Sealants over Carnuba ?

[mpmiller37]

I know many on this forum top their sealants with carnuba wax products. If this were a daily driver and 2 months has gone by, can you repeat this process again (i.e... wash, apply sealant, apply wax) or is it not appropiate to reapply a sealant when there may be residual wax on the paint possibly causing bonding issues ? Is it always best to clean the paint before applying a sealant ? Or after 2 months do you trust your sealant and just reapply a topcoat of wax ?

[imported_Luster]

I have tried Carnuba over sealant. To me it was a waste of time and effort. I just don`t see the benefit. Does it add depth or shine to the paint? I couldn`t tell any difference.



Carnuba isn`t needed is you have sufficient layers of sealant on the car and it only lasts a couple weeks at most.



If you want to use a sealant on a car with wax already on it, wash with Dawn (alkaline) to remove all waxes and oils, then clean the paint with a paint cleaner, then apply sealant (times 2 or 3).

[imported_Neothin]

I have tried Carnuba over sealant. To me it was a waste of time and effort. I just don`t see the benefit. Does it add depth or shine to the paint? I couldn`t tell any difference.



Carnuba isn`t needed is you have sufficient layers of sealant on the car and it only lasts a couple weeks at most.



If you want to use a sealant on a car with wax already on it, wash with Dawn (alkaline) to remove all waxes and oils, then clean the paint with a paint cleaner, then apply sealant (times 2 or 3).



every time I applied a carnauba over a sealant I always saw a noticeable difference in at least wetness. More often than not, the depth of the paint was also enhanced.



You are right here. A carnauba is not necessary for sealants. I mean look at Zaino. those products are all sealants, there is no carnauba in that system. Carnauba prevents you from adding more layers of sealant later also. thats the compromise, more wetness and depth or inability to layer more sealant on.



Instead of washing with dawn, I would use your regular car soap. For one, it has better lubricity so you dont cause marring during the wash. Plus, your using a paint cleaner anyway that will remove anything on top of the paint. Using dawn would be counterproductive.



To answer your question, it is not a good idea to apply additional layers of sealant after a carnauba has been applied. As you said, there would be bonding issues. I personally always use a paint cleaner type product before I apply a sealant. It gives me the peace of mine that anything that can come off the paint is in fact off of the paint leaving me with a bare surface (which sealants like to have to bond effectively).

[imported_Luster]

Instead of washing with dawn, I would use your regular car soap. For one, it has better lubricity so you dont cause marring during the wash. Plus, your using a paint cleaner anyway that will remove anything on top of the paint. Using dawn would be counterproductive.



Yes, the intent of Dawn is to strip off any old wax and get down to the clearcoat. I absolutely don`t recommend it on a regular basis, just following the Zaino instructions....




The secret to using Zaino Show Car Polish is to start with a super-clean paint surface. Prior to applying your first coat of Zaino Show Car Polish, we highly recommend washing with Dawn dishwashing liquid to remove as much oil, grease, wax and road film as possible. If your car’s paint finish is perfectly smooth, you can then proceed to the Zaino Show Car Polish system.

[White95Max]

But if you`re going to use a polish or paint cleaner, Dawn is not necessary.

Besides, Dawn wasn`t even able to remove NXT in my experience, and NXT isn`t the most durable wax either.

[imported_Neothin]

The only time that I`ve seen dawn strip off wax is when I used it on my old car. When I started the wash, there was only light beading present, but enough that you knew something was on the paint. After the wash though, the rinse water never beaded, it just sheeted. This was a 5 week old application of NXT so the wax was already on its way out.

[Sherman8r44]

I know many on this forum top their sealants with carnuba wax products. If this were a daily driver and 2 months has gone by, can you repeat this process again (i.e... wash, apply sealant, apply wax) or is it not appropiate to reapply a sealant when there may be residual wax on the paint possibly causing bonding issues ? Is it always best to clean the paint before applying a sealant ? Or after 2 months do you trust your sealant and just reapply a topcoat of wax ?



Sounds like it would be fine to me, but it depends on the carnauba. If you are using a carnauba-on-`roids like Collniite or Meg`s #16, you could simply reapply the topcoat of wax since it lasts so long and probably preserves the sealant underneath. In this case, you could trust the sealant and reapply the wax every two months (but you should start from scratch every six or so). *Most* other carnaubas tend to last only 4-6 weeks, so on a daily driver by a full two months all residual wax would be off the paint. In this case you should probably put down another coat of sealant (and then wax of course) every two months.



Like, the others, I like sealant by itself because it doesn`t mute flake, it looks good, and I can reapply it whenever I fell like it. If you don`t have the sealant or wax yet, I highly recommend the DP Premium Surface Shield (32oz. for only $15 right now!), as well as the DP Spray Surface Shield (to easily apply layers) from autogeek.net...plus they`re running a deal now with free Wolfgang Instant Sealant Spritz...and enter "Cobra Deluxe" in the comments box for a free Super-plush microfiber towel...and 10% off by entering "pbma-fl" in the discount box.



EDIT--NVM, I saw in another thread you already have #21

[mpmiller37]

On another thread I saw that DP surface shield stuff compared to UPP which seems to be popular so I might try it. I`m curently using Meg #21 and haven`t compared it to anything. Did you ever use UPP or #21 for comparison ?

[Sherman8r44]

Nope I haven`t tried either, sorry, but I can describe PSS a little. It is easy on/off, extremely slick, and has a brilliant, bright shine. Lots of flake pop, and great reflections,--as Scottwax has described in the past, more "hard, wet glass" than "plasticky". It looks best on light cars and metallics, but with proper prep (DP Final Finishing Polish, Klasse AIO, etc.) I`m sure it could look great even on darks and solids. It doesn`t have a warm carnauba-like glow (which UPP supposedly has), but it instead has the WOW factor. And the Spray compliments it well, intensifying the WOW factor.

[Killbert]

So with a good sealant on modern clearcoats, Carnuba isn`t a requirement?

[imported_Neothin]

nope, but it does add desired affects (wetness and depth) that sealants can`t provide. Decisions decisions.

[White95Max]

Carnauba isn`t a requirement on any paints, whether clearcoated or not. Sealants provide superior protection compared to carnaubas (with a few exceptions). I prefer to add carnauba over sealants on my car, because I do feel that it looks wetter with Paste Glaz. That`s my preferred wax on my silver Protege. Although I use #16 for wintertime protection. Paste Glaz isn`t all that durable so I don`t use it during the winter.

[Killbert]

I`m going to use AIO, take pics, then add P21S and take some more. It`s weird to go from carnuba to sealant..

[White95Max]

AIO isn`t a very durable sealant. When most people refer to using a sealant, they refer to another sealant, of polymer or acrylic type, that they use over AIO or a similar product.



AIO does look nice by itself, but I always think it looks better with another layer of a different sealant over it.

[cabe]

how long would you say aio lasts by itself? i would like to use collinite 845 over aio.. would i have a significantly shinier car if i applied a sealant over the aio, before i apply the 845?