Over the last few attempts at car maintenance, here are some stuff I found out along the way.
Bird Droppings
Left alone for more than 10 minutes, these leave a faint residue that dulls your wax surface. I was told by a mobile groomer that I should first cover the droppings with a soaking wet tissue paper, lift it immediately to rid off the bulk of the stuff. Follow up with another wet tissue paper, place it on top of the stain and wait a couple of minutes, and gently wipe it off. Attempt this another time if there's still visible dirt.
IF the droppings have been left for a length of time, the dull residue will not go away easily. My guess is that the wax has been corroded by the acidic droppings. I have attempted leaving the tissue paper for ages (10 mins), using varying concentrations of shampoo solution and even going to the car wash kiosks for full thorough washings but the stain persists.
At this point, attempting to wax over the stains will actually seal them in beneath the new layer of way. This leaves that section dull.
I did notice however, that when I use a waxing compound that has polishing properties in it (polishes/cleaner waxes), the stains actually go away. I reckon this is due to the polishers stripping a thin layer of the wax which rids of the stain. Following up with a wax job usually finishes the process quite nicely.
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Wax application
Although there's much debate on the quality of different brands of waxes, little is said about the actual application. Try looking at the stated instructions on the back of the bottles and chances are, you'll get pretty much the same. Apply sparingly on a 2' by 2' section, allow to haze, buff off with a clean cloth.
To the first timer, there can be alot of interpretations. How much is considered "sparing", what's the method of application, what are the indications of proper hazing and buffing?
A heuristic approach to the volume of wax needed would be to pour/wipe a 50 cent coin area of wax compound onto an applicator (round sponge commonly sold in stores). This should give you enough wax for a 2' by 2' area of application. Although it's stated as 2 by 2, you needn't form a square really. :roll: Just cover the sections in a logical direction - i.e. from left to right.
The crux of wax application is to ensure that the wax is as evenly distributed as possible across the entire panel. There are 2 main ways of accomplishing this on the hood/bonnet for example.
1) Draw/spread several columns a couple of inches apart. Then with start of each column, gyrate/circulate the wax applicator (sponge) e.g. from top-to-bottom to form spirals that evenly spread out the wax columns.
I prefer the second method:
2) Draw/spread several vertical columns a couple of inches apart. Then starting from the top, smear those columns horizontally from left-to-right-to-left in a zig-zag fashion. Finish off with vertical spreads from top to bottom (*in the direction of air flow: to be explained). This ensures a very even distribution of wax and secondly, it's IMO easier to apply than the spiral method.
*Spreading the wax layer in the direction of air flow will minimise swirl marks when viewed under critical conditions or bright lights. (Sam was the first person to tell me about this). This means that the hood/bonnet should be covered from top-to-bottom and door panels from side-to-side.
On the whole, the applied layer of wax should hardly be visible. If you can clearly see the opaque blotch of wax, you've probably used too much which will be hard to buff off later.
Things to look out for:
- black plastic mouldings (handles) can be stained with unsightly white wax streaks that are hard to rid of (except with certain solvents). Thus avoid going too close (leave an inch) around these areas initially. Come back to these areas with smaller motions and care. Have some cloth on hand to wipe off the wax the moment you make a mistake.
(to be continued...)
Bird Droppings
Left alone for more than 10 minutes, these leave a faint residue that dulls your wax surface. I was told by a mobile groomer that I should first cover the droppings with a soaking wet tissue paper, lift it immediately to rid off the bulk of the stuff. Follow up with another wet tissue paper, place it on top of the stain and wait a couple of minutes, and gently wipe it off. Attempt this another time if there's still visible dirt.
IF the droppings have been left for a length of time, the dull residue will not go away easily. My guess is that the wax has been corroded by the acidic droppings. I have attempted leaving the tissue paper for ages (10 mins), using varying concentrations of shampoo solution and even going to the car wash kiosks for full thorough washings but the stain persists.
At this point, attempting to wax over the stains will actually seal them in beneath the new layer of way. This leaves that section dull.
I did notice however, that when I use a waxing compound that has polishing properties in it (polishes/cleaner waxes), the stains actually go away. I reckon this is due to the polishers stripping a thin layer of the wax which rids of the stain. Following up with a wax job usually finishes the process quite nicely.
-------------------------------------------------------
Wax application
Although there's much debate on the quality of different brands of waxes, little is said about the actual application. Try looking at the stated instructions on the back of the bottles and chances are, you'll get pretty much the same. Apply sparingly on a 2' by 2' section, allow to haze, buff off with a clean cloth.
To the first timer, there can be alot of interpretations. How much is considered "sparing", what's the method of application, what are the indications of proper hazing and buffing?
A heuristic approach to the volume of wax needed would be to pour/wipe a 50 cent coin area of wax compound onto an applicator (round sponge commonly sold in stores). This should give you enough wax for a 2' by 2' area of application. Although it's stated as 2 by 2, you needn't form a square really. :roll: Just cover the sections in a logical direction - i.e. from left to right.
The crux of wax application is to ensure that the wax is as evenly distributed as possible across the entire panel. There are 2 main ways of accomplishing this on the hood/bonnet for example.
1) Draw/spread several columns a couple of inches apart. Then with start of each column, gyrate/circulate the wax applicator (sponge) e.g. from top-to-bottom to form spirals that evenly spread out the wax columns.
I prefer the second method:
2) Draw/spread several vertical columns a couple of inches apart. Then starting from the top, smear those columns horizontally from left-to-right-to-left in a zig-zag fashion. Finish off with vertical spreads from top to bottom (*in the direction of air flow: to be explained). This ensures a very even distribution of wax and secondly, it's IMO easier to apply than the spiral method.
*Spreading the wax layer in the direction of air flow will minimise swirl marks when viewed under critical conditions or bright lights. (Sam was the first person to tell me about this). This means that the hood/bonnet should be covered from top-to-bottom and door panels from side-to-side.
On the whole, the applied layer of wax should hardly be visible. If you can clearly see the opaque blotch of wax, you've probably used too much which will be hard to buff off later.
Things to look out for:
- black plastic mouldings (handles) can be stained with unsightly white wax streaks that are hard to rid of (except with certain solvents). Thus avoid going too close (leave an inch) around these areas initially. Come back to these areas with smaller motions and care. Have some cloth on hand to wipe off the wax the moment you make a mistake.
(to be continued...)