked out for someone else.

It's quite frustrating, in all honesty. So far it's the only real thing that's giving hassle.


I use a Nilfisk C120, by the way. Apparently it's a grand machine and should be able to snowfoam with ease.

Ah yeah, c120 is a cracking little machine, even the c110 is well capable of pushing out great foam so your washer is not the problem then either. Yeah try a different foam then I would think and if that doesn't sort it you will have eliminated the foam then also, meaning you have a problem lance

Ded_Zebra

Deleted User wrote: »

Well I was going to try out a different type of snowfoam and go from there.

I admit, it would be handy to get someone else who has the same lance to see if they ran into the same problem with it. If there's anyone in a 30-40 minute radius of me, who didnt fancy taking a gander, I'd happily pop out to them with my lance and snow foam to see how it worked out for someone else.

It's quite frustrating, in all honesty. So far it's the only real thing that's giving hassle.


I use a Nilfisk C120, by the way. Apparently it's a grand machine and should be able to snowfoam with ease.

I have the same power washer as you, The same lance (Curran can confirm maybe but I did buy it off him) and the same snow foam (cotton candy). I do get a good thick foam using about 1cm of snow foam in the lance and filling it up with water. I can just about get 2 cars done with that amount of solution. If you want you are more than welcome to come down and try it at my house to see if there is a difference. I am in Wicklow though...

Toyotafanboi

unspectacularly i washed the car two days ago for the first time since i applied the jet seal two months ago. the beading although not perfect is pretty damn impressive after 2 months of no maintenance. so much so that i'm not worried about applying more before February which will be the cars next wash.

Mc Love

randy hickey wrote: »

McLove, what part of the country are you in?

It's not Santa Cruz, CAvan is it?

Nah its Limerick actually!

Sidewayslarry wrote: »

The lance shouldn't be broken as there is very little to go wrong with these lances - there is no moving parts in them, and generally the only hassle they give is the gauze clogging in them, but even this can be easily rectified by blowing compressed air through it or by running hot water and apc through it.

Definitely worth stripping and seeing if the gauze is blocked.

Another possibility is that if the lance hasn't been used for a prolonged period of time the gauze can actually rust and completely block things up.

Thanks - I even tried it with a different PW still Karcher though but more powerful and the results were still milky. Lance stripping it is then!