I have been experimenting with different High PH presoaks and was wondering if I can use a common titration kit to kind of get a baseline idea of what the strength of the different products are. Using all the different titration kits for the different presoaks doen't seem like it gives me a comparison from one product to the next. Isn't the active ingredient that actually does the cleaning the same in all high PH products?
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Titration kits good for all presoaks?
- Thread starter sparkey
- Start date
rph9168
Carwashguy
Assuming you have a titration kit this should work for any unknown acid or alkaline product.
Mix a known sample at a dilution ratio close to a guessed range. For example, if you have a presoak running a purple hydro-minder tip you would mix a known dilution ratio of the competitor’s product at 1:128 or 1 ounce to 1 gallon. There are many ways to mix known ratios the easiest way I have found is to use a 100 ml beaker and two 500 ml beakers. Fill one of the 500 ml beakers with water and the 100 ml with the product. Fill the second 500 ml beaker with the appropriate water to chemical ratio. For example if you wanted a 1:10 known ratio you would add 100 ml water and 10 ml of product to the second 500 ml beaker. Once you’ve added the two together make sure to stir the mixture together.
Titrate the unknown product at the application - i.e. the arch, the prep gun, whatever and write down your results.
To find the unknown ratio multiply the number of drops of the known ratio by the known ratio and divide that number by the number of drops of are unknown ratio to get the unknown ratio.
Drops of known ratio X known ratio
Drops of unknown ratio = Unknown Ratio
From my experience this is accurate to + or – 5 parts
Mix a known sample at a dilution ratio close to a guessed range. For example, if you have a presoak running a purple hydro-minder tip you would mix a known dilution ratio of the competitor’s product at 1:128 or 1 ounce to 1 gallon. There are many ways to mix known ratios the easiest way I have found is to use a 100 ml beaker and two 500 ml beakers. Fill one of the 500 ml beakers with water and the 100 ml with the product. Fill the second 500 ml beaker with the appropriate water to chemical ratio. For example if you wanted a 1:10 known ratio you would add 100 ml water and 10 ml of product to the second 500 ml beaker. Once you’ve added the two together make sure to stir the mixture together.
Titrate the unknown product at the application - i.e. the arch, the prep gun, whatever and write down your results.
To find the unknown ratio multiply the number of drops of the known ratio by the known ratio and divide that number by the number of drops of are unknown ratio to get the unknown ratio.
Drops of known ratio X known ratio
Drops of unknown ratio = Unknown Ratio
From my experience this is accurate to + or – 5 parts
robert roman
Bob Roman
If you are experimenting, you must be trying to achieve some specific goal and objective. Perhaps it is a certain level of cleanliness, cost efficiency, etc. If so, titration alone may not get you there.
When I experimented, I used price, quality and cost function to evaluate products. I began by establishing standards for each wash recipe.
For example, base wash $5.00; clean body, reasonably clean rims, no eyebrows and reasonably dry; how much does this cost per car in chemistry, water, electric and fuel.
Deluxe wash $7.00; very clean rims, clearcoat beads water, very dry; how much does this cost per car?
Premium $10.00; shinier surface, exceptionally dry, few water spots; how much does this cost per car?
I believe if you use a process like this your experiments may bear more fruit.
When I experimented, I used price, quality and cost function to evaluate products. I began by establishing standards for each wash recipe.
For example, base wash $5.00; clean body, reasonably clean rims, no eyebrows and reasonably dry; how much does this cost per car in chemistry, water, electric and fuel.
Deluxe wash $7.00; very clean rims, clearcoat beads water, very dry; how much does this cost per car?
Premium $10.00; shinier surface, exceptionally dry, few water spots; how much does this cost per car?
I believe if you use a process like this your experiments may bear more fruit.
You can use Company "A"s titration kit on Company "B"s product. It will measure the strength of the builder in the product, not the strength of the surfactant or any solvency. Theoretically, two products may test the same level of alkalinity or acidity but not offer the same level of performance. My experience has been that the more alkaline a product, the less the surfactant and solvency comes into play.
My goal would be maximal cleaning effectiveness with the least amount of alkalinity I could get by with.
My goal would be maximal cleaning effectiveness with the least amount of alkalinity I could get by with.
rph9168
Carwashguy
Some people confuse the pH level with the strength or dilution ratio of a product. I used to do a demo where I would mix a quart solution with a pH of 3. I would then pour that into a gallon of water and test the pH which was still at the level of 3. I would then pour it into a five gallon pail and the pH would remain at the same level.
Titration tells you the dilution ratio but as has been pointed out, there are other factors involved in cleaning. Two products may titrate at the same dilution ratio but there could be a big difference on which cleans better. The main use of titration is to compare the cost of competing products and also to check to make sure the ratio remains constant when checking out the performance of your wash.
Titration tells you the dilution ratio but as has been pointed out, there are other factors involved in cleaning. Two products may titrate at the same dilution ratio but there could be a big difference on which cleans better. The main use of titration is to compare the cost of competing products and also to check to make sure the ratio remains constant when checking out the performance of your wash.