Mitter curtains are
cloth
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
-like or
ribbon
A ribbon or riband is a thin band of material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily as decorative binding and tying. Cloth ribbons are made of natural materials such as silk, cotton, and jute and of synthetic mater ...
-styled materials that are used in many
car wash
A car wash, carwash, or auto wash is a facility used to clean the exterior, and in some cases the interior of motor vehicles. Car washes can be self-service, full-service (with attendants who wash the vehicle), or fully automated (possi ...
es worldwide. The term ''mitter'' is the generic word for a device that moves side-to-side, front-to-back or carousel styles as
vehicle
A vehicle (from la, vehiculum) is a machine that transports people or cargo. Vehicles include wagons, bicycles, motor vehicles (motorcycles, cars, trucks, buses, mobility scooters for disabled people), railed vehicles (trains, trams), wa ...
s pass through the car wash. It's not known when mitters were first used in the car wash business; various sources, however, date first use to the late 1960s, 1970s or early 1980s. The baskets holding the curtains are usually
stainless steel
Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...
. Although mitter curtains are primarily used in car washes in North America, they also appear in Europe, Australia and Asia.
Operation
In many car washes, the mitter curtains are operated in place of top brushes (in some countries the opposite happens). Some car washes carry both mitter curtains and top brushes while others carry multiple mitters. The curtains are often preceded by rinse arches and followed with a
foam
Foams are materials formed by trapping pockets of gas in a liquid or solid.
A bath sponge and the head on a glass of beer are examples of foams. In most foams, the volume of gas is large, with thin films of liquid or solid separating the reg ...
applicator and car wash brushes.
Between 72 and 168 cars per hour travel through car washes with mitter curtains. The mitter curtains are cleaned daily with water and cleaning soaps. Some companies have mitter curtains that are less likely to become soaked with dirt and need cleaning. Although sometimes used in bay car washes, mitter curtains are more often used in tunnel car washes. Furthermore, some car wash networks operate mitters for drying alongside those for washing and cleaning.
See also
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Auto detailing
Auto detailing is an activity that keeps the vehicle in its best possible condition, especially cosmetic, as opposed to mechanical. This is achieved by removing both visible and invisible contaminants from the vehicle's interior, and polishing ...
References
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Motor vehicle maintenance
Service retailing