Best Optimum Product for Cleaning/Maintaining Fabric Convertible Top

[Detail Mutant]

I have a client with a 2006 Black BMW E85 Z4 convertible with fabric top.  They are are looking for suggestions on products to maintain vehicle.  For the paint work I am suggesting ONR, Big Red Sponge and OCW as drying aid (as the wax seems to look better on darker colors than opti-seal) and using Pluffle microfiber from the Rag Company for drying.

For the fabric convertible top, I am unsure what Optimum products would be most appropriate. Most dedicated fabric convertible top cleaners are mild APC that are easily rinsed away.  What would be the recommended Optimum product?  Power Clean seems a bit to aggressive to me and based on my experience  (at least 3:1 dilution ratio)requires significant volume of water to fully rinse off. 

Would ONR work and what would be the best application and drying method?  What about about ONRWW on the fabric top, any concerns with the wax content?

What about Optimum Fabric and Carpet Clean and Protect?  Would this have any impact to application and/or longevity to fabric protection (Scotchgard, 303 or other)?

Any suggestions would be helpful as I would like to keep the products within the Optimum "synergy" to maintain maximum efficiency for the client so they are more likely to keep up on exterior maintenance. Note the vehicle is garaged over the winter so there is no need to worry about winter maintenance. 

[theTHiiiNG]

Sorry, I don't have an answer to your question but I am interested in this as well. The great thing about OPT products is they are so versatile and have so many uses. 

It would be great to have a 'cheat sheet' of rough dilutions for each product. 

In this case I would have actually been thinking a very diluted Power Clean may do the trick, possibly even followed up by Fabric Clean & Protect. 

[Ron@Optimum]

For heavy duty cleaning you can use Power Clean (I've cleaned carpets at 1:5 dilution).  For normal maintenance I use Fabric Clean & Protect on carpets and my convertible top (it can be used at full concentration for heavy stains) - the benefit is the protection it leaves behind (fun to watch water bead on a convertible top).

[Detail Mutant]

Thanks Ron.

So I am definitely interested in suggestion/using Fabric Clean & Protect on the fabric top. I am just wondering whether it's water repel characteristics and UV protection are a suitable replacement to a Scotchgard-like application every 6 months.  I know it will depend on the environment exposed to (temperature, UV exposure, rain, etc.) but how often in your experience would you apply Fabric Clean & Protect to maintain some hydrophobic properties (monthly, less or more frequently)? For the application process would you spray on to the fabric top (at standard 3:1 dilution), agitate with soft bristle brush and then blot with a microfiber towel (preferably one with minimal loose fibers to avoid lint on fabric top)?

I had suggested to the client to seasonally apply Scotchgard but the one issue with this type of protectant is you want to make sure not to leave any overspray on rubber seals and plastic as it cause significant damage.  To be safe, I would normally tape all the rubber seals close to the border of the fabric top.  Looking at my bottle of Optimum Fabric Clean & Protect, I see no warnings about leaving on rubber and plastics so I assume it will not damage those materials.  

If this is a suitable replacement, it would be a significant time savings as you just apply at regular cleaning interval (nominal 15 minutes monthly) and not have to go through significant seasonal prep (wash thoroughly, wait to dry, tape up  rubber/plastic trim, apply several light coats of Scotchgard, needs to dry before being exposed to rain which is 1-1.5 hours of hands on work with significant delay time for drying).

And the cost savings looks good too.  A single can of Scotchgard is about 1/3 the price of a 32 oz bottle of Fabric Clean & Protect.  A single can of Scotchgard is maybe good for one year (two full applications) whereas Fabric Clean & Protect would produce 128 oz at the standard dilution of 3:1.  Assuming nominal 2 oz per application on the fabric top,  you would have enough solution for 64 applications (or 5.3 years assuming monthly application).  You come out ahead after year 3  plus even with Scotchgard, you need to acquire another product for periodically cleaning the fabric top.

[Ron@Optimum]

I'm not sure I can say that Fabric & Carpet Cleaner & Protectant is a replacement for a dedicated product like Scotchgard, since it does double duty.  I've had it on my convertible top for 6+ weeks and it still beads water (though my Z3 is the ultimate Garage Queen).  For heavy soil I spray, brush into the fibers, dry, then spray again and wipe.  I would think that quarterly application would be sufficient.

[Detail Mutant]

6+ weeks is impressive especially if it is at the standard 3:1 dilution ratio.  I may have to do my first YouTube video test with standard cleaner (APC) on one section, 3:1 Fabric Carpet Cleaner Protect dilution ratio on another section and undiluted Fabric Carpet Cleaner Protect on another section to show the different levels of water beading (none to hopefully very good).  This is assuming the client is willing to let me use the car for the test.

[Heijneker]

On 5/22/2018 at 9:42 PM, Detail Mutant said:

6+ weeks is impressive especially if it is at the standard 3:1 dilution ratio.  I may have to do my first YouTube video test with standard cleaner (APC) on one section, 3:1 Fabric Carpet Cleaner Protect dilution ratio on another section and undiluted Fabric Carpet Cleaner Protect on another section to show the different levels of water beading (none to hopefully very good).  This is assuming the client is willing to let me use the car for the test.

Did you manage to do this test? I need some advice from the experts!

The roof:

I recelty had a VERY neglected convertible roof to clean, but sadly nothing seemed to really work. The roof is about 15 years old, most likely never cleaned before and lives outside in The Wet Netherlands. I suspect it used to live under a tree as well. This was worst case scenario.

What I tried already:

I soaked it in water first, then applied Power Clean @ 1:6 Distilled water, and brushed it with Optimum/TRC Tire Scrub brush. HOLY COW, the amount of green dirt that came off was insane. I then rinsed it with an insecticide sprayer and vacuumed it dry, which revealed a cleaner surface, but still moss was remaining. I repeated this process about 3 times, even rinsing with a pressure washer (desperate), which helped, but still. Not even using a brush attachment on my FLEX XFE 7-15 would do the trick. Moss was still visible, and If you scratched the roof with your nail, significant amounts of moss would come off. 

The 4th time I used OCFCP concentrate @ 1:3 Distilled water, brushed it, worked it in with a towel and vacuumed it dry. I will book a second appointment with the car soon enough. Let's see if OCFCP managed to protect the roof somehow, even though that would be a small miracle given the circumstances.

Any thoughts on what I could try next?

I think the roof is too far gone, but have no real experience on this, so don't want to give up right away.

[Ron@Optimum]

My only suggestion is to use OCFCP at full strength...I've done that with bad stains and had success.  Just be sure to rinse well -

[Kiddetailer]

Is it usually recommended to rinse the Optimum Carpet Fabric cleaner? I'm reading both, that it should be rinsed or no it should not be. 

[Heijneker]

I think @Ron@Optimum is the man to answer that question. 

How I read the instructions; you can use it without an extractor, but it would be better if you did. I used to only use a DA polisher, an MF pad and a MF towel and got absolutely astonishing results (pictures in other threads).

Right now I vacuum the seat as well after going over the seats with a polisher. It seems to really pick up dirt and changes the color of the fabric after passing over. Ive got a REALLY powerful vacuum though, probably comparable to the MyTee Lite or something.

For cconvertible tops, I would suggest rinsing would be sufficient, but extract as well if possible. Otherwise dry with MF towels.

On-topic:

I had the car back in for a second appointment. The roof had no hydrophobic properties in this specific instance. But like I said before, that would have been a miracle. The roof was a mess.

[Ron@Optimum]

I always rinse with ONR dampened microfiber to remove dirt and any excess Cleaner - the protection should still be on carpet fibers.