# Touchless winter wash review:- Snowfoam v Traffic film remover V pH neutral wash



## nappy (Oct 3, 2006)

There has been debate over the effectiveness of touch-less washing and the use of different products over recent weeks. So over the past couple of weeks I have been experimenting with products from two different manufactures:- Meguiars and Powermaxed.










Hyper wash (pH 8), Traffic film remover / TFR ( pH 13) and Jet wash and wax (pH 7) were compared for there cleaning effectiveness, ease of use and most importantly fun factor.

Both the traffic film remover and Jet wash and wax were tested in there ready to use formula and the hyper wash was diluted with 50mls of product to 250mls warm water and applied via a pa foam lance. If however you were using the TFR or Jet wash and wax from concentrate I would invest in a pump sprayer as by the end of applying the product to the whole car you got rather tired hands from squeezing the trigger spray. All products when you compare the cost implications of applying these products long term would therefore have additional cost outlays.

Out of the three products I found foaming had the best fun factor. However unfortunately the cleaning properties of this product were not as effective compared to both the TFR or Jet wash and wax.










Although the pH neutral wash was more effective than the snow foam, I found the TFR the most effective on cleaning the car. This was especially the case when cleaning the wheels and tailgate which were covered in roadsalt.




























Jet wash and wax during application










50/50 Shot




























After Jet wash

For people who do not wish to compromise there last stage protection a neutral pH wash maybe beneficial for quick washes on cold, wet, wintry days. However, after using this product I found a small level of white spotting left which would show on darker colours or vehicles with tinted windows. This will probably be due to the wax which may offer some level of additional protection during winter months.

For those of you who however who wish to have a 90-95% clean vehicle within very little time the TFR would be my product of choice. As after testing this product at a 50:1 ratio and later with a 20:1 ratio. It was by far the product with the best cleaning properties out of the three.










Before










After 50:1 application.

In the ready to use formula I feel after trying the products out a couple of times you will get 5 washes out of the bottles. So in the pre diluted state yes they will be expensive. But if you get 150 washes from 5 litres of Jet wash and wax, it only works out around 15pence per wash.

There are a number of similar branded products out there on the market, so hopefully this review will help some people choose which method they want use. In my option the use of any one of these methods would also be an advantage prior to using the routine 2 bucket method.


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## GleemSpray (Jan 26, 2014)

Great test. 

Have used both pm Jetwash and pm tfr and they are both good, but as you say the tfr has the cleaning edge I think. 

Never used hyper wash but I like the look of the foam it produces.


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## M400BHP (Feb 18, 2015)

I just ordered the power max TFR


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## cossierick (Jan 19, 2011)

Hyper wash is more of a summer weekly foam !!


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## Scooby0775 (Dec 17, 2014)

I used power maxed jetwash this weekend on my van very impressed with it !


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## nappy (Oct 3, 2006)

cossierick said:


> Hyper wash is more of a summer weekly foam !!


I only had hyperwash to prewash with prior to having these 2 other products.

Before owning a PA lance the foam was previously applied via the karcher foam lance. This when powerwashed off left a lot more grime on the car, compaired to these three methods. So the lance used I also feel will have a knock on effect on how effective the product is.


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## Yellow Dave (Apr 5, 2011)

Hyper wash is more a shampoo than pre wash.


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## ALLR_155528 (May 20, 2014)

Great test you have done there.

I got a sample of PM TFR and PM Jet wash and Wax from CYR I personal found PM Jet Wash and Wax to be better than PM TFR I have since ordered a 2.5ltr of PM Jet Wash and Wax which I have received today


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## nappy (Oct 3, 2006)

Yellow Dave said:


> Hyper wash is more a shampoo than pre wash.


I purchased it as i had good results with it after i tried someone elses foam lance and this wash. At the time it was polishbliss No1 go to pre-wash. Which i think they have now replaced with an autofineese product. Im almost our of snow foam. So im open to suggestions to what to try next that will be better than this. But if you Spend 30quid on a gallon, I decided not to try anything else until it was finished.

I did not want to add more hyperwash to the dilution as i previously tried making it more concentrate on my last car to see if it was more effective. However i ended up with meringue mix sprayed over the car and its cleaning properties i found again less effective. ( I will try and get a picture up later showing this)












ALLR_155528 said:


> Great test you have done there.
> 
> I got a sample of PM TFR and PM Jet wash and Wax from CYR I personal found PM Jet Wash and Wax to be better than PM TFR I have since ordered a 2.5ltr of PM Jet Wash and Wax which I have received today


I previously tried the 50:1 TFR on an X-trail and found it did not clean as well as on my own car. However, after reading other reviews on these products i think the dilution rate will have a great effect on the products cleaning properties. I also think that the LSP or lack of. Will also effect the overall effectiveness of the product. After trying this product we ordered a gallon using the detailing world discount code before it ran out. So hopefully it may give better results again more concentrated. I think i will also use an open ended hose as a final rinse off as well, to see if that helps with the spotting.


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

Bilt hamber auto foam

£15 ish for 5 litres

Try it, you won't be disappointed


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## GleemSpray (Jan 26, 2014)

Kimo73 said:


> Bilt hamber auto foam
> 
> £15 ish for 5 litres
> 
> Try it, you won't be disappointed


Yes it is. Not the foamiest, but it cleans really well.


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## GleemSpray (Jan 26, 2014)

Power Maxed own Super Snowfoam actually cleans really well, as good as the TFR and the jetwash do and in my experience, it is on a par with the Bilt Hamber for cleaning abilities.

Only thing is the price, its £29.99 for 5L. 

It is reasonably concentrated and you would use less than the Bilt Hamber per wash, but it is still a bit on the expensive side I think


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## ffrs1444 (Jun 7, 2008)

Don't you just love having a white car


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## nappy (Oct 3, 2006)

ffrs1444 said:


> Don't you just love having a white car


This is my 1st white car. After owning 5 previous black cars I can safely say its not as easy to keep clean. Got to just love the tar spots!!

Thanks for ideas about other foams folks. Will see what other reviews pop up on the forum over the next few weeks. :thumb:


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## savbmw (Jan 19, 2015)

I tried the Jet Wash & Wax last weekend. Applied it with a Mesto sprayer (10:1 mix) and then pressure washed off. It got rid of 95% of the dirt - just had to give the bonnet a quick once over with the Power Maxed shampoo as some dirt streaks remained. Next time I will use the PW and foam lance to apply the Jet Wash & Wax and I'm sure it will get rid of nearer 99% of the dirt straight away. Seems ideal when time is an issue as it was quicker than than using a pre wash spray then a snow foam. Early results are promising!


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## theador (Mar 18, 2014)

Doesn't TFR also take your wax off (not in a karate kid manner) with it?


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## Tsubodai (Oct 20, 2012)

theador said:


> Doesn't TFR also take your wax off (not in a karate kid manner) with it?


There's a few threads about this knocking about mate. It's just a general term but in this case it's LSP safe at up to 9:1 dilution.


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## theador (Mar 18, 2014)

Ah ok thanks. I've got some espuma traffic film stuff. Does an amazing job on the wheels but I've always been afraid it'll strip all the hard work of waxing the body.


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## Tsubodai (Oct 20, 2012)

theador said:


> Ah ok thanks. I've got some espuma traffic film stuff. Does an amazing job on the wheels but I've always been afraid it'll strip all the hard work of waxing the body.


No idea about that one mate but I'm sure someone can advise.


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## theador (Mar 18, 2014)

Has anyone tried this? http://www.ukvaletsupplies.co.uk/uk-valet-cherry-snow-foam---5l-106-p.asp


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## nappy (Oct 3, 2006)

Tsubodai said:


> There's a few threads about this knocking about mate. It's just a general term but in this case it's LSP safe at up to 9:1 dilution.


Yup, there was a few threads about TFR and wax removal. Hence why I did a like for like as it was only fair after I won a couple of the products in question as part of the 12 days of Christmas draw.

I have ended up getting a gallon of each product to share as a result of being able to try the products also. :thumb:


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## ALLR_155528 (May 20, 2014)

Further to my previous comment. I would agree PM JWW removed 95% off dirt from paint work but it hardly touch my wheels though. I used it through a cheap garden pressure washer since then have bought a Mesto Foamer and hoping in the next couple of days will get to try PM JWW through Mesto Foamer. Again used through a cheap garden pressure sprayer used PM TFR found it removed 75% of dirt from paint but again hardly touch my wheels.



savbmw said:


> I tried the Jet Wash & Wax last weekend. Applied it with a Mesto sprayer (10:1 mix) and then pressure washed off. It got rid of 95% of the dirt - just had to give the bonnet a quick once over with the Power Maxed shampoo as some dirt streaks remained. Next time I will use the PW and foam lance to apply the Jet Wash & Wax and I'm sure it will get rid of nearer 99% of the dirt straight away. Seems ideal when time is an issue as it was quicker than than using a pre wash spray then a snow foam. Early results are promising!


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## GleemSpray (Jan 26, 2014)

theador said:


> Doesn't TFR also take your wax off (not in a karate kid manner) with it?


Its a general acronym for "Traffic Film Removers" and they vary massively in strength.

Its a bit like saying "Will Wheel Cleaner damage my wheels ?" in that they all come in different strengths and contain different chemicals.

The Power Maxed products are all designed for safe home use and they have tested their TFR to be wax safe up to a dilution of 1:9.


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## theador (Mar 18, 2014)

This is the one I use on my wheels, on my bikes and lots of other things. I mix it quite strong and it does a great job. But it's quite aggressive. My bike needed regreasing after few washes, which normally doesn't happen.

http://www.espumadirect.co.uk/traff...film-remover-detergent-concentrate-degreaser-


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

Did a test a few weeks back valet pro citrus pre wash the powermaxed tfr and the bit Hamber Autofoam all by pump sprayer, valet pro citrus pre wash forget it waste of time and product and that at its strongest ratio, the power maxed tfr did very very well but pipped bt the bit hamber.

Thanks for the test.


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## ALLR_155528 (May 20, 2014)

Glad to read it's just not me that's wasn't impressed by Valet Pro Citrus Wash. Would still like to try it again now I have got a Mesto Foamer.


james_death said:


> Did a test a few weeks back valet pro citrus pre wash the powermaxed tar and the bit Hamber Autofoam all by pump sprayer, valet pro citrus pre wash forget it waste of time and product and that at its strongest ratio, the power maxed tfr did very very well but pipped bt the bit hamber.
> 
> Thanks for the test.


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## theador (Mar 18, 2014)

Ok, so looks like I just need to stop being a wimp and get used to the smell of BH...


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