What does GSM mean for microfiber towels?
GSM is the weight of any fabric or the grams per square meter. Since this is a metric measurement, the fabric weight can be shared in both GSM and Oz, the results will be identical either way. Most of the time, the fabric weight is highly connected to garment thickness. So the fabrics with a higher GSM will usually weigh more when compared to another that has a lower GSM.
In general, you will have a microfiber that has 200 to 350 GSM. There are towels with a lower GSM, and in this case, they come with a lower weight, they are more aggressive and less likely to bring in streaks. Fabrics that come with a high GSM will usually be more durable and they do bring in a gentle cleaning solution.
Normally, the heavier the fabric is, the more raw materials are used to weave it and reach its final state. Does this affect the price? Absolutely, this brings in a much higher quality and value for money. But it’s always worth it.
What is GSM in Microfiber Towels?
Light GSM is anywhere from 1 to 150, the medium is anything from 150 to 350 GSM and then you have the heavy GSM, as you will notice below. Light GSM fabrics will be chiffon, taffeta, voile, and organza. Then you have medium GSM materials like chambray, sateen as well as cambric or velvet. Lastly, you have the heavy GSM materials like twill, hessian, denim or wool felt.
When you purchase a lower GSM fabric, it’s less durable and it’s super thin. The higher you go on the GSM scale, the better the value and durability you will get. One thing to consider here is that after you wash the garment or fabric, the GSM value will increase. This happens because the fabric width and length are shrinking. As a result, the fabric GSM has the potential to change as time goes by.
What is a high GSM?
The high GSM is usually 350 GSM or over. You can encounter this in the case of microfiber towels for example. Normally you want to use GSM fabrics for surfaces that need extra care. That’s particularly useful in the case of a vehicle. It helps bring in additional assistance and support for automotive finishes. High GSM brings a higher pile and this helps remove the debris away naturally. Thanks to the higher pile, the fabric doesn’t scratch the surface, which makes it ideal for automotive cleanup or sensitive item cleanup in general.
While a higher GSM can be better, there are other factors you need to take into consideration. The yarn quality is very important, just like towel construction. Some of the lower quality microfiber materials will sometimes bring a high GSM value because they use a thick base layer that’s 100% polyester. One thing to keep in mind is that most of the microfiber material is weaved via using the base layer and then weaving surface yarn through it. The higher the GSM value for the fiber in question, the more microfiber will have in it and the more water it will absorb.
