Waxes Demystified

I'm often asked about waxes.  In the GlossHaus system, we major on two things: preparing and correcting the paint surface to the finest point possible and ease of use.  Thorough polishing and glazing of your paint offers the best platform for wax - if you do it right, almost any wax will look pretty good.  But once you're done preparing the paint, how do you choose what wax is right for the car?  The answer is "It depends on what you want."

When selecting the type of wax, you have two categories to choose from - carnauba waxes and polymer sealants.

Carnauba Waxes are a natural product made from a Brazilian palm tree, and offer the most beautiful result - that soft, glossy glow that really gives the illusion of depth.  The downside of carnauba waxes is they don't last as long as sealants, and offer less protection.

Polymer sealants offer terrific protection since they actually bond to your paint, and typically last 50% longer than a carnauba wax.  [Another question I often get asked is "How long does wax last?", but that is another blog for another day, but the net answer is "It depends" :o) ].  The primary downside of sealant waxes is that they tend to look very wet and "slick", but don't offer the visual depth and softness that is really the best look for most cars.

So which do you choose?  I think the easy answer is you choose carnauba for looks or sealant for protection and longevity, but here's the really good news:

You can choose both!

Layering the waxes gives you the best of both worlds - you get all the beauty of carnauba with all of the protection of the sealant.  The important thing to remember is that you should apply the sealant first since it bonds to your paint.  After waiting 12 to 24 hours for the sealant to cure and bond, apply the carnauba.  It will go on and off even easier!  Also, since sealant lasts longer, you can also apply a "top coat" of carnauba six to eight weeks later to extend the benefit of both waxes!

When it comes down to choosing your brand of wax, the choice factors for me come down to two things:  Beauty and Ease of Use.

Most sealants are easy to use..They have less issues with hazing trim and they go on and come off easily, which makes them popular with detailers who have fought the chunk of carnauba-turned-cement on a spot they missed or took too long to get back to.    GlossHaus Perfect Polymer is certainly no exception to that rule.

But if you're going for the best look, you're talking carnauba.  Generally, carnauba requires you to work very methodically - getting it on and off the panel efficiently or risk spots that harden and can be very difficult and a little stressful to remove.  GlossHaus Perfect Carnauba is specifically formulated to be easy to put and once it hazes over and you're ready to wipe it off (or even a few minutes after you're ready...), it won't take the arms of a professional wrestler or a jackhammer to remove the residue.  An easy wipe with a microfiber will unveil the amazing shine you want.

When it comes to compliments, virtually every comment we get about beautiful results is accompanied with a statement along the lines of "...and it was so easy to use!" - which means we are doing our job right!

So it boils down to this:  Prepare your paint well for wax to get the best result.  When choosing wax, go for sealant for the best protection or select carnauba for the best look.  If you have the time for one extra step, use both by applying carnauba after the sealant has had time to bond, and enjoy the most complete benefit possible!

Spring is here - time to wash cars!

Spring isn't officially here yet, but it is warming up, so a word on washing cars.  If you love your car, you really should use the two bucket wash method.  If you don't love your car...you should still use a two bucket wash!!  Why?  You'd be amazed how much damage you do to your car when you wash when you aren't using two buckets.

So what is two bucket washing?  Simple - you use one bucket with your warm, soapy water, and one bucket as a rinse for your wash mitt.  You start with a clean mitt, gently wash the car using both sides of the mitt and after a panel or so you rinse the mitt by dunking it in the rinse bucket, swirling it around a bit and wringing it out.  Then (and only then) you put the now-clean mitt in the soapy water again and load it up for cleaning the next panel.  If this sounds like "Lather, Rinse, Repeat" from your shampoo bottle, you aren't far off! 

So how big a deal is it really?  Below are pictures of my wash bucket and rinse bucket after washing the GlossHausmobile, which was dirty, but not "write-wash-me-with-you-finger" dirty (by the way please never do that to anyone: sometimes you'll scratch those words in the paint!!!). As usual, pictures are worth a thousand words (and you can click on them for the full-size view):

The wash bucket:  (not bad, right?)

The rinse bucket:   (cue terrifying music shower music from Psycho)

I couldn't believe how much stuff was in the rinse bucket!  The idea that I was smearing all that junk back on my paint made me an instant believer in Two Bucket Washing.

So what are you avoiding by using two buckets?  Simple - swirl marks.  Have you ever looked at a car in the sun or bright light and seen this? 

Those are swirl marks, which are caused by a lot of things: cheap or dirty microfiber, scratchy drying towels, soap brushes at the coin-up wash stations and those whirling-dervish car washes that beat your car with huge strips of cloth. The most common cause of swirl marks, however, is dirty wash water.  The two bucket method dramatically minimizes swirls.

By the way, the car above was a collector's BMW 2002 that he kept meticulously clean and washed all the time - he didn't realize he was the source of the swirls.  The good news is a little bit of work with the GlossHaus system left it looking like this:

If you have any questions, feel free to post them here, on the GlossHaus Facebook page or e-mail me at lee@glosshaus.com. 

Product Notes

You may have noticed the screens in the bottom of the buckets.  Grit Guard makes a terrific product that fits in any standard 5 gallon bucket and traps dirt and other contaminants in the bottom of the bucket and away from your wash mitt.  I recommend one in each of your two buckets.  At $9.95 each, they are cheap insurance.  Check out Grit Guard products at our store.

Also, cheap microfiber from big box stores is fine for home cleaning, but will also swirl your car.  GlossHaus offers terrific and affordable microfiber products. See the Microfiber selection at our store.

Lastly, you can see the full range of GlossHaus polishes, glaze, waxes and complete kits at The GlossHaus Store at Atlantic Euro

What is IPA and why should I use it??

The detailing world is awash in acronyms, and one you'll see a lot is "IPA" as in "IPA wipedown" or "I'll hit the panel with IPA..." etc.

I thought something so useful and potentially important to good detailing process deserved a little demystification.  What it boils down to is you use an IPA mixture in a spray bottle to really clean things at certain points, wiping it off with a microfiber towel.

What:
- IPA is a 50/50 mix of IsoPropyl Alcohol and distilled water  (distilled is a very important part of this - please don't use tap water.  I'm not a huge fan of filtered water, either, especially when distilled water is easily obtained at your grocery store)

When:
- Before working on a panel to strip all wax, etc. off
- Between aggressive and mild polishing steps to ensure removal of any remaining polish residue
- Between final polishing/glaze step and wax to ensure removal of remaining polish residue

Why:
- IPA is a terrific, inexpensive and fairly gentle way to remove stuff (wax, polish residue, etc.) from a painted surface. Whether you want to strip wax from a panel, ensure that more aggressive polish isn't mixed with finer polishing steps or preparing to transition from polish to wax, IPA can help.  You always want the cleanest surface possible.

How:
- Misted from a spray bottle in similar density to quick detailer. If I'm working on a single panel for some reason, I protect the area I'm not working on with a microfiber towel.

Dilution:
5 parts water to 3 parts 70% IPA from the drugstore will get you close enough to 50/50. Ideally, you should get 99% pure IPA - available from Amazon at this link. if you can't find it locally. The reason you want to do that is you really don't want the other 30% of what comes in the drugstore variety in your mixture. The 99% pure stuff isn't expensive, and the magic of Amazon makes it easy to find.

Some people will use higher ratios of alcohol, but I don't generally recommend it since alcohol can really dry the paint surface, rubber gaskets, etc., when used in higher concentrations.

Good luck and keep it glossy!