# Snowfoam - A waste of time??? Then read this!!



## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

I've seen a few posts on here saying snowfoam is a waste of time etc, so I thought I'd post this up.

Pictures say more than words, so here was my daily earlier this afternoon:

It was last sealed with Dodo Juice Supernatural Hybrid about three months ago and it's not been washed for just over two weeks, in that time it's done about 1000 miles on wet, mucky and salted roads. Where I normally park the car is grass/wet mud, so it was pretty filthy:



















I did a dirt swipe test, you can she it didn't want to come off the paint easily (I wouldn't normally run a finger across dirty paint):









Wheel trims were not too badly caked in brake dust:









A nice build up of grime on the door edge:









More crud behind the front wheel:









Streaks of grime that has been up the bonnet!:









Another swipe through the dirt on the door mirror:









And another:









So the weapon on choice:









Just over an inch of Magifoam in the bottle and then topped up with water:









And then all over the car, the car was dry and straight on with the snowfoam:



























And then left to dwell for about thirty minutes:









Then rinsed off well. Up until this point, I have not touched the car at all other than the finger swipes for the pictures and spraying foam or water at it:









Remember how dirty this area was with the finger swipe:









And the same on the mirror, you can just about see the finger swipe if you look for it:









Behind the near-side front wheel, looking very clean:









The black streaks on the bonnet are gone (shame about the camera shake ):









Rear edge of the door, again looking very clean:









Behind the off-side front wheel:









Rear bumper looking clean:


















So I then washed the car with Dodo Born to be mild, but I used a single bucket and this was how dirty the water in the bottom of the bucket was when I'd finished, or should I say clean! I washed the sills and the plastic wheel arches with this noodle sponge and water too, so it just shows how little dirt was left from after the snowfoam, very very little:


















And the finished car, all dried off:



























So it goes to show just how much dirt is shifted with snowfoam, while I don't think I'd feel confident enough to foam/rinse and then dry, it shows that very little dirt is left in the paint to cause swirls etc when you get the the wash mitt stage. It did feel like I was washing a clean car, and at no point did I see any dirt on the noodle sponge at all.


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## ae1whia (Jan 10, 2011)

Thumbs up from me, in winter all I use is snowfoam and rinse after 2 coats of wax in autumn.

Andy:thumb:


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## bmwman (Jun 11, 2008)

I feel the same about snow foam. In my opinion it is an "important" part of a wash stage. My car does not usually get so dirty and so I usually snow foam, pressure wash, snow foam rinse then dry.


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

it will always have a place in my wash process, although id say that a good rinse would of more or less done a similar job in this case


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## carrera2s (Jun 28, 2009)

Snow foam will soften the dirt left on for 30 mins. But its the jet wash that removes the grime. I know I have tried it all ways!:thumb:


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## 91davidw (May 6, 2006)

What would be interesting is if you had just of powerhosed the car without snowfoaming first?? 

Cheers


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

carrera2s said:


> Snow foam will soften the dirt left on for 30 mins. But its the jet wash that removes the grime. I know I have tried it all ways!:thumb:


Not many products though will allow that sort of dwell time


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## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

91davidw said:


> What would be interesting is if you had just of powerhosed the car without snowfoaming first??
> 
> Cheers


Just pressure washing the car would not have got it that clean, it gets the grit and big stuff off, but not the film of grime.


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## Sirmally2 (Feb 28, 2011)

91davidw said:


> What would be interesting is if you had just of powerhosed the car without snowfoaming first??
> 
> Cheers


This has been covered in another thread. And without the snowfoam it was poor! The snowfoamed side with a 10 min dwell time was 80% cleaner than the just jetwashed side!


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

Sirmally2 said:


> This has been covered in another thread. And without the snowfoam it was poor! The snowfoamed side with a 10 min dwell time was 80% cleaner than the just jetwashed side!


It's also been covered by Jesse (wolfs chemicals) and the snowfoam did nothing at all.

Edit: Here


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

91davidw said:


> What would be interesting is if you had just of powerhosed the car without snowfoaming first??
> 
> Cheers


You can test this yourself at home, get some greasy plates and soak them in just water in a bowl, even overnight the plates will remain greasy, you need some kind of detergent to allow the water to penetrate the soiling, there is little need to debate it when any reader can go and try the very easy experiment.


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## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

Avanti said:


> You can test this yourself at home, get some greasy plates and soak them in just water in a bowl, even overnight the plates will remain greasy, you need some kind of detergent to allow the water to penetrate the soiling, there is little need to debate it when any reader can go and try the very easy experiment.


Another point of reference that I have experience with is your typical petrol station jetwash. I've never got a car looking clean with a petrol station jetwash using the shampoo and then a rinse. Just rinsing the car well with a pressure washer will give the same result, shifting the grit, grass leaves etc, but leaving the film of grime. With Magifoam the car looks clean and very nearly is clean!


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## Sirmally2 (Feb 28, 2011)

Jem said:


> Another point of reference that I have experience with is your typical petrol station jetwash. I've never got a car looking clean with a petrol station jetwash using the shampoo and then a rinse. Just rinsing the car well with a pressure washer will give the same result, shifting the grit, grass leaves etc, but leaving the film of grime. With Magifoam the car looks clean and very nearly is clean!


I'll second this. The only thing i've managed to do is scratch my car because of the crappy way the pipe is hanging over the car!


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## GJM (Jul 19, 2009)

bigmc said:


> It's also been covered by Jesse (wolfs chemicals) and the snowfoam did nothing at all.
> 
> Edit: Here


Was that not a test where Dwell time was all of 5 mins.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not one for banging on about how good the likes of Magifoam or No Touch are, I don't rate them as high as many seem to.

That aside I think to make a claim they do nothing is a bit off the mark


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

Avanti said:


> You can test this yourself at home, get some greasy plates and soak them in just water in a bowl, even overnight the plates will remain greasy, you need some kind of detergent to allow the water to penetrate the soiling, there is little need to debate it when any reader can go and try the very easy experiment.


I'm trying to create debate with this comment not cause arguments, you don't soak your car over night though, the pressure and flow from the washer is what does the job when doing the car, also the grease on your plates generally wouldn't be there for a week or so unless you're wayne and waynetta slob.


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## Sander (Apr 1, 2011)

Doesn't it reduce the hydrophobic properties of the waxed/sealed paint if you leave snowfoam to dwell for this long? I haven't tried magifoam, but i've seen this happen quite a few times with other snowfoams.


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

bigmc said:


> I'm trying to create debate with this comment not cause arguments, you don't soak your car over night though, the pressure and flow from the washer is what does the job when doing the car, *also the grease on your plates generally wouldn't be there for a week or so unless you're wayne and waynetta slob*.


I'm not he, but yes I don't wash up everyday 
I'm all good for the debate, in fairness the OP may have been as pleased with other products, though I have used plenty and the bonus with Magifoam and CGNTW is that they offer longer dwell times, what many could try is to put a mix of detergent solution in a spray bottle and apply it to the soiling

if the panels are like this










then they will see the soiling starting to drift from the panels quite quickly, though I know many won't try that as 'everybody' is not doing it, and that is how they function


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

Sander said:


> *Doesn't it reduce the hydrophobic properties of the waxed/sealed paint if you leave snowfoam to dwell for this long?* I haven't tried magifoam, but i've seen this happen quite a few times with other snowfoams.


How can it reduce the hydrophobic properties?
It's either hydrophobic or it aint, it is either present or it is not, running scared and not trying things will leave one in a glass bottle and unable to reap any benefits.


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## guy_92 (Oct 26, 2010)

bigmc said:


> It's also been covered by Jesse (wolfs chemicals) and the snowfoam did nothing at all.
> 
> Edit: Here


That was showing how PH NEUTRAL snow foam is not very effective, people use the ph neutral crap becasue they are scared they will remove their wax. I will add no more to this as it's a subject done to death and it gets a bit tiring :wave:


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## Fordyl (Jan 15, 2011)

Makes me want to buy some now. Infact I shall


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

Fordyl said:


> Makes me want to buy some now. Infact I shall


Remember nobody here is trying to sell you anything, it is a pricey proceedure if you don't already have a power washer


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## Fordyl (Jan 15, 2011)

Avanti said:


> Remember nobody here is trying to sell you anything, it is a pricey proceedure if you don't already have a power washer


yeah I bought the lance at the start of year and it came with super foam I think it was, Its now ran out a few weeks ago and never got my bum in gear to buy more. So think I will try this as I was a little disapointed with my last snow foam. :thumb:


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

AG pressure wash has good cleaning ability and foams well (if you're avanti), I've used a few others in the past and not been impressed at all, I stopped using it for ages after the initial disappointment and poor performance products.


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## JD-Cumbria (Oct 31, 2011)

Honestly, i personally do see the difference between Snowfoaming and not snowfoaming, in fact i see a massive difference. But at the end of the day, i would still snowfoam my car just to feel like a ghostbuster for a few minutes. You know you feel the same way cracking out your snowfoam!


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

Fordyl said:


> yeah I bought the lance at the start of year and it came with super foam I think it was, Its now ran out a few weeks ago and never got my bum in gear to buy more. So think I will try this as I was a little disapointed with my last snow foam. :thumb:


SSF is not that great I must confess, but some buy because 'everybody' else has it, and it's wax safe, indeed that is true, it is so wax safe that it does little more than suds up (ok exagerrated a little but users get the idea) many waxes sealants are detergent proof, so folks should stop being scared and get a cleaner that works eg cleans surfaces, even if it did affect the LSP (which it doesn't) it will take many washes and weeks, andby that time for whatever reason, a new coat of wax is likely to be applied


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## jamest (Apr 8, 2008)

Avanti said:


> You can test this yourself at home, get some greasy plates and soak them in just water in a bowl, even overnight the plates will remain greasy, you need some kind of detergent to allow the water to penetrate the soiling, there is little need to debate it when any reader can go and try the very easy experiment.


Freshly soiled dishes can be made extremely clean (at least visually) by holding under a tap, so water pressure alone is able to remove dirt but unless you do your car everytime after it has been driven this won't work.


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## stealthwolf (Sep 24, 2008)

carrera2s said:


> Snow foam will soften the dirt left on for 30 mins. But its the jet wash that removes the grime. I know I have tried it all ways!:thumb:


+1. This is what I've found and is what I use.



Avanti said:


> You can test this yourself at home, get some greasy plates and soak them in just water in a bowl, even overnight the plates will remain greasy, you need some kind of detergent to allow the water to penetrate the soiling, there is little need to debate it when any reader can go and try the very easy experiment.


This is the analogy that I use when trying to explain snowfoaming. A lot of people seem to expect it to be the "holy grail" - ie perfect touchless wash. It isn't. It's another step in the wash process.

I just wish there was a foam lance that would work under the sills/bumpers like the AB underbody lance.


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

stealthwolf said:


> I just wish there was a foam lance that would work under the sills/bumpers like the AB underbody lance.


Can't you just bend down and aim underneath? I can foam underneath mine quite easily by holding the lance horizontally and having it set on a jet rather than fan


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

bigmc said:


> AG pressure wash has good cleaning ability and foams well (if you're avanti), I've used a few others in the past and not been impressed at all, I stopped using it for ages after the initial disappointment and poor performance products.


Are you filling up the 1 litre bottle? I know many do this but nobody has ever explained why they do, not sure if you saw my Beemer post from saturday, used the AGPW again .


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

stealthwolf said:


> +1. This is what I've found and is what I use.
> 
> I just wish there was a foam lance that would work under the sills/bumpers like the AB underbody lance.





bigmc said:


> Can't you just bend down and aim underneath? I can foam underneath mine quite easily by holding the lance horizontally and having it set on a jet rather than fan


As bigmc suggests, this is how I attack the lower panels


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## stealthwolf (Sep 24, 2008)

I've tried angling the snowfoam lance upwards but it's a bit awkward on a lowered car.

On the plus side, I found out I could use the underbody lance on the alloys so I don't have to move the car forwards and backwards to clean the entire rim!


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

Avanti said:


> Are you filling up the 1 litre bottle? I know many do this but nobody has ever explained why they do, not sure if you saw my Beemer post from saturday, used the AGPW again .


Tried both ways ages ago and got stuck in the fill with hot water + product, will try just 300ml or so tomorrow when I do the car. I posted the bm thread. :thumb:


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## gerz1873 (May 15, 2010)

Rinsing alone will shift lots of crap off your car but snowfoam shifts more off. Dont know if its because my car is black but because its black I take more care in the pre-wash hence the snowfoam


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## Mad Mental Jock (Sep 10, 2011)

Been using the magi foam for a few months now and it is a really good product, but I've experimented and if using it alone (without a secondary hand wash) it still leaves a thin grimly film. However it does shift 95% of crud. My routine has now evolved to a secondary coating of magi foam hand washed with a noodle mitt.


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

This is SSF in action



same settings and similar dilution to Magifoam , Citrus Pearl and other used products, just the way it goes on the panels, I was not expecting much from it


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## Sander (Apr 1, 2011)

Avanti said:


> How can it reduce the hydrophobic properties?
> It's either hydrophobic or it aint, it is either present or it is not, running scared and not trying things will leave one in a glass bottle and unable to reap any benefits.


The beading/sheeting might just be up to the sealants, but I've noticed a reduction in beading a few times when I've left the snowfoam (AB super snow foam) to dwell for too long and it's dried on the surface (even after rinsing with a PW). It's difficult to remove all the snowfoam residue after that. I usually leave it to dwell only for around 15min so it doesn't dry.

This is what I meant when I asked about magifoam being left to dwell for 30min or more. If it really is effective and kind to paint, then I'm in a hurry to buy some


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

Sander said:


> The beading/sheeting might just be up to the sealants, but I've noticed a reduction in beading a few times when I've left the snowfoam (AB super snow foam) to dwell for too long* and it's dried on the surface* (even after rinsing with a PW). It's difficult to remove all the snowfoam residue after that. I usually leave it to dwell only for around 15min so it doesn't dry.
> 
> This is what I meant when I asked about magifoam being left to dwell for 30min or more. If it really is effective and kind to paint, then I'm in a hurry to buy some


It has been said time and time again, do not let the product dry, once you notice it drying it is time to rinse off, this can be within seconds to 2 or 3 minutes, I am not going to lay claim to 30 minute dwell times, although I will backup the dwell time is minutes more than seconds, you can see from the video above the ssf is not going to dwell for long before requiring rinsing, and this time may not be long enough to penetrate the soiling.


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## chrisc (Jun 15, 2008)

So what is magifoam then just a high foaming tfr type product?


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

snow foam with extra clinging agents probably, so it dwells for longer. all foam is based on TFR...


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## chrisc (Jun 15, 2008)

well if there all based on tfr there there is some crap tfr knocking about:lol:.


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## CliveP (Feb 1, 2009)

Great Result!, thanks for posting...

In my opinion there's two snowfoams that achieive this - Autobrite Magifoam and also I've found good results from Autosmart Actimousse (but it lacks the dwell time of Magifoam, so that's why my favourite is Magifoam).

My other recommendation is to also pre-spray the muckiest with a decent APC, like Autobrite Citrus Wash and if needed tar/glue remover. 

I'm not arguing with anyone on this, just reporting my findings, I get paid to argue so I'm not doing it for free! :lol:

Greetings to all,
Regards,
Clive.


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## Tips (Mar 27, 2011)

Sirmally2 said:


> I'll second this. The only thing i've managed to do is scratch my car because of the crappy way the pipe is hanging over the car!


Grrrr - I did this last week when I tugged the hose against the car wing - leaving it full of scratches!


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## Fordyl (Jan 15, 2011)

Well I just ordered some. I will report back once I have used it.


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## Serious (Mar 19, 2008)

Thanks for taking the time to do the test. The results do look good.

However, winter grime does come off quite easy. Not like baked on summer crap.

The dwell time of magi foam is Both a plus and a minus for me. On one hand you have time to go round the badges, door shuts etc and do the wheels. And on the other hand the stuff stays on your or your customers drive for ages.


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

In the test I posted, the difference between just blasting with a pressure washer and using snow foam was substantial. I also did an open hose test and again there was a substantial difference. Conclusively proved to me that snow foam makes a noticeable difference. 

I didn't compare it with tfr or a degreaser (which it looks like Jesse did, so my test was different), but then again I don't normally use a tfr or degreaser, but for me the argument that it is no different to just using a pressure washer is simply just not true!


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## p1tse (Feb 4, 2007)

nice

i'm in need of a new fitment for my new nilfisk and more snowfoam

i guess the question is would you have had similar results if just using a pressure washer directly?

saying that, i like the snow foam process


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## nick_mcuk (Jan 4, 2008)

91davidw said:


> What would be interesting is if you had just of powerhosed the car without snowfoaming first??
> 
> Cheers


My thoughts exactly....not picking holes but that car wasnt exactly dirty either.

I have tired snowfoams and none of them did any more than just using the pressure washer.

Jesse from Wolfes Chemicals did a test on different pre washes and proved that snowfoams are just a gimmick.


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## WannaBd (Dec 18, 2010)

I ve never tried snow foam although i keep thinking i want to. The problem is the dwell time, who has 30 mins or even 10mins to wait around whilst waiting for it to work, when running a car valeting business? That & the does it doesnt it work debate has made me not buy a foam lance but stick to sensible tfr (active xls by autosmart) for the time being.


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## Franzpan (Mar 2, 2009)

1000 miles! My car gets dirtier than that in 50 miles! I wish our country roads werent so messy.

I wouldnt be without my snowfoam, I can get my car 90% with it. And I have tested it a few time by foaming one half of the car and blasting of with the PW, the other side I just blasted without foaming and it didnt take half the muck off.

As I have said on here before, if you cant get results with snowfaom then you are not using it correctly.


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## Jem (Aug 10, 2007)

> i guess the question is would you have had similar results if just using a pressure washer directly?


This has already been answered. Snowfoam out performs just pressure washing by a massive margin.

Last year I lived in a flat and getting a pressure washer out to the car was not easy, so I used the local petrol station jet wash to give the car a quick clean. Even 12 minutes of the 'shampoo' and then a good rinsing with their pressure washer didn't get the car half as clean. You could still clearly see a film of dirt on the lower panels of the car. With snowfoam the car is virtually clean. You can see from the pictures of the bucket after the hand wash just how spotless the car is after the snowfoam.


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## Ross (Apr 25, 2007)




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## forde (Feb 22, 2007)

i dont see how anyone who has used snowfoam can say its not effective tbh.

snowfoaming is like soaking your dirty dishes in the sink so you can easily get stubborn dirt off. if you just spray the car with water, it just runs off immediately. it doesnt sit on the dirt and soak it and make it soft and not stuck to the car. 

if you snowfoam it and leave it for 5 or 10 minutes, the foam sits on the car that whole time and softens/loosens the dirt so it comes off easily. if you have used snowfoam and not seen how much easier it makes things there is something wrong.


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## alan_mcc (Oct 28, 2008)

I am an avid user of it.. I just got through a 5l of Supa Snow Foam and tbh I'm glad to see the back of it.. it was rubbish in all honesty. Whole lot of bubbles and nothing else.

On a well protected car it is *extremely* effective.


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## herbiedacious (Sep 27, 2010)

Wouldn't care if snowfoam didn't work....it's FUN!! The fact that Magifoam does work is an added bonus. Takes ages to wash off the drive though.:detailer:


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

forde said:


> *i dont see how anyone who has used snowfoam can say its not effective tbh*.
> 
> snowfoaming is like soaking your dirty dishes in the sink so you can easily get stubborn dirt off. if you just spray the car with water, it just runs off immediately. it doesnt sit on the dirt and soak it and make it soft and not stuck to the car.
> 
> if you snowfoam it and leave it for 5 or 10 minutes, the foam sits on the car that whole time and softens/loosens the dirt so it comes off easily. if you have used snowfoam and not seen how much easier it makes things there is something wrong.


Not sure why you are getting 'wound up' about it?
The same said persons do not wash their cars with just water and no shampoo, why?
Few if any post vids of their attempts which failed, just one or two would be nice to see, it simply could just be user error.
A forceful washer output will assist immensley but of course those do not come cheap.
many could apply a shampoo mix via a spray bottle , leave it for a few minutes and then rinse off, I'm not even sure why they don't want to do that and post up the results?


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

forde said:


> i dont see how anyone who has used snowfoam can say its not effective tbh.
> 
> snowfoaming is like soaking your dirty dishes in the sink so you can easily get stubborn dirt off. if you just spray the car with water, it just runs off immediately. it doesnt sit on the dirt and soak it and make it soft and not stuck to the car.
> 
> if you snowfoam it and leave it for 5 or 10 minutes, the foam sits on the car that whole time and softens/loosens the dirt so it comes off easily. if you have used snowfoam and not seen how much easier it makes things there is something wrong.


The dirty dishes metaphor is not valid as already discussed, you don't wash your car after every trip and you don't just run water over it, it's high pressure high flow water.


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## hoikey (Mar 9, 2011)

Snowfoam is the mutts nuts


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## The Doctor (Sep 11, 2007)

Ive not used the two bucket method for a very long time. Ive even used a jumbo sponge to wash the car with no ill effects. The reason being because after ive foamed the car its 95% clean. Anybody who says snow foam doesnt work is either using a product thats got poor or no detergent propeties or they have a pressure washer thats not up to the task.


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## hoikey (Mar 9, 2011)

The Doctor said:


> Ive not used the two bucket method for a very long time. Ive even used a jumbo sponge to wash the car with no ill effects. The reason being because after ive foamed the car its 95% clean. Anybody who says snow foam doesnt work is either using a product thats got poor or no detergent propeties or they have a pressure washer thats not up to the task.


Agreed. I snowfoam then rinse and then snow again (with a bit of shampoo in too) and use a mitt and 1 bucket and my paintwork is still in good condition


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

Right then, just conducted a little experiment on the tailgate, as you know the car was washed the other day, but has done 50 miles since the wash, so very light soiling on the tailgate, I have marked an X on the tailgate which you may just be able to make out,
just water applied
(click on the pic to play the video)



At least we know the wax is still active , next video is the detergent mix, immediately you see the water skin is broken and shortly you can see the dirt is removing


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## Sirmally2 (Feb 28, 2011)

Tips said:


> Grrrr - I did this last week when I tugged the hose against the car wing - leaving it full of scratches!


Im extremely annoyed! I will never use one again! I'll be having to get my DA out and sort them. I'm sure one of them is RDS... C**p!


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## gerz1873 (May 15, 2010)

Over the last 4 or 5 weeks i have only jetwashed my car at the local garage just to get the salt and grit off. Today I did a little experiment and snowfoamed only 1 side of the car and powerwashed the other. When it came to running my washmitt over each side the snowfoamed side felt fine but the otherside felt so gritty and grainy that I stopped and snowfoamed the whole car again. So I for 1 will continue to snowfoam every time :thumb:


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## Mike-93 (May 16, 2010)

i really dont understand what the argument is about here...

Seasoned professionals, guys who do this for a living, use snow foam and it works for them. These guys would not use the stuff if it doesn't work, after all, why do something if it doesn't make a blind bit of difference? Time is money. Agreed, some foams work better than others, but isn't this the case with pretty much every product on the market? 

Thats my 2p anyway...


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## Razzzle (Jul 3, 2010)

ill chuck a couple of pics into the mix:

before









After









before









after


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## Superspec (Feb 25, 2011)

In the summer months I rarely hand wash my car. I rinse with a pressure washer, use Megs Hyperwash as a snow foam, go round and do the grilles and badges etc while it's dwelling, rinse again and blow dry. Obviously it is well waxed and I tend to do it a couple of times a week so it never gets really dirty. 

These days (winter) I use the Megs Hyperwash as a snowfoam as part of my hand wash process and although the pressure rinsing does move a lot of dirt the foaming action shifts more, I wouldn't miss this stage out. 

I never get swirling in my paint and even now can get my car properly clean in under about 40 minutes.


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## Sirmally2 (Feb 28, 2011)

Nice test there avanti... Just goes to show that even in a spray bottle just how much more effective it is against standard water :thumb:


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

Sirmally2 said:


> Nice test there avanti... Just goes to show that even in a spray bottle just how much more effective it is against standard water :thumb:


Indeed, science does not change anything, it just gives us the facts, all the products we use have been created with application of science, so those screaming out "OMG does it strip the wax!" really ought to look at the science of wax stripping.


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## Tips (Mar 27, 2011)

Sirmally2 said:


> Im extremely annoyed! I will never use one again! I'll be having to get my DA out and sort them. I'm sure one of them is RDS... C**p!


I feel your pain, I just wanted to blast the car and alloys with water from a power hose, and it was too cold to fanny about with the Nilfisk and garden hose.

As soon as I moved the hose to reach the rear offside wheel, the hose raised off the floor and onto the front offside wing and rubbed against it.

I've been to see a local detailer and he says it needs wet sanding to get marks out and it will cost me £100 to fix :buffer:

Argggh, all this because of a 2 bob car wash from the supermarket :wall:

Be warned - keep the dirty hose on the floor!


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## Sirmally2 (Feb 28, 2011)

Tips said:


> Be warned - keep the dirty hose on the floor!


or, as my future alternative, not bother and leave it dirty until i get chance to do it with my own PW


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## forde (Feb 22, 2007)

Avanti said:


> Not sure why you are getting 'wound up' about it?
> The same said persons do not wash their cars with just water and no shampoo, why?
> Few if any post vids of their attempts which failed, just one or two would be nice to see, it simply could just be user error.
> A forceful washer output will assist immensley but of course those do not come cheap.
> many could apply a shampoo mix via a spray bottle , leave it for a few minutes and then rinse off, I'm not even sure why they don't want to do that and post up the results?


how am i getting "wound up"? i saw the thread, just thought i'd throw in a reply with my experience for reference.. why are you being a dick and having a go at me? sorry i didnt read all 70 posts in a snow foam thread, but im not THAT bored, i was just surfing and thought id add my thoughts. you take things a bit too seriously. but are you really saying you have used snow foam and have found it less effective, or not more effective than not using it? the difference is very pronounced when i use it. after foaming and rinsing there is barely anything left on the car to wash off with the mitt. and what is left comes right off. whereas if i just shoot it with the washer most of the dirt stays on the car. hence, i genuinely cannot see how someone can have used it and not noticed the difference it makes!!



bigmc said:


> The dirty dishes metaphor is not valid as already discussed, you don't wash your car after every trip and you don't just run water over it, it's high pressure high flow water.


how is it not relevant? if you soak dirt, it becomes soft and not baked on. how is not washing it after every trip relevant? if anything that makes the snow foam more necessary as if you dont wash the car often it gets more dirty and the dirt gets more baked on! and yeah pressure washers are higher pressure, but i certainly wouldnt call a domestic washer high flow. anyway the fact remains that soaking dirt softens and loosens it on any surface

heres an example. im a country boy and so my cars which i dont wash that often get a lot of cow **** on the lower panels, especially in summer it gets baked on. it sets like concrete. i can start blasting it with a washer and scrubbing it with the most abrasive sponge or pad i have, but it still is well stuck on and takes a lot of time scrubbing, there are usually little bits left stuck on and also that process is damaging to the paint. if i foam the car and leave it for ten or 15 minutes then come back the cow **** is all soft and wet and just wipes off, or often just rinses off and i dont even have to rub at it.. baked on dirt is where snow foam really helps imo.

also being a biker i am often cleaning baked on flies off my visor, i soak a sheet of kitchen roll, set it over the visor, then return after 10 or 15 and they simply wipe off. they are almost impossible to get off without doing this.


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## Tips (Mar 27, 2011)

Sirmally2 said:


> or, as my future alternative, not bother and leave it dirty until i get chance to do it with my own PW


True Dat!


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

It's not valid as you wouldn't wash your car every trip like you do with your dishes and it's a completely different surface, dirt, oils etc.


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

To be fair, most of the crud in my test ( www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=241248 ) was from country lanes.

Where the Snowfoam excelled compared to a just water rinse (either with or without pressure) was its ability to almost what seemed to dissolve the mud, making it disappear even when rinsing off the snowfoam with an open hose.


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

forde said:


> how am i getting "wound up"? i saw the thread, just thought i'd throw in a reply with my experience for reference.. why are you being a dick and having a go at me? sorry i didnt read all 70 posts in a snow foam thread, but im not THAT bored, i was just surfing and thought id add my thoughts. you take things a bit too seriously. but are you really saying you have used snow foam and have found it less effective, or not more effective than not using it? the difference is very pronounced when i use it. after foaming and rinsing there is barely anything left on the car to wash off with the mitt. and what is left comes right off. whereas if i just shoot it with the washer most of the dirt stays on the car. hence, i genuinely cannot see how someone can have used it and not noticed the difference it makes!!


I'm not having a go at you, other than the comment on being a dick, the rest of your post agrees with what I have already posted, I have even replicated the test with just water and then detergent mix


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