Waxing after hood repaint

[kev4bama]

Well I got my car back today from where they repainted a small section of the hood and recleared the entire hood. The guy that painted the thing said it was safe to go ahead and throw a coat of NXT on the hood. He said" You can do it right now if you want to." I put one thin coat on especially since we are having a big rainstorm tonight and this area is bad about what I call "dirty rain" Should I have taken his advice and what problems could I have from this?

Thanks

Kevin

[Mike Pennington]

Hi Kevin,

Ideally you want to wait approx. 30 - 90 days before applying any type of true "protectant" weather that is synthetic or natural. This all depends on the kind of paint used, and the method in which is was dried...

Most paint Mfg's will agree with these numbers though, in fact this is where we get our info from.

However, you can apply any type of cleaner or polish. M-07, M-80, M-83, M-82, ScratchX, Deep Crystal Step #2, Deep Crystal Step #1 just to name a few.

M-80 would be the best choice because it does have some paintable protection in it. This will still allow you pain to "cure", but still give you some minor protection at the same time.

The only down side to applying a true protectant is you may inhibit the solvents in the paint from escaping properly during the curing process. I have seen this lead to a milky looking condition in the paint finish.

You should be ok though...

Mike

[kev4bama]

Well like I said I did put a coat of NXT on there so I hope it doesnt cause a problem. Should I try to take it off tomorrow with a wax remover or by washing the hood with dishsoap? Would Swirl Remover 2.0 remove the NXT or do you think that I will be fine? Like I said it was a very small area they actually repainted and the rest of it the just reclearcoated.

Thanks in Advance

Kevin

[Mike Pennington]

I think you will be just fine...

During the next few months feel free to use M-09 on it. In fact, we would recommend about ever 2 -3 weeks to keep it looking ggod during this time. Once thet time has passed, then apply some more NXT Generation tech Wax on it.

Mike

[Mike Phillips]

Here's some information from our FAQ

8. Which Meguiar's products are safe for use on fresh paint?

Mike

[kev4bama]

Does the M-09 actually remove the NXT or does it just overlap?

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by kev4bama
Does the M-09 actually remove the NXT or does it just overlap?

M09 contains a mild diminishing abrasive, how aggressive the product is will be determined by how it is applied and the application material. That said, if you gently apply the M09 by hand to your finish, it will have a cleaning effect and remove some of or most of the NXT on the finish. The key is to be gentle as this is new paint.

Mike

[kev4bama]

does this old trick of wasing once with dishsoap really work?

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by kev4bama
does this old trick of washing once with dish soap really work?

Meguiar's never recommends using dish soap to wash a car, the detergent soap is too harsh not only to your car's finish but also to all the other surface materials used to manufacture the different components that make up a modern car.

As far as washing a car with dishsoap to remove wax goes, every time you wash your car, you remove some of the wax through micro-abrasion. Its not so much the soap, but the combination of soap and wash mitt touching the finish. It is this wiping of the wash mitt over the finish that at some level the moving of the wash mitt over the surface will act to remove some of your wax coating. This is why Meguiar's stresses the importance of a "Maintenance Program". It's also a good idea to do everything in your power to reduce the potential by using a high quality car wash especially formulated to clean your car's paint without dulling it down and while making the wash solution slick as well as a high quality wash mitt that is gentle to the finish.

After washing your car's finish, evaluate the surface. Determine at this point if the car needs to be clayed, cleaned, polished, or simply re-waxed to restore the finish to like-new, show car condition.

As Barry often says,

"Frequent car care is easy car care"

It's only when you neglect your car's finish over time that the paint degrades and deteriorates.

If you want to remove a coating of wax, the best and safest way to do this is to use a non-abrasive paint cleaner like Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner, or ScratchX, or a Cleaner/polish like the M09 Swirl Remover 2.0

Hope this helps...

Mike

[kev4bama]

Thanks Mike! I am putting a coat of M-09 on today to let the paint "breath" for a few weeks as you and the other Mike had mentioned. I appreciate your responses!

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by kev4bama
Thanks Mike! I am putting a coat of M-09 on today to let the paint "breath" for a few weeks as you and the other Mike had mentioned. I appreciate your responses!

If you want to read some more, here's an article I wrote a few months ago....

Paint Needs To Breathe

Words mean things, just ask any Lawyer. Floating around on the Internet, and discussed for decades among car enthusiasts is the myth that paint needs to breathe.

Or is it a myth?

It depends on how literal you read into the words. If you apply the common definition used for the word breath, then “No�, paint does not need to breathe. If however you take a moment to understand the idea that is being expressed with this word, then I think you’ll understand why the word breathe is used when someone says, or posts to the Internet that �Paint needs to breathe�.

The below is just my guestimation as to the story behind the theory or myth that paint needs to breathe. I may be wrong, but my years of working with both painters, detailers and serious car enthusiasts as well as teaching detailing classes makes me think that if I’m not dead on, I’m at least in the ball park. With that said, here my explanation of how the saying, “Paint needs to breathe� originated.

For the last 50 or so years, when a person would have their car painted, upon retrieving it from the painter, the painter would typically recommend that the owner wait for a period of time before applying a coat of wax or some type of paint sealant that seals the paint. The normal period of time that most painters recommend is anywhere from 30 to 60 days and sometimes longer, depending upon the painter. The reason for this waiting period is to allow the different solvents and other additives enough time to fully evaporate out of and off of the surface.

Wax and/or paint sealants, whether natural or synthetic, or a blend of both of these ingredients, seals the paint by coating over the surface and filling into any microscopic surface imperfections creating a barrier coating over the surface. This blocks, or inhibits these solvents from escaping through evaporation, or outgassing. Solvents also called thinners and reducers are used to thin the paint down so that it can be atomized into a spray when applied with a paint gun using compressed air.

When a customer arrives at a body shop or a dealership to pick up their car with its freshly applied paint, most painters will tell the customer to wait a certain number of days before applying wax, or paint sealant over their new paint job. If the customer agrees, then that’s probably as far as the discussion goes.

If the customer asks further questions as to why they must wait before applying a protective coating to their investment, then it is my belief that most painters would do their best to explain to the customer, in easy to understand terminology, so that the customer will understand and comply with his request. This is where I think the saying, paint needs to breathe, originated.

I don’t think most painters would try to explain that the solvents need to outgas in order for the paint to fully dry and harden, instead, I think they would use a more simple approach and merely tell the customer that their new paint needs to breathe.

The above fictional analogy is probably as accurate as any assumption as to how the theory that paint needs to breath was started. (I'm open to other theories however.)

People that understand the painting process understand that paint doesn’t literally need to breathe; they do understand that fresh paint needs to outgas. This means that for a period of time, the solvents and other carrying agents, which are used to dilute paint to a thin viscosity so that it can be sprayed out of a pressurized air sprayer, need to work their way out of the paint through the evaporation process, also referred to as outgassing.

Read the below two scenarios and then decide for yourself, which scenario sounds more plausible.

In an effort to explain to their customers why paint manufactures recommend waiting for at least 30 days to pass before applying a coating of wax or a paint sealant, the painter can,

• 1. Try to explain the outgassing process over and over again throughout their career.
  2. Use a simple analogy that the average person can understand without challenging the painter’s judgment or expertise.

My personal guess is the second option.

If the simple analogy works, it will accomplish the painter’s goal and allow the painter to get back to work, not spend his time explaining the painting process. The goal of course is to prevent the customer from sealing the paint with some type of wax or paint sealant until the paint has completely dried and the out-gassing process is completely over.

• * Paint does not need to breathe in the literal sense that you and I need to breathe as living human beings.
  * Paint does need to breathe in the sense that fresh paint needs to outgas.

Of course, in the last 50 years or so since World War II ended and the car crazy culture really revved up in America, (no pun intended), the result has been explosive growth in the collision repair and custom painting industries. It should be no surprise that the idea that paint needs to breathe has finally reached enough of a critical mass as to be the topic of discussion on numerous discussion forums as well as anywhere a couple of car enthusiasts gather to talk shop.

Depending on how literal you want to read into it, when someone states �Paint needs to breathe�, what they probably mean is that fresh paint needs to outgas, they probably just don’t know, or understand the term outgas, and/or they are confused like many people who have gone before them and are operating under the wrong idea… innocently.

A different, but related version of the above would be someone that applies the same idea that paint needs to breathe to the paint on a brand new car which is also false unless the new car has been painted within the last 30 to 90 days. Sometimes during shipping from the assembly plant to the dealership show room floor, new vehicles are damaged and need repair including repainting. If all the paint on the car is the factory original paint, then it was baked on at the factory as it traveled down the assembly line and was completely cured before it left the assembly plant and it is perfectly safe to apply a coating of waxy or a paint sealant. If the car has been repainted due to damage during transit, then the areas with fresh paint should not be sealed until the recommended waiting period has passed.

Well, this is my stab at the “Paint needs to breathe theory�.

Comments? Click here to post them to this article

Mike