Tree sap, pollen, syrup? What is it?

[b34tBoX]

Have some clear dots on my car. They sort of have the consistency of wax, and do not come off by rubbing finger over them..

I park my car under a maple tree.

Any idea what it is?



http://b34tbox.googlepages.com/tree.jpg

http://b34tbox.googlepages.com/tree1.jpg

http://b34tbox.googlepages.com/tree2.jpg



They only appear to be on the top-side of the vehicle..

[Greg Nichols]

welcome to the club of tree sap. If its fresh you might try baby oil and see if it will come off. Don`t let it harden or sit in the sun, can etch the paint.



Cheers,

GREG

[b34tBoX]

Nice. =\



I figure it`s going to take a while to remove.

Thank God I`m still driving my winter car, but I still want to remove it.

After searching some threads, it could etch the paint.



I`m going to try various products (clay, IPA, WD-40, Baby-oil...etc.) and see what works.

The sap is fairly hard, I noticed it about a week or two ago. Some drops still smudge so there is still hope.

Well off to Walmart to stock up on some sap zapper.

[Setec Astronomy]

Wow, that`s a lot. Years ago I used to park at my friend`s house under some sort of evergreen tree until I noticed some sap coverage (not as bad as yours) and what a pain it was to remove. After that I started parking on the other side of the street.

[b34tBoX]

k, well I tried IPA, it worked Ok at best. Would have to apply ALOT and rub with MF towel.



Goof Off basically did nothing.

Glass Cleaner (No Name..hehe) Did nothing.

Haven`t tried clay, I used to have some old used clay around, couldn`t find it. Not going to use my brand new Ricardo clay for this on my "beater" car.



Checked under the sink, saw some vinegar (5% acetic by volume) only a small amount left.



Poured about a dollar size amount on the paint, used a blue shop towel to spread it a bit, felt smooth.. Hmm, widened out the product abit more on the paint, and I literally cleaned 1/5th of my hood 100% clear of sap with the vinegar.

Rushing out to Walmart now to get a new bottle.

Will wash car clean, then use vinegar and old MF towel then wash again and apply LSP tomorrow.



I Googled some info and apparently it should be safe for paint.

Also it said it can be used to remove water spots in this article.

http://www.autopia.org/forum/guide-detailing/80224-paint-clinic.html

[SuperBee364]

Try this (http://www.topoftheline.com/silicone-wax-remover.html) stuff. Thanks to NSXtasy for recommending that product. It`s really good stuff. I`d be willing to bet it`ll make quick work of tree sap.



After your car is completely clean of the sap, you might want to consider a layer (or two) of Collinite 845 or 476. Either one will give you pretty good protection... tree sap comes off of a Collinite`d surface pretty easily.



Edit: if some areas are being tough to get clean, you might want to consider buying some very soft (I like "Pediatric Soft") toothbrushes to work the prep wash into the tree sap. This is also a really good way to clean all the nooks and crannies on your car, regardless of what they are contaminated with.



Let us know how it works out for you?

[Setec Astronomy]

Good. I wish the internet and these kinds of forums had been around when I used to park under that tree...would have made it a lot easier to clean up.

[RTexasF]

Vinegar would not have occurred to me, good tip.

[jhe888]

I have used kerosene to remove pine tree sap.

[GoudyL]

TW Bug and Tar Remover in the liquid format. If it turns out that the sap is acid soluble go with that. Often a sour rinse gets the car sparking by disolving/loosening adherant dirt.

[b34tBoX]

After your car is completely clean of the sap, you might want to consider a layer (or two) of Collinite 845 or 476. Either one will give you pretty good protection... tree sap comes off of a Collinite`d surface pretty easily.



The scary part is, that was what I used as a LSP, the #845. Two coats.

The vinegar dissolved the sap VERY good.

But the time it took to write my last post I had new drops on the trial section. Insanity. I looked up and the lower leaves were drenched in the sap, not drops but layered. Crazy. I see that the propeller things are quite ripe, maybe it`s coming from them, considering if you split them open there`s sap inside and you can stick them on your nose..haha

Anyways, picked up the vinegar for $1.77 from Walmart. It worked great and will use it to remove all the spots.

[JimmyCutlass]

A good wash with Meg`s Gold Glass has always done the trick for me. :confused:

[imported_Satinsilver]

You have to love vinegar! I read that it can also help when trying to get rid of dried concrete thats dried on the paint. Apparently the vinegar helps break the bond btwn the concrete and paint. This happened to my neighbor when going thru a construction zone.