Foam Cannon: What Am I Missing?

[PCustoms]

So I bought a foam cannon for the pressure washer a year or so ago.

It *****.

Just washed the truck, soaping down and I used about a half bottle of the soap, nice and suddsy. Switched back to a tip and washed everything down, the stuck on **** is still there and worse yet the dust is still there too! A quick wipe with a finger and the grime comes right off.

Based on the reviews I would think basic washing should work perfect.

What am I missing? Am I using wrong soap?

 

[Ingram306]

What kind of soap are you running ? If I’m doing my truck or equipment that’s pretty dirty I need some kind of brush or wash mit to kinda agitate everything and get it to come off. I’ve had good luck with the chemical guys tough mudder soap on my equipment. I have another one from them that works well on the trucks, it’s a wash/wax Not sure if the name but it smells like bubblegum

 

[PCustoms]

What kind of soap are you running ?

On equipment I use simple green and cheap dish soap.

In the truck I believe the latest gallon is some rainX brand from the parts store.

Dumb question, should I be using a wash mitt after soaping up?

 

[Ingram306]

I think there’s some soaps that are “touchless” that you can just spray on and rinse off. I always found needed a little mechanical agitation to get everything off

 

[wantedabiggergarage]

Dark sense of humor warning........


The wing of a space shuttle.

 

[Qualitytools]

The idea of a soap cannon is to loosen the dirt and grime, then agitate with a wash brush or mitt and rinse. Products especially marketed for a soap cannon will tend to work better.

 

[dnschmidt]

I don't think the foam cannon actually cleans anything. My view is that the purpose of the foam is to act as a pre-soak/lubricant so that when you hit it with the wash mitt you don't scratch anything. I'm a painter not a detailer but that's my view. If you want to get stuff off of paint DAWN dishwashing soap is the auto body industry standard but be forewarned it strips wax which is why we use it.

 

[PCustoms]

Guess I need to order a mitt....

 

[d.mcfarland]

Guess I need to order a mitt....

Correct. Foam can be used as a pre wash where you foam then rinse (then foam again) or spray and then wash as if you never used the foam. Mainly to lubricate as previously mentioned. Prevention is key!

 

[matlok]

Way more info than you were asking for or probably want, but on the subject of detailing…

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[Showkey]

Think the foam cannon concept is a bit over rated,

 

[purplezr2]

The idea I believe is to get suds, which help carry the dirt which is what causes the mirco scratches.

 

[PCustoms]

Think the foam cannon concept is a bit over rated,

As do I. Was hoping for a spray on, spray off wash solution.

The idea I believe is to get suds, which help carry the dirt which is what causes the mirco scratches.

It's a truck, I drive on gravel and in the woods. Don't care so much about the micro, just looking to avoid the macro scratches.

 

[ATC]

Think the foam cannon concept is a bit over rated,

I agree. Ever since they first became the "latest fad", I just smirked at them.

To clean dirt and grime off a vehicle, you have to physically remove it by wiping it off with a wash mitt, sponge, brush, etc...

Even a pressure washer won't get a vehicle clean like a hose and wash mitt/brush will.

Like others mentioned, a foam cannon is a good way to soak the vehicle down before you start actually washing it with your choice of mitt/brush. For me, if I used a foam cannon, half the damn soap on my truck would be dried on by the time I got to it...
I just pre-soak one panel at a time with the garden hose before I scrub it with my mitt/brush. Then I rinse it off and move onto the next panel.

A foam cannon might be nice for those in the southwest where it doesn't rain, but there is a lot of dust in the air. Foam the car down every few days, and pressure wash it clean...done.
It rains every day or three here, so I just wash my truck every couple months. Waste of time trying to keep it clean for a day or two before the next rain when it will just get coated with road grime again...

 

[Half-fast eddie]

Useful for spraying mildewcide on the house.

 

[RivennHewn]

I always need a lot of mechanical agitation

 

[PCustoms]

Useful for spraying mildewcide on the house.

It actually did work awesome for that. Used some patio bleach and dawn.

 

[RTM]

I always need a lot of mechanical agitation

Thought you were gonna have him go scrub the truck.

 

[RickyPetite]

Your observations on using a foam cannon as a "touchless" wash are correct. pH-neutral car soap will affect road film very little. The reason for this is that the majority of road film is petroleum-based (think leaky oil from cars, rain, tire spray). At best, this road grime may soften but even this is questionable. In order to effect this type of grime, a high pH (alkaline) soap is necessary. Alkaline soaps chemically dissolve acidic, oil-based grime. There are high pH "pre-soak" products that can be put on the vehicle, allowed to dwell for a minute or two, and then pressure washed off. They actually will remove some, but not all, of the road film (think 75%). The protocol would then be to cover the vehicle in snow foam, get a mitt and perform a "contact wash". The foam acts as a clean lubricant in an environment with a lower amount of abrasive dirt. The end result is a "non-traumatic", non-marring wash. Although the high pH prewash sounds traumatic in its own right, properly formulated products (one example: https://3dproducts.com/products/3d-nano-pail-super-pre-soak?_pos=1&_sid=4d3bc8609&_ss=r) are clear coat safe and will not (I've watched countless videos testing this) remove modern (sealants, ceramic coatings) products. It will remove older paste waxes since they were oily, waxy products that are dissolved by alkaline soaps. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a "touch-free" wash. Touching the vehicle is always necessary to fully clean it. The above protocol tries to accomplish this with as few swirls as possible.

 

[ZRX61]

You used half a bottle of soap on one wash? or since you bought it?
My method is:
Pressure wash (40deg tip)
Foam
Mitt
Pressure wash
TW Wax&Dry
MF wipe down.

 

[Walkers]

I use the chemical guys soap. Soap it up, let it sit a few minutes and spray it off. Sometimes twice. On my wife’s black car I may do it a third time and use a mash mitt if it was that bad. High pressure pressure washer is a must. An electric unit isn’t likely to work well.