Hi John, I've used quite a lot of snow foams over the yrs, but recently I have started to use Koch Chemie gsf (Gentle snow foam) it's a good product for me as I only detail motorcycles...try it out, give us some feedback, only problem is, it only comes in the 1 litre format.... 🤦♂️
Another great video Jon. Ultimately told me what i already thought. Bilt Hamber is the muts nuts. They dont do silly, sexy marketing. They just make products that work and sell them at a reasonable price. They really know what they are doing chemically rather than clever marketing. Its refreshing
You’re absolutely spot on. But, the thing is, Marketing is everything. Imagine how much they would sell if their marketing was spot on? You can’t deny that Auto Finesse don’t market their brand well. The products look amazing, albeit most of them are sub-par. There’s a quote I read one time - ‘marketing is everything and everything is marketing’.
Built Hamber all day long for me too. Just to add that if you using it with pump sprayer (80 ml BH to 1920 ml warm water) it’s more cheap and clean extremely well when you don’t have foam lancer 😉
Wow! I've always heard that the Bilt Hamber was good but it seriously is. It'll definitely be my next snowfoam. Once again John, fantastic video and a great service to us detailers.
Fantastic video Jon, SOOOO much in-depth information. Im also very pleased that I have a gallon of it sitting on my shelf. The other snow foam that I have recently been introduced to is Car Chem. After a recent road trip to the West County the front of my X3 was splattered with bugs and a fair share of bird droppings. Car Chem Pre Soak Snow Foam did a great job of removing most of it. The other thing I like about both BH & Car Chem is I don't have to dig my drive out of foam afterwards. In the review I recently did on my channel of a Car Chem maintenance wash, I show just how little foam is left on my drive.
Again, thanks for this video! The Bilt-Hamber distributor here in the US has sent out an email to those of us that got in touch with them about the AutoFoam. There were enough of us to warrant them bringing it across the pond! I ordered mine, today! I can't wait to get it!
These videos are exactly why I'm subscribed to this channel. I was already an avid user of BH AutoFoam having only once bought an alternative when it was sold out. Great to see I needn't look elsewhere.
BH all the way for me. Don't crave the "Hollywood" foams. BH is just a damn good product at a sensible price - as are all BH products. Keep up the good work.
I made an extended research prior to buying for enthusiast purposes, a snow foams product, partly based on your recommendation in the past (Bilt Hamber), now you made a test that, just confirmed that I did my research well as I have the top 3 snow foams. Thank you for your time and effort for another informative vid by helping us choose the best and most cost effective products available out there!!!!
HI, great video as always. I use BH Surfex HD as my pre wash through a snow foam lance. Saves me buying 2 products but does the job better than anything else i've used. Great foaming but due to it being a great degreaser, works superb at breaking down dirt before rinsing off. Cheers, Michael.
Great video as always, another huge plus for BH AF is its just as good if not better through a garden sprayer, which for me is important as i don't have access to my own power washer, I simply turn up at local car cleaner with self use bay, prefoam with BH in sprayer and crack on.
it is mate, its not just because its alkaline either. got loads of alkaline cleaners. but none work as fast or as well as this. Its the choice of surfactants they are using and the formulation of them. just infinately more powerfull than other products. Autofoam even works better as a wheel cleaning than most wheel cleaning products believe it or not (at 5-10%)
Bilt hamber products are fantastic and the Auto foam I started using a couple of weeks ago. It's very very impressive really helps and you just don't need to be as aggressive when washing as it's removed just about all the grime anyway.
I started using bilt hamber auto wash and the foam after watching your videos before, My car was sitting untouched from October till about March before I even touched it, Certain panels had thick greenish crust and really bad water stains that were semi baked into the paint , I was absolutely astounded by how much filth the bilt hamber foam took off before I’d actually washed it. 100% the best pre wash out there. Such an underrated company
Bought the BH from your store a while back after your recommendation and it works fantastic, yes it doesn't foam like crazy but as you said it's about the effectiveness of the product, been using 100ml BH in your 1 litre snow lance and it performs brilliantly, really loosens all the built up dirt and road film and the car looks great after drying with the silver gorilla towel ( also bought after your recommendation) . Thanks for another great non biased video
The BH stuff may not stick as well or look as impressive but I would much rather it shifts the dirt and not rust out my metal - which from BH products you would expect as they do a whole range of anti corrosion and rust removal products. I swear by a few of their products, all that I have tried I have not found anything worth replacing them with - their Surfex HD is a great all purpose cleaner and degreaser and the Deox Gel is awesome at rust removal.
Sadly no Sonax Richfoam or Actifoam. Especially Actifoam is extremely good, it is cheap to use (1l bottle for 12€ and you just need 10ml per wash) and has some of the best cleaning abilities I know. But anyway, this test is PURE GOLD! Thanks for doing this and providing it for free! I guess I will need to buy some of that Bilt Hamber stuff now and compare it to the Actifoam^^
Even with me being a Chemical Manufacturer for over 20 years now,i still learn something from you every vid mate! 👍😏 Would really love to send you a gallon of my Hyperfoam to try out & available to no one usually online,as offline only! 👍😉
Would never have considered the corrosive aspect of snow foam, had it not been for this video. Thank you so much John for all your thorough and unbiased videos, you're the best.
Bilt Hamber are the nuts; use the wheel cleaner and it's awesome. No issues. And I have diamond cut wheels and they don't strip the lacquer or dull the wheels. Highly recommend that.
Many thanks for making this video. By watching your comparisons I have purchased 50 litres of Bilt Hamber auto foam, as I have a lot of farm machinery I like to keep looking as smart as possible. It arrived yesterday, and I started straight away by washing two machines off. I am very impressed with the detergent, it lifted dirt much more effectively than any product I have used previously. Highly satisfied Bilt Hamber user. Thanks again for your video.
wow, its great to hear all the different type of people that watch and follow the recomendations. Autofoam would be perfect for farm machinary where you want a really powerfull prewash. dont be afraid to really crank up the PIR with it to 3-4% if you need to. awesome thank you for the kind words.
Amazing comparison! Well done I really love all the methods you used to come with confirmed true results. I am using the Magifoam for the last 1.5 years after doing an extensive research and I am not surprised by the results that you reached! It really WORKS!
Good test and it proves for me that I thought BH has brilliant cleaning abilities. I've used it over the last few months and it's almost night and day difference from others I have tried.
Great video with a rather unexpected winner in the end! I’m convinced on the cleaning power of the BH. The simulated test was a real eye opener for me! I’ve tried Avalanche and Gyeon foam before and strangely I liked the Avalanche better. I felt like it did a better job on cleaning. Keep up the great top notch work John!!
you hit the nail on the head saying how people want a high foam prewash even tho that means literally nothing for performance! im going to try and find bilt hamber in the usa. if i cant im not sure what im going to do! after watching this, i dont want to even bother with adams and chemical guys that are SO praised here
Another clear, in depth and informative video. I use AutoGlym and was disappointed it didn’t do better. The most important fact for me was if the better performing ones stripped my existing protection, so thank you for pointing those details out. I will be trying the the BH when I need to replenish my stock. Keep up the good work.
Great test John - you ARE the forensic detailer. The level of effort you put into these comparison vlogs is on another level. Don't get another hobby or a new girlfriend. Due to the very expensive ceramic coating I have had applied to my car, I have tried numerous ph nuteral foams and found most don't touch the road films etc and are rubbish. Probably better to get as much dirt and film off before contact wash rather then worrying about affecting the longevity of the coating. Keep them coming 👍👍
John i got to say, AWESOME video!!! I am trying to start my own detailing business, and have been wondering which snow foam to buy in bulk (with the BH Auto Foam being my first choice), but now you have basically made that decision for me. Thank you for this video again, and keep up the good work.
Great video! The Bilt Hamber product is amazing and available in the US on Amazon. Just ordered. Pretty penny, but dilutes 25:1 and it looks to be so effective!
Mint review. Really good point on the corrosion factor. Nothing worse than when you wash and clean the car and then the brake discs get surface corrosion on them which transfers onto the wheels when you drive
Great review John. I wish they sold Bilt Hamber in South Africa. I’d buy a years worth of supplies. I keep hearing good things about their products from you. I use Polar Blast, it was best value I could find. ValetPro Advanced Neutral, because of how crazy expensive it is, I just use it after long country drives as it has their proprietary citrus pre cleaner inside, so it does a good job of breaking down most of the 100s of front bug splatter. I tried Carchem in the past was okay, very runny, and Turtle Hyperfoam was absolutely terrible, it had zero cleaning power and a poor dwell time.
thanks buddy. I feel your pain. in the Uk we have a huge sort of detailing scene and tons of brands. a lot of other countries are the complete oppossite. But its a growing market. Take the bull buy the horns and start introducing the people of SA to all these great products and you will make a killing. I know theres a lot of passion for cars out there as well.
Truely the best channel, I worked as a valeter for a short while but am enthusiastic about valeting/detailing and your channel truely answers my questions.
I currently use Autobrite Magifoam and have found it to be very good and this test backs that up. I am in agreement that it is expensive, especially if you buy in a smaller volume. I will be trying the bilt hamber foam next though as it defo looks like it is excellent value for money
Thank you for this comprehensive performance evaluation. I've purchased the winner at 5Ltr. The key for me was the steel corrosion analysis and the performance on breaking down and lifting dirt.
Fantastic forensic video on snow foams , I’m glad I’m already a proud owner of auto foam and magifoam which I mixtogerher to make my autofoam foamier to it cling that little bit longer on sunny or windy days 😎
youre smart guy jon. social media demands it be foamy so your car looks great for that 20 seconds when its covered in foam so youy can take a pic. but they dont actually care if its cleaning xD. but the fact that bilt hamber stuff doesnt corrode or rust your car is a great reason to use it. thanks for the vid :)
Just brought BH and while it doesn’t foam that much compared to previous so first outing thought it wouldn’t be as good, is noticeably cleaner when finished. Another great vid.
This is a battle I have been having for a while now - which product has the best cleaning power! Thank you so very much for taking the time to make this video. Really is brilliant! Placing my order for BH Foam now. Thanks again and sub'ed!
The Bilt Hamber is $109.00 USD on Amazon for 5 liters. At that price is it still a good deal? What American product has this type of cleaning power, because Adams certainly doesn't. It is a nice foamer, but good cleaning is what I want from a pre-wash. You are the man I listen too and I really appreciate all the work you put in for these videos.
I've just finished a 10 hour night shift and was gonna skip to the end but you kept my attention for the full video 👏👏 I'm currently using bilt hamber auto foam and I'll stick with it after watching
Honestly, i was surprised how good bilt hamber products are when i started to use them. I especially like that they tend to pay attention to make their products to prevent corrosion as well.
Hi Jon, based on following your channel for a while now, I am not surprised by the BH outcome :) I actually started to use it over the last few months, moving away from ValetPro and YES I see a massive difference...to be honest the foaming on the car is a load of bs, its better it works at doing what it does than looking good! In winter, we get alot of salt on the roads in Southern Finland and BH did a great job this year! Thanks for the super interesting video..keep up the great work!
Jon because of you I went through the hassle to get some bilt hamber auto foam and I'm glad I did worked really good wait 2 weeks to get it wand wash the truck it work better then I thought it would . From Houston texas
I’m glad you touched on how it does or doesn’t affect the protection. I’d hate for it to strip bead maker, a wax or even a ceramic! Thanks for this comparison, been looking forward to it! 👌🏼
You would have to throw strong acids or alkalies at a ceramic to strip it....what you might see is the beading drop off because there is a residue film of product left on the surface which diminishes the hydrophobic properties, its not removing the ceramic coating as the majority will require physical friction to remove them....i.e. Machine polishing with an abrasive compound.
Nick McConnell and Bilt Hamber is 12.2ph so it’s particularly strong. Hence I wondered how any form of protection would do, ceramic and other sealants/waxes. I guess i’ll have to do my own tests to see how the protection performs against it ha
Jay G to be honest over the 2+ years I have been running my mix of ValetPro Foam and AutoGlym Pro TFR’s it’s never really affected the LSP’s especially not the ceramics. Waxes yeah it might have knocked a month off but that’s no big deal as I would always be applying a new coat every 2-3 months. Things like Colly 476s seem to just brush it off and behave like a ceramic in the durability stakes with a good 6-8 months before it dropped back.
Nick McConnell that’s good to know, thank you. Seems like I’m thinking these snow foams/shampoos are more powerful than they really are and the protection is stronger than I think they really are!
Amazingly useful video as ever and whilst I've never heard of bilt before it will now take place as my only foam. This is why I watch and subscribe, I want the best for my pride and joy but don't like getting ripped off.
Thanks very much for taking the time and money to do this test for us. As a current B hamber user I am pleased with the result. It really does shift the dirt. Not impressed with vallet pro.
I have used bilt hammer foam several years and its great product but this year I try King Carthur Control Snow Foam and I would say that the cleaning power is even a little better than in bilt hammer.
Agree 100%, cleaning ability over gimmicky thick foam any day. Used Meguiar’s Hyper Wash and Auto Finesse Avalanche, not impressed with either of them. Tried BH Auto Foam after seeing you mention it in another video and won’t use anything else now.
I use Bilt Hamber autofoam 90% of the time unless I’m wanting to go round with brushes and it needs agitating then I throw a little fast foam by angelwax in. For years I used magifoam but moved to autofoam last year and haven’t looked back
Tried out BH autofoam in a pump sprayer diluted to recommended 4% and was mightily impressed! Left me thinking if paint is contaminant free with a good layer of protection to begin with, a touchless wash might be achievable without leaving me feeling like I’ve only done half a job. Having used most of these products except this one I’m now a stout +1 proponent that this stuff works way beyond others in the same category. Thanks for the thorough review and unbiased recommendation 👍
Did a bit of research after my meguiars snow foam ran out. Bought the Bilt Hamber based on that research and using their other products. Glad I did because your video has vindicated my decision👍
Great video as always mate, very much appreciate all the hard work you put into them! They come in so bloody handy at times. This video confirmed my own findings from personal experience of using both BH Auto foam and AG Polar Blast. The Polar Blast really seemed to do nothing for me in terms of removing traffic film, despite having fantastically thick and clingy foam - that lasts for days on the driveway! After trying the BH Auto Foam I've never looked back, I was truly surprised at just how well this snowfoam breaks down anything and everything that clings to the clear coat. Cheers, Jason
Excellent review as always, thanks for your work Jon. Been using BHAF for a good few years, in a pump sprayer at 4% with hot water. Works an absolute treat, especially in the winter.
Brilliant Jon! Results in there that are both expected and surprising. Magifoam I wasn't expecting to do so well as when I tried it out long ago I was underwhelmed with the cleaning ability... I may need to revist it as a product! As for Autofoam, not surprised at all, it's cleaning ability is very impressive. You need to try Waxplanets 8 below Jon. I've been blown away by it's cleaning ability and it's on par, if not slightly better than Autofoam. It's very thick and clings for 20+ minutes, long enough to get around and clean your wheels before rinsing. I think it's cleaning ability must come from this very long dwell. Finally you only need 2% PIR for this performance, meaning it's actually very cheap per wash.
I am more worried about degrading my protection on the vehicle more than cleaning power. I take care of my car and, most of the time, I am doing a maintenance pre-foam. Having some good foam can help add lubricity and remove filth off the vehicle panels. Sure I agree with you regarding the majority of people's expectations regarding foam but there is a place for it.
So glad I took heed of your recommendation from previous videos and got myself the bilt hamber, such a good product and very reasonably priced, top video too keep up the good work
You could use 2 snow foams, Bilt Hamber snow foam to clean the dirt of in a touch less method then follow with using something like Adams or Chemical Guys snow for the touch wash for their lubricity, best of both worlds if cost is no consideration
Thanks Jon, i've been using BH AutoFoam for about a year and was starting to get itchy feet about it.. you've reassured me to keep using it (good job since i have 7 litres left..)!
its always fun to try new stuff. I must have tried over 30 maybe more snow foams now. Autofoam is the one thats impressed me the most and the testing on this video kind of reinforced my opinion of it.
Been using the BH AF for a year now after testing out ValetPro, AF and a couple of others - yes, the foam isn't anywhere near the AF or VP products but it cleans beautifully - the VP product i used was more of a full decon wash, strips everything off the surface, which has it's place especially before i ceramic coated my vehicles. I like mixing the BHAF with a spray bottle of the SurfexHD as a spot clean with my brush in winter while the BHAF does it's job on the lower panel area.
I’ve been meaning to try BILT hamber auto foam for a while as i know it’s got great cleaning power and it’s quite cheap. I’ve still been buying Autoglym polar blast though because it’s just so convenient to get it on offer from Halfords for a tenner! It’s cleaning power isn’t great, but it’s very foamy and it does actually revive my double speed wax quite well before the contact wash. Decent stuff, great video Jon
Agree bilt hamber the best from my experiences. Foams temporarily but then goes flat and you see dirt running off into the ground. Some other foams almost seem to do very little in this regard. It's especially noticeable on dirty wheels.
Good to see the results - the steel test is shocking! AD Magifoam is decent, but its good to have an alternative now that they have a "Apple-like" attitude in their discussion forums (Banned from talking about other products in any way, or even showing a detail that doesnt entirely use their range :-o ) Time to order some BH!
Great video Jon, and as you said at the end of the video you look for a product that actually cleans...sod the bucket loads of foam. I actually do a custom mix for my lance where I use half the prescribed quantity of the ValetPro product (for the foaming element) and half the prescribed quantity of AutoGlym professional Advanced TFR for the summer months or the Heavy Duty TFR in the winter. This combo gives the perfect combination of cleaning and cling. There are too many fluffies out there that think a TFR is the root of all evil when in reality a lot of the fancy labeled products are probably more caustic as long as you used a product responsibly then all is good! If you want a non touch clean then you need some strong surfactants and ingredients and thats a fact and something you showed in the video. I have to say my 25L of AG Pro TRF's are waaaaayyyy better value than any of the retail 5l products :)
Great video! I like purple power vehicle and boat soap for any that I’m doing a full decontamination on. I feel like it does a good job breaking down grime
Your crazy!!! In a good way, superb information, just solved my dilema choosing a snow foam. Want to add, that all of your videos are amazing, no bs, pure honesty 👍
Well done Jon, a great and in depth comparison that as usual, goes beyond what other channels do. Really interesting about the corrosion. I never considered that before but it is important. No surprise that Auto Foam won as I’ve never found anything that beats it in over 10 years of using. People criticise it sometimes for not producing a thick foam but I find that a plus point. Being thinner, it runs off taking the dirt with it much quicker. Especially handy in summer as it does it’s job before drying out.
Another great video John, it confirms what I think I already knew, that BH Auto Foam is by far the best product. I’ve used lots of others but nothing has come close. Keep up the great work 👍🏼
I currently predominantly use Bowden's Own products. They smell great, are Australian made, have a great social media presence with all sorts of guides, contain no salts and are pH neutral. They're also really well priced and regularly have discounts.
Thanks Jon, the volume is higher this time which makes it easier to follow 🤗 ... I use Griots garage snow foam, great suds, but low cleaning capabilities IMO.. the products you tested have high PH which would explain why they are more effective.. Still, I would worry that they might strip the Beadmaker I apply regularly. I wash my car every week so I kind of err on the cautious side I guess. Although I know you already said multiple times not to worry too much about PH.. Thanks for the insight on RUST !!! that is a pain, on a white car...
What a fantastically detailed and scientific test. Most impressed with the dirt simulator and corrosion tests. I've only ever used Bilt Hamber and am now very glad! Why? Well, I'm pretty sure it's thanks to a video of yours from a few years ago!
Brilliant video again. I've tried the Avalanche aand wasn't that impressed and now I've gone back to either Polar Blast or some cherry scented foam I bought off eBay. I use snow foam slightly different to everyone else. I give everything a soaking in traffic film remover then pressure wash the vehicle. I then apply a thick coat of snow foam and immediately agitate with a soft mitt. I then without rinsing apply a second coat of snow foam and left that drag everything off. I'll then follow up with a second rinse, Polar Wash and finally Polar Seal. I'll then dry and apply a maintenance go over with either Sonax or Beadmaker.
These test/comparison videos r among the most useful vids I’ve found on RUclips... great for the UK consumer. Not sure on the dirt removal test on this one though simply because I’d like to kno what the results would be with the products being used as there suppose to through a foam cannon. I don’t however know how u could do this on a single panel....
Great work so much effort put in to this test but I already knew what what works the best for all the reason you have shown been using BH for a long time as nothing comes close in cleaning power and rust inhibitors a great uk company I believe too so even better reason to buy it
depends what your after really. I dont think its too difficult from brands like gyeon and AF to make a very strong cleaner. So they will feel their pre wash products are ideal for use with their protective products.. For me I want something with the capability to really impact dirt during the prewash phase. And if I dont need so much horsepower I lower the dilution down and let it dwell less. So autofoam kind of gives me what I need and its really well priced. The gyeon product is pretty sweet in some ways, but its quite expensive, and it doesnt have the rapid cleaning power of autofoam in my opinion. I would potentially use AG, AF or Gyeon though, but its like how many snow foams can you have you have to pick one really dont you.
Dont forget to subscribe to the channel if you like seeing these sorts of product comparisons..
ruclips.net/user/forensicdetailingchannel
You need a wheel cleaner and a car shampoo comparison next 👍👍👍🤞
Hi John, I've used quite a lot of snow foams over the yrs, but recently I have started to use Koch Chemie gsf (Gentle snow foam) it's a good product for me as I only detail motorcycles...try it out, give us some feedback, only problem is, it only comes in the 1 litre format.... 🤦♂️
Another great video Jon.
Ultimately told me what i already thought. Bilt Hamber is the muts nuts. They dont do silly, sexy marketing. They just make products that work and sell them at a reasonable price. They really know what they are doing chemically rather than clever marketing.
Its refreshing
Ashley Atkins agreed, as my products run out they’re being replaced by bilt hamber
Agree entirely
Glad I’ve been buying the right stuff all along.
It´s bilt hamber foam compatible with treated cars?
You’re absolutely spot on. But, the thing is, Marketing is everything. Imagine how much they would sell if their marketing was spot on? You can’t deny that Auto Finesse don’t market their brand well. The products look amazing, albeit most of them are sub-par. There’s a quote I read one time - ‘marketing is everything and everything is marketing’.
John your channel is absolutely ACE! Never change your videos are more than fantastic
The knowledge and passion you put into your videos is unparallel. You deserve an award for the amount of hours you put in. Top vid mate.👍
Built Hamber all day long for me too.
Just to add that if you using it with pump sprayer (80 ml BH to 1920 ml warm water) it’s more cheap and clean extremely well when you don’t have foam lancer 😉
I already knew Bilt hamber would win.. simply unbeatable.
Jon you should get an industry award for your scientific approach ...incredible.
Wow! I've always heard that the Bilt Hamber was good but it seriously is. It'll definitely be my next snowfoam. Once again John, fantastic video and a great service to us detailers.
Fantastic video Jon, SOOOO much in-depth information. Im also very pleased that I have a gallon of it sitting on my shelf. The other snow foam that I have recently been introduced to is Car Chem. After a recent road trip to the West County the front of my X3 was splattered with bugs and a fair share of bird droppings. Car Chem Pre Soak Snow Foam did a great job of removing most of it. The other thing I like about both BH & Car Chem is I don't have to dig my drive out of foam afterwards. In the review I recently did on my channel of a Car Chem maintenance wash, I show just how little foam is left on my drive.
Again, thanks for this video! The Bilt-Hamber distributor here in the US has sent out an email to those of us that got in touch with them about the AutoFoam. There were enough of us to warrant them bringing it across the pond! I ordered mine, today! I can't wait to get it!
who is that distributor josey?
These videos are exactly why I'm subscribed to this channel. I was already an avid user of BH AutoFoam having only once bought an alternative when it was sold out. Great to see I needn't look elsewhere.
BH all the way for me. Don't crave the "Hollywood" foams. BH is just a damn good product at a sensible price - as are all BH products. Keep up the good work.
Use it without getting the car wet it works better
I made an extended research prior to buying for enthusiast purposes, a snow foams product, partly based on your recommendation in the past (Bilt Hamber), now you made a test that, just confirmed that I did my research well as I have the top 3 snow foams.
Thank you for your time and effort for another informative vid by helping us choose the best and most cost effective products available out there!!!!
Always my go to RUclips Chanel if I'm stuck on buying a product. Your chanel name is exactly what you are, a bloody forensic in this field!
HI, great video as always. I use BH Surfex HD as my pre wash through a snow foam lance. Saves me buying 2 products but does the job better than anything else i've used. Great foaming but due to it being a great degreaser, works superb at breaking down dirt before rinsing off. Cheers, Michael.
yer that will defo work Michael for sure
I've tried that too , what pir are you using it at
The best channel in the uk.
Darren Wootton best detailing channel in the world.
Great video as always, another huge plus for BH AF is its just as good if not better through a garden sprayer, which for me is important as i don't have access to my own power washer, I simply turn up at local car cleaner with self use bay, prefoam with BH in sprayer and crack on.
it is mate, its not just because its alkaline either. got loads of alkaline cleaners. but none work as fast or as well as this. Its the choice of surfactants they are using and the formulation of them. just infinately more powerfull than other products. Autofoam even works better as a wheel cleaning than most wheel cleaning products believe it or not (at 5-10%)
Bilt hamber products are fantastic and the Auto foam I started using a couple of weeks ago. It's very very impressive really helps and you just don't need to be as aggressive when washing as it's removed just about all the grime anyway.
I started using bilt hamber auto wash and the foam after watching your videos before,
My car was sitting untouched from October till about March before I even touched it,
Certain panels had thick greenish crust and really bad water stains that were semi baked into the paint ,
I was absolutely astounded by how much filth the bilt hamber foam took off before I’d actually washed it. 100% the best pre wash out there. Such an underrated company
I Use Koch Chemie Gentle Snowfoam ! 20-30ml for 1liter
No thick foam, but the cleaning effect is top on a Wax.
Ps: The smell is awesome
Bought the BH from your store a while back after your recommendation and it works fantastic, yes it doesn't foam like crazy but as you said it's about the effectiveness of the product, been using 100ml BH in your 1 litre snow lance and it performs brilliantly, really loosens all the built up dirt and road film and the car looks great after drying with the silver gorilla towel ( also bought after your recommendation) . Thanks for another great non biased video
The BH stuff may not stick as well or look as impressive but I would much rather it shifts the dirt and not rust out my metal - which from BH products you would expect as they do a whole range of anti corrosion and rust removal products. I swear by a few of their products, all that I have tried I have not found anything worth replacing them with - their Surfex HD is a great all purpose cleaner and degreaser and the Deox Gel is awesome at rust removal.
Sadly no Sonax Richfoam or Actifoam. Especially Actifoam is extremely good, it is cheap to use (1l bottle for 12€ and you just need 10ml per wash) and has some of the best cleaning abilities I know.
But anyway, this test is PURE GOLD! Thanks for doing this and providing it for free! I guess I will need to buy some of that Bilt Hamber stuff now and compare it to the Actifoam^^
dude you are doing something that no one else on youtube is doing, honestly really well done !
Even with me being a Chemical Manufacturer for over 20 years now,i still learn something from you every vid mate! 👍😏
Would really love to send you a gallon of my Hyperfoam to try out & available to no one usually online,as offline only! 👍😉
Would never have considered the corrosive aspect of snow foam, had it not been for this video. Thank you so much John for all your thorough and unbiased videos, you're the best.
Bilt Hamber are the nuts; use the wheel cleaner and it's awesome. No issues. And I have diamond cut wheels and they don't strip the lacquer or dull the wheels. Highly recommend that.
Many thanks for making this video. By watching your comparisons I have purchased 50 litres of Bilt Hamber auto foam, as I have a lot of farm machinery I like to keep looking as smart as possible. It arrived yesterday, and I started straight away by washing two machines off. I am very impressed with the detergent, it lifted dirt much more effectively than any product I have used previously. Highly satisfied Bilt Hamber user. Thanks again for your video.
wow, its great to hear all the different type of people that watch and follow the recomendations. Autofoam would be perfect for farm machinary where you want a really powerfull prewash. dont be afraid to really crank up the PIR with it to 3-4% if you need to. awesome thank you for the kind words.
Amazing comparison! Well done I really love all the methods you used to come with confirmed true results. I am using the Magifoam for the last 1.5 years after doing an extensive research and I am not surprised by the results that you reached! It really WORKS!
Good test and it proves for me that I thought BH has brilliant cleaning abilities. I've used it over the last few months and it's almost night and day difference from others I have tried.
Great video with a rather unexpected winner in the end! I’m convinced on the cleaning power of the BH. The simulated test was a real eye opener for me! I’ve tried Avalanche and Gyeon foam before and strangely I liked the Avalanche better. I felt like it did a better job on cleaning.
Keep up the great top notch work John!!
you hit the nail on the head saying how people want a high foam prewash even tho that means literally nothing for performance!
im going to try and find bilt hamber in the usa. if i cant im not sure what im going to do! after watching this, i dont want to even bother with adams and chemical guys that are SO praised here
get the new bilt hamber touch-less pre wash and you will be amazed how it removes winter road film. problem will be price.
I bought both Magifoam and Bilt-Hamber autowash per your previous reviews and have been VERY happy with them both John, thank you 🇺🇸👍
Another clear, in depth and informative video. I use AutoGlym and was disappointed it didn’t do better. The most important fact for me was if the better performing ones stripped my existing protection, so thank you for pointing those details out. I will be trying the the BH when I need to replenish my stock. Keep up the good work.
Great test John - you ARE the forensic detailer. The level of effort you put into these comparison vlogs is on another level. Don't get another hobby or a new girlfriend.
Due to the very expensive ceramic coating I have had applied to my car, I have tried numerous ph nuteral foams and found most don't touch the road films etc and are rubbish.
Probably better to get as much dirt and film off before contact wash rather then worrying about affecting the longevity of the coating.
Keep them coming 👍👍
Fantastic video Jon. Very comprehensive tests and great reviews. This is why I love your channel... Keep up the great work 🙂
John i got to say, AWESOME video!!! I am trying to start my own detailing business, and have been wondering which snow foam to buy in bulk (with the BH Auto Foam being my first choice), but now you have basically made that decision for me. Thank you for this video again, and keep up the good work.
Great video! The Bilt Hamber product is amazing and available in the US on Amazon. Just ordered. Pretty penny, but dilutes 25:1 and it looks to be so effective!
I was thrilled to purchase Bilt Hamber until I realized it's not sold in the US.. great
Or in Canada :(
What a great great test!!! Congrats for the work and thank you soo much for the contribution!
Glad to see Bilt Hamber winning - always impressed with it. Low cling but very effective.
Mint review. Really good point on the corrosion factor. Nothing worse than when you wash and clean the car and then the brake discs get surface corrosion on them which transfers onto the wheels when you drive
Excellent thorough video - a lot of work went into this! I really appreciate your dedication and throughness, John. Just brilliant!
All the best, Rob
thx you kindly rob
Great review John. I wish they sold Bilt Hamber in South Africa. I’d buy a years worth of supplies. I keep hearing good things about their products from you.
I use Polar Blast, it was best value I could find.
ValetPro Advanced Neutral, because of how crazy expensive it is, I just use it after long country drives as it has their proprietary citrus pre cleaner inside, so it does a good job of breaking down most of the 100s of front bug splatter.
I tried Carchem in the past was okay, very runny, and Turtle Hyperfoam was absolutely terrible, it had zero cleaning power and a poor dwell time.
thanks buddy. I feel your pain. in the Uk we have a huge sort of detailing scene and tons of brands. a lot of other countries are the complete oppossite. But its a growing market. Take the bull buy the horns and start introducing the people of SA to all these great products and you will make a killing. I know theres a lot of passion for cars out there as well.
No point having foam if it doesn't clean. Rather have cleaning power so thanks. Nice vid! 👍🏼
Truely the best channel, I worked as a valeter for a short while but am enthusiastic about valeting/detailing and your channel truely answers my questions.
I currently use Autobrite Magifoam and have found it to be very good and this test backs that up. I am in agreement that it is expensive, especially if you buy in a smaller volume.
I will be trying the bilt hamber foam next though as it defo looks like it is excellent value for money
Thank you for this comprehensive performance evaluation. I've purchased the winner at 5Ltr. The key for me was the steel corrosion analysis and the performance on breaking down and lifting dirt.
Fantastic forensic video on snow foams , I’m glad I’m already a proud owner of auto foam and magifoam which I mixtogerher to make my autofoam foamier to it cling that little bit longer on sunny or windy days 😎
Lol don't mix chemicals
youre smart guy jon.
social media demands it be foamy so your car looks great for that 20 seconds when its covered in foam so youy can take a pic. but they dont actually care if its cleaning xD. but the fact that bilt hamber stuff doesnt corrode or rust your car is a great reason to use it. thanks for the vid :)
Just brought BH and while it doesn’t foam that much compared to previous so first outing thought it wouldn’t be as good, is noticeably cleaner when finished. Another great vid.
This is a battle I have been having for a while now - which product has the best cleaning power! Thank you so very much for taking the time to make this video. Really is brilliant! Placing my order for BH Foam now. Thanks again and sub'ed!
The Bilt Hamber is $109.00 USD on Amazon for 5 liters. At that price is it still a good deal? What American product has this type of cleaning power, because Adams certainly doesn't. It is a nice foamer, but good cleaning is what I want from a pre-wash. You are the man I listen too and I really appreciate all the work you put in for these videos.
I've just finished a 10 hour night shift and was gonna skip to the end but you kept my attention for the full video 👏👏 I'm currently using bilt hamber auto foam and I'll stick with it after watching
Honestly, i was surprised how good bilt hamber products are when i started to use them. I especially like that they tend to pay attention to make their products to prevent corrosion as well.
Hi Jon, based on following your channel for a while now, I am not surprised by the BH outcome :) I actually started to use it over the last few months, moving away from ValetPro and YES I see a massive difference...to be honest the foaming on the car is a load of bs, its better it works at doing what it does than looking good! In winter, we get alot of salt on the roads in Southern Finland and BH did a great job this year! Thanks for the super interesting video..keep up the great work!
A shootout between auto foam and wax planet eight below would be a worthwhile video
Jon because of you I went through the hassle to get some bilt hamber auto foam and I'm glad I did worked really good wait 2 weeks to get it wand wash the truck it work better then I thought it would . From Houston texas
I’m glad you touched on how it does or doesn’t affect the protection. I’d hate for it to strip bead maker, a wax or even a ceramic!
Thanks for this comparison, been looking forward to it! 👌🏼
You would have to throw strong acids or alkalies at a ceramic to strip it....what you might see is the beading drop off because there is a residue film of product left on the surface which diminishes the hydrophobic properties, its not removing the ceramic coating as the majority will require physical friction to remove them....i.e. Machine polishing with an abrasive compound.
Nick McConnell and Bilt Hamber is 12.2ph so it’s particularly strong. Hence I wondered how any form of protection would do, ceramic and other sealants/waxes. I guess i’ll have to do my own tests to see how the protection performs against it ha
Jay G to be honest over the 2+ years I have been running my mix of ValetPro Foam and AutoGlym Pro TFR’s it’s never really affected the LSP’s especially not the ceramics. Waxes yeah it might have knocked a month off but that’s no big deal as I would always be applying a new coat every 2-3 months. Things like Colly 476s seem to just brush it off and behave like a ceramic in the durability stakes with a good 6-8 months before it dropped back.
Nick McConnell that’s good to know, thank you. Seems like I’m thinking these snow foams/shampoos are more powerful than they really are and the protection is stronger than I think they really are!
Amazingly useful video as ever and whilst I've never heard of bilt before it will now take place as my only foam. This is why I watch and subscribe, I want the best for my pride and joy but don't like getting ripped off.
Brilliant, always been worried about what possible corrosive components were in foam, I now now what one to use.
Thanks very much for taking the time and money to do this test for us. As a current B hamber user I am pleased with the result. It really does shift the dirt. Not impressed with vallet pro.
Shocked with the results from the steel test!
Acids tend to corrode steel, while akalines tend to preserv it.
Possibly the most thorough product review I have ever seen. Thank you!
I have used bilt hammer foam several years and its great product but this year I try King Carthur Control Snow Foam and I would say that the cleaning power is even a little better than in bilt hammer.
Agree 100%, cleaning ability over gimmicky thick foam any day. Used Meguiar’s Hyper Wash and Auto Finesse Avalanche, not impressed with either of them. Tried BH Auto Foam after seeing you mention it in another video and won’t use anything else now.
I use Bilt Hamber autofoam 90% of the time unless I’m wanting to go round with brushes and it needs agitating then I throw a little fast foam by angelwax in. For years I used magifoam but moved to autofoam last year and haven’t looked back
Tried out BH autofoam in a pump sprayer diluted to recommended 4% and was mightily impressed! Left me thinking if paint is contaminant free with a good layer of protection to begin with, a touchless wash might be achievable without leaving me feeling like I’ve only done half a job. Having used most of these products except this one I’m now a stout +1 proponent that this stuff works way beyond others in the same category. Thanks for the thorough review and unbiased recommendation 👍
Did a bit of research after my meguiars snow foam ran out. Bought the Bilt Hamber based on that research and using their other products. Glad I did because your video has vindicated my decision👍
Great video as always mate, very much appreciate all the hard work you put into them! They come in so bloody handy at times.
This video confirmed my own findings from personal experience of using both BH Auto foam and AG Polar Blast. The Polar Blast really seemed to do nothing for me in terms of removing traffic film, despite having fantastically thick and clingy foam - that lasts for days on the driveway!
After trying the BH Auto Foam I've never looked back, I was truly surprised at just how well this snowfoam breaks down anything and everything that clings to the clear coat.
Cheers,
Jason
Excellent review as always, thanks for your work Jon. Been using BHAF for a good few years, in a pump sprayer at 4% with hot water. Works an absolute treat, especially in the winter.
Finally somebody that tells me that the pump sprayer with autofoam is doable
@@dimmacommunication it certainly is, but you don't get foam though!
@@bartonSkett Yeah I know, it's much more convenient for me to use it, does it work well with pump spray ? 🤔
@@bartonSkett you get a bit if you replace pump spray nozzle with a foaming one
Literally sir, you are a product genius I can't believe you're only on 58k subs.... Keep going mate
More than doubled now! 👍👍
Brilliant Jon! Results in there that are both expected and surprising. Magifoam I wasn't expecting to do so well as when I tried it out long ago I was underwhelmed with the cleaning ability... I may need to revist it as a product! As for Autofoam, not surprised at all, it's cleaning ability is very impressive.
You need to try Waxplanets 8 below Jon. I've been blown away by it's cleaning ability and it's on par, if not slightly better than Autofoam. It's very thick and clings for 20+ minutes, long enough to get around and clean your wheels before rinsing. I think it's cleaning ability must come from this very long dwell. Finally you only need 2% PIR for this performance, meaning it's actually very cheap per wash.
I use Bilt Hamber and nothing else. One reason and one reason only. I own a classic car and rust prevention is number one on my list of priorities.
I am more worried about degrading my protection on the vehicle more than cleaning power. I take care of my car and, most of the time, I am doing a maintenance pre-foam. Having some good foam can help add lubricity and remove filth off the vehicle panels. Sure I agree with you regarding the majority of people's expectations regarding foam but there is a place for it.
So glad I took heed of your recommendation from previous videos and got myself the bilt hamber, such a good product and very reasonably priced, top video too keep up the good work
You could use 2 snow foams, Bilt Hamber snow foam to clean the dirt of in a touch less method then follow with using something like Adams or Chemical Guys snow for the touch wash for their lubricity, best of both worlds if cost is no consideration
Thanks Jon, i've been using BH AutoFoam for about a year and was starting to get itchy feet about it.. you've reassured me to keep using it (good job since i have 7 litres left..)!
its always fun to try new stuff. I must have tried over 30 maybe more snow foams now. Autofoam is the one thats impressed me the most and the testing on this video kind of reinforced my opinion of it.
Been using the BH AF for a year now after testing out ValetPro, AF and a couple of others - yes, the foam isn't anywhere near the AF or VP products but it cleans beautifully - the VP product i used was more of a full decon wash, strips everything off the surface, which has it's place especially before i ceramic coated my vehicles. I like mixing the BHAF with a spray bottle of the SurfexHD as a spot clean with my brush in winter while the BHAF does it's job on the lower panel area.
I’ve been meaning to try BILT hamber auto foam for a while as i know it’s got great cleaning power and it’s quite cheap. I’ve still been buying Autoglym polar blast though because it’s just so convenient to get it on offer from Halfords for a tenner! It’s cleaning power isn’t great, but it’s very foamy and it does actually revive my double speed wax quite well before the contact wash. Decent stuff, great video Jon
Great vid I have been banging on about BH Auto foam for years now about how good it is.
Agree bilt hamber the best from my experiences. Foams temporarily but then goes flat and you see dirt running off into the ground. Some other foams almost seem to do very little in this regard. It's especially noticeable on dirty wheels.
Good to see the results - the steel test is shocking!
AD Magifoam is decent, but its good to have an alternative now that they have a "Apple-like" attitude in their discussion forums (Banned from talking about other products in any way, or even showing a detail that doesnt entirely use their range :-o )
Time to order some BH!
IIRC they bought out some enthusiast forum which was a very clever move. so yer you could only post about their products in there etc...
Great video Jon, and as you said at the end of the video you look for a product that actually cleans...sod the bucket loads of foam. I actually do a custom mix for my lance where I use half the prescribed quantity of the ValetPro product (for the foaming element) and half the prescribed quantity of AutoGlym professional Advanced TFR for the summer months or the Heavy Duty TFR in the winter. This combo gives the perfect combination of cleaning and cling. There are too many fluffies out there that think a TFR is the root of all evil when in reality a lot of the fancy labeled products are probably more caustic as long as you used a product responsibly then all is good! If you want a non touch clean then you need some strong surfactants and ingredients and thats a fact and something you showed in the video. I have to say my 25L of AG Pro TRF's are waaaaayyyy better value than any of the retail 5l products :)
Great video! I like purple power vehicle and boat soap for any that I’m doing a full decontamination on. I feel like it does a good job breaking down grime
I have never seen such an amazing and detailed video on anything - what a job thank you for posting - best Glaze next?
Hey there, we done glazes already :)
I have been using Bilt Hamber for a while now and it's awesome enough said !!!!!!!!
legend cheers carl.
Your crazy!!! In a good way, superb information, just solved my dilema choosing a snow foam. Want to add, that all of your videos are amazing, no bs, pure honesty 👍
Glad I could help :)
Well done Jon, a great and in depth comparison that as usual, goes beyond what other channels do. Really interesting about the corrosion. I never considered that before but it is important. No surprise that Auto Foam won as I’ve never found anything that beats it in over 10 years of using. People criticise it sometimes for not producing a thick foam but I find that a plus point. Being thinner, it runs off taking the dirt with it much quicker. Especially handy in summer as it does it’s job before drying out.
Funnily enough loads of people said Magifoam was a good drain cleaner, guess you proved them wrong!
Another great video John, it confirms what I think I already knew, that BH Auto Foam is by far the best product. I’ve used lots of others but nothing has come close. Keep up the great work 👍🏼
I currently predominantly use Bowden's Own products.
They smell great, are Australian made, have a great social media presence with all sorts of guides, contain no salts and are pH neutral. They're also really well priced and regularly have discounts.
Thanks Jon, the volume is higher this time which makes it easier to follow 🤗 ... I use Griots garage snow foam, great suds, but low cleaning capabilities IMO.. the products you tested have high PH which would explain why they are more effective.. Still, I would worry that they might strip the Beadmaker I apply regularly. I wash my car every week so I kind of err on the cautious side I guess. Although I know you already said multiple times not to worry too much about PH.. Thanks for the insight on RUST !!! that is a pain, on a white car...
What a fantastically detailed and scientific test. Most impressed with the dirt simulator and corrosion tests. I've only ever used Bilt Hamber and am now very glad! Why? Well, I'm pretty sure it's thanks to a video of yours from a few years ago!
Brilliant video again.
I've tried the Avalanche aand wasn't that impressed and now I've gone back to either Polar Blast or some cherry scented foam I bought off eBay.
I use snow foam slightly different to everyone else.
I give everything a soaking in traffic film remover then pressure wash the vehicle. I then apply a thick coat of snow foam and immediately agitate with a soft mitt. I then without rinsing apply a second coat of snow foam and left that drag everything off.
I'll then follow up with a second rinse, Polar Wash and finally Polar Seal.
I'll then dry and apply a maintenance go over with either Sonax or Beadmaker.
Purchasing some BH Auto Foam based on your tests and recommendations... keep up the good work!
Now that’s what I call an in depth review.
These test/comparison videos r among the most useful vids I’ve found on RUclips... great for the UK consumer. Not sure on the dirt removal test on this one though simply because I’d like to kno what the results would be with the products being used as there suppose to through a foam cannon. I don’t however know how u could do this on a single panel....
Great work so much effort put in to this test but I already knew what what works the best for all the reason you have shown been using BH for a long time as nothing comes close in cleaning power and rust inhibitors a great uk company I believe too so even better reason to buy it
Another top rate review, best man in the game, clear concise and selling nobody no crazy products. Hats off 🎩
Thanks for this Jon. All the hype about gyeon and AF. All we need is Autobrite and Bilt Hamber. Keep up the excellent work chap
depends what your after really. I dont think its too difficult from brands like gyeon and AF to make a very strong cleaner. So they will feel their pre wash products are ideal for use with their protective products.. For me I want something with the capability to really impact dirt during the prewash phase. And if I dont need so much horsepower I lower the dilution down and let it dwell less. So autofoam kind of gives me what I need and its really well priced. The gyeon product is pretty sweet in some ways, but its quite expensive, and it doesnt have the rapid cleaning power of autofoam in my opinion. I would potentially use AG, AF or Gyeon though, but its like how many snow foams can you have you have to pick one really dont you.