Machine washing your detailing paraphernalia with your clothes...?

**Wes8398** · 10-28-2011, 04:39 AM

For those of you that are just at-home DIY'ers (not high volume guys who can probably do a full load or more of towels per day)...
Do you wash your used towels and pads and so on with your regular laundry, or seperately? I just finished my first "correction" (Megs MF system) and had a few towels and pads to wash up. Putting only a couple towels and pads in my washer on their own likely wouldn't result in much cleaning since it's a front loader (which cleans better the more full you pack it), so I tossed my work jeans and a few ratty old sweaters in with the stuff.
I wanted to just throw everything in with a regular load of laundry, but I was worried about the compound/polish/wax residuals staining my regular clothes. Does anyone have any experience with this?

**DaHen** · 10-28-2011, 04:46 AM

Separately...

I always wash my car detailing microfiber and wafle weave towels separate from regular household laundry.
If "you-know-who" ever caught me washing my car towels with her clothes, I'd be in big trouble. lol.

**Ryan R** · 10-28-2011, 04:46 AM

I've never put pads in a wash machine. Soak in pad cleaner,rinse,and sit to dry. Or put on your polisher and set to highest speed setting.
I would not mix your MF's with anything else. Do not use any fabric softener,bleach or color safe bleach.
Wash on cold and dry on either low heat or no heat.
I've never had a problem with light loads not getting clean in a front loader??

**erobertson** · 10-28-2011, 05:20 AM

Definitely want to separate out from regular laundry. Also best to separate out by what is on them; wheels towels, glass only, others. You can get small laundry hamper and separate out leaving in the garage until after enough detailing sessions to have a decent load.

**Wes8398** · 10-28-2011, 05:56 AM

Originally Posted by DaHen

Separately...

I always wash my car detailing microfiber and wafle weave towels separate from regular household laundry.
If "you-know-who" ever caught me washing my car towels with her clothes, I'd be in big trouble. lol.

Yah, that's why I was only considering MY clothes. We're both pretty particular about how our clothes get washed, so we usually do our own laundry.

Originally Posted by Ryan R

I've never put pads in a wash machine. Soak in pad cleaner,rinse,and sit to dry. Or put on your polisher and set to highest speed setting.
I would not mix your MF's with anything else. Do not use any fabric softener,bleach or color safe bleach.
Wash on cold and dry on either low heat or no heat.
I've never had a problem with light loads not getting clean in a front loader??

Most how-to's I've seen (on AG and otherwise) state that machine washing pads i usually fine to do. Particularly the Meg's MF DA system discs, which is what I was using.

Originally Posted by erobertson

Definitely want to separate out from regular laundry. Also best to separate out by what is on them; wheels towels, glass only, others. You can get small laundry hamper and separate out leaving in the garage until after enough detailing sessions to have a decent load.

For the couple times a year that I'll be using these items (between my wife's car and mine), I wouldn't be able to fill a laundry basket in a year, let alone separate them into glass towels, polish towels, utility towels, etc. LOL If I were doing higher volumes, I would certainly follow this suggestion though.

**loudog2** · 10-28-2011, 06:26 AM

I wash my towel, mitts and pads in my front loader. I serperate them all the way I listed them. For my pads, I soak them in pad rejuv first to get most of the polish out. After washing I lay them foam down to dry.

**BMW** · 10-28-2011, 07:31 AM

Most front loaders are HE machines which have load sensors to determine how many items are loaded into the machine. So, the machine should automatically adjust accordingly to the size of the load.

I always wash mine separately and I use DP Microfiber Cleaner:
DP Microfiber Cleaner concentrated microfiber detergent and degreaser

Earlier Threads Regarding Washing:
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/...crofibers.html
DP Microfiber Cleaner HE compliant?

**05xrunner** · 10-28-2011, 07:34 AM

nope..only with other MF towels..and even then I separate loads..Only towels that touch my paint will be washed together..then everything else towels can be in 1 load.

**Y2KSVT** · 10-28-2011, 08:12 AM

If you're only doing one or two of these details a year, then one or two extra wash cycles isn't goign to hurt your machine, or your wallet. You've got an HE washer, just run a separate load and tell your wife she'll have to wait 40 minutes until she can start a new load. Shouldn't be that difficult.

One reason not to put your MF towels in with regular clothing is that your regular clothing will typically lint, which gets trapped in your MF towels, causing you to spend even more time picking out little fuzz balls out of the towels.

**02nissanISR** · 10-28-2011, 08:44 AM

I, like you, take a while to accumulate a load of towels. So I just do them buy hand. AG sells PRS or Pad Renewing Solution made by Grit Guard. Works very well with wax removal towels and polishing pads it comes in a spray bottle and a 128oz. jug. Try rinsing a towel that has wax on it and the water just bead on the towel. Couple sprays of PRS let it soak a minute and the wax breaks down same with polishing pads very quick and easy, and I have not noticed any adverse effects on the MF towels still soft. If you get the jug you could set up a bucket while your working. Mix with water and throw your towels in as the get dirty then just rinse them out when your done. This was my plan, hope this helps.