Soap for your microfiber towels

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

Wanted to start a thread on this subject because I've used and tested several soaps, multiple free & clear store bought, and also multiple microfiber specific soaps.

Here are my thoughts after use.

Drying towels, waterless wash towels, rinseless towels, detail spray towels, glass cleaning towels, and interior cleaning towels.

Purex Free & Clear.

It costs a whopping $4 for a 50 use bottle at my local Wal-Mart.
Cleans just as good as all others, including microfiber specific soaps, at a fraction of the cost.

It has no dyes, perfumes, or fabric softeners. It has stain lifters which work great for removing any dirt you may get from waterless/rinseless washing, any light stains from detail sprays, even oily and dirty towels from glass/interior cleaning. It's also very gentle on microfiber and leaves it nice and soft.

Save your microfiber specific soap for wax and sealant application/removal towels, microfiber pads used with your DA polisher (if they are machine washable), and microfiber applicators.

This is the only thing I've found microfiber specific soaps to do better then Purex, break down waxes/sealants.

I have found it best to get your sealant application/removal towels, and used microfiber pads, in the washer ASAP after using them, some sealants can actually stain towels, and if left to dry, you will get most of it out, but not all.

The microfiber specific soap does a great job on these if cleaned within a reasonable time frame. If you can't get to them the same day they are used, soak them in a bucket with an ounce or two of the soap until you can wash them.

Which microfiber specific soap is best? I've used Micro-restore, CG Microfiber Wash, and Blackfire. They all work well, I cannot see any difference. Pick whichever you prefer.

[dreyesforeal]

Thanks for the info

[ChibiBlackSheep]

I've found using Tide works great also, but after the cycle in the wash, I run another cycle of just rinse and spin also, to help get any residual soap out of the towels.

[shibbs]

I use Tide coldwater, unscented. Then hang dry.

[SnowyCamaro]

Tide in the delicate extra rinse cycle then dryer. I let my buffing pads air dry but wash them all together.

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

I tried the Tide Free & Gentle, didn't find that it cleaned any better then Purex. It costs about 2.5x the amount as well.

Be sure if your using a store bought soap that you use one that has no fabric softeners, bleach, dyes, or perfumes. These are bad for microfiber. Also never wash microfiber with cotton towels, the lint produced by the cotton towels will cling to the microfiber towels.

Using the dryer is ok, but I don't fully dry my towels, just until they are lightly damp. Heat is the worst thing for microfiber and will ruin it. Use low heat or air fluff cycle, then allow to hang dry.

Another good tip I learned a while back is every 8-10 washes, put a little distilled white vinegar in the rinse cycle. You don't need much, especially if your using an HE washer that doesn't have a "deep water wash" option.

My machine does have the deep water cycle, when using it I add 1/8 cup, or 1 ounce. If I'm not using the deep water cycle, a tablespoon or 1/2 ounce to the rinse cycle.

The vinegar will act as a fabric softener without clogging the pores the way other fabric softeners will.

Last tip I can think of...... If you have a drying towel that will not absorb anymore, and it's never been overheated in the dryer, wash it with a small squirt of Dawn. I've found this to be very effective when towels get clogged up and can't absorb anymore.

I stumbled upon this researching on the net one Saturday when it was raining. I tried vinegar wash, then baking soda wash, then boiling. Towel still wouldn't absorb. After the wash in Dawn, it was back to normal.

I just couldn't bring myself to throw away my original Microfiber Madness Dry Me Crazy!

[Ace0751]

Took a stab at the microfiber revitalizer from Adams because all purpose cleaners were not getting the job done cleaning my pads. It's also washer machine friendly for the towels so I tried it out. Put some in a bottle and sprayed the areas that had dirt and then added some to the washer with nothing else and let it do its job. Actually came out better than I thought.

The revitalizer really worked on the pads, filled the sink up with warm water and sprayed all the pads down to let them soak. 30 minutes later, washed the pads and all of that polish and wax came right out. Put them in the dryer on low heat just to get the access water out and then let the pads air dry the rest of the way.

Still finding other methods to clean the towels though.

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

A few pics here so you can see how well Purex cleans. This waffle weave towel was used yesterday around 4pm, to do a wipe down of my doorjambs, after my normal 2 bucket wash was done on rest of car.

It was washed this morning at 6 am, run in dryer on low heat for 10 minutes, and left to air dry until I got back from golf course today.

1st pic-towel after use.
2nd pic- the bottle/jug of Purex.
3rd pic- after wash and completely dry.

Not bad for a soap that costs $4 that will do 50 loads!

[jrhagen]

I just buy the towels in bulk, use them once and throw them away.

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

Originally Posted by jrhagen

I just buy the towels in bulk, use them once and throw them away.

Wow, I wonder why I never thought of this........

Wait a minute...... I only use high quality Korean or German microfiber on paint, cheap Chinese stuff scratches paint.

Sorry but I can't find any logical situation where I would buy a towel, use it once, and throw it away that's cost effective.

One thing is for sure, you don't own, nor have ever owned, anything made by Microfiber Madness, or even the high quality Korean towels sold by the Rag Company.

What a shame. You just don't know what your missing.

[jrhagen]

You have no idea what I use. And I never said it was cost effective. I do what I do and it makes happy.

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

Originally Posted by jrhagen

You have no idea what I use. And I never said it was cost effective. I do what I do and it makes happy.

I try to help people save money on this forum if I can by trying different products, and finding things that are cost effective that produce good results.

I have a pretty good idea of what kind of towels you use. Extremely cheap Chinese microfiber. Buying in bulk you can get them very cheap. You can't buy Korean microfiber anywhere even at wholesale prices where your not throwing away towels that cost $2-$4 per towel.

No way your using high quality Korean towels, the RC even at wholesale prices, would have you spending hundreds, if not close to a thousand dollars per year to use and throw away towels just doing weekly washing maintenance, annual polishing, sealant/wax applications as needed, and interior maintenance.

And Microfiber Madness??? Forget about it.

I don't want to play stupid games on here, the objective of my starting this thread was to share with others a good inexpensive soap I discovered for cleaning towels for purposes listed in the original post.

If you like buying towels and throwing them away, it's your money, throw it away if it makes you happy.

That's not the purpose of this thread, and if you prefer doing it, I'd suggest you start your own thread about it, instead of trolling in mine.

[jrhagen]

You have pretty good idea? You have no idea what I use, how much I pay or how often I use the product. I wash my car maybe 3 or 4 times a year. I can afford to use whatever I want and dispose of them at my will.

You assume too much.

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

Originally Posted by jrhagen

You have pretty good idea? You have no idea what I use, how much I pay or how often I use the product. I wash my car maybe 3 or 4 times a year. I can afford to use whatever I want and dispose of them at my will.

You assume too much.

Good. Start your own thread on it and stop trolling in mine. You haven't added 1 post here that has any benefit to anyone.

If you only wash your car 3-4 times a year, why would you need to buy towels in bulk? Completely ridiculous.

Frankly I don't care what towels you throw away, JUST GO AWAY!