Auto Paint Care
Repairing Bird Poop Damage
The only way to repair the damage caused by bird droppings is to polish
The paint. You must use the polish to blend the surrounding paint,
Bringing it down to the same level as the damaged area. This may sound
Drastic, but it works very well. The only concern is that you're making
The paint thinner, so you must be careful not to polish all the way
Through to the primer. Do so, and you'll have a more noticeable problem
Than the one the bird left behind.
Any good paint polish can be used to fix the damage with a fair amount
Of rubbing. I've found that it's better to start with a fine polishing
Compound (a scratch remover formula works well, too), followed by a good
Hand polish.
This diagram shows how the burn from a bird dropping looks on the paint
Surface. In most cases the burn won't be very deep, but you will see it
On the surface of the paint. Polishing helps to level the surrounding
Paint so the etch mark no longer shows.
Preventing Bird Poop Damage
While it's not really possible to keep birds from bombing your car with
Their dirty little surprises, you can take steps to limit the damage.
The most obvious protection is a car cover (please, not while you're
Driving!). To limit the damage when you get hit, you need to remove the
Offending slime as quickly as possible. Don't wait. Get it off of your
Car.
I've found the best way to clean up after a bird is with a good
Detailing spray and a cotton terry cloth towel. As I'm a clean car
Fanatic, anyway, I keep a little detailing kit in the trunk of my car.
It holds a spray bottle of quick detailing spray, a couple of towels,
And my favorite rubber and vinyl dressing. That's all it takes for me
To keep the car looking great. When a bird gets me, I spray the bird
Droppings with a few shots of detailing spray and wipe it off with the
Towel, turning the towel as necessary to keep a clean wipe on the car.
Another way to protect your paint from bird damage is to keep your car
Waxed. While wax offers limited protection against a juicy attack, it
Makes cleanup much easier. You still need to remove the mess as quickly
As possible.
CLEANING TAR, SAP & BUGS
Summer is tar, sap and bug season. In the summer months, bugs are at
Full population, trees produce more sap, and the heat softens the
Asphalt, producing tar balls on tires. While tar and tree sap can be
Difficult to remove, they do not present a threat to your paint's
Finish. Bug stains, like bird droppings, are very acidic and represent
A significant danger to the beauty of your paint and trim.
Removing Road Tar
As you drive, your car is bombarded with small specks of asphalt, tire
Rubber, grease and oils kicked up by the cars and trucks in front of
You. Left on your car's finish, these petroleum-based contaminants will
Firmly affix themselves to every exterior surface. Soap-and-water
Washing will do little to remove these ugly black spots.
To remove road tar, you need a solvent or strong detergent. Most
Commercial tar removers contain kerosene, mineral spirits or another
Petroleum distillate combined with lubricants to surround and buffer the
Road tar from your paint. Of the petroleum distillate products I've
Tried, I like Autoglym Intensive Tar Remover
<http://autopia-carcare.com/ag-19325.html> the best. A more modern
Solution for tar removal is detailing clay
<http://autopia-carcare.com/detailingclay.html>. If the tar is
Extremely stubborn on your painted surfaces, you can also use a paint
Cleaning polish, like Sonus Paintwork Cleanser
<http://autopia-carcare.com/detailingclay.html> or Ultima Paint Prep
Plus <http://autopia-carcare.com/ult-4012-120.html>.
Removing Tree Sap
Removing tree sap from a car's finish is a bit more difficult than
Removing tar or bird droppings. Incorrectly removing hardened sap can
Scratch your paint. I've found that by hand rubbing the sap spots with
Mineral spirits, I'm able to easily remove the sap without damaging the
Finish. Mineral spirits acts as a solvent to break up and dissolve the sap.
If there is a large amount of sap on the car, or if the sap has been
Left on the finish for an extended period of time, it can be a lot of
Work to remove. For these cases, I discovered that going over the
Affected areas with a light-duty rubbing compound removes the hardened
Surface of the sap spots. Then I can hit the sap with the mineral
Spirits to remove it. The light-duty rubbing compound softens the sap
So the mineral spirits can do its job. The goal is to use the least
Pressure possible, to reduce the risk of scratching the paint. After
Removing heavy sap, I always buff the treated areas with a good polish
To clean up any marks created during hand rubbing with solvent. The
Treated area must also be re-waxed.
Removing Insects (Darn those little bugs!)
What's the last thing that goes through a bug's head when it hits your
windshield? His rear end, of course! All joking aside, the head-on
collision of that juicy June bug on your car's beautiful paint and trim
is far from one-sided. As the bug's exoskeleton explodes, acidic fluids
are firmly embedded in the surface of your car's paint.
Did you know that shellac is a bug byproduct? Think of it, that
beautiful old antique table you love is covered with dried bug juice
(yuck!). Bug splats on your car amount to little more than shellac
mixed with nasty bug parts. Any attempt to remove the calcified remains
without the use of a special cleaning solution could result in scratched
paint.
The secret to removing insect remains is to loosen and dissolve them
with a solvent that will cut through the shellac. Autoglym Intensive
Tar Remover <http://autopia-carcare.com/ag-19325.html> does a great
job. For bugs with a little extra grip, agitate the paint with a
paint-safe insect sponge.
Here I'm using a paint safe insect sponge and cleaner to remove tar and
bug specks from the front of this Porsche Boxster.
If you have a particularly large bug mess, I have discovered a trick
that seems to work pretty well. If you use a pre-wax cleaner, such as
Sonus Paintwork Cleanser <http://autopia-carcare.com/son-400.html>,
apply a small dab to the offending bug splat. Next, cover the spot with
a wadded-up tissue. Let it sit for a few minutes, then pinch up the
mess and give it a soft wipe with the backside of the tissue. Voila!
The bug mess is gone.
After Removing Tar, Sap & Bugs
All of the chemicals used to remove the aforementioned road stains also
remove your wax or sealants. After removing tar, sap or bugs, plan to
spot wax or re-wax your vehicle. If you don't have time to wax right
away, use a quick spray wax like Sonus Acrylic Glanz Spray Sealant
<http://autopia-carcare.com/son-250.html>. This products is great for
touch-ups or a quick waxing after the weekly wash.
WATER SPOTS & SWIRL MARKS
I get a lot of questions from people regarding water spots and swirl
marks. Water spots and swirl marks are different problems, but most
often the solution is the same: polish the paint. I'll address each
problem separately.
Water Spots Will Ruin Car Paint!
The same water you use to bathe your car can also damage your cars
paint. The minerals in the water cause the spots and damage.
When water evaporates off of your car's paint, it leaves behind the
trace elements it contains. Calcium and metals are the most damaging
ingredients found in your tap water. Rainwater may contain damaging
acids from air pollutants.
Getting rid of water spots is easy if you chase after them. The best
solution is to use a quick detailing spray after you wash, or as soon as
you discover the spots (i.e., when your neighbor's sprinkler gets you).
If the spots are allowed to dry and bake on, they will attach to and
harden on your paint. When this happens, you need to use a mild acid to
get them loose. Believe it or not, the best acid is also the least
expensive and most available: a gallon jug of distilled white vinegar.
Expert car detailers have known this secret for years. If you take your
car to a pro, they will tell you about the "magic acid bath" and charge
you $60 or more for the pleasure of smelling like a pickle. Save the
$60. Put on some gloves and get to it.
To give your car the magic acid bath, first wash your car with your
normal car shampoo, rinse, and then use the distilled vinegar. Just
wipe it on with a sponge, and rub it in. Do one section at a time. Let
it sit 30 to 60 seconds, and then rinse. When you're done, wash the car
again with shampoo, and then rinse. By the way, vinegar will remove
your wax, so be prepared to re-wax your car after the vinegar treatment.
Sprinklers showered this car with hard water. The car then sat in the
sun for several days, causing the hard-water deposits to harden.
Vinegar will remove the spots from the aluminum bumper, plastic
taillights and rubber trim, but the paint will need to be polished and
buffed with a buffer.
If water spots are allowed to stay for more than a week or so, the
minerals will etch the paint. In this case, using vinegar will remove
the mineral spots, but the paint will have etched spots (dimples). It
is necessary to use a polish or mild polishing compound to restore the
paint surface.
How-to Remove Swirl Marks
Swirl marks are nothing more than micro marring in the paint surface.
Under a microscope, they appear to be scratches; however, you can't feel
these scratches with your fingers or fingernail.
The reason swirl marks and other micro marring show up so prominently
on black and other dark colors is because the sides of the marring
reflect light. When you polish, the edges are rounded and reduce
reflection.
This diagram shows what severe micro marring might look like in a cross
section of paint.
A buffer in the hands of a pro can do wonders on a car that has heavy
oxidation or minor scratches. Most body shops can use a buffer to blend
touch-ups to perfection. Unfortunately, many detail shops and buffer
owners don't know how to use the tool, or they use the wrong buffing
pads or compounds.
Incorrect use of a buffer or polisher is not the only cause of swirl
marks. Every time you wash or wipe down your car, you create micro
marring. The severity of the micro marring depends on your tools and
the contaminants present. Here are the ten most frequent causes of
micro marring (swirl marks):
* Polishers/buffers with the incorrect pad or an untrained operator.
* Harsh polishing compounds and paint cleaners.
* Towels and applicators containing polyester threads.
* A dirty chamois or a chamois that has not been properly maintained.
* Wiping down a dusty or dirty car with a dry towel.
* A dirty car duster or a car duster used on a car with too much
dirt on the surface.
* Not keeping your wash mitt or sponge properly rinsed.
* Automated car washes with brushes and other wipers.
* Not rinsing your car completely before washing, or not washing
your car thoroughly before drying.
* Using a car cover when the car or the cover is not clean.
The most noticeable areas for swirl marks are the hood and trunk. On
dark-colored cars, they might also show up on the doors and fenders.
Bright colors do not show swirl marks as much because they reflect more
light. That doesn't mean they don't get swirl marks; the marks just
show up more readily on dark colors. Black, of course, is the worst of
all colors for displaying swirls and other imperfections.
This picture, taken by Scott Borders prior to detailing, clearly shows
buffing marks and other micro marring created by an inexperienced
dealership detailer with a buffer. No doubt the Ford truck looked great
when the owner took it home, because most buffer jockeys use a
high-gloss wax that temporarily fills the buffing marks and other minor
scratches.
After buffing and polishing, the swirl marks and hazing are no longer
visible, and the paint surface has a deep, wet look. Scott did a great
job, and the truck owner is very pleased.
Swirl marks can be removed by polishing. Polishing out swirl marks
without a buffer is a lot of work. I recommend polishing your car one
small section at a time so you can see the progress.
To remove swirl marks, use a good polish or "swirl remover." Many
polish manufacturers market a special polish for removing swirls. Swirl
remover polish formulas typically contain fillers and oils to help hide
swirl marks. With regular polishing, over time, swirl marks will
diminish. It's very difficult to completely remove swirl marks. Even
the best towels and wash tools cause some micro marring.
Polishing to Remove Water Spots & Swirl Marks
If your water spots or swirl marks are severe, I recommend using a
product like Sonus Restore (SFX-1)
<http://autopia-carcare.com/son-410.html> to knock them down. Follow
the application of SFX-1 (or any other cutting polish) with a