here are 5 things that will damage your paintwork

What is the first thing you notice on a car? Is it its stance or front end design? Or is it a paint job? For the most of us, a car’s paint job is the first thing to see and if the car is nice and shiny, it is automatically more attractive than a vehicle with peeling paint and cracked lacquer. All cars come shiny from the factory but it is up to the owner to keep them that way. That is why we will tell you about 5 things that can damage your paintwork and how to avoid them. We are sure that you will find this useful and that you car will look brand new for long. Of course, keeping the car‘s paint in top condition will not only show that the vehicle is in good condition but also raise the value on second hand market.

Road debris and gravel

If you use your car everyday and cover a lot of miles, you probably noticed small paint chips on the front end of your car, bumper of grille. Those chips were made by gravel or small stones thrown by the car in front of you. This is nothing serious, but after a while it can really affect the look of your car. Eventually, those chips can get bigger and even lead to some rust issues. If you want to protect your paint job from stone chips there are three solutions. One is to keep the distance from the car in front of you so the gravel will not fly far enough hitting your vehicle. The other is to do treat your car to ceramic coating which will give your car perfect shine and protect it from scratches as well. Think of ceramic coating as another layer of lacquer but 3 times as strong and scratch resistant. The third option is the least pleasant one and that is to mount that ugly black rubber or vinyl covers on the front of the vehicle which will ruin the looks but will fully protect your front end.

Washing the car on a hot day

For any true car enthusiast, washing their pride and joy is a perfect outdoor activity on a summer day, but we strongly suggest you avoid it. Washing your car on a hot day is one of the fastest ways to ruin the paint, even though it doesn’t look like it. The problem is the temperature difference and if you have a car that has been sitting in the sun for long, the body work and the paint will be very hot. If you pour cold water on it during washing, you will create temperature difference that will cause paint and lacquer to crack and lose its shine. Even after just a few seconds of exposing a hot car to a cold shower will be enough to ruin your paint job. Does this mean that you shouldn‘t wash your car in the summer? Of course not, just do it in the morning or evening when the sun isn’t as strong and there can be no potential paint damage. Also, directly spraying water under pressure can damage the paint so always spray under angle which will minimize the damage and clear the dirt and dust easier.

Birds

You have certainly experienced parking your car under a tree and coming back to find it covered in bird droppings. Besides being very annoying, especially if you just washed your car, it can be potentially very dangerous for your paint if not taken care of. The trick is in chemicals which can be found in bird droppings and are quite aggressive. If you leave the droppings for longer and not wipe or wash it off, the chemicals will ruin the shine of the paint beneath and leave matte spots. All birds are dangerous for your paint job but seagulls are the worst. If you live near the seaside, you probably know this already. The only solution to this problem is to park away from trees and clean the car as soon as you find droppings on your bonnet or roof. If you are wondering how long you can leave bird droppings on your car before washing, the answer is couple of days at most.

Chemicals and gasoline

There are several common chemicals that can seriously damage your paint and even overfilling your tank can leave a mark. Household items like bleach, shaving cr’¨me or even mustard can ruin the lacquer if not immediately washed off with clean water. It’s not rare to have several drops of petrol spilled when filling and although gas evaporates fast, it can damage the paint, so be careful the next time you are on the petrol station. The best protection is to wipe the fuel from the paint as soon as you notice it spilled from the gas tank.

Improper washing techniques

We have already suggested that you should avoid washing the car on a hot summer‘s day but there is more. Sometimes, an inexperienced person can ruin the car‘s paint job in matter of minutes with improper washing techniques. Imagine you have extremely dirty, dusty car that has gone through deep mud and you, naturally, want it cleaned. The worst thing is to apply washing foam and start rubbing before you thoroughly hosed all the dirt and mud with water. If you do that, you will rub the dirt and dust in your paint and it will act like abrasive. You‘re up for a nasty surprise after, because your paint will not be shiny but, in fact, quite opposite. So, if you have a very dirty and dusty car, covered with mud, always completely wash it with clear water and only apply car washing shampoo after you make sure that the surface is clean. Also, having your car in automatic car wash can seriously damage the paint. We know it is fast and cheap but those big brushes can really damage the paint with abrasive fibres and strong chemicals.