Microfiber Wash Mitt question
 

I really appreciate everyone's contributions here, vendors, professionals and DIYer's. I've learned and continue to learn so much. Thank you.

One question I have not been able to get a good answer to has to do with microfiber wash mitt. I always assumed that what made microfiber so great had to do with the ability to capture and hold onto "stuff". I may be wrong on this but if this is true then it seems like a microfiber wash mitt would be a bad thing to wash a car with. Am I thinking about this wrong?

Thank you

Matt

I buy 99% of my car care products from Phil at Detailers Domain. He sells a microfibre wash mitt. I use 2 of those during my car washing process. One for the top 1/2 of the car and one for the bottom 1/2 of the car. I change the wash water between 1/2's.

If Phil sells it......it's gotta be good & tested.

Sign-up for his web site and get his notices when there are sales.

That's why you have a rinse bucket. Lift the dirt off, release it in the rinse bucket, pick up more suds in the wash bucket and you are good to go again.

Thanks guys for the replies. My question has more to do with the inherent properties of microfiber and less to do with washing technique. I actually use a grout sponge which are designed to release grout when rinsed. And I'm always looking for the next best thing! It's interesting that none of the "pros" / vendors have responded.

Matt

Microfiber's ability to "trap" is related to the surface area created by the weave and length of the fibers. It's not made from some special material. It's the same stuff you'll find in clothing. It's just the longer "fingers" in the weave mean it has more surface area as it flexes and rolls on the surface of your paint while wiping and washing the car. More "clean" surface comes in contact with your paint, thus allowing it to pick up and trap more dirt than a traditional sponge. Most sponges are just dragging the dirt across the surface of your car.

This "trapping" by the microfiber isn't permanent. Just like washing your clothing, water and agitation gets the dirt out. This is why people use a two bucket system. The second bucket is just water in which you are dunking the mitt with one hand and agitating the fibers with the other to release the dirt particles you just picked up off the paint. Then you dunk it back into the soap bucket and wipe down more of the car.

Thank you - but that seems somewhat in conflict with the instructions for caring for microfiber - this is from Detailers Domain site "It is not that microfiber products do not like cotton products or other fabrics, it is that when you wash your cotton products with microfiber the microfiber products grab and hold onto the lint that the cotton produces." - so it seems in some situations that microfiber trapping is permanent...

Anyway - waiting fo spring has me clearly going stir crazy :)

Matt

At a scientific level (under a microscope) it makes sense.

This is what microfiber looks like under a microscope. These are all the fingers which flex and move to improve surface area and capture / trap small particles of dirt.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3Oqo8TwjsK...rofibre_pp.jpg

This is what lint looks like under a microscope. The rats next of threads effectively weave their way into your microfiber cloth, stitching themselves together to create a horrible mess.
http://morgellonswatch.com/images/dr...zzball-60x.jpg

The lint with the microfiber becomes hook-and-loop / velcro. Dirt particles are smaller and generally individual. They get trapped inside that microfiber weave / fiber structure, but because they are individual particles and not part of some long fiber structure they are more easily released.

Having used different types of wash media, wool, synthetic wool, and microfiber, I prefer microfiber. Just picked up the microfiber madness wash mitt and am very happy with it. Releases the dirt much better than the others and seems to do a great job.