Is a Traffic Film Remover (TFR) a Safe Pre-Wash for your car | Ep019
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- Опубліковано 31 січ 2023
- In the 19th episode of my Quick Test Tuesday series, I take a look at a controversial type of product - TRAFFIC FILM REOVERS (TFRs) - to investigate if they're cheap chemicals for roadside car washes or should they be considered genuine detailing products... SUBSCRIBE to see more!!!
NON-CAUSTIC TFR used in this video -www.a-kem.com/products/articu
www.a-kem.com/
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"Thank you for sharing such valuable insights! Your videos always inspire and educate me. I appreciate your dedication to creating content that makes a difference. Looking forward to your next upload!"
Thank you! 👍🏻
Great video Mark, always love your content.
I had to reach for TFR this weekend just gone.
Always handy to have Steve, our own cars may never need them but some of the muck that lands to be cleaned needs a wire brush sometimes 🤣
Brilliant video buddy! Just like all of the Anachem products you have featured on your channel this looks a highly impressive product! As you say the term TFR is enough to put shivers down your spine. But a non caustic, correctly dilluted TFR is perfectly safe as you mention. I've a few different non caustic TFRs and they certainly have their place. 👍👍👍
Cheers Sean. Yip this one is definitely a permanent fixture in my arsenal of cleaning products - there aren't many 5L bottles that I buy repeatedly but this is one without question 👌🏼
Great video. Just bought my first 5ltrs or TFR after purposely avoiding it for years. However, I now have a car that is filthy and I need it thoroughly clean before doing a machine polish. Tried various snowfoams and never been massively impressed so gonna have a go with TFR
The right TFR is an essential part of any cleaning arsenal in my opinion - the one I've used here is a non-caustic TFR, which is important, particularly if it's going to be used regularly 👍🏼
Glad you liked the video, thank you 👍🏼
Looks like it did a good job 👍🏻 Being as my vehicles are always so filthy (9 month wash) when I ran out of TFR I got the AD citrus wash and use that at 10~1 now.
If it works and you're happy, that's all that matters 😊👍🏼👍🏼
Great work and video. Keep the content coming buddy
👌🏼👍🏼 thanks for the support
Loved this video Mark what a great product and at a 50 to 1 dilution mightily impressive performance I will definitely be getting some ,this is why I watch people like yourself,GM Details ,OCD and David McBay ,all of the aforementioned put people like me in touch with great products with honest critical reviews 👍as always keep er lit big man 👏👏👏
Thank you Jim, that genuinely means a lot to have my opinion respected like that 👍🏼
If you do decide to order from Anachem, remember to use my discount code - SPARKLEAN10 - I don't get anything from it but some of the products will have 10% off, and free delivery too if you spend over £35 (I think it's 35 anyway lol)!
I've been using this stuff for a couple of years now and I'm a massive fan of it's cleaning abilities 👍🏼
Nice one again Mark👍. Very potent product. Clearly a winner👌
Without doubt 👌🏼😏
Hello Mark, great video,it soon fetches the dirt off the car.ive got some TFR and will try this one on mine.recently bought a Mercury sprayer for this.
Thanks Steven, definitely a good sprayer is great for products like this, one that you can leave it in between washes and saves so much set up time 👍🏼👍🏼
Washed my car yesterday after like 2 months, filthy I was worried it might have affected my ceramic coating, but ceramic coating looks in great shape, car had been 300 miles to glasgow and 300 miles back and all been driving daily, freezing yesterday and windy, snow foam was blowing all over the place and it made my sick, was shivering last night and got a cold, I’ve got a TFR but I got a offer but it never said if it was caustic but later I found out it was so don’t even use it and been looking for a good non caustic TFR and looks like I found one, my cars a year old now and I’m not scared to use a non caustic one but the caustic one I had I did use it on my other car and it did ruin the chrome and had to mess around polishing the chrome.
The one in the video you used do you know what PH it is and how it might affect the ceramic coating ?
Hi Imran and thanks, as always, for your comment 👍🏼
So since receiving your message I've spoken with the brand owner (who's actually a very approachable guy and will answer any questions you have). To answer your questions then - the pH level when neat is around 12 and when diluted down to 1:40, the pH level changes to around 8-9. It's an impossible question to answer with complete accuracy as the more you dilute it, the lower the pH level. If used sensibly and as per instructions, it is perfectly safe to use on ceramic coatings at the recommended dilutions 👍🏼
Great video Matron Mark, hope everyone is getting better, phew I've not had too many withdrawal symptoms 🤣🤣. Do you think that education or awareness of a products performance or in this case dispelling the myths around tfr's can surely only be a good thing. I for one have learned that just by simply reading the distructions and having an understanding of the product from watching you can only serve to make it work properly and inturn make for a better user experience?? I'm not saying I or anyone else is stupid, but if you just throw something at a car without knowing anything about that product puts us amature driveway wannabees off, because it didn't work.
That's a very interesting point Paul. The way I approach is based from a previous manufacturing role as a Trainer - when I was creating standard work instructions, I tried to write them so that anyone could walk in off the street, read the instructions step by step, and be able to follow them with minimal training/supervision.
The problem is trying to do that on UA-cam vocally without sounding like an arrogant sod🤣 I can misinterpret things as much as anyone so when I'm talking through the steps/instructions, it's as much for my own benefit sometimes! I just hope it never comes across as condescending because I would hate to think I was giving that impression!
But I do see a lot of things on UA-cam & other social media platforms that I just flat out disagree with, one being this myth that TFRs are nasty cheap products that only roadside scratch n shine carwashes use. I just think it's disrespectful to brands who go out of their way to make good products that get shunned because of an unjustified stigma.
I hope that's what you meant and I haven't completely misread your message 🤦🏻♂️🤣🤣🤣👍🏼
Looks good stuff having seen it on your channel a couple times, those 3 letters scare people don’t they who would seemingly rather pay many times more for something like forst to do the same job.
In my own prewash comparisons I’m struggling to see past surfex for cost/dilution rates vs performance but looks like this would be a good challenge for it 🤔
🤐😉 I'm saying nothing about the second part for now but it's a very interesting point - for maintenance cleaning you can make a 5L solution for 40p... That's a lot of cars!!
Looks a great product Mark!, of course there will be some numpties who let things like this dry on paint & plastics then blame the product. This dispels the myth that they can strip your paint off! 😂
I once did have someone contact me when they had used Infinity Wax Incinerate Wheel Cleaner mistakingly on their bodywork and it really dulled the area so yes, be very careful reading the labels 😂😂
Thank you Graeme 👍🏼👍🏼 We used to say use common sense but unfortunately it's not that common anymore 😂
I used incinerate ones, nearly dulled my retinas never mind paintwork 😂😂
@@SparkleanAutos 🤣🤣🤣
makes perfect sense to use the TFR - awesome product - definitely would buy this - no brainer
100% agree Jason 👍🏼👍🏼
Great test Mark TFRs are often over looked I’ve got powermaxed as my go to TFR I need to invest in a different brand may give these guys a look 👍🏻👍🏻
I couldn't agree more Paul, they definitely have their place... Don't forget the 10% code if you are ordering from Anachem 😋😋 every little helps lol
Great video do you apply to a dry car ? I always jet wash the car first then apply my tfr or citrus wash and rinse again?
Thanks Mark... I used to do it that way but did a couple of tests and realised there was no benefit to pre-rinsing... if anything it just diluted the product more with all the water on the car!! The only time I do that now is if the vehicle has been somewhere 'adventurous' and is caked in thick mud or something!
If you're interested, here's the video on bits of the tests I did...
ua-cam.com/video/qHXeFgqKhw4/v-deo.htmlsi=zlA-VgQxtfVwJ8oQ
Thanks Mark! This is the first video I've seen about TFR, so it was very interesting. You know I like a question.... on a car that gets cleaned fortnightly, and has decent levels of protection, and I'm only talking about winter months when traffic film is at its worst, would you recommend replacing a citrus with a TFR? The cost certainly seems to make it logical. Thanks again.
It is a very interesting question and something I'm going to be looking into a lot more this year... What I would say is be very careful which TFR you're purchasing... Most of them contain caustics - which isn't necessarily as 'bad' as people perceive - as they have excellent cleaning/degreasing capabilities but used improperly or too often and they can cause fading/corrosion to trim amongst other things. Citrus cleaners can also (over time and with strong dilutions) strip/degrade waxes/protections.
This particular TFR is caustic free but neat it's fairly high on the pH scale (around 12) but if used at 1:40 that drops to around 8-9 on the pH scale.
Whilst I'm not recommending replacing citrus with this TFR as I haven't done enough testing, it's definitely something I'm going to look into in the coming months 👍🏼👍🏼
@Sparklean Autos I will look forward to that then Mark, thanks for the reply.
@@decker0373 any time Lee, I love your questions and they're always very relevant!! 👍🏼
I have a bottle of Auto Finesse TFR that I liked but was put off using it a while back by someone on UA-cam not the brand but the product. I switched to Citrus to good effect but now use Mitchell & King HD Snow which has more bite then I use their snow foam as a 2nd step and I am so impressed I bought another 2.5 Litres yesterday.
If you've found something that works for you then can't ask more than that John... I've yet to try Mitchell & King products but this isn't the first time I've heard good things so maybe one to try in the future 👍🏼👍🏼
@@SparkleanAutos You will not be disappointed..
Sounds like a money back guarantee John 😋🤣👍🏼
@@SparkleanAutos That depends on the size of your order!!!!
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣👍🏼
Another superb informative video Mark, very satisfying to see a pre wash instantly stripping the dirt away. Great dilution ratios too.
Keep up the good work sir 👍🏻
👍🏼 muchas gracias Paul. Sometimes these are exactly the products you need! Especially for cats that aren't washed as often lol
@@SparkleanAutos errr, it might be a typo but how often should you wash a cat? 🤔
🤣🤣 as often as you dare 😹
I was going to correct that but I think I'll just leave it now 🤣🤣
@@SparkleanAutos there's a pussy joke in there somewhere 🤣🤣
You've got me mistaken for someone else 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Great video again Mark, loving the new graphics!!! You cant go wrong with a decent TFR, too many people have been put off them by the cheap caustic versions used by the hand car washes
That's exactly it Dave and for the car washes it's fine, if you're getting your car washed in less than 10 minutes for about £5, you can hardly expect them to be using the best of chemicals!!
But this is definitely a TFR that can be used safely by all and still be very cost effective 👌🏼👍🏼
Good result Mark, just what you want for a dirty car. My go to dirt buster is HDD Road Rage. Hope you are all feeling a little better
Household is improving day by day, thank you Martin and hope you're well 😁👍🏼
Road Rage is a great product too when used properly (although I made the mistake once of using it as a snowfoam... Pointless 🤣) 👌🏼
Great test!
Thanks Kyle 😁👍🏼
Quick question Mark, where do you tend to buy your car cleaning supplies? Have you got any go-to stores? Hard to find anywhere that doesn't charge a flat £10 for shipping to Northern Ireland these days!
Unfortunately lately there don't seem to be any with free (or even reasonable!) Shopping costs. I used to buy from County Detailing Supplies but last time I looked, the minimum for free delivery to our wee corner of the world was £100...
I buy some from Anachem Automotive in Downpatrick who deliver for free if order is over £35 I think, and you've Blok51 in Kilrea but I'm not sure what their minimum is (I've only ordered from them once quite recently.
Tbh I've that much stuff at the minute from buying more and more to try out that I could probably go another 2-3 years without buying anything 🤣🤣🤣🤦🏻♂️
@@SparkleanAutos I hadn't heard of Blok51 before, looks like a great spot! Good to have somewhere over here that sells Garage Therapy products too. Cheers 👍
Yeah they have a massive range of brands 👌🏼
If your car gets mega dirty then I could see this being a wise purchase. For someone like me who's car doesn't get that dirty would this be more useful than a citrus or apc ? As you said it's something you put as a corner car wash you see everywhere
Generally speaking that's the reputation TFRs have, however, this stuff is less than £20 for 5L (even less if you use my 10% discount code lol) and for maintenance cleaning you can go as low as 80:1!!
But even going 50:1 like I did in the middle section (eventually!) That's 40p to make a 5L solution in a pump sprayer - and there it could well be as convenient as any APC in my opinion ... Maybe I'll have to test that further 🤔
@@SparkleanAutos cheers , something to watch out for at a later date . As the weather HOPEFULLY changes the amount of grime etc and type of it will change so a lighter mix should do the trick
@@tmphotography8443 definitely, were heading back into 'enjoyable maintenance' season 🤣🤣
Does TFR remove those orange n black dots that are baked into the top coat, I have sh^t loads of them on my car.
I'm not really sure what orange and black you have - I generally presume black dots to be tar spots which would generally need a tar & glue remover to tackle.
I doubt a TFR would remove something embedded in but you could try... Personally, I would imagine you'll need to try a chemical decon (tar & glue remover and then a fallout remover) and if that doesn't work, I would try a clay bar 👍🏼
@@SparkleanAutos trying to stay clear of clay bars, they tend to fade n scratch top coat, ive ordered tfr and will give tar n glue remover a try as you've mentioned if no joy.
@@philpots3216 yes that is a good point, clay bars will indeed cause marring etc so should only really be used if you plan on polishing afterwards, but unfortunately sometimes it's a necessary evil!!
Great video 👍🏻
👍🏼😁 thank you
Hello Mark. Always a bit worrying when a manufacturer says sponge wash on the back of the product.
I'd be more worried about the people who actually used the sponge 🤣🤣 common sense would definitely apply in this case and I think the labels have since been updated 👌🏼😊
@@SparkleanAutos 👍
Could you just wash the car with tfr everyday?
You could if you wanted to, you had that much spare time, and you didn't mind wasting product and electricity... Once a week (generally) is plenty for me though 🙂👍🏼
Whats the dilution ratio 10ml to 500ml?
I do generally use this in the winter at that ratio, however for this particular job I used it at a much stronger dilution, 10ml to 200ml, purely because I was very limited with time (I had about 25 minutes in total!) and I didn't want to have to do it twice.
But yes, normally I add 100ml to my 5L sprayer and fill with water 👍🏼👍🏼
Thanks, what power washer are you using?@@SparkleanAutos
It's the AVA P80 Master... it's not currently available but the P60 is supposedly pretty close in terms of power...
amzn.to/3PBJBAv
Mark how often wud u recommend Tfr after seeing this went and ordered some 😂
Haha enjoy (hope you used the code in the video description - if it still works lol)
Personally I use this when I need to, I know that's vague but there's no definite answer. It's a great winter product but the best thing is, you can actually use it as a maintenance pre-wash at 80:1, so even every couple of weeks... I won't lie though, I haven't used it at that ratio, I tend to stick with it at 40:1 and if the car has gone 5/6 weeks through snow/slush/salty roads etc., this just makes cleaning it so much easier 👍🏼
Could you just "pre wash" the car every night?
You could if you wanted to, you had that much spare time, and you didn't mind wasting product and electricity... Once a week (generally) is plenty for me though 🙂👍🏼
Looks like a good product but I've used Super Clean 4:1 for about 30 years. Soak the panel for 90 seconds and the film peels right off with a pressure washer.
That's great if you're happy with what works for you 👍🏼 But I used this at 20:1 and left it for less than 5 minutes...and I consider that incredibly strong, only because I knew this car had zero protection AND hadn't been cleaned for at least 5 months.
Personally I'd rather let it dwell an extra couple of minutes and use a fifth/tenth of the amount of product. 👍🏼
Why do you start washing/rinsing from the bottom??? That’s wrong!
No I don't and no it isn't...
I wash from the top. I PRE-WASH from the bottom as that's the correct process for removing pre-wash products. I've been doing this for 30 years.
However, I would never presume to claim I know everything so I would be delighted for you to send me your video demonstrating why rinsing pre-wash products from top to bottom is more efficient 👍🏼
Tfr rules
👌🏼👍🏼
TFR should never be used on car paints!! The layers are too thin to cope with the product
I'm sorry but that's absolute nonsense. As I explained in this video, this is a non-caustic TFR... At the right dilutions, this is less detrimental to protection than a citrus pre-wash and is completely harmless to the clearcoat underneath!
People who do not work professional in car detailing tend to think that clear coats are to sensitive. In reality, the majority of clear coats, at least " healthy " ones will easily withstand strong alcalic wheel cleaners in a ratio 1:10. Some mentioned cleaners are not even dangerous at 1:5 ratios. Everything stronger concentrated can potentially be dangerous. It is product and manufacturer depending. Traffic film removers are similar to apc products. I would say that 2 component alcalic cleaners are way more dangerous than trf-s. But, to be honest a chemical is a chemical. Nowadays people take it for granted that the most popular products like iron removers with color indicators are ph neutral and so far harmless to use. Well, yes on wheels, even on paint clear coats, but on matte paints, trim or plastic parts they can cause severe damage. Many people reported to have discolorations and paint damages on trim parts. The dwell times are also something that is crucial in the use of all chemicals. If you wait for to long, they will dry out on the surface. If you wash them of to fast, they will not penetrate the dirt and contamination like supposed. Many factors play a role. Temperature and air humidity are one of the most important things. From my experience in areas where it is colder, do not bother, give it a 3-5 minutes dwell time. In warmer areas or at least on warm summer days, one minute is good enough to wash of the product. Indoor use, outdoor use also are factors that can be discussed in detail. Tfr-s in general are safe products, if the dosage is used accordingly and correct.