over waxing

W

webdanb

New member
This question is more for my education than for real.



If I wax a car with a regular carnuba based wax, and let it cure for 24 hours, then repeated the process, am I actually adding any more wax? Will the wax layer bond to the previous wax layer making it thicker, and possibly more protective?



or on a more reasonable scale, If I were to wax my car, drive it for a week, then wax again, am I improving anything or am I just replacing the small amount of wax I would have lost in a week?





-Dan
 
If you wax your car once a week you will be able to notice the small amount of shine lost throughout those 6 days. Depending on the wax you use it may show more or less.



When you wash your car, unless you use a very very weak soap to water ratio you are going to strip some of the wax so you can that into consideration if you wash your car often.



If you ask me, wax does not strip the previous layer. It seems the more wax layers I add the better the car looks, if the previous layer was removed then it wouldn't look better to the point that it does. When your car is painted they suggest only waxing because it is not abrasive. Maybe I'm wrong but I an't grasp the idea that an oil based wax could strip the previous layer. If there is something I'm missing then let me know.
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

If you ask me, wax does not strip the previous layer.</blockquote>

You are right, the wax won't strip it....the solvents in the wax will. When you apply a layer of wax on top of a layer the solvents in the fresh layer will remove part of the previous layer. It won't totally strip it, but it will remove a portion of it.
 
I don't know if there's a definitive answer to this one as each wax product will have a different volume of solvents per container. So the amount of wax removed by solvents will vary per product and per application.



My feeling is that extra coats of carnauba evens out the product and hence, the protection. You may not be adding 100% more protection per coat but I feel you are adding some amount of protection, and some is better than none.



I also feel that fequent washing and exposure to the elements will wear off carnauba quicker and more completely than added coats of wax.



So I say, "throw on another coat and don't worry about it".
 
I think of it as:



Does it really hurt you or the car if you add another layer of wax, until you can say "yes it does" or you run out of 70.00 cans of wax I wouldn't stop layering.



Ever use Meguiars Glaze? Now that stuff doesn't last two weeks without a good amount of it fading away but man does it look really nice.
 
I don't buy all this. I do all the furniture polishing in my home and I'm quite familiar with floor waxes. I know for a fact that too much wax is bad. There is a point we reach when you need to strip and start again due to wax buildup. Why wouldn't this occur in our car finishes as well. And also anything with any petroleum base atall is stipping your wax. :argue
 
I don't think waxing your car once a week is bad because when you take your car out in the rain, the snow, wash the car, drive through puddles or let it sit in the sun some of your wax is going to fade away. It's not like 100% of the wax you applied to your car on Sunday is still there next Sunday.
 
High quality carnauba waxes will NOT strip the previous coat. Examples are Blitz and Souveran. Neither contain solvents and will not strip the previous coat. On the other hand, store-bought waxes often times DO contain these harsh solvents and will strip some of the previous coat.
 
This is not a likely scenario on automobiles. It degrades too fast.



The carnuba really doesn't layer. The solvents in the forumla most likely soften up the carnuba and reapply. This is good to do every few weeks because carnuba durability is not that long. It will even out the system. Carnuba in itself is a hard, yellow, brittle, dull substance. It provides no SHINE at all to the car, so an increase in shine is no evidence that the carnuba is layering. What you are seeing is an overload of oils. Each coat you apply increases the amount of oils on the car. These oils are how all carnuba products attain a high shine. If you remember the old concours trick of waxing a panel and buffing, then half the panel, and quickly buffing.....well basically you are just adding more oils before the carnuba gets a chance to set or harden up......



Hope this helps.....
 
All carnuba products have to contain a solvent of some kind. Don't take this in a bad way, but its just the facts. How else is the carnuba kept in a fluid state in the bottle? If solvents were not in the system, the carnuba would harden up in the bottle.



Most carnuba formulations are very similar. What you are paying for is usually the refinement of the carnuba and the unique formula geared towards a certain aspect (a little more of this....a little more of that.....etc,etc - ease of use, high shine, minimal staining, and durable. I have yet to encounter a carnuba that is superior in all of those....
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

Examples are Blitz and Souveran. Neither contain solvents and will not strip the previous coat</blockquote>

Sorry, ALL caranuba waxes have some solvents in them. It makes them easier to work with, caranuba with no solvents would be a soild brick and impossible to work with.
 
In a few years, the EPA is gonna crack down on the amounts of VOC's in consumer products. This is going to affect many industries, and also the automotive detailing industry. As for carnuba waxes, well either they will have to manufactured somewhere else with a high cost of relocation, or changed to a water base, really hurting usability. I heard some reports that this was tried, and in order for the product to be workable it had to be used in 70 degree temperature's or higher. Maybe they will make us put it in the microwave first before using! haha.....



I can see two thing happening. The low solvent polymer market taking over the industry, or these companies reducing the amount of carnuba to almost nothing in order to reduce solvent levels to conform.....this will still give a nice shine, and be really easy to use, but won't last much longer than a QD'er...........



Hey STEVE! Ready to hit the drawing board?! LOL
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by DETAILKING [/i]
<strong class='bbc'>In a few years, the EPA is gonna crack down on the amounts of VOC's in consumer products. [/b]

I'd forgotten about that. Excellent point. I think we'll see a pretty significant change in the car care products industry. As a matter of fact, we're seeing it now.

<strong class='bbc'>I can see two thing happening. The low solvent polymer market taking over the industry, or these companies reducing the amount of carnuba to almost nothing in order to reduce solvent levels to conform[/b]

We're already seeing the "low solvent polymer market" having an impact. Blackfire and Platinum are the most visible, at least to Autopians.

Pretty smart to jump in now and make the financial commitment to the product/technology. Develop the product, work out the bugs, test consumer interest, pay for cost of R&D and marketing ASAP, when new laws hit the books you're ready to distribute an entire product line that's proven effective and do it at a very low cost per unit. From there you can easily develop different versions of the same product for redistribution and remarketing, allowing you to control a larger portion of the market by selling your product under different names. Not to mention the ability to license your formulas to other mfr's for their exclusive distribution. Not a bad little money-maker: You got hands in everyone's pockets as long as they use your technology or raw product, plus you sell your own brand at retail and cha-ching directly into your wallet.

<strong class='bbc'>Hey STEVE! Ready to hit the drawing board?! LOL [/b]

Hopefully Steve is ready to jump on the money train too.</blockquote>
 
Wow, I'm surprised to hear even SOUVERAN has solvents in it. :confused:



So are you guys trying to tell me if I wax my car weekly I am hurting my paint because of the repeated use of solvents?
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by JM19 [/i]
<strong class='bbc'>Wow, I'm surprised to hear even SOUVERAN has solvents in it. :confused:

So are you guys trying to tell me if I wax my car weekly I am hurting my paint because of the repeated use of solvents? [/b]</blockquote>
You aren't hurting your paint doing it weekly. The solvents in pinnacle soveran are there to dissolve the carnauba wax. If they didn't have the solvents, then it would just be a yellow brick that you couldn't apply.
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by Intel486 [/i]
<strong class='bbc'>

You aren't hurting your paint doing it weekly. The solvents in pinnacle soveran are there to dissolve the carnauba wax. If they didn't have the solvents, then it would just be a yellow brick that you couldn't apply. [/b]</blockquote>
WHEW! For a minute there I thought my waxing addiction was getting even more out of hand! :shocked
 
Here is an interesting quote from Tacsar about Blitz:



5) Layering ability. Since Blitz doesn't rely on heavy oils/solvents to get its shine, Blitz can be layered without one layer removing the first.





Just thought I'd add something to confuse everybody:p
 
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