Prewash & Snowfoams

Lately we have been testing various prewash products including snowfoam to establish solutions to aid with the longevity of your chosen protection. Winter driving can be a harsh  environment for any vehicle, quite often your vehicle will look like this

We all know the importance for making sure the vehicle is prewashed to remove as much debris as possible before carrying out a safe wash.

Various products are available to aid the prewash stage which include all purpose cleaners, through to wax and coating safe prewash's all of which have their place. The most common and promoted product is snowfoam, this is derived from traffic film remover which can be caustic and strip your protection if using a wax or simple spray sealant or if using a coating can clog the superficial layer preventing the coating from utilising its hydrophobic properties.

Ferarri F430 supercar snowfoam

Which product type should I use?

Wax's, paste sealants, hybrids. Our advice would be to use a snowfoam which is as ph neutral as possible for regular maintenance wash's these will remove less dirt than a more aggressive version however it will make your protection system's durability last longer. If you don't have a snowfoam lance for your pressure washer there are foamer spray bottles available which will help.

Coating safe prewash

Coatings. Using certain products on coatings can be detrimental to the hydrophobic properties, with this in mind we recommend using either plain water, ph neutral shampoo mixed with water through a foam lance, or a dedicated all purpose cleaner which is coating safe. This will ensure the coatings perform and not get clogged.

Ferrari F430 supercar prewashed

This is the result you should be looking for once you have prewashed and rinsed your vehicle (before a safe wash). If after a prewash your vehicle doesn't look like the above picture your vehicle needs either a top up protection or re sealing.

With the above in mind is there a place for a strong dilution of all purpose cleaners, caustic snowfoams and traffic film removers?

Yes if you are going to apply more protection to the vehicle providing that these are mixed at the correct dilutions there is no reason why these products can't be used to aid your wash routine.

Hope this blog has been helpful and informative please don't hesitate to contact us if you require any help or advice in maintaining your vehicles appearance.

All Deluxe Detailing Articles

• Bird Droppings
• Detailing after your vehicle has been to the body shop
• Durability
• How much is a 'Detail'?
• Interior
• New Vehicle Detail
• Paintwork Coating Maintenance
• Paintwork
• Prewash & Snowfoams
• Quick Detailer
• IGL Coatings - High Solids Coatings - Poly, Quartz+, Kenzo
• TFR (Traffic Film Remover) - The Dangers
• The Importance of Winter Protection
• Why 'detail' your new vehicle

Downloads

• IGL Coatings Aftercare Advice
• Please DO NOT Wash Notice
• Please DO NOT Wash Rear View Mirror Hanger