Rustynuts Posted January 11, 2008 Report Share Posted January 11, 2008 Looking for something like Snow Foam to use in my newly acquired Karcher foam bottle and after searching Ebay a bit I found this. Any ideas if it's any good or should I buy the proper stuff from somewhere which specialises in car detailing? I've been looking at Pellys site and the dodo stuff, but cleaning the van every few days would be expensive at this time of year with all the muck I'm picking up. I'm not too bothered about ultimate performance, just don't wanna buy 20 ltrs of a waste of money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelwind101 Posted January 11, 2008 Report Share Posted January 11, 2008 Hi! Sounds like maybe you could use Snowfoam with Citrus or DP Xtreme Foam shampoo. There is a post a page back about them both, well worth reading to see which one fits the bill for you! Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drpellypo Posted January 11, 2008 Report Share Posted January 11, 2008 I can do you a 1L bottle if you want matey? I'm just about to add them to my store. A 1L will still last you ages! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rustynuts Posted January 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2008 Well, just had an answer to my question on another forum, and the bloke pointed me to an ebay seller. I checked the sellers shop out and the firm is only a couple of miles up the road from me, and sells a load of stuff I usually buy from my parts suppliers for my job anyway (such as hand cleaner etc.) so I'll probably nip up there and just pick up what I need. Auto-Rae Apparently their products are well thought of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvantSE Posted January 11, 2008 Report Share Posted January 11, 2008 Got mine from here: http://www.theultimatefinish.co.uk/Store/Content/NewsArticle.aspx?NewsArticleId=73 Doesn't seem to strip wax and gave quite a thick foam when I added some shampoo to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rustynuts Posted January 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2008 Cheers mate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silentandy Posted January 12, 2008 Report Share Posted January 12, 2008 What is the advantage of using snow foam over say just hosing it down first? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelwind101 Posted January 12, 2008 Report Share Posted January 12, 2008 Snow foam softens dirt on the car by clinging to the surface. Power washing them helps to clear build up from the paintwork. DP Xtreme Foam, clings and begins to clean the car as it contains shampoo. On maintained cars its great for spraying on to wheel and arches as well as the bodywork. This product cleans and is lubricated, there is no need to add shampoo or mix anything with the snow foam. Water doesnt really do much unless its at force and washes away material stuck to the car. Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drpellypo Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 As Geoff says, there are great benefits to foaming which will aid in gently remving the dirt. Gently being the critical part. Jetting a powerful stream of water at dirt does cause a risk of rubbing it into the paintwork. DP foam is good, but a staggering £35 vs mine which is only £12.50 for 5 litres. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drpellypo Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 [ QUOTE ] Got mine from here: http://www.theultimatefinish.co.uk/Store/Content/NewsArticle.aspx?NewsArticleId=73 Doesn't seem to strip wax and gave quite a thick foam when I added some shampoo to it. [/ QUOTE ] Or you could get teh exact same stuff here: http://www.wonderdetail.co.uk/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=18 but cheaper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelwind101 Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 [ QUOTE ] As Geoff says, there are great benefits to foaming which will aid in gently remving the dirt. Gently being the critical part. Jetting a powerful stream of water at dirt does cause a risk of rubbing it into the paintwork. DP foam is good, but a staggering £35 vs mine which is only £12.50 for 5 litres. [/ QUOTE ] As mentioned DP XTREME FOAM, is completly different. Snow Foam is great for certain things, if your budget too. But on maintained vehicals if you can spare the extra for Xtreme Foam you will get so much more out of it http://www.tyresmoke.net/ubbthreads/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/1272808/an/0/page/1#1272808 see here in my second post. Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drpellypo Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 Yes, indeed, you are correct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fresco1 Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 I bought a Karcher Foam Nozzle a week ago, and having used it twice my thought now is "How the **** did I ever live without this?!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drpellypo Posted January 13, 2008 Report Share Posted January 13, 2008 Get a proper lance and you'll think 'how the hell did I ever live without this.' lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bpsmith Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 The Karcher lance is not bad to start out with mind you. I went that route and only recently upgraded to an AB HD lance. If you only want to spend a little then the Karcher is not to be ruled out as a very useful tool. Enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvantSE Posted January 14, 2008 Report Share Posted January 14, 2008 [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] Got mine from here: http://www.theultimatefinish.co.uk/Store/Content/NewsArticle.aspx?NewsArticleId=73 Doesn't seem to strip wax and gave quite a thick foam when I added some shampoo to it. [/ QUOTE ] Or you could get teh exact same stuff here: http://www.wonderdetail.co.uk/store/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=18 but cheaper [/ QUOTE ] Worth knowing for when mine runs out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fresco1 Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 [ QUOTE ] Get a proper lance and you'll think 'how the hell did I ever live without this.' lol. [/ QUOTE ] True, but given that the Karcher was sitting idly by in my garage, it was sensible to start from there! As you say, a more appropriate lance would be useful .. ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rustynuts Posted January 15, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 Well, I picked my Karcher one up for a fiver from a mate, got carried away today at the snowfoam suppliers and bought a bit more than I really needed, and after chatting for an hour or so it was too dark to use the damn stuff. Got some wheel cleaner, a wheelbrush, microfibre cloth, hand cleaner, and a 6 pack of blue jumbo paper towels. I thought I'd better go as I was spending more money the longer I stood there. Gonna have a go as soon as I can get back in time to charge the Karcher up and have a play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davyk31 Posted January 16, 2008 Report Share Posted January 16, 2008 I have had delivery of my AB heavy duty lance and snowfoam but will not get a chance to play until Friday. on the bottle of snowfoam it says to apply to a wet vehicle and then leave for 5 mins. I thought you put the foam on to the dry dirty car then left for a few minutes and powerwashed off. What does everyone else do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvantSE Posted January 16, 2008 Report Share Posted January 16, 2008 Using the Karcher bottle, I have just stuck a load of snowfoam in, added a bit of shampoo, and blasted a dry but filthy car with it. Even when it was so dirty you couldn't tell it had a number plate, let alone read it, after five minutes' soak, a rinse off with clean water from the pressure washer left it looking pretty damn clean. Then it's your choice as to whether to settle for a cleanish car, or get your LAMBSWOOL WASH MITT (I dare not mention the word 'sponge' on here) to finish the job off. I think Mr Rusty should post some pictures when he has used all that clobber on his car Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kite Posted January 16, 2008 Report Share Posted January 16, 2008 I always apply to a wet car then rinse and wash as normal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rustynuts Posted January 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 Had a play this morning, but nothing too spectacular to report. The reason being that I tried it out on the van! This usually gets washed regularly (once in a blue moon), so it was well in need of something as you can see. I gave it a once over with snow foam, sprayed the wheels with wheel cleaner, and left it for 5 minutes. Then I went over it with the pressure washer and removed the worst of it. I then gave it a second go with snow foam / Megs shampoo mix, another 5 minutes rest, and then a final pressure wash off. Now bear in mind that this vehicle has hardly any shine left on it's tired paintwork, has had no washing for months, no wax at all in its life, what do you think of the results? I was suitably impressed. If I can drag myself out to do it once a week then it'll be a quick quarter hour job I guess, and then should be something like it is now. By the way, the definition of a "blue moon" is the second full moon in a calender month. So that's once a year then. Before: After: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelwind101 Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 Hi! It turned out alright! Thats the thing with Snowfoam, there is no cleaning power which means if your car is dirty then all it does is soften it up as opposed to foaming car soaps Xtreme foam etc. Invest in some AG SRP+EGP or Collinite and a decent paintwork cleaner (£20 + 1 hr of your time every 3 months) and you will notice the cleaning becomes way way easier! All your neigbours were impressed with the foaming action!? Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rustynuts Posted January 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 No, this paintwork needs some serious mechanised polishing to get any sort of results I'm afraid. It only looks shiny because it's wet. Usually the white paint has a matt effect (when you can see it from under the dirt). I know it needs something doing with it, but I spend a bit of time on the car instead. Edit: I think the neighbours were suitably unimpressed with being woken up at 8.30am by a pressure washer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvantSE Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 I did both A4s this morning - I just can't seem to decide what the best proportion of SF:shampoo is - seem to be getting through it at a rate of knots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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