Triple Foam Setup

[wrightwash]

Hello all, is there anyone on here who has built their own triple foam setup? Do you have any pros, cons, or advice? Thinking about working on this for a winter project. I will likely move my presoak and tire over to the foam wand as well.

 

[OurTown]

I don't see a big downside other than the time you will put into it. Assuming the switching single color at a time type you will need some type of controller/timer to switch between the colors. Also you will need to build a purging blow down/antifreeze injection system if you will use a foaming protectant and not the typical conditioner. Also will need that if you are putting tire cleaner and presoak on it.

 

[Bill Capron]

I have a triple foam system. I don’t see any extra value in it. It was sold to me as “The customer will see the color change and use it longer!” That has not been my experience. What I see is the customer uses the foam brush as long as it takes to wash the car.
In addition, my system always starts on the first color. The timer switches to the second color after a set amount of time. When the customer stops using foam brush it always restarts on the first color. My soap use is first color goes fast, second color gets some use, third color lasts forever.
I wouldn’t do tri color foam brush again.

 

[OurTown]

I have a triple foam system. I don’t see any extra value in it. It was sold to me as “The customer will see the color change and use it longer!” That has not been my experience. What I see is the customer uses the foam brush as long as it takes to wash the car.
In addition, my system always starts on the first color. The timer switches to the second color after a set amount of time. When the customer stops using foam brush it always restarts on the first color. My soap use is first color goes fast, second color gets some use, third color lasts forever.
I wouldn’t do tri color foam brush again.

He's not going to put it on his foam brush. It's going to be on it's own gun.

 

[Ryancross11]

I’ve had great results in moving presoak to a foam gun. I would do triple if I had enough room in the mechanical room.

 

[MEP001]

I designed and built a triple foam system when I worked for a distributor. It's not complicated. I had Dralco design this tank, except in the Dultmeier catalog it's turned around with the plumbing on the front and has no board for the solenoids (the model WT33).

Multi-Compartment Holding Tanks - Dultmeier Sales

Multi-Compartment Holding Tanks, Stainless steel multi-compartment holding tanks for soap, wax, brush detergents, tire cleaners, etc. Can be easily plumbed for float valves or mixing valves.;;Model 22

www.dultmeier.com

I used a programmable relay to control the colors and have it so each color overlaps so you get six instead of three. I can send you the program which you can upload to the relay with a standard ethernet cable. Wiring it is super simple. It includes an output for an air solenoid for the Flojet.

My customers love the trifoam. About a third of them use it. The key is installing the gun where they can find it. A local guy who has several washes and builds equipment installed trifoam guns at the farthest point in the bay from the meter box. I was at that wash waiting for him one day and in the space of 15 minutes watched TWO of his customers select trifoam, look around for the gun without finding it, then went to another selection. He took the system out.

 

[cantbreak80]

My soap use is first color goes fast, second color gets some use, third color lasts forever.

A customer shared his frustration with color 1 consumption...
“It blows through the pink foam and barely uses the blue. I just use one color now.”

Sure enough, his 3 Hydrominders were all supplied from the pink foam jug.

“I can fix that for you.” I boldly promised. (I left out the “I Think” part.)

After some tinkering with my PLR software, I was able to solve the issue…A resetting 3 Bit Shift Register does the trick.
The controller now energizes the next color solenoid when the system comes off idle.
It also delays pump activation for 2 seconds to prove the customer’s selection.
He’s happy with the equal product consumption rates and I now incorporate that feature in all my Tri-Foam PLRs.

 

[MEP001]

I had the same problem with my first iteration. I ended up having the color-changing ladder run in the background all the time with the inputs enabling the outputs. I do a 1-second output delay.

 

[2Biz]

I bought an adjustable stop light sequencer off Ebay for backup to my current system. I need to check how the sequences start. I have the same issue with Yellow not getting used as much. But it's not a show stopper. My TF gets used a lot.