I've recently bought some Ultimate Snow Foam (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ultimate-Snow-Foam-5-Litres/dp/B006R4E1KI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1388935560&sr=8-1&keywords=ultimate+snow+foam|), tried it in the standard attachment for my Nilfisk pressure washer but it was rubbish!

 

After reading a few topics on here i then invested in a proper snow foam lance (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/281140568138?var=580210778354&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649) which i have tried for the first time today. 

 

Things still aren't right. 

 

The 'foam' was still very runny and quickly ran off the car. I adjusted the lance and even used the snowfoam neat (as directed on the bottle) but still no better. 

 

Any ideas where i'm going wrong? 

 

Is this snowfoam not much good? Or have i not got the setting right on the lance? 

 

Any help much appreciated! 

You will need about an inch (2" if you want it thicker) of Snow foam in the bottle......topped up with warm water

Set the control knob fully to (-) and it should be perfect

You will need about an inch (2" if you want it thicker) of Snow foam in the bottle......topped up with warm water

Set the control knob fully to (-) and it should be perfect

By the control knob do you mean the one on top of the lance or where the foam sprays out of? 

 

Cheers. 

As Chris says - I use a couple of fingers worth of foam, topped with warm water and mixed well.

The adjuster on the outlet I find needs to allow the thinnest of gaps to get a really creamy foam with the top adjuster knob not far off (-) at its lowest setting.

This gives a good 15-20 minute cling time.

Yes..the Knob with (-) printed on it

Not the adjustable spray pattern nozzle

I've been reading the Amazon reviews and there are some fairly negative reviews on there. As to the product itself, if it says to use it neat it's not the snow foam everyone else is using on here. As has been pointed out the typical dilution rate is 1 in 10 in the bottle which gives roughly 1 in 100 at the end of the lance.

You may also have a wimpy pressure washer. The foam lance works by the Venturi effect ie. you pass the stream of water over a small hole in the top of the bottle and the stream sucks some of the chemical up. If the flow rate on your pressure washer is very low (4l/minute or less) it won't work properly with the common foam lances.

Contrary to what you may think, a high flow rate is much better than a high pressure rating. It's the weight or volume or water that actually does the cleaning, not high pressure. The units used at most car washes are 8-10l/minute usually and most domestic washers are 6-7l/minute. You say you have a Nilfisk and they are generally pretty good though, so this may not be the issue.

If you're unhappy with the chemical, send it back.

Works best on a dry car no re-rinse, as above 1-10 dilution with warm water. My PW is a measly little Karcher K2 bought from the outlet and it makes a cracking moussy foam, expensive PW is not necessary to my mind.

 

You either have a chemical issue, possibly a gauze issue (or other fault with the lance),

 

I bought a SF lance from Autobrite as part of my little brother's Crimbo present, he did everything right but found the product slid off quite quickly.  He was getting decent mousse but was putting too much on the car so the weight of foam was dragging the chemical off the car quicker.

 

Also worth a look at the shape of your car, My fabia has near vertical door panels and never get the same "cling" as for example the bonnet.  You need to be somewhat realistic with these things.

 

Best of luck, hope you get this sorted.

 

Maybe if you have any members near to you that could spot you a sample of some other SF to try in the lance?

I've been reading the Amazon reviews and there are some fairly negative reviews on there. As to the product itself, if it says to use it neat it's not the snow foam everyone else is using on here. As has been pointed out the typical dilution rate is 1 in 10 in the bottle which gives roughly 1 in 100 at the end of the lance.

You may also have a wimpy pressure washer. The foam lance works by the Venturi effect ie. you pass the stream of water over a small hole in the top of the bottle and the stream sucks some of the chemical up. If the flow rate on your pressure washer is very low (4l/minute or less) it won't work properly with the common foam lances.

Contrary to what you may think, a high flow rate is much better than a high pressure rating. It's the weight or volume or water that actually does the cleaning, not high pressure. The units used at most car washes are 8-10l/minute usually and most domestic washers are 6-7l/minute. You say you have a Nilfisk and they are generally pretty good though, so this may not be the issue.

If you're unhappy with the chemical, send it back.

The PW i have is a Nilfisk C110 - flow rate is 7l/min roughly so that shouldn't be the problem. 

 

On the snowfoam bottle it says something along the lines of 'for best results use SF neat but can also be used at a dilution of 1:10'. Thats if i remember correctly! 

 

Weather permitting i'll be washing my car this weekend so see how it performs. I'll spray it on with the car dry, i had gone over the Mrs car with the PW before i sprayed the SF on. Maybe that could have been one of the problems. 

 

Works best on a dry car no re-rinse, as above 1-10 dilution with warm water. My PW is a measly little Karcher K2 bought from the outlet and it makes a cracking moussy foam, expensive PW is not necessary to my mind.

 

You either have a chemical issue, possibly a gauze issue (or other fault with the lance),

 

I bought a SF lance from Autobrite as part of my little brother's Crimbo present, he did everything right but found the product slid off quite quickly.  He was getting decent mousse but was putting too much on the car so the weight of foam was dragging the chemical off the car quicker.

 

Also worth a look at the shape of your car, My fabia has near vertical door panels and never get the same "cling" as for example the bonnet.  You need to be somewhat realistic with these things.

 

Best of luck, hope you get this sorted.

 

Maybe if you have any members near to you that could spot you a sample of some other SF to try in the lance?

 

I'm regularly over in Halifax so you may have talked yourself into a job there! 

 

I'll update after this weekend when i've given it another go. 

 

Cheers fellas. 

The PW i have is a Nilfisk C110 - flow rate is 7l/min roughly so that shouldn't be the problem. 

 

On the snowfoam bottle it says something along the lines of 'for best results use SF neat but can also be used at a dilution of 1:10'. Thats if i remember correctly! 

 

Weather permitting i'll be washing my car this weekend so see how it performs. I'll spray it on with the car dry, i had gone over the Mrs car with the PW before i sprayed the SF on. Maybe that could have been one of the problems. 

 

 

I'm regularly over in Halifax so you may have talked yourself into a job there! 

 

I'll update after this weekend when i've given it another go. 

 

Cheers fellas.

 

Pwahahaha, did you just update your location or did I miss that entirely.

 

Sir I would be most happy to help

 

Edit: Ok just checked a map and it's not like we are nextdoor neighbours but I am happy to offer a sample of AB Magifoam and Super Snowfoam for you to compare.  I'd say bring your lance to mine but the connector will be no good for my little Karcher.

 

This is mine under a fairly weak mix of SSF on a cold day having not used warm water in the bottle because SWMBO was occupying the sink

 

And yes I am aware at the time of taking the photo I had missed a spot....

Pictures or it didn't happen!!

 

Pwahahaha, did you just update your location or did I miss that entirely.

 

Sir I would be most happy to help

 

Edit: Ok just checked a map and it's not like we are nextdoor neighbours but I am happy to offer a sample of AB Magifoam and Super Snowfoam for you to compare.  I'd say bring your lance to mine but the connector will be no good for my little Karcher.

 

This is mine under a fairly weak mix of SSF on a cold day having not used warm water in the bottle because SWMBO was occupying the sink

 

And yes I am aware at the time of taking the photo I had missed a spot....

 

I'm originally from Luddenden and still have family and friends over there so over halifax way quite regularly!

 

I'll see how i get on this weekend and let you know, thanks for the offer!!

Dont forget to "rinse" the snowfoam bottle after use.

 

By that I mean, fill the bottle with water, and run that thru the lance, this helps to remove some of the "soap" left in the lance.

 

As for the amount, you could run it full of chemical and just turn the top down till you have the foam you want.

Ok so gave my car a wash yesterday and had similar problems with the snow foam.

I think the problem is the snow foam itself. On the bottle it actually says dilute 3;1 or best used neat. It's certainly not anything like what you guys use....will now have to invest in some more! Is the auto bite stuff the best?

The stuff I have seems to do a half decent job of getting most of the debris off the car...It just doesn't foam up and stick to the car as much as expected. After a few mind the foam had died down and pretty much all dribbled 0ff the car.

So auto bite it is then? Need to make sure I'm buying the right stuff this time!!

Yup Magifoam does the job for me everytime.

I had the auto brite lance for Xmas with a few bottles of magifoam and super foam. I had never used a snow foam lance before and I must say first time I used it it foamed right up. Got rid of most debris and grit from the car and washing was so much easier than just using a pre wash solution. Not sure if it's still £50 for the lance and 5 bottles of snow foam. But at that price it was indeed a bargain.

Nope the £50.00 was a bit of a megadeal as part of the 12 days of Christmas offers.

 

At RRP you got £100 worth of kit there.

 

I also ordered that deal along with other bits Lance and a couple of bottle of Magifoam went to my little bro, I kept the remaining three.

 

I've had my lance now for a little over a year and it is still like new, should last a very long time if looked after.

 

Best deal still available is the Detailing World Group Buy.  £40.00 for a lance and 500ml magifoam.

I bought an Autobrite snowfoam lance using the detailing world group buy last week. The lance and a bottle of magifoam for £40 delivered

Tried it out yesterday, pretty good to be honest.

Quick update on this...

 

A few months down the line and i'm still not particularly happy with the snowfoam been produced by the lance using magifoam. 

 

So, when i spotted auto brite currently have their lances on special offer at £30 +P&P i thought i'd treat myself. ordered one on monday evening and it arrived this morning (much quicker than my last order with them which took 2 weeks to arrive!). 

 

I#ve tried it this evening with 2" magifoam topped up with warm water. As soon as i started covering the car the difference in the foam was massive. It was thick and stuck to the car for ages. Just what i have been looking for for the last 6 months!! 

 

So lesson learnt...ebay lance not much good. If you want the real deal go for the autobrite one - £36.50 delivered or £40 including 500ml magifoam using the DW deal. 

 

Over and out!

Welldone

Glad you've got it sorted

I would only use 1" of Magifoam in 1 litre of water...Just as effective

Quick update on this...

 

A few months down the line and i'm still not particularly happy with the snowfoam been produced by the lance using magifoam. 

 

So, when i spotted auto brite currently have their lances on special offer at £30 +P&P i thought i'd treat myself. ordered one on monday evening and it arrived this morning (much quicker than my last order with them which took 2 weeks to arrive!). 

 

I#ve tried it this evening with 2" magifoam topped up with warm water. As soon as i started covering the car the difference in the foam was massive. It was thick and stuck to the car for ages. Just what i have been looking for for the last 6 months!! 

 

So lesson learnt...ebay lance not much good. If you want the real deal go for the autobrite one - £36.50 delivered or £40 including 500ml magifoam using the DW deal. 

 

Over and out!

 

Great stuff - i must admit, the Autobrite lance is just a class above the rest. 

 

I keep my cheap eBay lance for doing a wash mixture..... using Meg's Hyperwash normally.

Great stuff - i must admit, the Autobrite lance is just a class above the rest. 

 

 

I'm not sure why though - it looks exactly the same as the ebay one! 

It sure does.

I bought mine some 2 years ago from CYC and it has never been that successful. Even though I've dismantled and cleaned it out, it still comes out like `milk` (using magifoam)

I wonder if its just the luck of the draw.

Considering where to get the next one from.

Regards

Mike.

I really need to stop reading this section. My lance I got from ebay 18 months ago was playing up on Monday so I phoned autobrite today after reading this thread and tomorrow the nice man from DPD will deliver me a new Autobrite one together with some magifoam to try to see how it compares with valet pro- hope its good stuff as I got 5l of the stuff as well as the free 500ml on one of the DW deals. Sometimes I think back to the days when things were much simpler- 1 bucket, a sponge, chamois and some Halfords shampoo and everything 'done' in under 1 hour.....

....and scratched in less time :'(

....and scratched in less time :'(

You're not wrong there Chris. SWMBO Seat has the swirls to prove it! Though she has no interest in cars and treats it like a cross between a mobile skip and a bumper car, so it doesn't get the same attention as mine does.