Surface preparation is one of the most important steps when polishing to achieve a flawless finish. Regardless of how clean you think your paint is, there are still contaminants stuck on the paint that you need to remove before waxing or polishing your paint. Road film, oil, tar, grease, water spots and other environmental contaminants bond to the paint and glass surfaces and are difficult to remove. Glass and especially the windshield and rear window on trucks and SUVs are prone to these surface contaminants.



Vehicle manufacturer studies have shown that failure to remove environmental contaminants, like imbedded rail dust, acid rain, industrial fallout and other environmental contaminants from paint can cause premature degradation of the paint system. Paint protection systems, wax, polymer sealants or coatings require a clean contaminant free surface to ensure they bond to the paint surface correctly, which ensures their durability



Surface contaminants



Superficially-adhered surface contaminants as the name implies sit above the surface of the paint. These contaminants become imbedded in the clear coat when the paint is subjected to heat radiation; they comprise; paint residue (oxidation) tree sap and resin, bituminous asphalt (road tar) particles of road dirt (grit) and grime, carbon emissions from catalytic converters, bird excrement, calcium, tar, oil, hard water deposits, calcium or any pollutant type substance that adheres to your paint surface, sometimes invisible the naked eye.



Then why not simply use a surface prep towel to remove all surface contaminants; the answer is that a surface prep towel can be used to remove surface contaminant, but a potential problem arises in that organic contaminants (tree resin and sap, honeydew and insect exoskeletons an), which generally comprise much larger particulates than inorganic contaminants (rail and brake dust, bitumen (tar), etc) and therefore have greater potential to cause surface marring between the surface prep towel and the paint as the towel is moved across the paint surface.



Given that some contaminant residue (acid rain, industrial fallout, sintered brake or rail dust) are usually highly acidic and / or will permeate a paint surface, it makes far more sense to remove them chemically and neutralize the paint surface rather than by using an abrasive polish, as dissolving them using a paint decontamination system and then rinsing them away virtually eliminates the risk of causing surface scratches.



Paint Cleaning



Surface preparation is one of the most important steps when polishing to achieve a flawless finish. Regardless of how clean you think your paint is, there are still contaminants stuck on the paint that you need to remove before waxing or polishing your paint. Road film, oil, tar, grease, water spots and other environmental contaminants bond to the paint and glass surfaces and are difficult to remove. Glass and especially the windshield and rear window on trucks and SUVs are prone to these surface contaminants.



Before polishing a paint surface ensure the surface is free from both surface and sub-surface contaminants. This is vital; if your car is covered with metallic brake particles you will introduce new scratches in the surface whilst polishing it. Be cognizant that detailer’s clay or a surface prep towel will only remove surface contaminants; sintered brake dust permeates the clear coat facilitating a conduit to the paint system matrix, allowing moisture / corrosion to penetrate. This below surface corrosion should be removed with a sub-surface decontamination system.



Always remove surface contaminants before you polish. One of the easiest methods of ensuring that your surface is contaminant free is the so-called ‘Bag Test’. After washing and drying your vehicle place a plastic sandwich bag over your hand or fingers, gently pass over the surface. Does the surface feel silky smooth or rough and gritty? If you felt roughness and/or grit, your surface is contaminated.



There are three distinct type; Abrasive, Chemical (solvent) and Chemical (neutralised acid )



a) Abrasive



Detailer’s clay Automotive clay is not a replacement for polish or a compound; it is a pliable, petroleum resin product, containing a mild abrasive(s) i.e. kaolin, silica sand, calcium carbonate, alumina, ceramics quartz and also silicon carbide that polishes and exfoliates bonded surface contaminants.



While clay products are useful for overspray and cleaning surface contaminants, it cannot permeate and deep clean the pores of the paint

These abrasives are extremely small with an average particle size of 1- (micron) dependent on the aggressiveness required, mixed in with a powdered synthetic detergent. The abrasives `shear` the surface contaminates, the sheared particles are then encapsulated by the clay (i.e. the top of the metallic particle leaving the rest embedded in the paint, which acts as a conduit for moisture to the various paint layers, allowing it to continue generating corrosion damage)



1. Zaino Z-PC Fusion Dual Action Paint Cleaner - a water-based formula with tri-particulate, diminishing abrasive system (no fillers or oils) that removes minor scratches, swirls, oxidation, wax build-up and other surface blemishes, ideal for polymer sealants



2. Dodo Juice Lime Prime Pre-Wax Cleanser - is a pre-wax cleanser formulated to clean, polish and prepare the paint surface ready for a layer of Carnauba wax.



These products contain mild abrasive so will help to remove light swirl marks and scratches, used with the right pad combo can help remove more stubborn marks, including blemishes or stains on the paint



Formulated with solvents and / or very fine abrasives (Kaolin or China Clay) to remove old wax, embedded dirt and light stains from paint; they help to restore gloss and remove light surface imperfection. They are designed to be used as often as required without measurably reducing paint thickness. Some paintwork cleaner’s act as `All in One` products, so not only do they clean and polish, but also provide limited protectionb)



Chemical (neutralised acid )



AQuartz IronX offers a safe chemical alternative to detailers clay that removes metallic particulates completely by using an acid salt solution on the paint surface the micro-fissures (‘pores’) are expanded by an exothermic reaction. This releases ferrous particles and caustic compounds that have developed in the paint`s subsurface; the reaction agitates and loosens the particles allowing them to be rinsed away.



Sonax Full Effect Wheel Cleaner - use on painted wheels and glass (safe for all wheel finishes including painted aluminium and alloys) to remove iron filings and ferrous-based contaminants. Automotive paint is porous, by using an acid salt solution on the paint surface the micro-fissures (‘pores’) are expanded by an exothermic reaction.



This releases ferrous particles and caustic compounds that have developed in the paint`s subsurface; the exothermic reaction agitates and loosens the particles allowing them to be rinsed away. Unlike clay that only removes the particulates that protrude from the paint by abrasion



These are one-step, highly effective vehicle paint decontamination, beyond what can be removed by washing or claying, with the cleaning power of an acid with a pH of 7.0, by using a neutralised acid salt



It is really interesting to see the amount of iron particles residue that will be dissolved by Iron X, despite having clayed the car before hand. This product definitely offers advancement in paintwork decontamination. 100-150ml per vehicle



c) Chemical (solvent)



P21S Paintwork Cleanse - a gloss-enhancing chemical cleanser that contains fillers (Kaolin or China clay) will remove old wax, light swirls and oxidation. It can be applied by hand or with an orbital polisher. Paint cleaners are designed to remove old wax, oxidation, embedded dirt and light stains from your paint surface. They can remove micro-marring of the surface (i.e. light towel marks) but typically will not remove imperfections that require levelling the clear coat, but can remove some oxidation and mineral deposits.



Swissvax Cleaner Fluid Regular - an advanced non-abrasive paint preparation solution containing mild chemical cleaning agents and heavy glazing oils that fill and mask minor paint defects and are simply unrivalled in terms of producing a perfect oil-rich surface ready for Swissvax wax protection.



Autoglym HD Cleanser - when waxing, it is important to ensure the surface of the paintwork is “deep cleaned” to remove all traces of road grime, bug splatter, old waxes, etc. As regular shampoos and clay don’t always remove old films of polish, High Definition Cleanser will effectively remove all surface residues as well as general dust and grime. This product has fillers that will mask minor surface imperfections



Chemical solvent paint cleaners - use if you want to prep the paint surface prior to applying a wax (without polishing). My preference would be to use a 1:10 isopropyl alcohol IPA / Limonene (P21s Total Auto Wash) solution or DuPont’s PrepSol as they don’t leave any (silicone / mineral) oils or etc behind, as these can cause problems when polishing if they are not removed



Formulated with solvents to remove old wax, embedded dirt and light stains from paint; they help to restore gloss and remove light surface imperfection. They are designed to be used as often as required without measurably reducing paint thickness.



Aquartz IronX - use on car paint, wheels and glass (safe for all wheel finishes including painted aluminium and alloys) to remove iron filings and ferrous-based contaminants. Automotive paint is porous, by using an acid salt solution on the paint surface the micro-fissures (‘pores’) are expanded by an exothermic reaction.



This releases ferrous particles and caustic compounds that have developed in the paint`s subsurface; the exothermic reaction agitates and loosens the particles allowing them to be rinsed away. Unlike clay that only removes the particulates that protrude from the paint by abrasion



These are one-step, highly effective vehicle paint decontamination, beyond what can be removed by washing or claying, with the cleaning power of an acid with a pH of 7.0, by using a neutralised acid salt



It is really interesting to see the amount of iron particles residue that will be dissolved by Iron X, despite having clayed the car before hand. This product definitely offers advancement in paintwork decontamination. 100-150ml per vehicle





Relevant Articles



1. “Environmental Damage” - http://www.autopia.org/forum/car-det...l-damage.html#



2. “What will decontamination remove that washing / clay will not? “ - http://www.autopia.org/forum/guide-d...-will-not.html



3. “Nanoskin Surface Prep Towel” - http://www.autopia.org/forum/autopia...rep-towel.html







[Edit: Article expanded 06.29.12]