44 degrees. Is that too cold to detail?

HA! Thats almost too HOT!

You will be fine....its when your buckets of water start to freeze when you have to worry.
 
Not too cold for me!!



(some people have said that products shouldn't be used below about 45F. If that were absolute, I wouldn't have too many detail days between Sept. and May). :D
 
Its only too cold if you think it is :) I detail in the upper 30's during winter because I dont have a choice either. No problem with products as long as you keep them indoors at night.
 
Cold weather is great for swirl removing. I wait till itâ€â„¢s just below freezing, I apply some SSR2.5 to a foam pad, and I stand there holding it on the paint then open the Garage doors! The Shivering action blows the doors off the Porter Cable. If you need adjustable speeds simply open or close the door more. All the way open is like a 6 on the Porter Cable. LOL



I hope no-one took me seriously! LOL
 
Not all, it's mid 40's here and I just came in from a wash and QD. The sky's blue, the wind is calm and the car shampoo smells great.
 
Its definatley colder than that in the UK...

It doesnt stop me.



I think we are a hardy bunch of Autopians in our little country...LOL.
 
No way is that too cold. Granted I was in the garage, but I put two coats of UPP and one of SG on this week and not one day was it over 35 degrees. Worked out just fine, cept of course its SNOWING TODAY. I gotta get out of MN anyone got a place in GA, AZ or CA I can crash at for a few years?
 
I just finished up washing my car today with the temp around 40F. Now what is worrying my is that i have 2 coats of NXT on my car from about 2 weeks ago, and its been raining about 8 days of the two weeks on and off. During the rain i could see that the car was beading/sheeting nicely. Today when i went to wash the car and water was on the paint it just kinda pooled up!!! After I finished the wash and dryed, i felt the paint which still felt a little bit slick but it didnt grab and squeak under my fingers. Now question for you all, does the cold water/weather "stick" to the paint more as if there wasnt any protection left?? It was very disappointing site when I saw the water cling to the whole car as if there wasnt any NXT left on it, or maybe is just a isolated expierence where the cold weather/water affects beading and sheeting action????
 
For most of us, that's not cold at all. Sounds like a decent day for some regular washing. I'll wash in the upper 30s provided nothings really freezing. The constant motion keeps my body warm.

If you are applying a sealant like Zaino, chances are you'll have to wait a little longer before you can buff it out.
 
I just did a car today in a garage and it was 35o F and 39o in the garage, toasty. The only thing that was freezing was my ballz. I have read 40o is the lowest you should do it in. The owner needed it done and it came out bad azz. I used the new Sonus SFX Series Polishes and it worked awesome. Only two polishes on a scratched, oxidized, dull black paint. The only thing I had a problem was getting it dry all the way, but it didn't hurt claying.

I didn't use NXT though. I use Sonus clay, paint cleaner, polishes, Klasse AIO & SG. I didn't P21S because of the cold and it's snowing! It would be hard as hell to wax with paste wax.
 
I did 2 cars yesterday and a car while it was raining the day before (just washed outdoors, brought it in for drying and Klasse twins). The whole time it was in the 40s.
 
I think there are several issues.



1. Washing. As long as it is above freezing, you should be fine. If the temp is going to drop below freezing I will try to dry as quickly as possible and drive the car to rid any excess water. In very cold temps, wash with luke warm or cold water as hot water cools quicker.



2. Waxing. These do not seem to like near freezing temps but using a PC does seem to raise the temp enough to ease matters.



If it freezing, there is no excuse not to do the interior.
 
I just detailed my mom's car today. We had a high of 43 I believe, before the temp dropped like a rock to the freezing mark. I was out in the garage for 5 hours applying PI III MG, AIO, and UPP.

Oh yeah, and before the detailing I was washing the car outside in the rain. The neighbor's didn't even say anything when they saw me!
 
~One manâ€â„¢s opinion / observations~



Temperature conditions:

These are the temperatures and conditions that are relative to the application of car care products; the most important is the actual surface temperature of the vehicle. The other things that will have a direct bearing on this is the humidity as this will effect the cross-linking (cure) time, excess humidity will also affect â€Ëœhowâ€â„¢ a wax or sealant dries (i.e. it may cause hazing or clouding of the surface)



The other climate related condition that should be avoided when applying car care products is direct sunlight, as this will dramatically increase the surface temperature compared to ambient temperatures causing the product to dry prematurely and may render it ineffective.

1.Surface Temperature (Actual surface temperature of the vehicle)- 60 â€â€œ 80oF products will work well within a much broader temperature range, (50° to 90° F) but the best results will be achieved in the 60° to 80° F range surrounding air temp (ambient or room) must be 55oF + to ensure the minimum vehicle surface temperature of 50oF(recommended as a minimum by most manufacturers)

2.Ambient Temperature (Outside air temperature) 35oF+ for vehicle washing

3.Relative Humidity (Moisture content of the air)- RH 50% +/-10%

4.Inside Air Temperature (Room Temperature) 70 â€â€œ 75oF +/- 10oF and 50% relative humidity +/- 10%

5.Air movement or windy conditions will increase the evaporation rate but potentially make some products more difficult work with, especially sprayed products. Perversely this can lessen wax / sealant drying time.



In summary, the ideal conditions for the application of car care products; cool and dry, away from direct sunlight, a surface temperature between 60° and 80° F, 50% RH or lower humidity, and a light air movement.



~Hope this helps~



Knowledge unshared is experience wasted [each one / teach one]

justadumbarchitect / so I question everything/ JonM
 
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