When you are paying to have your car cleaned, it is always a good idea to compare and contrast the different types of car wash techniques and technology available. Take, for example, a soft cloth car wash vs touchless car wash. Highlighting the obvious differences makes it easier to work out the advantages one has over the other.
For example, a soft cloth car wash uses a specialized cloth cleaning system that makes physical contact with the exterior of your car. This can be advantageous when it comes to shifting dried-on dirt and grime. In contrast, a touchless car wash doesn’t use cloths or brushes. Instead, it relies simply on the high power of pressurized water and detergents to jet dirt off your car exterior. However, despite the best efforts of a touchless car wash, there are some areas of your car that will always benefit from a little friction action that comes with a soft cloth car wash.
Soft Cloth Car Wash vs Touchless Car Wash
In the case of a soft cloth car wash vs touchless car wash, both are automatic car wash systems that clean a stationary car using specialized tools and equipment. If you are targeting certain areas of a vehicle, the soft cloth car wash often comes out tops thanks to the latest cloth friction wash technology. Improved soft-cloth woven materials increase washing efficiency. Take a look at the specific areas of your vehicle that are cleaned more efficiently at a soft cloth car wash.
1. Soft Cloth Car Wash for the Windshield
Soft cloth car wash vs touchless car wash for the windshield? The car windshield attracts a lot of dirt, grime and road salt during the winter months. In the hotter weather, thin layers of dust can obscure the glass. Whatever the season, you can keep the worst at bay with your windshield wiper fluid. However, this often neglects the upper areas of the windshield where a distinctive dirt mark is left behind because it is outside the arc of the wipers. If this is the case, you are better off cleaning your windshield with a soft cloth car wash. The individual soft cloth strands gently apply friction directly onto the dirty windshield. Friction and foam are highly effective at removing thick layers of dust and other debris.
2. Hard-to-Reach Places on the Car Exterior
When it comes to a soft cloth car wash vs touchless car wash, the soft felt material of a soft cloth car wash is excellent at cleaning those hard-to-get places, such as the front of license plate. It is often missed by an automated car wash. However, the powerful swishing action of the soft cloths in combination with deep-cleaning foam that effortlessly breaks down dirt particles will leave your license plate spotless. Other types of car washes like the Aquajet touchless car wash also use powerful foam detergents to enhance the cleaning process but without the friction of cloths it can still miss the mark.
3. Fingerprints and Stubborn Smudges on Dirty Door Panels
The soft cloth car wash vs touchless car wash debate includes the best way to remove sticky fingerprints from car door panels. These prints can be remarkably resilient. Sometimes the pressurized jets of water of a touchless car wash, such as a touch free car wash, are simply not enough when you want door panels and handles spotlessly clean. The combination of food, sweat and grease on fingers can often create hard-to-shift imprints on the exterior paintwork of your car. To achieve the cleanest results, the soft cloth curtain rubbing back and forth over the car exterior and foam detergents are powerful enough to make short work of fingerprints.
4. Soft Cloth Friction to Remove Tree Sap from Car Paint Bodywork
Fingerprints are not the only culprit when it comes to leaving behind a sticky residue on your car exterior. Tree sap is a solution of water and minerals. Some trees, however, are especially prone to dripping sap. If you park under one, you’re likely to end up with sap all over your car and it’s not a good look. Furthermore, once tree sap hardens, it is tricky to shift and can cause car paint problems if you don’t clean it off as soon as possible. In this situation, when it comes to comparing a soft cloth car wash vs touchless car wash, the former is much more efficient when you want to remove tree sap stains.
5. Bird Droppings on Car Roof: Soft Cloth Car Wash vs Touchless Car Wash
What about soft cloth car wash vs touchless car wash when it comes to those unsightly bird droppings on the car roof? The droppings can be corrosive and will also discolor paintwork, so they need to be carefully removed. When put to the test, powerful cloth friction is better at removing bird droppings from the car roof than a touchless car wash. In particular, the soft-pile fabric that is commonly found in micro-fleece soft cloth strips is excellent at shifting demanding stains such as bird droppings.
6. Dried-on Bugs and Insects on Windshield, Hood, and Roof
Dried-on bugs are a problem. Using windshield wipers can smear the dead bugs, making the problem worse. However, the high level of foaming produced in the soft cloth car wash combined with the powered friction of the cleaning cloths are tough enough to remove bug splats from the car windshield, hood and roof. The cleaning chemicals in a touchless car wash may not be enough to remove bug splatter on your vehicle.
Bear in mind, when you are comparing soft cloth car wash vs touchless car wash for removing bugs, you might find that these automated washes don’t quite cut it. On occasions when you need to pay special attention to detail and apply a little elbow grease, you may prefer the option of a self-serve car wash.
7. Specialist Soft Cloth Strips for Rocker Panels
Soft cloth car wash strips that are specifically designed to clean rocker panels achieve excellent results. This lower part of the car is a dirt-magnet, picking up mud, salt spray and so on. It demands extra cleaning power to make a difference. This can be achieved by the advanced wash equipment and technique of the soft cloth car wash. The equipment creates a scrubbing motion and the soft cloth strips effortless clean up these panels. The adjustable angle of the rocker panel cloths also has the edge over the touchless car wash. It can hit the hard-to-reach parts of rocker panels whereas a touchless car wash using jets of water can again sometimes miss the mark. So, when it comes to rocker panels, you are better off cleaning at a soft cloth car wash vs touchless car wash.
Conclusion
When comparing a soft cloth car wash to a touchless one, certain areas need the pressure and friction from soft cloths to physically rub off dirt and also to access those hard-to-reach places. That extra touch can make all the difference to your car wash experience. Also, if you want to take into consideration the environmental impact of an automated car wash, the soft cloth car wash is not exactly an eco car wash but it typically uses less water than a touch-free car wash. For example, water usage of a soft cloth system is around 54gpm at a rate of 40 psi. While a touchless car wash uses 129gpm at 40psi.
However, for the ultimate green car wash, schedule an appointment with DetailXPerts to have your car professionally detailed. If you are looking for a high-quality clean that is also eco-friendly, preserving water and protecting the environment, look no further. Professional detailers using our innovative steam cleaning technology on any area of your vehicle will do a better job than either soft cloth cleaning or a touchless car wash.
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