WARNING about DIY car washes!
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Senior User
Joined: Dec 2008
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From: Fowlerville, Michigan
WARNING about DIY car washes!
Took my '76 to one of those DIY car washes to get it cleaned up before a local car show. When I got all the dirt hosed off and was happy with everything, I popped in 50-cents and rinsed the truck down with their "clear coat protectant" then wheeled the truck outside to dry it off. While I was drying, I started noticing that the paint was dimpling up in a few spots. Nothing drastic, but just patches of miniscule bubbles.
My paint is enamel with no clear coat but I figured the "clear coat protectant" was the same as the spray on wax you use at similar auto washes. They don't have a disclaimer on any of their equipment though that says "may harm non-clearcoated finishes".
If I had beautiful, immaculate paint I would've gone after the owner for a new paint job, but since my truck needs a little paint and body work, I'm not gonna be a jerk about it. Just wanted to warn y'all so nobody screws up their nice paint job!
My paint is enamel with no clear coat but I figured the "clear coat protectant" was the same as the spray on wax you use at similar auto washes. They don't have a disclaimer on any of their equipment though that says "may harm non-clearcoated finishes".
If I had beautiful, immaculate paint I would've gone after the owner for a new paint job, but since my truck needs a little paint and body work, I'm not gonna be a jerk about it. Just wanted to warn y'all so nobody screws up their nice paint job!
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Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 10,797
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From: The Shenandoah Valley
I highly doubt that the clear coat protectant did it.
If anything, maybe pressure but likely it's something unrelated to the car wash. Biggest danger at a car wash is high pressure spray in concentrated stream, seen it take paint off in sheets, especially new paint or paint over a surface ill prepared or even rust.
If anything, maybe pressure but likely it's something unrelated to the car wash. Biggest danger at a car wash is high pressure spray in concentrated stream, seen it take paint off in sheets, especially new paint or paint over a surface ill prepared or even rust.
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Joined: Oct 2009
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From: Driftwood Pa & Duncan OK
Just trying to help, But I doubt the car wash was to blame. One thing with painting vehicles is that if you do not get the steel completely clean the paint will eventually start to bubble and tear away. I clean all my parts with an acid bath before I paint them, and using rubber gloves during the process keeps the areas clean of oil from your skin which can cause the paint to fail before its even dry.
An example: EZ Prep Cleaner & Neutralizer 5 Gallon Pail : Everbrite Coatings, Keep Metals Looking Their Best
An example: EZ Prep Cleaner & Neutralizer 5 Gallon Pail : Everbrite Coatings, Keep Metals Looking Their Best
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Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 174
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From: G-VEGAS TN
I never wash my trucks at home i use the step by step process at the car washes and i've never had a problem except the clear coat protectant turns my hands or anything it touches that will absorb blue or pink whichever color is spraying at the time lol
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Senior User
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 485
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From: Fowlerville, Michigan
Just trying to help, But I doubt the car wash was to blame. One thing with painting vehicles is that if you do not get the steel completely clean the paint will eventually start to bubble and tear away. I clean all my parts with an acid bath before I paint them, and using rubber gloves during the process keeps the areas clean of oil from your skin which can cause the paint to fail before its even dry.
An example: EZ Prep Cleaner & Neutralizer 5 Gallon Pail : Everbrite Coatings, Keep Metals Looking Their Best
An example: EZ Prep Cleaner & Neutralizer 5 Gallon Pail : Everbrite Coatings, Keep Metals Looking Their Best
If the car wash wasn't to blame, it must be one heck of a coincidence that the bubbles magically appeared the day I took the truck for a bath. I don't get it
I didn't think about the fact that they recycle the wash water. I hope they don't because they have an engine degreaser at this particular wash. No telling how much different crap could wash out from under someone's hood
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Joined: Oct 2009
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From: Driftwood Pa & Duncan OK
Well it might have been a bad batch of paint too you never know, might wanna send some paint chips somewhere to get em tested just to find out (like dupicolor or such), one thing I know is that is wasn't the pressure of the system that did it, I frequently use a much higher pressure sprayer on my mud truck without it tearing away at the 15 year old paint, I have seen pressure washers tear off paint that had already lost alot of its adhesiveness from too much sun exposure, but you can't blame a car wash for normal weathering of paint, I laugh it off and just look forward to getting the vehicles repainted. Another thing I would imagine the car wash (as with any car wash that did this, even though I've never seen one myself) is filtering the water before they put it back through their own equipment (mind you these car washes aren't a $4,000 dollar setup and some can be closer to half a million bucks).
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From: Bear, DE
I just had that happen on my '03 Explorer after I had just washed it, no joke. After I had washed it, I had parked it and was fine-combing the exterior with detail spray and saw these little bumps the size of a blueberry and I pressed it and clear liquid came out. I smelled it and it was a chemical smell, not water. My truck has the whole 3 step wax process done to it before that and water still beads up in that general area so it wasn't topical. I took my truck down to the local MAACO just for an idea of what was going on and the guy said somehow water or whatever got in from the backside of the passenger rear wheel-well fender/lip and the problem started there.
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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 485
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From: Fowlerville, Michigan
I just had that happen on my '03 Explorer after I had just washed it, no joke. After I had washed it, I had parked it and was fine-combing the exterior with detail spray and saw these little bumps the size of a blueberry and I pressed it and clear liquid came out. I smelled it and it was a chemical smell, not water. My truck has the whole 3 step wax process done to it before that and water still beads up in that general area so it wasn't topical. I took my truck down to the local MAACO just for an idea of what was going on and the guy said somehow water or whatever got in from the backside of the passenger rear wheel-well fender/lip and the problem started there.
I'm kinda leaning towards ReadOrDie_Wow's theory - whoever painted my truck before I got it used some junky enamel paint. It was a crap paint job - the trim wasn't taken off, there's runs, he didn't finish sand it very well, and he never cleared it - which leads me to believe he bought some budget paint.
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