water spot question...

[rbs9]

Hello All.



Got waterspots on my wifes 02 Volvo (actually three months old). Mostly on the hood. Cant really feel them in the paint though.



A few days after we bought the car, I waxed the entire car. Clayed some of it because of junk in the paint from sitting at the dealer for some time.



Anyhow, rubbed the spots with some polish, no luck. Rubbed with some 3M perfect it, no luck. Got out the Dewalt and a foam finishing pad (Meguires) and perfect it at 1200 RPM and still no luck. What do I try next? Do I need to try a more agressive foam pad? Different compound?



PLease help these spots really bug me.



THanks



Chris

[imported_memnuts]

Have you tried dissolving the water spot? You stated the their appears to be no etching. Remember the finish (paint) has microscopic peaks and valleys and in order to "buff" out completely a water spot one would need to level out these imperfections. By trying a 50:50 distilled white vinegar solution ones should dissolve the minerals in the water spots from this peaks and valleys. Give this a shot. Of course you will have to re-protect afterwards ( wax/sealant).

Please let us know if this works.



DavidB has a really good chapter on water-spotting in the E-book. Great source for answers to these type of detailing problems.:wavey

[37buckeye]

Have you tried to use a white vinegar solution? The vinegar contains a mild acid that should help loosen the water spots.



I will echo the suggestion of getting David`s e-book. There is a chapter devoted to swirls and water spots.



-ema



P.S. Nice to see another S60 owner on the board.

[rbs9]

thanks for the help! The Rennlisters were right, you guys (and Gals) are awesome!



Is this "distilled white vinegar solution" a 50/50 mixtuere of distilled water and white vinegar?



TIA.

[imported_memnuts]

50:50 is a good starting point ( distilled H2O and distilled white vinegar). You can increase concentration of the vinegar all the way up to 100% without problems ( harm to finish). Hope this dissolves your blemish.:wavey

[Kris]

I have this same problem. I really hope the spots arent etched into the clear coat. I am going to give the vinegar thing a try. Hope it works. Should I do it asap? Or can I wait a little. cause right now, it is in the garage under a cover. and this week I am installing my titanium exhaust, short shifter, and gen 5 demon eyes. but once I am done with that, the first thing Im doing is treating the hood. is that ok? thanks for your help,





Morgan.

[37buckeye]

I have this same problem. I really hope the spots arent etched into the clear coat. I am going to give the vinegar thing a try. Hope it works. Should I do it asap? Or can I wait a little.



I would remove the water spots ASAP. The longer you wait, the more time you allow for the spots to harden onto your paint. This is more of a factor if your car sits in the sun, but nevertheless, I`d do it now.



-ema

[Patrick]

Even if its midnight, go get em out asap !!!!!!!!

I had a Ranger from **** last month, tried everything under gods good creation, and i couldnt get them out....under the magnifyer, it was utterly disgusting....They litterally were part of the paint......It played on my conscience (SP) for weeks too.......

[Kris]

You never got them out?

[wizardofahs]

I had some water spots on my civic a while back. From what i can tell they got there because i washed (with dawn) and the sun hit one side and dried the water before i rinsed. I think i threw some blackfire over the spots because vinegar and bfpolish and everything else didn`t get them. In the end i had to break out a cutting pad and some FI-II and really hit that side of the car with some 500 watt work lights nearby.



A good way to prevent waterspots, is to wash your car with the hose in one hand and your mitt in the other. After you wipe down a panel with the mitt, spray that part of the car with the hose. In most cases this will at least drastically reduce spoting, since the spots are usually more severe when it`s dried on soap. If you have really hard water where you live, you might still get some spoting, but at doing it this way couldn`t hurt. I think it`s definatly more effective than letting the soap sit and rinsing it off all at once. Really works well if your washing outside in the sun.

[Murrayhe]

Hmmm... so you use vinegar to get water spots out and iso. alcohol to get wax out?



Are either of these chemicals bad for your car`s paint?

[37buckeye]

Hmmm... so you use vinegar to get water spots out and iso. alcohol to get wax out?



Are either of these chemicals bad for your car`s paint?



I know that vinegar is safe for the paint. Not as sure about the iso. alcohol, though I suspect that it is okay as well.



Both vingegar and iso. alcohol will strip wax, so you will want to re-wax any areas treated by them.



-ema

[Kris]

since my car is waxed, does this mean I need to use alcohol on it, then use vinegar, then wash good, then wax it again?

[37buckeye]

I think vinegar, wash, wax will do the trick.



-ema

[Idrops]

Something not mentioned yet is 3M Medium oxidation remover. I`ve used it to remove water spots and it seems to work well.