How do you avoid water spots when working outside?

[Cobra Jet]

Have you tried claying the car? Some clays will remove water spots from the body (and glass).

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[15Pony]

Have you tried claying the car? Some clays will remove water spots from the body (and glass).

But the clay will remove any wax/polish protection too, right? I will have to polish it again right away then. I can't go thru that every week.

 

[Souldriver]

But the clay will remove any wax/polish protection too, right? I will have to polish it again right away then. I can't go thru that every week.

this is correct. In the end, if done right your car will be like glass.

After claying you will need to apply a good wax/polish to protect it. A good quality protectant will resist water spots or make them extremely easy to clean off.

 

[speedaholic]

If waterspot remover doesn't work they are etched in the paint so you will have to polish (ex. Menzerna 3500) and then seal to protect (durability = wax 1 month < polymer 3/6 months < ceramic coating 1 year+).

The idea is to level your paint so there's no defects and then layer some protection creating a barrier to resist contaminants. Durability of said protection will depend on environment, and maintenance technique.

The less you touch the paint equals less swirls but a dirtier car with more surface contaminants. Find the happy medium with proper washing technique to keep your ride clean and minimize paint damage.

Detailing mantra to prolong clear coat life: Protect religiously and maintain/correct with the least aggressive method.

 

[Labradog]

Need to be careful about terminology. Polish is used to refine a finish. It offers no protection.

 

[Souldriver]

Need to be careful about terminology. Polish is used to refine a finish. It offers no protection.

some companies call their version of a wax or protectant a polish. ie:zanio

Although polishes are usually very fine cutting to refine the terminology isnt straight across all companies unfortunately. So yes you do need to be careful about what things do vs what theyre called

 

[15Pony]

I was calling it polish because I use Zaino and its not simple wax like Turtle Wax. Nevertheless, its not working.

I washed it today (in the shade, kept it wet, then dried with chamois and microfiber towel) and treated one side is all I had time for. First I did the clay bar, lubed with some vinegar/distilled water mix, then applied Zaino Z2. After wiping it off the finish is very smooth and clean but this is how the spots remain. I had to try different angles with the camera to get it to show up. The larger dark streaks are reflections of clouds.

I don't know what to do for this. :(

 

[JohnDoe]

[ame]

 

[Souldriver]

Yeah, no. I have Cquarts Pro on my car and I have more water spots than ever before. So much i feel like i should have it stripped and go back to zaino, especially bec its just a deeper look.

So with me and zaino I was able to clay my car (I used dawn to wash then used some of the extra CLEAN dawn + water solution in a spray bottle to clay)
From here i would use the zaino wash. At this point everything was super slick glass feeling, none of the small little bumps were there but if they were i would re clay quick. I they rinsed and dried asap with a combo of a leaf blower and dabbing towels. After this there were always a few water spots.
Next was the polish which took out some more spots and then the QD which with some pressure eliminate the rest of the spots. Polish, QD again and finish with their show shine. if i had time left in the day i would do a 3rd pass.

In the end everything would look like a 2 inch thick sheet of liquid glass was on the car. All my spots were gone (until my luck would have it thunderstorm 10 minutes later)

With the Cquartz I had an amazing amount of water spots after the first two washes. All from the same water source. and spent twice as long with half as good results trying to get them off with their detailer. Me and my detailer are going to look to see whats upo but at this point i lost all trust in the coating and rather have my zaino back.

 

[speedaholic]

I was calling it polish because I use Zaino and its not simple wax like Turtle Wax. Nevertheless, its not working.

I washed it today (in the shade, kept it wet, then dried with chamois and microfiber towel) and treated one side is all I had time for. First I did the clay bar, lubed with some vinegar/distilled water mix, then applied Zaino Z2. After wiping it off the finish is very smooth and clean but this is how the spots remain. I had to try different angles with the camera to get it to show up. The larger dark streaks are reflections of clouds.

I don't know what to do for this. :(

If I read the product description correctly, Z2 is a jeweling polish with sealant (like Menzerna Powerlock). It has no cleaners or abrasives so I'm pretty sure you won't get anywhere with it. You could try 2-3 passes of Menz 3500 with a light cut/polishing pad and then apply Z2 for protection.

From Zaino application instructions: "2. If your car's surface isn't in optimal condition, take the necessary steps to correct any imperfections before applying Z-2 PRO... Z-2 PRO™ contains no cleaners, and no abrasives, therefore the surface must be in good condition before you apply Z-2 PRO™."

Another thing you could try if your paint has no defects except for the water spots is some cleaner wax like Megs #20 or Mothers. No abrasives but would probably get those spots out and offer a layer of protection. Then after a couple of washes apply Z2 for durability. An effective accessible solution and cheaper than a bottle of Menz 3500.

 

[15Pony]

Ah! So maybe that's what I'm doing wrong. I'm using a protector but I need to deep clean it. Which Mothers product should I use? The other one is Meguiars M20 Polymer Sealant as you mentioned, the specs on it say it contains a "gentle cleanser" so that might work. Is Menz 3500 sold in stores? I never heard of it.

Is there a better protectant product than Zaino that I could buy locally in a store?

 

[speedaholic]

Since you seem to be a hands-on guy, empower yourself with knowledge and take a spin to the Autogeek forum and store for all your detailing inquiries and product needs: https://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/. There's also https://www.autopia.org/ which is owned by the same company as autogeek but with more product variety.

Here's a thread on cleaner waxes by detailing guru Mike Philips, there's a product list at the end to help you choose: difference-between-cleaner-wax-finishing-wax

Since I'm north of the border, I have no idea if Menzerna is sold over the counter down south. I know I have to get it through detailing suppliers over here and it's pricey compared to Megs and Mothers but quality is top notch.

 

[Draklia]

So which is it? Do "ceramic/nano" whatever the current catch phrase type coatings really stop water spots from happening? Or are the owners of cars with these types of coatings just saying they do for some sort of justification?

 

[speedaholic]

So which is it? Do "ceramic/nano" whatever the current catch phrase type coatings really stop water spots from happening? Or are the owners of cars with these types of coatings just saying they do for some sort of justification?

It all depends on the type of water and environnement...

Highly Hydrophobic waxes, sealants and coatings will all repel water the same. It's the durability and level of protection that will vary. A quality wax will typically protect against contaminants and UV for up to a month, polymer sealants for 3 to 6 months and ceramic coatings 1 to 5 years with added light scratch/marring protection. Note however that it's not scratch PROOF and you will still install swirls with inadequate washing technique but it's the hard layer of nano ceramic that bill take most or all the beating instead of your paint.

So in the case of water, if it's mineral content is high or very acidic (this varies a lot from region to region), it will definitely etch into the paint if left bare and most likely if only protected with wax. A sealant has better contaminant resistance however water can certainly eat through it and get to the paint, but it's still relatively affordable and can be buffed out easily with some polish and reapplied on spot buffs. A coating will resist even more but it's not totally immune to etching either. It's biggest flaw imo is that you can't just buff a spot and reapply, you need to do the whole panel or else you'll get funky high spots.

In any case we are talking about layers of protection measured in microns so there's not much covering up that paint being exposed to harsh conditions.

All-in-all, I think what's most important is to understand the products, what they can offer and chose the best to match your budget, environment, washing/maintenance habits and skill/experience level for the application of said products.

 

[bam88]

If you have had water spots sitting on for a while there is a chance the deposits have etched the paint and the only way to remove is using power polisher first to cut into the paint to reveal fresh paint, then polish to get back a shine. Once you have fresh paint exposed pick up a quality sealant and get an inline filter for your hose.

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