Help me get something that is good. Everything I've tried leaves streaks or just doesn't clean. I bought a 2 pack from AAP that are Mirage Glass Cleaning microfiber towels, they aren't worth 2 cents.
Best Window /Glass Cleaning Towel?
- Thread starter oilcoholic
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I'm old school...
I use newspapers since that is all they are good for these days. But in honestly they worked well when they did have news..
Bill
I use newspapers since that is all they are good for these days. But in honestly they worked well when they did have news..
Bill
fresh off the store microfibre towels are typically filled with oil/grease that they aren't meant to be used to clean glass right away.
Throw them into the washer with laundry detergent for once and they come back squeaky clean w/o grease. Then I will use them for cleaning glass (works wonders).
Q.
Also: my seasonal fave is to use clean microfibre towels with Stoner's invisible glass spray.
Throw them into the washer with laundry detergent for once and they come back squeaky clean w/o grease. Then I will use them for cleaning glass (works wonders).
Q.
Also: my seasonal fave is to use clean microfibre towels with Stoner's invisible glass spray.
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Originally Posted By: Bill in Utah
I'm old school...
I use newspapers since that is all they are good for these days. But in honestly they worked well when they did have news..
Bill
+1 on the newspapers. And you can try a white grain vinegar and distilled water mixture for a cheap and effective cleaner - just dint mix any detergent in - vinergar is acidic and detergents are basic.
I'm old school...
I use newspapers since that is all they are good for these days. But in honestly they worked well when they did have news..
Bill
+1 on the newspapers. And you can try a white grain vinegar and distilled water mixture for a cheap and effective cleaner - just dint mix any detergent in - vinergar is acidic and detergents are basic.
"Glass cleaners" use waxes to shine glass. The wax IS that cloudy film that hazes the window later, causing you to use even more "glass cleaner".
The best glass cleaner is ammonia and hot water. It strips wax and grease off the glass and leaves it really clean. Use an old tee shirt or dish towel to wash and a second one to dry. NOTHING works better.
The best glass cleaner is ammonia and hot water. It strips wax and grease off the glass and leaves it really clean. Use an old tee shirt or dish towel to wash and a second one to dry. NOTHING works better.
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My 2 cents....
oilcoholic: Do you mean to clean glass with or without the use of a cleaner? Interior or exterior?
I've been able to do a pretty good job of interior cleaning with any dry microfiber cloth. If you're talking about wet interior cleaning I don't see why the cloth is important in any way.
For exterior I've used various combinations of #0000 steel wool, Auto Glym and other glass polishes, or just scrub during a hand wash of the car with the wash mitt. Which method depends on what's on the glass.
jaj: An interesting point about glass cleaners. I usually use Bon Ami Power Foam ( link) I have found it to give the best clean with no streaking. I use about 1.5 sheets of paper toweling for the entire interior window surface and it can last months without regrunging. I've found that driving with the windows open re-grunges far more quickly than with them closed. You've made an interesting point about waxes, but I'm not sure the window up/down observations support a wax ingredient simply breaking down over time.
I use so little paper towel I don't worry about the cost, nor any kind of environmental footprint at just a couple of sheets per month for this task. In our area, paper toweling goes into the compost waste anyways.
I'm a non-smoker and my current car is 12 years old so there isn't a lot of vinyl off-gassing taking place. Off-gassing of car components seems to be a big source of the grunge. It can also be affected by what your interior dressing is. I've used Meguiar's #40 until I ran out this year and decided to use up my 303.
oilholic: Bottom line - if you feel you need a special towel, maybe you should change something else about the way you do things. I observed long ago that most foaming glass cleaners do their real cleaning when the glass is virtually dry and the towel gets hard to push around the glass. That's when you really need to press firmly and wipe every square inch until clean. It's a little bit of elbow grease but no special equipment required. I've never felt that any other kind of expensive towel would make this job easier. In fact it might make it harder. A low-texture surface (like paper towel or newspaper) at this stage is probably the most effective.
oilcoholic: Do you mean to clean glass with or without the use of a cleaner? Interior or exterior?
I've been able to do a pretty good job of interior cleaning with any dry microfiber cloth. If you're talking about wet interior cleaning I don't see why the cloth is important in any way.
For exterior I've used various combinations of #0000 steel wool, Auto Glym and other glass polishes, or just scrub during a hand wash of the car with the wash mitt. Which method depends on what's on the glass.
jaj: An interesting point about glass cleaners. I usually use Bon Ami Power Foam ( link) I have found it to give the best clean with no streaking. I use about 1.5 sheets of paper toweling for the entire interior window surface and it can last months without regrunging. I've found that driving with the windows open re-grunges far more quickly than with them closed. You've made an interesting point about waxes, but I'm not sure the window up/down observations support a wax ingredient simply breaking down over time.
I use so little paper towel I don't worry about the cost, nor any kind of environmental footprint at just a couple of sheets per month for this task. In our area, paper toweling goes into the compost waste anyways.
I'm a non-smoker and my current car is 12 years old so there isn't a lot of vinyl off-gassing taking place. Off-gassing of car components seems to be a big source of the grunge. It can also be affected by what your interior dressing is. I've used Meguiar's #40 until I ran out this year and decided to use up my 303.
oilholic: Bottom line - if you feel you need a special towel, maybe you should change something else about the way you do things. I observed long ago that most foaming glass cleaners do their real cleaning when the glass is virtually dry and the towel gets hard to push around the glass. That's when you really need to press firmly and wipe every square inch until clean. It's a little bit of elbow grease but no special equipment required. I've never felt that any other kind of expensive towel would make this job easier. In fact it might make it harder. A low-texture surface (like paper towel or newspaper) at this stage is probably the most effective.
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Originally Posted By: Quest
Also: my seasonal fave is to use clean microfibre towels with Stoner's invisible glass spray.
+1,
The amount of gunk a microfiber and Stoners will remove form windows inside a car that have only been cleaned with regular window cleaners is amazing.
Also: my seasonal fave is to use clean microfibre towels with Stoner's invisible glass spray.
+1,
The amount of gunk a microfiber and Stoners will remove form windows inside a car that have only been cleaned with regular window cleaners is amazing.
I ONLY use Stoners Invisible Glass or Sprayway Glass cleaner.
Oh, and a waffle weave microfiber made by Cobra specifically for glass cleaning.
NO ammonia for tinted glass.
Oh, and a waffle weave microfiber made by Cobra specifically for glass cleaning.
NO ammonia for tinted glass.
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FWIW, I remember reading lots of hype about Stoner's Invisible Glass years ago in a detailing forum. I picked some up when it was finally available in Canada.
I still have that first can since once I discovered Bon Ami Power Foam I never went back. I, personally, have found that Bon Ami runs circles around everything including Stoners. It's cheap too.
I just used up that first can of Stoner's (now something like 7 years old) when I needed to clean some glass around the house and ran out of Bon Ami and didn't feel like making a special trip. It was still a thousand times better than Windex, the next available fall back.
I don't have any aftermarket tint so I haven't been concerned about he formulation of Bon Ami.
I still have that first can since once I discovered Bon Ami Power Foam I never went back. I, personally, have found that Bon Ami runs circles around everything including Stoners. It's cheap too.
I just used up that first can of Stoner's (now something like 7 years old) when I needed to clean some glass around the house and ran out of Bon Ami and didn't feel like making a special trip. It was still a thousand times better than Windex, the next available fall back.
I don't have any aftermarket tint so I haven't been concerned about he formulation of Bon Ami.
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Over the past few years, my fave combo is a waffle weave microfiber towel from Pakshak used with Stoner Invisible Glass (pump spray only, please) or Sprayway.
I stopped using newsprint 20 years ago. Back then the ink in the newsprint acted as a polishing agent, but with water-based inks and much better glass cleaning products, newsprint is for old timers only.
It appears that the Bon Ami Power Foam product is available in Canada only, based on what I found on the web. Search for yourself and see if you can find it down here in the Lower Canadian States of America.
The towel makes all the difference. Any decent automotive glass cleaner will work fine when paired with a great towel.
I stopped using newsprint 20 years ago. Back then the ink in the newsprint acted as a polishing agent, but with water-based inks and much better glass cleaning products, newsprint is for old timers only.
It appears that the Bon Ami Power Foam product is available in Canada only, based on what I found on the web. Search for yourself and see if you can find it down here in the Lower Canadian States of America.
The towel makes all the difference. Any decent automotive glass cleaner will work fine when paired with a great towel.
Originally Posted By: Vikas
Do you use Bon Ami on the *inside* of the glass???
Is that a trick question?
I use Bon Ami (note we're talking about the Power Foam product here, not the abrasive sink cleaner - follow my link) on the interior and exterior glass surfaces where equipped with factory tint and coatings with great success. I also use it on all glass all over the house.
Do you use Bon Ami on the *inside* of the glass???
Is that a trick question?
I use Bon Ami (note we're talking about the Power Foam product here, not the abrasive sink cleaner - follow my link) on the interior and exterior glass surfaces where equipped with factory tint and coatings with great success. I also use it on all glass all over the house.
Originally Posted By: bretfraz
It appears that the Bon Ami Power Foam product is available in Canada only, based on what I found on the web. Search for yourself and see if you can find it down here in the Lower Canadian States of America.
This absolutely shocks me. I recall when first reading about Bon Ami for glass cleaning that it was only available in the US and we couldn't get it here. I admit the link I posted may have been from the SCJohnson Canada web site but....
I'll have to look into whether the same thing is simply branded differently in the US now.
I have heard lots of positive comments about Sprayway, which I can't get here but I know is a US product.
It appears that the Bon Ami Power Foam product is available in Canada only, based on what I found on the web. Search for yourself and see if you can find it down here in the Lower Canadian States of America.
This absolutely shocks me. I recall when first reading about Bon Ami for glass cleaning that it was only available in the US and we couldn't get it here. I admit the link I posted may have been from the SCJohnson Canada web site but....
I'll have to look into whether the same thing is simply branded differently in the US now.
I have heard lots of positive comments about Sprayway, which I can't get here but I know is a US product.
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waffle weave glass towels. i found the WW towels from topoftheline.com to be pretty good.
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