Are some Microfiber towels Unacceptable?
10-25-2009, 04:35 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Are some Microfiber towels Unacceptable?
Hey all, so a couple months back I completely detailed my S with an orbital polishing and a wax. No more scratches. I also changed my washing method from those high-powered washing bays to using a double-bucket system in my garage with Optimum Wash liquid. I bought some Microfiber Waffle-Weave towels from Autopia.org a while back which I was using to dry off the S. Well, I was walking by the car in the sun the other day and looking at the trunk it looked like I had score-line horizontally across the trunk, which is in the direction that I use the towels with to dry. It's weird because it still looks polished at most angles but at certain ones you can see the scratch lines pretty clearly horizontally across the trunk, hood, and other panels.
My washing/cleaning process:
1: Use 2 buckets & a lambswool mit. 1 bucket with clean water. 1 bucket with Optimum mixture.
2: Spray down a panel using a spray bottle with water & optimum liquid.
3: Using the mit soaked in the Optimum wash, clean the panel.
4: Rinse off dirty mit in the clean bucket getting the particles off of it.
5: Wring out mit and put back in Optimum wash
6: Dry the panel in 1 direction using the microfiber waffle weave towel.
Are some microfiber towels unacceptable to use? Do some start to scratch over time? Am I washing incorrectly? It sucks that I spent 2 days detailing the S only to find out I have to do it all over again after a couple of months. I understand that scratches appear over time, but they shouldn't within a few months.
I'll see if I can get the scratches to appear in photos.
My washing/cleaning process:
1: Use 2 buckets & a lambswool mit. 1 bucket with clean water. 1 bucket with Optimum mixture.
2: Spray down a panel using a spray bottle with water & optimum liquid.
3: Using the mit soaked in the Optimum wash, clean the panel.
4: Rinse off dirty mit in the clean bucket getting the particles off of it.
5: Wring out mit and put back in Optimum wash
6: Dry the panel in 1 direction using the microfiber waffle weave towel.
Are some microfiber towels unacceptable to use? Do some start to scratch over time? Am I washing incorrectly? It sucks that I spent 2 days detailing the S only to find out I have to do it all over again after a couple of months. I understand that scratches appear over time, but they shouldn't within a few months.
I'll see if I can get the scratches to appear in photos.
10-25-2009, 04:55 PM
#2
Thread Starter
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...s/towels002.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...s/towels003.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...s/towels004.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...s/towels005.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...s/towels007.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...s/towels003.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...s/towels004.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...s/towels005.jpg
http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...s/towels007.jpg
10-25-2009, 05:26 PM
#3
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those look like the cobra mf towels, my only guess is maybe u missed a spot detailing it the first time? or maybe you droped the towels on the floor resulting with getting them dirty?
10-25-2009, 09:00 PM
#5
Just thinking out loud here...
- Maybe it was something caught up in a towel that you didn't see. A piece of debris of some sort; could be anything. Stuff LOVES to stick to microfiber. I've seen debris stay on microfiber towels right through a trip through the washing machine.
- Do you store your microfiber in a box, crate, or similar? If so, is the inside of it clean?
- Are you using grit guards?
- Is it possible that these scratches are still there from the first time you detailed the car, and you are seeing them for the first time due to different lighting conditions? I've been caught out by that myself.
- When you detailed it the first time, did you use any products that have fillers?
- Are you pressing really hard with your towels during any part of a wash? Regardless of what some folks say, I am convinced that ANY microfiber can scratch paint if too much pressure is applied to it.
- If there were labels on the towels, did you remove them? If so, did you leave any small parts of said labels behind?
- This is just a side note - I don't care for WW towels. Not bec
- Maybe it was something caught up in a towel that you didn't see. A piece of debris of some sort; could be anything. Stuff LOVES to stick to microfiber. I've seen debris stay on microfiber towels right through a trip through the washing machine.
- Do you store your microfiber in a box, crate, or similar? If so, is the inside of it clean?
- Are you using grit guards?
- Is it possible that these scratches are still there from the first time you detailed the car, and you are seeing them for the first time due to different lighting conditions? I've been caught out by that myself.
- When you detailed it the first time, did you use any products that have fillers?
- Are you pressing really hard with your towels during any part of a wash? Regardless of what some folks say, I am convinced that ANY microfiber can scratch paint if too much pressure is applied to it.
- If there were labels on the towels, did you remove them? If so, did you leave any small parts of said labels behind?
- This is just a side note - I don't care for WW towels. Not bec
10-26-2009, 09:08 AM
#6
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Chances are it has nothing to do with your washing technique, as they are spot on. The problem, most likely, is your handling of your MF towels. You need to wash them apart from anything else, everything sticks to them. I wash them and then add 1 cup of vinegar during the rinse cycle(the vin softens them), dry them and store them in zip lock bags so they dont fall or attract dust/dirt.
I once ruined quite a few towels because one the the towels that I use on wheels got placed in with my good towels and I didn't notice until I pulled them out of the dryer. I tested the towels on a CD and they all scratched!!!!!!
Those waffle weave towels in the pic, in my opinion, suck.
I once ruined quite a few towels because one the the towels that I use on wheels got placed in with my good towels and I didn't notice until I pulled them out of the dryer. I tested the towels on a CD and they all scratched!!!!!!
Those waffle weave towels in the pic, in my opinion, suck.
10-26-2009, 09:25 AM
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the edging/band and it's corresponding stitching might have scratched the paint also.
the tighter the weave the better, those waffle towels suck in my opinion.
it sounds crazy but i have used the orange microfiber towels that you get from target. they have a thick tight weave and minimal banding. they are just as good as the towels that came with my blackfire products.
the tighter the weave the better, those waffle towels suck in my opinion.
it sounds crazy but i have used the orange microfiber towels that you get from target. they have a thick tight weave and minimal banding. they are just as good as the towels that came with my blackfire products.
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10-26-2009, 11:05 AM
#8
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10-27-2009, 12:10 PM
#10
Thread Starter
Thank you all for the questions and responses. I can 99% guarantee that the scratches on it now were not there after the detail. I constantly switch folds on the towel when I go to different panels to have a clean part of the towel drying.
- I do not store the towels in a bin or bag at the moment but I will have to start doing that since I realized again how dusty it can get here in Texas. They were also washed with other clothes so I will set aside a separate wash just for the next towels.
- I also might be pressing too hard because that waffle weave one and the one right next to it have a hard time sucking up the water from the surface. They seem to streak the water rather than soaking it up.
- For the detail products, you can check out the thread here... https://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showt...&#entry16752233 and a photo of the products I used here... http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...ish_day1008.jpg
Looks like I will be looking for better towels here after I get off of work.
- I do not store the towels in a bin or bag at the moment but I will have to start doing that since I realized again how dusty it can get here in Texas. They were also washed with other clothes so I will set aside a separate wash just for the next towels.
- I also might be pressing too hard because that waffle weave one and the one right next to it have a hard time sucking up the water from the surface. They seem to streak the water rather than soaking it up.
- For the detail products, you can check out the thread here... https://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showt...&#entry16752233 and a photo of the products I used here... http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo337/r...ish_day1008.jpg
Looks like I will be looking for better towels here after I get off of work.