Which Foam Gun and Soap

[99Vipers]

THE Junkman recommends this gun: Gilmour 75HGFMR Foamaster® Cleaning Sprayer, 1/2-gallon, I plan on buying it but whats a good price for it and what soap is recommended?

[V10Sidepipes]

are you using hose pressure or a pressure washer? I never got good results with hose pressure and once I got a pressure washer and appropriate foam gun I am extremely satisfied...

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[viperBase1]

are you using hose pressure or a pressure washer? I never got good results with hose pressure and once I got a pressure washer and appropriate foam gun I am extremely satisfied...

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Dittos on using a Pressure Washer.

I have a Karcher Pressure Washer and found they have their own foam gun attachment for ~$25. Works great w/Chemical Guys HoneyDew Shampoo.

[Junkman2008]

THE Junkman recommends this gun: Gilmour 75HGFMR Foamaster® Cleaning Sprayer, 1/2-gallon, I plan on buying it but whats a good price for it and what soap is recommended?

The soap that you need is called McKee's 37 Xtreme Foam Formula Auto Shampoo. They took over DP's. You won't find the foam gun any cheaper than what you see them going for on Amazon. Sometimes eBay will have a deal but those are the ONLY two places that I would buy one.

...I never got good results with hose pressure...

You have to use the correct soap and the correct soap/water mixture, along with the correct foam gun. They are not all equal.

[99Vipers]

Thanks Junkman! I will look for that specific soap and yes V10 sidepipes I will be using just hose pressure.

[Junkman2008]

The pressure washers are made for use with what is called the "foam cannon". The garden hose is used with the foam gun.

[V10Sidepipes]

The pressure washers are made for use with what is called the "foam cannon". The garden hose is used with the foam gun.

Exactly. Used both the foam guns and the foam cannons. Even in the video above I always ended up with "soapy water" being applied to the car. That's not creating a foam that will sit on the car and start working. That same result can be achieved by ringing out a soapy wash mit over the car. I haven't seen a 'foam gun' yet that can come close to what my $150ish setup cost (which includes a pressure washer I can use for other things)... compare my pic to the video linked above and there is a huge difference in what you are getting (and I guaranteee I am using a lot less soap than that guy is based on what I have played with).

[viperBase1]

The pressure washers are made for use with what is called the "foam cannon". The garden hose is used with the foam gun.

I stand corrected. It is called a "Foam Cannon" (link to Amazon)

Works great. Here's a pic well after the foam has done it's work and right before the pressure washer rinse.
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[Junkman2008]

It all depends on your situation and what you are wanting. I want my soap to run off the car while taking the majority of the surface dirt with it, and loosening up any caked on dirt. i DON'T want the soap to just sit there because I need the surface of the paint to be as dirt free as possible BEFORE my mitt comes across it. That is the whole purpose of the foam gun.. Add to all of that, I don't have to go through the hassle of setting up my pressure washer 2-3 times a week because that is how often I wash my car. Last of all, I NEVER wash my car in DIRECT sunlight. I wash it INSIDE of my garage, which would be impossible to do with a pressure washer because I would have soap all over everything.

Advantage: foam gun.

[Vprbite]

I use the gilmour foam gun. It has plastic on the outside of the molded handle but the "guts" and quick connects are brass. Just the molded handle part is plastic for comfort. Plus it allows you to use it as a sprayer before you connect the foam portion of the gun to the quick release. Very handy. I Think I purchased from griots with geit guards and some other stuff. Griots, I have found to have great products and great customer service. I think mine has the smaller hopper of about a quart or so. And you can adjust the mixing valve as you see fit while you are spraying to get the sudsiness you desire

One note about foam is water. In my experience and from what I was always taught, the quality of your water will greatly effect the quality of your suds. So the more dissolved solids or harder your water is, the worse suds you will get. For us out here in Southern Arizona that means we have super hard water and it will kill a lot of your good suds/foam and waste your soap. You may never get the foamey-ness you want. My Ex-GF got me the griots in-line water filter that I hook up before each wash. If you have a water softener to your entire house this is probably not an issue for you. For those of us that don't though, the in-line has worked great at getting lots and lots of sudsy foam as well as greatly eliminating water spots (my garage does not have a drain so I can not wash in there but I do wax and do interior in there and sometimes set up an EZ-UP canopy outside). Early in the morning or right before sunset and the leaf blower along with that filter have taken water spots almost totally out of the equation.

Also, I never worry about how much soap I am using in that even quality soap is cheap, paint is not. So if my mixture needs more soap I throw it in the hopper. I'll foam gun it twice if I need to. What's the harm?

Enjoy your foam gunning!

[Junkman2008]

The "adjustment on the fly" is the main reason that the Gilmore foam gun is so much better than all the other foam guns.

[ViperPete]

I have the Girots foam cannon with pressure washer as well. Works wonders. Way better than a foam gun.

I use chemical guys soap for the foam cannon.

[cpinfdp]

I just used a Gilmore foam fun (mine is this one: http://a.co/9Ch3oij) for the first time and was very happy with the results. Recommended setting was 1 oz/gallon for Meguiar's gold class (I know, it's like a poverty soap, but I like it).

That gave me some good dripping sudsy liquid, with the higher settings definitely putting down some thick suds. I will have to give some of the soaps you guys use a try, haven't driven the car much because of almost 3 weeks of constant rain down here.

Echo what Junk said about the adjustment on the fly. The thing is built very well and reasonably priced.

[Junkman2008]

I just used a Gilmore foam fun (mine is this one: http://a.co/9Ch3oij) for the first time and was very happy with the results.

That model is slightly different from the one I recommend. It still has the "adjustment on the fly" and that makes it better than most of the cheap ones that I have seen on the market. The one that I use and recommend is the Gilmour 75HGFMR foam gun. What makes this model so nice is that the adjustment section is made of brass. The importance of that is if you don't do a good job of keeping the adjustment section clean of soap after using it and it seizes, a couple of drops of lubricating oil is all you need to immediately free it. With the plastic ones, you have to tear down the gun to free it. The brass model is also more sturdy if dropped, where the plastic models can crack and cause you to have to buy another foam gun.

It's only about $15 more for all that ease of mind.

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The version that you see me using in my wash videos is the half-gallon version.