Thursday 21 August 2014

It came from the sky....

There are a number of things that can fall from the sky to cause damage to your paint work. The golden rule with contaminants is to remove them as quickly as possible with the least aggressive process possible. It also helps to keep your car clean and regularly waxed. We would recommend waxing at least once a month and using a good quality car shampoo. 

Industrial Fallout
   This is a broad term that covers a large amount of different substances ranging from soot to paint over spray to iron filings. Depending in type and if not left on the paintwork for an extended period of time this can be removed with cleaning and detailing processes.
Tar, Tree Sap & Insects
    Probably the most common of paintwork contaminants and fairly easy to remove with the correct cleaning products however using poor quality or incorrect products can do more harm than good. 
Bird Droppings
      It was widely accepted that the acid content of bird droppings was damaging paint work but research undertaken by Autoglym revealed that it was the effect of the bird poo insulating the paint as it expanded and contracted with changes in temperature that cause the damage to the clearcoat as can be seen in this photo. 
These marks can sometimes be reduced with machine polishing but require repainting of panels to totally removed

Paint
    This is one we have seen a few times, usually from a neighbour painting a fence. Creosote type paints can be removed using detailing methods without too many issues. Problems start to arise when the paint concerned is an exterior wood gloss or paints used on metal railings, usually Hammerite or a similar product. We have in the past been able to remove these by carefully sanding and machine polishing but there is always the risk of "burning through" the vehicle paint to the primer below. Thickness of paint applied in the factory differs between Manufacturers and from experience we are able to assess how far we can go.
Acid Rain
    We are lucky in the UK not to have an acid rain problem which has been known to cause serious damage to vehicle paintwork but acids found in poor quality wheel cleaners and traffic film removers can cause damage to paintwork as well as discolouring plastic trims and degrading rubbers.

If you have something that is spoiling your car's paintwork why not call the team at Paint Perfect? With years of experience we provide solutions for all kinds of paintwork problems. Call us on  01522 568 247