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Microfiber by Pile Length
Pile is a term used to describe each visible strand of a microfiber towel. Each pile is constructed of thousands upon thousands of individual microfiber strands. There are 4 general pile types: ultra-low pile, low pile, medium pile and high pile. There are variations on these, however for clarity's sake these are the main types widely sold in the market. Generally, the longer the pile the softer the towel will feel. This is not always the case, but it is partial truth because the more piles that come in contact with and conform to your hand (or any surface), the softer the towel will feel. Below are the four general pile types and their characteristics:
Ultra Low Pile
Ultra low [no pile] are the towels you receive when you buy new glasses or sunglasses. They are suited for trapping and removing human oils and tiny particles without smearing. These are almost utterly useless for any other sorts of tasks. It is most likely that ultra low microfiber towels are made of microfiber suede fabrics with either smooth surfaces or brushed surfaces.
Recommended uses: Glass cleaning, navigation / electronics console cleaning.
Low Pile
Low pile is best suited for the removal of compounds, polishes, and waxes. Since the pile is short is has no give (movement away from) in regards to the surface it's in contact with, it cannot shift and is forced into action, trapping up whatever is on top of the contacted surface. That is why it is considered 'grabby' and is the best sort of 'scrubbing' microfiber pile.
The pear weave towels, waffle weave towels, and other types for polishing towels fall in this category of low pile towels. The single sided general purpose microfiber terry towels with short naps also belong to this category.
Recommended uses: Removal of compounds, polishes, waxes. Stubborn spot removal on hard surfaces
Medium Pile
Medium pile microfiber towels are great for general cleaning and can be considered the base level of absorbency, when used for drying purposes.
Often medium piles come with the ultra plush microfiber towels that are manufactured with a low pile side and a medium pile side, allowing for versatility of usage. It should be noted that these are especially versatile for interior cleaning with the two different pile types they can tackle most any task inside a vehicle.
Recommended uses: general cleaning, interior cleaning, light drying.
High Pile
High pile is best for ultra-absorbency and trapping of the most debris. Both of these are due to the fact that a longer pile allows for more surface area of the towel.
Recommended uses: drying, waterless washing, quick detailer.