Along with keeping your car looking good, your vehicle’s ‘skin’ – or paint – protects the metal underneath. However, if it is exposed to the elements for too long, it will fade, oxidise, and – eventually – corrode. This will ultimately affect your car’s resale value. So, what are the best methods for keeping paint on your car’s surface and the valuable metal beneath it, safe from the elements? This article covers everything you need to know about safeguarding your car’s paint.
1. Regular Washing: The First Step in Paint Protection
The key to paint protection is regular washes: bird droppings, tree sap, insect residues, road grime and rainwater eventually accumulate. In the long term, this stuff can destroy your paint.
Wash Your Car Regularly: Wash your car every two weeks at least (more often if you live in an area with high pollution, dust or saline air) to minimize the potential for contaminants to embed in the paint film or cause staining.
Use the Right Products: Use a car-specific pH-balanced shampoo. Shampoos not formulated for cars are made of harsher surfactants that will strip away protective waxes and sealants that will need to be reapplied to protect the paint. Avoid household detergents.
Soapy water-free rinse: Always try to wash your car without using soapy water, as it increases the chance of getting a scratch. The two-bucket method will help prevent dirt particles in your wash mitt from scratching your car.
Dry Thoroughly: Finally, dry the car with a clean, soft, microfibre towel to avoid water spots that can etch the paint if left to dry on their own.
2. Waxing: A Protective Layer Against the Elements
Waxing the car adds a sealant to prevent paint ingredients from evaporating and degrading, and to shield the paint from environmental contaminants and from UV rays that can cause fading and oxidation.
Chooseax: What’s to use? Inexpensive carnauba wax can provide a great shine, while synthetic waxes might offer extra protection, and ceramic coatings provide better coverage with longer-lasting protection.
Wax Often: To protect the paint, we’d recommend applying a monthly wax coat. If you live in extreme weather environments, you may have to wax more. It is recommended that you wax your car at least twice a year with synthetic waxes or ceramic coatings in order to keep your car looking shiny and new.
Step 4: Waxing your boat correctly: Apply wax in an area that is cool and shaded to avoid the wax from drying too quick and hard. Simply apply a thin, even layer of wax with a foam applicator pad, then buff it out with a clean microfibre towel.
3. Use Paint Sealants for Long-Lasting Protection
Because of their nature, paint sealants offer a thicker layer of protection for longer periods of time. They are synthetic, man-made products, produced in their most basic form by a chemical reaction between resins and acids. It is this bonding that creates a strong seal to the paint surface and protects it from the elements.
Benefits of Paint Sealants: Unlike wax, which sits on top of the paint, sealants chemically bond with the surface, providing months of protection from bug streaks, UV rays, acid rain and pollutant intrusion. They also contribute to improved paint gloss and make it easier to clean.
Application: As with waxes, apply sealants in the shade on a cool day. Load the liquid into your applicator (foam or microfibre) and work it into the paint, allow to cure, and then buff off with a microfibre towel.
With the Wax: For the best of both worlds – long-term protection with a paint sealant, and additional visual impact with a layer of carnauba wax.
4. Consider Ceramic Coatings for Superior Protection
Some advanced paint protection products themselves can provide the benefit of a semi-permanent surface protection to prevent penetration and staining. These come in the form of the so-called ‘ceramic coatings’, or, Cleansing, Lubricants and Polishes (CLPs) with hydrophobic properties. Unlike nano-coatings that are liquid-polymer formulations that bond with the car’s paint in a chemical reaction that creates a ‘diamond’ surface and prevent water and contaminants from adhering to it.
Long-Term Protection: Ceramic coatings provide the longest lasting protection. They protect the paint from UV rays, bird droppings, bug splatter, tree sap and chemical staining. They also enhance the gloss of your paint making your car look newer longer.
Professional application: Fine. Distribution of the coating agent isn’t as critical as you’d think, since achieving a truly Nash Equilibrium with a polymer coating and dirt is nearly impossible. But coating a car at home is messy work, and dirt and oils can possibly contaminate the surface while the bodywork is cleaned. So professional application, including the use of air pumps and ergonomic tools to cover the surface evenly, may be preferable. To begin with, you need to make sure the paintwork is in pristine condition. That’s significantly more challenging than it sounds, as it involves thorough decontamination and polishing of the surface so it will adhere perfectly.
Maintenance: Because ceramic coatings don’t require waxing as often as normal car paint, they can help to cut down on more frequent trips through the car wash. Several different ceramic coatings still require annual dedicated ‘top-ups’ to maintain their characteristics.
5. Protect Your Car from UV Rays
The greatest culprit in causing your car to fade, oxidise and lose its shine is the sun’s rays. In particular, the ultraviolet (UV) radiation is by far the most damaging factor.
Shade Your Car: If possible, park your vehicle in the shade, or line it with a car cover to inhibit direct sunlight from penetrating. Otherwise, use a windshield sunshade to cool the interior and protect the dashboard and upholstery.
UV-Resistant Products To fight the damaging power of UV rays with special UV inhibitor ingredients in car waxes, sealants and ceramic coatings can extend the lifespan of your paintwork.
AND: Tint Your Windows: Window tinting helps reduce the amount of UV damage on the interior, which in turn reduces the overall temperature of the vehicle, thus saving the paint from the damaging effects of the sun.
6. Guard Against Bird Droppings, Tree Sap, and Bug Splatter
Bird poo, tree sap and bugs splatter, which are all acidic, can be chemically detrimental to your vehicle’s paint if not taken care of right away.
Act Fast: If bird droppings, sap or bugs get on your car, get them off of it as soon as you can. Take out a gentle cleaner or quick detailer spray, and a soft microfibre cloth and wipe it off. The longer these contaminants stay on the paint, the more they damage it.
Wrap It Up: Use a car cover to ward off bird debris if you park under trees or similarly bird-heavy areas.
Provide a Protective Coating: For a layer of protection to your vehicle, a regular coat of carnauba wax or sealant will provide a bit of protection against acidic deposits. The coating provides a protective layer for debris to sit on and squash more easily than on the paint itself.
7. Prevent Scratches and Swirl Marks
In addition to looking bad, tiny surface scratches and swirl marks act like minute lenses on your car’s finish, collecting corrosive pollutants from the air, making it easier for water to penetrate to lower, less abrasive levels, and making it even harder for you to clean effectively between the scratches.
Wash with care: Use a high-quality wash mitt (or even two mitts if your car is really dirty) and the two-bucket method when washing your car to minimise the risk for paint scratches. Steer clear of automatic car washes with brushes for any kind of detailing – even a swirl-free car could end up with swirl marks if this is done.
Clay Bar: Use after washing to remove embedded contaminants from the paint, which will help smooth the surface and make it easier to wax or seal without scratching upon application.
Polish It Regularly: Polish removes minor scratches, swirl marks and oxidation, while leaving the paint supple and reflective. Use a dual-action polisher and a light swirl remover.
8. Protect Against Road Salt and Chemicals
There is something about vehicles: all that road salt and chemicals, not to mention the odd oil or fuel spill, will attack the paint and metal of your car or truck, especially when it’s winter.
Sight: Wash Often if You Live in a Salt-Treated Area Where Roads Are Salted in the Winter, Wash Your Car Often to Remove Salt. Salt Keeps Accumulating on the Paint. Particularly, Pay Attention to the Undercarriage Where Rust Will Happen.
Seal it before winter: Apply a good quality paint sealant or ceramic coating to your car’s paint after summer sun diminishes to protect it from salt, sand, and other road chemicals throughout the winter.
Keep Away From Industrial Areas To The Extent That You Can: If you can, do not park close to industrial areas where chemical, dust, and pollutants might be washed towards your car and become trapped in the paint, leading to damage over time.
9. Cover Your Car When Not in Use
If you don’t use your car very often, or if it will be parked outdoors for an extended period, covering it can preserve the paint from the elements.
Throw a Car Cover Over It: A good car cover can shelter your car from UV rays, dust, dirt, bird droppings and other environmental hazards. Pick a breathable covering to avoid moisture collecting underneath, which will result in mold and mildew.
Store in the Garage (If You Have One): If you have a garage or carport, store your car indoors for the night. Environmental damage, which commonly includes fading of the paint and degrading of the interior, is reduced by indoor storage.
Conclusion: Preserve Your Car’s Shine and Value
Protecting your paint from environmental damage isn’t complex or difficult, but it does take regular upkeep, and a proactive stance. Wash your car on a regular basis, wax it, add protective coatings, and do what you can to keep it out of the elements – your car can stay looking like new for years with a little effort. Your car will retain its value, and you’ll save yourself from costly repairs. If you use a little care and attention, your paint can shine on.