Ultima PGP - Bird poopectomy!

[cdodkin]

So way back in July (14th to be exact) I prepped and sealed my trusty 04 VW Passat with Ultima PPP and PGP.



Just a single coat of PGP.



http://www.d30-images.com/911/optima/IMG_4246.jpg



See this thread: http://autopia.org/forum/ultima/93679-2nd-full-detail-ultima.html



And also see this thread for some video of washing after PGP: http://autopia.org/forum/ultima/95078-ultima-test-video.html



This car lives outside 24x7, so gets what ever the weather throws at it.



It`s done a few journeys to and from AZ since then, been baked in 110F + heat in Phoenix AZ for a week, done the usual commute into LA and back a gazillion times, been rained on, sprayed with sprinkler overspray and then finally last week, it got bird bombed! :grrr



So, in the interests of science, I let that poop sit on the roof of the car for a little over a week, and really bake on :wall



So here`s the offending area.



http://www.dodkin.com/poop/1.jpg



Keys are shown to give an idea of scale



http://www.dodkin.com/poop/2.jpg



And here from another angle.



http://www.dodkin.com/poop/3.jpg



And here`s a macro shot of the poop on the paint! First one to name the food source AND bird type gets a sad b@st@rd award :grinno: :grinno: :grinno:



Method of attack was:



http://www.dodkin.com/poop/4.jpg



5 min soak with fresh water



http://www.dodkin.com/poop/5.jpg



Shampoo with minimal agitation using wool mitt



http://www.dodkin.com/poop/6.jpg



Rinse with clean water



http://www.dodkin.com/poop/7.jpg



Dry with MF towel



As you can see, poopectomy was a success



Poop floated off when soaked, and did not stay attached to the paint despite being baked on in the CA sunshine.



Water spots and other crud also floated away with no issues.



Upon close inspection with the macro lens, and with the light just right, I could however still see this:



http://www.dodkin.com/poop/8.jpg



very slight change in surface gloss where the poop had been - hard to see unless you looked down the roof with a dark background as contrast.



I hit the area with QD and MF towel, and was left with this:



http://www.dodkin.com/poop/9.jpg



So after 13 weeks of exposure, the PGP is still showing signs of resilience, although the gloss is now fading, as is the sheeting ability.



I have another car (Boxster) with two coats applied - which appears to be keeping it`s slickness longer (as you`d expect) - so I`m concluding that one coat is good for 3 months, but longer periods between applications are certainly possible with additional layers.



VW still has a very `new` look when washed and dried, and the overall impression is very positive, especially given the harsh treatment.



And yes, my neighbors now think I`m insane, snapping away at bird poop on my car! :nana:



Chris.

[SuperBee364]

Great information, thanks! This is exactly what I`ve been looking for.... Well, not the bird poop, but the protection from said poop.



"So after 13 weeks of exposure, the PGP is still showing signs of resilience, although the gloss is now fading, as is the sheeting ability."



13 weeks isn`t bad, but it`s a far cry from the 9 to 12 months they say it will last.

[Ralliart16]

thanks for the high res pics of bird poop ;)



kinda looks like oatmeal mmm mmmmmmmmmm lol

[Eliot Ness]

Interesting test! Bird sh$t seems to have different effects depending on (this is just my theory) what they last ate. I`ve had a bomb etch my well protected paint in less than 1/2 a day :hairpull . Then again, I`ve worked on some beaters that had bombs old enough to vote that didn`t leave a mark :nixweiss . And if you have one fly over that has eaten some blue or raspberries....... it`s not a pretty sight!



I`ve just recently started playing with Ultima, but so far I`ve been pleased with how easy bugs and road dirt wash off...... haven`t had to deal with any bird sh$t yet, so your little test looks promising.

[cdodkin]

Great information, thanks! This is exactly what I`ve been looking for.... Well, not the bird poop, but the protection from said poop.



"So after 13 weeks of exposure, the PGP is still showing signs of resilience, although the gloss is now fading, as is the sheeting ability."



13 weeks isn`t bad, but it`s a far cry from the 9 to 12 months they say it will last.



To be fair to DB - I think he suggests
While we have tested durability (shine, water beading and slickness) up to a year, proper paint care dictates that 3-4 treatments a year offers the very best protection possible.



That`s still in line with what I have found - I`d be doing 3-4 single layer treatments a year to keep things topped up.



With multi-layer treatments, I can see that much longer periods between applications are possible.

[cdodkin]

thanks for the high res pics of bird poop ;)



kinda looks like oatmeal mmm mmmmmmmmmm lol



Sorry if I spoiled anyone`s granola snack! :har: :har: :har:



Thought the the macro might prove useful to see any issues, and it was.



Almost justifies the cost....... errrr maybe not :grinno:

[JasonD]

Great info, cdodkin, and to add to the discussion about the durability claim, every situation is different and if cdodkin is still receiving protection after 13 weeks of such harsh exposure, I think the 9-12 month claim isn`t off at all. Think about if your car is garaged, and not driven every day. There`s no reason at all that it won`t last that long. Granted, that`s not usually the case, but just like cdodkin quoted from DavidB, even though they experienced great results after such a long period of time, he still recommends quarterly treatment, and at less than one ounce per treatment, that`s not bad at all in my book.

[SuperBee364]

Deleted... don`t want to start an argument on durability claims. :)

[cdodkin]

Deleted... don`t want to start an argument on durability claims. :)



Oh, go on! :bolt



Good point - it`s sort of like a `how long is a piece of string` question.



Time will tell, as they say - :work:

[Setec Astronomy]

You`re insane....I would never purposely leave bird crap on my car...I have seen too many etches on mine and others!

[cdodkin]

You`re insane....I would never purposely leave bird crap on my car...I have seen too many etches on mine and others!



I think the bird poop macro photography pretty much confirms that I`m a few quarts short of an oil change. :nana: :nana: :nana:

[GreggB]

I think the bird poop macro photography pretty much confirms that I`m a few quarts short of an oil change. :nana: :nana: :nana:



Yes, you have reached a new low Mr. D. Breakfast will never be the same(!) We need to find you a new hobby....hows about you show me how to use this new fangled picture-taker device? :)



:brit

G.

[cdodkin]

Yes, you have reached a new low Mr. D. Breakfast will never be the same(!) We need to find you a new hobby....hows about you show me how to use this new fangled picture-taker device? :)



:brit

G.



Sounds like a plan - you have an M5 to shoot by chance?

[David Fermani]

I find it kinda puzzling that your wash step didn`t remove all the crap and that you needed to QD it? I`ve never experienced this before, especially after soaking it for 5 minutes. The important thing is that the PGP didn`t allow any etching of your finish (protection), but at the same time didn`t have good ease of cleaning? Is this fair to assume?

[cdodkin]

I find it kinda puzzling that your wash step didn`t remove all the crap and that you needed to QD it? I`ve never experienced this before, especially after soaking it for 5 minutes. The important thing is that the PGP didn`t allow any etching of your finish (protection), but at the same time didn`t have good ease of cleaning? Is this fair to assume?



That`s a difficult call:



The usual wash dry cycle removed the poop easily, it just floated off, but I then looked really hard with a serious macro lens to see what I could see - you probably wouldn`t do this last step



The PGP had been on for a long time, so could be getting `past it`



The other water spots and crud had zero visible impact on the gloss and washed away completely, even before a QD