Snow foams have become incredibly popular here in Australia as they allow you to basically give your car a “pre-wash” before you even touch it with a wash mitt and two buckets. So how does this work? Well, covering your car with a blanket of thick car wash foam gives you both mechanical & chemical breakdown of dirt, grime & other contaminants. The thick foam car wash will physically loosen and drag dirt off the car, whilst the cleaning agents & surfactants chemically break down dirt, oils & grime from the surface. This means the bulk of any built up muck is loosened, broken down and dragged off the car - and then rinsed off effortlessly with your pressure washer, before you even touch it. Why is this useful? Well, the majority of any scratches & marring on your car come from the washing process. This is because stubborn dirt & grime gets caught in your washing mitts - and you effectively drag this over the car causing scratches. Removing the bulk of this with snow foam, allows you to make this whole process much safer. To learn more about the Benefits Of Using Snow Foam click here.
As stated above, snow foam is best used as a 'pre-wash' to a two bucket wash method. This is because it's designed to soften, and remove the bulk of dirt & grime from the car. Some people foam a car, and then agitate the foam car wash with a wash mitt or sponge. Whilst this can be an effective washing process, it almost defeats the purpose of snow foam - as it’s not promoting a safer wash by following up with a two bucket wash method after the bulk of dirt is removed from the initial 'pre-wash'. If your car is not too dirty, is protected (with a ceramic coating, wax or spray coating) and only needs a light wash as a form of maintenance - then you could give the car a foam, rinse & then dry.
There is no right answer to this question, but our general rule of thumb is approximately 5 minutes. This will allow enough time for the car cleaning foam to physically cling & drag the dirt down, whilst the cleaning agents/surfactants break all this down as well. Keep in mind that this does vary depending on the brand and we always recommend reading the instructions on the label before opening the bottle.
Choosing the best snow foam for you is more about what you are trying to achieve from using the product. What we mean by that is, are you looking for a wash that's suited towards preparation? A “deep cleaning” snow foam (3-6 months without a clean)? Or are you looking for something to use every week as a maintenance solution? If you are after a powerful, enhanced car wash foam that isn’t ideal at maintaining a wax or sealant - but is fantastic at removing stubborn grime and other contaminants, then a product like CarPro Descale or Nv Snow+ are some great options! However, if you're after a product that is designed to be a balanced, safe, maintenance wash - then check out products like Nv Snow, Carpro Reset and Shine Supply Shift, just to name a few.
All of our snow foam products are safe to use on all automotive paint systems, plastics, trims, wheels - really any exterior surface. If you have a particularly rare case of an untreated, sensitive surface, for example a type of bare metal that you are a bit worried about, get in touch with our customer service team and we can help you out further.
All of our snow foam car washes can be used on any vinyl wrap or paint protection film, and will work effectively on removing any embedded grime, dirt & contamination.
Alongside snow foam, other related car washing essentials include car wash kits, car wash products, foam cannons, wheel cleaners, car wash buckets, wash and wax products, waterless car wash, and blowers and dryers.
