what is it telling me when a new finish no longer beads water?

[Insane]

Hi all,



I have a one year old car with less than 10K in mileage. My assigned parking space is such a way that half of my car sticks out in the open (exposed to element). Midway above my car is where the building structure (garage covering) ends. When it rains heavy, debris (sand, grits, and etc) washes down the side of this building structure and onto the roof of my car. The rest of my car beads water except for the roof.



Does that mean my finish is toasted??

[JeffM]

Means you need to wax it.

[dternst]

You protection is gone and it`s time to reapply.

[the other pc]

If itâ€â„¢s gone a year without waxing itâ€â„¢s probably due for the full treatment; wash, clay cleaner, polish and wax.





PC.

[thinksnow]

Nu Finish should only be good for one year or 52 automated car washes

[ZaneO]

IMO, protection is gone and needs to be reapplied.

[Mochamanz1]

IMHO, it needs to be clayed and refinished from what you described.

[togwt]

Durability:

[: Able to exist for a long time without significant deterioration]



If your goal is maximum protection, don`t use water beading as an indicator; while its true that it is a visual indicator that a wax / sealant previously applied is still present it does not guarantee that its actually providing protection.



a)Water beading- although you cannot equate a products beading ability to protection and durability, if an applied product continues to `bead` water, one wash after another, then that would prove that whatever it is that is causing high surface tension is not washing off.



b)Water bead definition-convex beads that have a small, tight symmetrical shape.



c)Indications that the products durability may be diminishing-when the water beads become noticeably larger in diameter with a flat irregular shape usually indicate that the surface tension of the wax or sealant is diminishing.



Or when dust, dirt or bug residue becomes more difficult to wipe off with a quick detailing spray are indications that its time to renew the protection



Slickness-slide a micro fibre towel across a horizontal surface to see how much resistance there is, if there has been a significant reduction from what you experienced previously the durability is probably diminishing

JonM