Product Storage

[Mazdan]

I`m just starting to try to take care of my car a little better. It`s no where near new, but I just spent some money repairing it and having it painted and I`m hoping to get it to last a while longer looking good until it gives up the ghost or I`m in a position to get a new car.



Anyway, I`ve been looking into different kinds of wax and all that jazz, and gotten some good info from reading this forum. But what I haven`t come across is how to store all of these products- car wash liquid, wax, tire shine, brake fluid, etc...



Specifically, where I live it`s usually hot and I was wondering if it was okay to store all my car stuff outside. I have an outdoor shed I can put them in, so they won`t be directly exposed to the sun, but it`ll still be hot. Won`t this affect the wax or other liquids?

[AeroCleanse]

I store my stuff in the basement.

[Accumulator]

Mazdan- Welcome to Autopia!



IME the heat is a matter of degree (no pun intended ). My previous shop got *hot* in the summer, so much so that the overhead door motors wouldn`t work. But the only product I ever had go bad was some M34 QD.



The car wash and brake fluid will be OK in hot temps, and so would wheel cleaner. While I`m tempted to just say "don`t worry, it`ll *all* be OK, it`d be better if you could keep your polishes and wax in the house or something, maybe leaving the "regular maintenance products" out in the shed for easy access and the bulk of your potentially sensitive stuff someplace it doesn`t get much over, say.... 95F.

[extrabolts]

A number of people keep their waxes in refrigerators. They say the heat makes the carnuaba sweat and dry out if it gets too hot, etc. I`ve never experienced that and my polishes and waxes have been in a garage in Georgia for years without any changes. Keeping them in the refrigerator is fine, but so is just leaving them in the garage for most areas. The average temperature in a refrigerator is mid to upper 30`s, which is probably a lot colder than people realize and can harden things. People have also had problems with polishes after they freeze, so if you are the kind of person who keeps your refrigerator cold enough that sodas and beers have a little bit of ice in them I would not put polishes in there. Aside from the extremes don`t stress it either way. Some waxes will actually say to keep in a "cool" place and then have a temperature on them. People think this means refrigerate but it does not. I think AG HD says keep in a "cool" place and then says 30 degrees celcius, which is mid 80`s.



As accumulator said, the best thing to do is just to keep them somewhere in the house. But I don`t, and I have not had any issues.

[Mazdan]

Mazdan- Welcome to Autopia!

Thanks!

IME the heat is a matter of degree (no pun intended ). My previous shop got *hot* in the summer, so much so that the overhead door motors wouldn`t work. But the only product I ever had go bad was some M34 QD.

Wow, that is hot! Sorry, M34 QD?

The car wash and brake fluid will be OK in hot temps, and so would wheel cleaner. While I`m tempted to just say "don`t worry, it`ll *all* be OK, it`d be better if you could keep your polishes and wax in the house or something, maybe leaving the "regular maintenance products" out in the shed for easy access and the bulk of your potentially sensitive stuff someplace it doesn`t get much over, say.... 95F.

That was exactly my thought. It would seem that waxes and so forth may be more sensitive to high temperatures and temperature fluctuations. Since I`m starting out, I don`t really have many products. Just car maintenance 101, I suppose. I have some brake fluid, radiator fluid, power steering fluid, etc. In detailing, just some car wash shampoo, cleaning accessories and Turtle Wax ICE Synthetic Spray Wax.

[Accumulator]

Mazdan- M34 Final Inspection is a "light" or "mild" quick detailing spray from Meguiar`s. It seems a bit more sensitive to heat than most detailing products and my hot shop *did* do a number on it (turned it from milky pink to clear orange).



Think about your radiator/brake/steering fluid and so on...they get a whole lot hotter when you use the vehicle than they`ll get sitting in a hot building. The spray wax you might oughta keep in the house though.

[Mazdan]

Interesting about refrigerator storage, extrabolts. I think I`ll just stick to shed or indoors!



Thanks for the warning on the Meguiar`s spray, Accumulator. After years of things being all over the place, I`ve manged to put most of my car stuff together in the outside shed (more like a plastic cabinet), but I am keeping the spray wax and anything of the kind inside.



Thank you guys for taking the time to answer such a basic question.

[cptzippy]

Slight ressurect. Any more input? I`d like to keep my ONR, OID, Leather Master, OCW etc in the car port (shaded but open on one side to Kansas summer). Besides Polish and Carnuba wax, is there anything that shouldn`t be outside?