HOW TO KEEP YOUR CAR LOOKING GREAT OVER THE SUMMER!

The Summer months can be brutal for your car or truck’s finish if it’s not maintained properly. The harsh sun and UV rays could cause your paint to start to fade and it’s actually quite easy to prevent that from happening! We’ll tell you how you can keep your vehicle’s paint in pristine condition over the summer.

The very obvious thing would to be to just put your car in the garage but what fun is that?  It’s the summer and you want to go out on joyrides, road trips and just travel! So, what can you do to keep your automotive paint in perfect condition? The detailing techniques and the detailing products/equipment you use can drastically effect the quality of your paint however the #1 thing to keep your paint high quality is just simply keeping it clean. If it’s covered in contaminants and grime and the surface of your vehicle gets hot, they can cause major damage to your car or truck’s paint ESPECIALLY if it’s something like bird poop, tree sap, etc.

Make sure for when washing or detailing your vehicle that try to wash under cover or at least not in direct sunlight, this will help prevent water spots. Now we’ll into what type of soap you use. Preferably a soap that’s both high foaming and pH neutral. If you’re using a pressure washer and foam cannon which is always the most preferable way of washing, you can coat your vehicle’s surface with a thick foam that will actually help keep the paint under the foam cool and protected from the UV rays and heat which can help prevent the soap from drying. If you are in direct sunlight or the soap dries, having a pH neutral soap will prevent damage to your paint’s surface as a lot of car soaps are pretty harsh on car paint if it sits for too long or dries. If the wrong soap dries on your vehicle’s surface it could potentially cause some discoloration in your paint and then you have a whole other issue that will cost much more money. So if possible it always best to work with a pH neutral soap if you wash your vehicle somewhat frequently.

It's also recommended to try and apply a car wax your vehicle often because it’ll add a layer of protection overtop the clear coat of your car’s paint which is essential for preventing any contaminants from having direct contact and damaging your clear coat/paint. Wax can also help with UV protection and reducing the risk of fading however some waxes also need to be applied quite often so what do we do as an alternative for paint protection? We apply a ceramic or graphene coating which give better all-around protects and last much longer than car waxes.

There are different types of ceramic and graphene coatings. You have cheaper and easily sprayable coatings which are all in the $25-60. Graphene being on the higher end of that range because a graphene coating is even better than a standard ceramic coating. Your sprayable coatings can range anywhere in the 2-12 month range for longevity and that all depends on if it’s just ceramic or graphene (graphene has a higher longevity) and on how much SI02 is put into the spray. Si02 is silicon-dioxide and basically what makes up ceramic. Which sadly a lot of companies put the bare minimum amount of Si02 into their ceramic sprays which can affect the effects and longevity of the coating.

After your sprayable coatings which are much easier to apply you have your other ceramic and graphene coatings which require an applicator pad and have quite a lengthy application and curing process. These coatings can cost anywhere in the $80-150+ and then on top of that you have the lengthy application process which can take hours and the full curing process which can take 1-2 days and with these coatings being so much harder to apply you sometimes may need to hire a professional who will also charge their own fees to apply the product which can several hundred more dollars. However, the upside to these type of coatings is they can last anywhere from 1-9 years based on the grading of the coating, how many coats are applied and how much the vehicle is driven or stored.

To make this whole blog short and sweet. Basically just keep wash your vehicle regularly, try to wash out of direct sunlight and with a highly foaming and pH neutral soap and then invest in some paint protection whether it’s a car wax or a type of protective coating/sealant!

Hope you found this blog helpful, and we appreciate you taking the time to read. By doing so you’re supporting Detail Medic, our small family run car care business!