Sealant vs Coating

[Top Gear]

Re: Sealant vs Coating

I think it all depends on the owner, car, weather/region, and habits. If I lived in the Southwest, with no other changes, I'd have different habits, cleaning less, etc. However, I live where there is a LOT of wildly different weather, and that means very frequent cleanup, wiping with UWWA and/or GCQW and more frequent or potentially needed bucket washing. It also means more scratches and road rash because the roads are dirtier and wetter.

I've driven all over the Southwest, including LA and Vegas (where what seems like a majority of MOL posters live), and it's just different. In those areas, there is no weather to speak of (by comparison). It's very, very dry, and dust itself is very dry, easily blown off. I can imagine living there with a DD and going many weeks at a stretch using nothing but my California Duster. No wonder it's so easy for MOLers in the Southwest to stay swirl-free. However, Meguiar's, everywhere outside the Southwest deserts and SoCal Coast you'll find a very different daily driver reality. Dust itself can be sticky because it's not actually dry. We have deep humidity, and wild swings of temperature and moisture cycles. Anyone who flies from, say LA to Atlanta, will literally feel what I'm talking about. Your car will be covered in dew most mornings, frost in Winter, one process alone among many that strip away protection, and if the finish was already dirty, you now have a film or coating of dirt that doesn't just fly off with a duster. This is every day. Then there's heavy pounding rains, not once every 6 months, but several times a week in Summer, perhaps every day for a weeks long stretch. Even a medium rain here can compromise your so-called "sealant" in less than an hour, and in Spring, the Gulf rains can pound for days. Good luck with that Quik Detailer, as I found out early on. The density of trees means epic pollen, saps, and related dust and debris. Get closer to the beaches, and you can add salt wash to these processes. After a few days or a week with your "sealant", water may still bead on the surface, but that's just from the polish oils underneath, and a few rains later, those will be gone too. Your expensive coating will be scratched, cloudy, and compromised within weeks, and cleaning it up properly will slowly remove it, anyway. Add to this the winds, runoff and wind-blown contaminants from farming and irrigation, the hard water, and on and on...

Because of this obvious reality of weather conditions, because of my daily driving, the black paint, etc, it all requires very frequent cleaning (waterless or bucketed), and because claying or wiping will compromise coatings, a coating makes no sense at all and is a complete waste of money and time. Some of you think I'm exaggerating, or attacking you or your region, but I'm not. In the South, a freshly detailed car driven daily will need re-detailing within days, and then again within days, again within days, again and again. How would you handle that? This is why waxes-called-sealants also gain me absolutely nothing, and make me laugh every time they're pushed on this forum. If I rarely drove, if I had a white car, if I had a garage, and thus rarely needed to clean the car outright, then I might see it differently...but then, I wouldn't need the coating or so-called sealant in the first place, LOL. It's because of weather and cleaning that coatings and "sealants" are for me a solution in search of a problem, and do not begin to solve the detailing problem I actually do have.

Learning the spray wax and waterless wash methods from Meguiar's has been a life-saver. Before that, I was caught in a downward spiral of having to bucket-wash every few days, re-wax at least every month. These new methods are why I can wax with a carnauba wax happily and go months without doing it again, only when the swirls build up or enough scratches need to be corrected, and so on. Tomorrow it's August, and I last re-waxed with the DA in April, I think, before it got crazy hot-n-humid. This is not because my wax is "lasting" all that time, but because no protection will last all that time, so it doesn't matter how long it lasts in LA or Las Vegas. Every couple of days, I'm literally re-waxing with GCQW, and just as often, cleaning with UWWA (which has some carnauba). When I do a bucket wash, I use UWW (which has some carnauba) and GC Shampoo mixed. This is sometimes a lot of work, sure, but it's a LOT easier than traditional washing and waxing. The point here is that it doesn't matter whether I use a carnauba wax, a "sealant" wax, or a coating, because none of them will last under this frequent regimen and weather cycle. This being true, I choose Meguiar's carnauba waxes every time, especially Detailer D301, because they look amazing at every stage during this process.

Hope that helps

[drumdan]

Re: Sealant vs Coating

I think it all depends on the owner, car, weather/region, and habits. If I lived in the Southwest, with no other changes, I'd have different habits, cleaning less, etc. However, I live where there is a LOT of wildly different weather, and that means very frequent cleanup, wiping with UWWA and/or GCQW and more frequent or potentially needed bucket washing. It also means more scratches and road rash because the roads are dirtier and wetter.

I've driven all over the Southwest, including LA and Vegas (where what seems like a majority of MOL posters live), and it's just different. In those areas, there is no weather to speak of (by comparison). It's very, very dry, and dust itself is very dry, easily blown off. I can imagine living there with a DD and going many weeks at a stretch using nothing but my California Duster. No wonder it's so easy for MOLers in the Southwest to stay swirl-free. However, Meguiar's, everywhere outside the Southwest deserts and SoCal Coast you'll find a very different daily driver reality. Dust itself can be sticky because it's not actually dry. We have deep humidity, and wild swings of temperature and moisture cycles. Anyone who flies from, say LA to Atlanta, will literally feel what I'm talking about. Your car will be covered in dew most mornings, frost in Winter, one process alone among many that strip away protection, and if the finish was already dirty, you now have a film or coating of dirt that doesn't just fly off with a duster. This is every day. Then there's heavy pounding rains, not once every 6 months, but several times a week in Summer, perhaps every day for a weeks long stretch. Even a medium rain here can compromise your so-called "sealant" in less than an hour, and in Spring, the Gulf rains can pound for days. Good luck with that Quik Detailer, as I found out early on. The density of trees means epic pollen, saps, and related dust and debris. Get closer to the beaches, and you can add salt wash to these processes. After a few days or a week with your "sealant", water may still bead on the surface, but that's just from the polish oils underneath, and a few rains later, those will be gone too. Your expensive coating will be scratched, cloudy, and compromised within weeks, and cleaning it up properly will slowly remove it, anyway. Add to this the winds, runoff and wind-blown contaminants from farming and irrigation, the hard water, and on and on...

Because of this obvious reality of weather conditions, because of my daily driving, the black paint, etc, it all requires very frequent cleaning (waterless or bucketed), and because claying or wiping will compromise coatings, a coating makes no sense at all and is a complete waste of money and time. Some of you think I'm exaggerating, or attacking you or your region, but I'm not. In the South, a freshly detailed car driven daily will need re-detailing within days, and then again within days, again within days, again and again. How would you handle that? This is why waxes-called-sealants also gain me absolutely nothing, and make me laugh every time they're pushed on this forum. If I rarely drove, if I had a white car, if I had a garage, and thus rarely needed to clean the car outright, then I might see it differently...but then, I wouldn't need the coating or so-called sealant in the first place, LOL. It's because of weather and cleaning that coatings and "sealants" are for me a solution in search of a problem, and do not begin to solve the detailing problem I actually do have.

Learning the spray wax and waterless wash methods from Meguiar's has been a life-saver. Before that, I was caught in a downward spiral of having to bucket-wash every few days, re-wax at least every month. These new methods are why I can wax with a carnauba wax happily and go months without doing it again, only when the swirls build up or enough scratches need to be corrected, and so on. Tomorrow it's August, and I last re-waxed with the DA in April, I think, before it got crazy hot-n-humid. This is not because my wax is "lasting" all that time, but because no protection will last all that time, so it doesn't matter how long it lasts in LA or Las Vegas. Every couple of days, I'm literally re-waxing with GCQW, and just as often, cleaning with UWWA (which has some carnauba). When I do a bucket wash, I use UWW (which has some carnauba) and GC Shampoo mixed. This is sometimes a lot of work, sure, but it's a LOT easier than traditional washing and waxing. The point here is that it doesn't matter whether I use a carnauba wax, a "sealant" wax, or a coating, because none of them will last under this frequent regimen and weather cycle. This being true, I choose Meguiar's carnauba waxes every time, especially Detailer D301, because they look amazing at every stage during this process.

Hope that helps

What sealants and coatings have you tried?

If so, do you have a thread documenting each product, it's prep, application process, maintenance procedure, and conclusion of approximate longevity.

Again, if so, have you done a side by side test between your product of choice, and the sealant/coating being tested?

Anecdotal claims don't benefit anyone, especially considering the above claims are the exact opposite experiences of both professionals and enthusiasts alike, in many different climates, including the south.

[Top Gear]

Re: Sealant vs Coating

Well, you're using anecdotal claims to say mine are anecdotal. You're also greatly exaggerating when you imply there is any consensus on any of these products, because there is none. So, your "challenge" is easily ignored.

What I'm actually saying is not very different from other comments you'll find in this forum and others from regulars and pros over the years. I clearly made the point that I'm not disagreeing with some of the others in theory, that a pure synwax could possibly last a few days longer than a carnauba-blended synwax (say UW vs GC), or that a non-Meguiar's coating could outlast both, as long as you don't touch it (see Guz's own comments). Both factors depend on little to no maintenance or weather to generate maintenance needs, such as you'd find in the Southwest. That's the extent of what might be repeatable within all the wild claims I've read from those who push so-called "sealants" and coatings. That point is moot, though, and I've very clearly explained why.

The proof is in how "new" the paint looks after a few years and how it looks regularly in between major corrections. I've tried enough combos to know what works for me, and I've done threads where people like you try to tell me that up is down and left is right, because what I found challenges forum dogma. If you believe you can use a coating with very little maintenance in regularly rough weather and magically have an awesome finish and a coating finish with less work and better protection over a period of years, then perhaps that belief is all you really need to be convinced. I've seen no reason at all to be so easily fooled by marketing claims, even Meguiar's own marketing claims.

Perhaps I should ask you, how much and how different weather do you have to deal with and in what region of the world on a non-garaged DD, and what have you learned that works in order to have a freshly detailed finish every day over a period of years??

[drumdan]

Re: Sealant vs Coating

Well, you're using anecdotal claims to say mine are anecdotal. You're also greatly exaggerating when you imply there is any consensus on any of these products, because there is none. So, your "challenge" is easily ignored.

What I'm actually saying is not very different from other comments you'll find in this forum and others from regulars and pros over the years. I clearly made the point that I'm not disagreeing with some of the others in theory, that a pure synwax could possibly last a few days longer than a carnauba-blended synwax (say UW vs GC), or that a non-Meguiar's coating could outlast both, as long as you don't touch it (see Guz's own comments). Both factors depend on little to no maintenance or weather to generate maintenance needs, such as you'd find in the Southwest. That's the extent of what might be repeatable within all the wild claims I've read from those who push so-called "sealants" and coatings. That point is moot, though, and I've very clearly explained why.

The proof is in how "new" the paint looks after a few years and how it looks regularly in between major corrections. I've tried enough combos to know what works for me, and I've done threads where people like you try to tell me that up is down and left is right, because what I found challenges forum dogma. If you believe you can use a coating with very little maintenance in regularly rough weather and magically have an awesome finish and a coating finish with less work and better protection over a period of years, then perhaps that belief is all you really need to be convinced. I've seen no reason at all to be so easily fooled by marketing claims, even Meguiar's own marketing claims.

Perhaps I should ask you, how much and how different weather do you have to deal with and in what region of the world on a non-garaged DD, and what have you learned that works in order to have a freshly detailed finish every day over a period of years??

So that would be a no.

Thanks for clarifying.

[Top Gear]

Re: Sealant vs Coating

Your question has no answer, friend. You want to believe what you want to believe. It's not my problem to "prove" to you what should be patently obvious to anyone who keeps a DD detailed. Use what you like and move on.

[The Guz]

Re: Sealant vs Coating

Op see this well written article

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-mike-phillips-your-detailing-questions/103632-how-wash-coated-car-gentle-approach-washing-car-mike-phillips.html

[dadams2169]

Re: Sealant vs Coating

I know this I'd old thread but I live in Vegas and yes they are different climates , and with that he he he decides how one is worse than another. I trust meguuars products and believe they make so many products to serve people everywhere. Dusters lol use one of those here and you have all your clear polished off your car before warranty ended my point being even dust is different local to local. Dust here is more abrasive than most heavy compounds. I've got white car for a reason, it gets hot as hell here with UV rays that rot your tires before you van where them out, regardless of what protection you use. My biggest contaminemts here are bird dropping, dust and extremely hard water. Not to mention rains are full of polutionaaa a and rarely long enough to do anything more than turn dust to mud spots.. Weekly washing are must and include thourogh rinsing which always starts off brown rolling of white car.. If one solution was best for all enviroments, Meguiars product offerings wouldn't would be so extensive. Op only real solution is self healling paints and don't believe they at that level yet. IMO.