# Snow Foam Help



## MarkSmith (Dec 17, 2010)

Hello Everyone, hope you all had a great Christmas and a Brilliant New Year !

Just hoping some people can help me with a few questions about snow foam. I have never used it before and I am considering getting it soon.

If anyone can tell me the answers to these questions I would be very greatful.

1. Am I right in thinking that AG powermax 3 will strip wax off the car, whereas snow foam wont ?

2. Can snow foam be used inside under arches and is it effective there ?

3. Will snow foam clean wheels well and does it help to remove brake dust ?

4. After rinsing snow foam off the car, can any wash shampoo be used to wash the car - I normally use AG Shampoo Condiditoner

5. How much of a mess will snow foam leave on my clients driveway ?

6. How long does snow foam need to be left on the car and will it cause any damage if its left on a little too long ? ( The plan I have is to snow foam the car and then clean all the wheels before rinsing it off, but would this be too long ? )

7. Am I right in thinking the Autobrite Magifoam is the best and will my little Karcher K2.19 be "man enough" to spray snow foam ?

8. Whats the dilution rate and how economical is it to use, would it be suitable for washing every car I do for customers, even if they are paying less than a tenner for a simple "exterior wash" ?

Sorry for all the questions, but I am a total newbie to snow foam and dont want to shell out the cash until I know for sure its what I want !

Any help / answers to these questions would be a great help and I would be very very greatful.

Thanks again

Mark


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## stealthwolf (Sep 24, 2008)

Won't be able to answer everything but it's all based on my experience. No doubt someone will come along and correct me!



MarkSmith said:


> 1. Am I right in thinking that AG powermax 3 will strip wax off the car, whereas snow foam wont ?


At the correct dilution, it won't.


MarkSmith said:


> 2. Can snow foam be used inside under arches and is it effective there ?


Yes, it can be used there. You'd still need to scrub with a brush and may need to use a stronger product.


MarkSmith said:


> 3. Will snow foam clean wheels well and does it help to remove brake dust ?


It did on mine, but only because of light brake dust. It will help remove some but it depends on how heavily contaminated they are.


MarkSmith said:


> 4. After rinsing snow foam off the car, can any wash shampoo be used to wash the car?


Yes


MarkSmith said:


> 5. How much of a mess will snow foam leave on my clients driveway ?


Depends on how thick you apply it. When I use it, the foam can be there for several hours if I don't rinse the road afterwards.


MarkSmith said:


> 6. How long does snow foam need to be left on the car and will it cause any damage if its left on a little too long ?


No damage. I've left it on the paintwork and wheels, then gone round and scrubbed the wheels. 5-10 mins is enough.


MarkSmith said:


> 7. Am I right in thinking the Autobrite Magifoam is the best and will my little Karcher K2.19 be "man enough" to spray snow foam ?


Yes - right product. As for the PW - I have a K2.02 Karcher. As long as you have an HD foam lance, you'll be fine.


MarkSmith said:


> 8. Whats the dilution rate and how economical is it to use, would it be suitable for washing every car I do for customers, even if they are paying less than a tenner for a simple "exterior wash" ?


There's a proper method on the forum somewhere. Generally speaking, 1" in a 1litre bottle topped with water. At that dilution rate, it's fine. Can't comment on costs.

Don't think for a second that snowfoam will mean a touchless wash. If you expect it as such, you'll be disappointed. Where it succeeds is in loosening dirt and helping to remove some of it. The less dried on the dirt is, the easier it is to remove when washing with 2BM and the lesser the likelihood of swirls being inflicted.


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

MarkSmith said:


> Hello Everyone, hope you all had a great Christmas and a Brilliant New Year !
> 
> Just hoping some people can help me with a few questions about snow foam. I have never used it before and I am considering getting it soon.
> 
> ...


1) No
2) Yes perhaps depends on the product
3) Yes, this depends on the level of soiling and wash frequency
4) Yes
5) None, you tidy up afterwards (if you want repeat custom and good recommendation)
6) Dwell time depends on product, in any instance with any product, do not let the product dry.
7) There is no best, the magifoam is a new to the market product, early reports appear favourable, it is not groundbreaking but a welcome choice compared to some of the offerings out there. (b) Consider a greater than entry level machine
8) Dilution rations may vary depending upon soiling 300ml per wash is the most you should require, more often half of that or less is all that is required

Make your purchase based primarily on logic not emotion, newbie today going pro tomorrow is not often a good route to success


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## stealthwolf (Sep 24, 2008)

Avanti said:


> Make your purchase based primarily on logic not emotion, newbie today going pro tomorrow is not often a good route to success


Probably the most sensible thing I've heard in a good while.


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## MarkSmith (Dec 17, 2010)

stealthwolf said:


> Probably the most sensible thing I've heard in a good while.


Yes, I agree, this is top advice. I have been valeting cars for many years now but I am new to snow foam so will be using it on my own private collection of cars long before I use it on a customers car.

Thanks for the advice above, really appreciate it.

Just a few more questions, that have come to me due to the above answers -

When you say you scrub the wheels while the snow foam is on the car ( and wheels ), what do you scrub the wheels with - just the snow foam that already on the wheel or something else ? ( i normally clean wheels with AG Wheel Cleaner but I am guessing I should scrub the wheels only with water while the snow foam is on the wheel, then follow up with AG wheel cleaner after I have rinsed the car ?

Also, I think I read somewhere that someone snow foams the car, rinses it off, then snow foams the car again lightly and leave it on while he shampoo washes the car, just to give the shampoo a bit more lubrication, is this right ?

And finally, should you spray the snow foam onto a wet car or a dry car ? I am sure I have read the answer to this question somewhere on the forum already but I cant remember what the answer was and cant seem to find the thread now.

Thanks for your help, very very appreciated.

Mark


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## stealthwolf (Sep 24, 2008)

MarkSmith said:


> When you say you scrub the wheels while the snow foam is on the car ( and wheels ), what do you scrub the wheels with - just the snow foam that already on the wheel or something else ?


If the wheels are already protected, they won't need scrubbing. If they're very lightly soiled, snowfoam and an alloy wheel brush will be sufficient. If not, then once you've rinsed the snowfoam off, tackle the wheels with something stronger. You need to make the judgement yourself. No point scrubbing with snowfoam if you know you're gonna need something stronger.



MarkSmith said:


> Also, I think I read somewhere that...


I've heard of that but not done it. It's enough to rinse snowfoam off and then head on to 2BM.



MarkSmith said:


> And finally, should you spray the snow foam onto a wet car or a dry car ?


I tend to rinse the car to help soften/loosen any dirt that can be removed with just PW. I think I've heard some say a dry car means the snowfoam can cling onto the car better, but I'm hoping someone will be able to verify this.


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

MarkSmith said:


> Yes, I agree, this is top advice. I have been valeting cars for many years now but I am new to snow foam so will be using it on my own private collection of cars long before I use it on a customers car.
> 
> Thanks for the advice above, really appreciate it.
> 
> ...


Substitue scrub for brush, overall there is no right way, and folk adjust their method to that what they are best pleased or least stressed by.
I will be cleaning my neighbours mini today, as it is cold , I will want to do it all within an hour, 
I will apply glass cleaner on the interior glass, feather dust the interior and spray something like odour eliminator inside, then I will pre spary the wheels with a 1:10 shampoo mix set up the power washer and rinse the wheels off, then I will apply some high ph shampoo via the foam bottle leave to dwell for a few mins and rinse down, dry the vehicle and apply glass cleaner to the exterior glass, vacuum the interior and buff of the glass starting with the interior :thumb::thumb:


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## spdy (Dec 20, 2010)

i have a nil fisk alto 140 with 25trs of hose for washing static caravans my normal method is to blast the vans with the shampoo bottle attachment loaded with astonish alloy wheel cleaner then with a wash and wax shampoo then handwash and blast & rinse
am hoping to use snow foam then just brush/ blast & rinse hopefully it will save me
about 2 hrs a day


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