MICROFIBER TOWELS: PROPER USE AND CARE
Not all towels are created equal. Microfiber towels are the only kind that should ever touch your paint. The synthetic fabric contains millions of tiny fibers that provide the gentlest form of physical contact, which means they’re the safest option for washing, drying, ceramic coating removal, etc.
However, its ESSENTIAL that you take proper care of your towels so they can take care of you. Microfiber is delicate and requires extra love and attention compared to your dish rags.
Let's start with proper towels themselves. There's many different types of microfiber towels. Some and bad, some are good. Your cheap ones from Walmart or Amazon can be very linty, not durable, and can have severe dye bleeding. If quality is your priority, I recommend getting all your towels from The Rag Company. They're a detailer operated company that specializes in microfiber towels that are durable, plush, and designed for specific areas and uses around your car.
There's many different densities and weaves of microfiber. The higher the GSM, (grams per square meter) the thicker the towel. Some have longer microfiber fingers and are ideal for washing, and some have tightly wound loops that are more effective at wax and coating removal. It's a good idea to have a good variety of towels. Instead of explaining all the differences here, check out The Rag Company for in depth explanations of each towel.
Now on to proper use. As mentioned above, you need to have a wide variety of towels. The simplest method is to have several different colors and dedicate each color to a specific part of the car. For example: Red towels for paint, blue for wheels, orange for interior, etc. The reason for this is that you want to avoid cross contamination at all costs. If you were to use a wheel towel on the paint, you'd risk scratching the paint due to the excessive filth picked up from the wheels. Stick with this habit, and you'll be much better off than using one towel for the entire car.
A few other tips for towel use:
Fold your towels into fours or eights and regularly rotate, using a clean section of towel for each wipe, or as necessary.
Don't ever let the towels touch the ground. This takes a bit of finesse when working along the bottom edge of the car. If you drop one, grab a new one.
While on the job, have a dedicated used towel bucket with water inside. Pre rinse all your towels when you're done using them to get the majority of the filth out. If you're extra gung ho, you can squeeze some microfiber detergent into the bucket so the towels can soak in soap. This is highly recommended for polishing pads.
After using ceramic coating removal towels, downgrade them to a regular shop cleanup towel. Don't let them touch the car again, because the ceramic coating actually cures and hardens on the towel.
Dry microfiber towels work incredibly well at picking up dirt. For super dusty interiors, you can do a quick wipe down with a dry towel to pick up 90% of the dust, before following up with an interior cleaner. DO NOT dry wipe exteriors.
Now on to proper care. As mentioned, microfiber towels have millions of tiny fibers that are very delicate and need to be preserved. Always use a dedicated microfiber detergent, wash on a gentle cycle with warm water, and dry on LOW or NO heat. Excessive heat with destroy the microfibers, curling them downwards and removing their exceptional softness and cleaning ability. If your dryer doesn't have a low heat setting, or you’re busy doing other laundry, just hang up your towels and let them air dry.
Just remember the simple concept: microfiber towels are what touch your car, so you want them to be as clean and soft as possible. Follow these simple tips, and your car will thank you.
