Winter Preparation

[Joe@Adams]

Hello Everyone,

 

With winter rapidly approaching we need to be prepared for the extreme weather conditions we will face throughout the winter season.  No matter where you live, winter brings its fair share of harsh weather.  From rain to snow, winter is definitely not forgiving on our car's exteriors.

 

In this video, Adam describes how to prepare your vehicle for the harsh conditions of winter.  Here in CO we are still seeing some decent weather but the snow is right around the corner so it is essential for us to prepare for those conditions.  While the snow is harsh on our vehicle, the sand, salt, and magnesium chloride is even worse.   I apologize for the length of the video, But!!! The content is too valuable to cut down.  Adam touches on a lot of great points.

 

Not only did Adam prepare this car for winter, he made the car look amazing.  It was crazy the turn around this Jeep gave us.  Our products really took to this vehicle and it was truly amazing to see the transformation.  Enjoy the video and any response would be greatly accepted.  

 

Thank you all

 

Joe T.

 

 

[R_Rod20]

_{Watched the video during lunch and I thought it was very helpful!  I will be doing this to the wife's RDX soon!}

 

_Thanks!

_Ruben

[rkj4243]

Joe,

 

The video is GREAT!

 

Goes into the right amount of detail to show the proper steps, and products to keep vehicles protected and looking their best all winter long.

 

 

[Guest washemup]

Nice to know I have an additional use for Under-Carriage spray, other than just making the wheels wells look nice.

Thanks!

[blcksilv08]

Nice job on the video, there's a ton of great info in there.

[jeffh]

What a great video especially for this detailing noob with that being said I have questions. In the video for the glass sealant Adam says a few drops is plenty and this one he pored a bunch on the glass what's the best way to go for the winter. Second I've read and watched stuff on paint sealant and was wondering if the detail spray affects the adhesion of the sealant to the paint.

[MaStA]

What a great video especially for this detailing noob with that being said I have questions. In the video for the glass sealant Adam says a few drops is plenty and this one he pored a bunch on the glass what's the best way to go for the winter. Second I've read and watched stuff on paint sealant and was wondering if the detail spray affects the adhesion of the sealant to the paint.

 

It did look like he poured a lot onto the glass, but afterwards it didn't appear that much was really used in the bottle.  I have not used the glass sealant before, but I would imagine as long as you can see a thin layer being applied it will be just as effective.  

 

As far as paint sealant goes, you want to start with a clean clay barred surface prior to applying sealant.  Once it cures and you top it with wax you will still be able to use detail spray without ruining the protection you put on the paint.

[marquez93]

I've always used a small amount of glass sealant and it has worked great. But I might try more now just to see if it's any better that way.

[jeffh]

 

As far as paint sealant goes, you want to start with a clean clay barred surface prior to applying sealant.  Once it cures and you top it with wax you will still be able to use detail spray without ruining the protection you put on the paint.

 

 

Sorry I guess I should have said would it be better to wash the vehicle again after using detail spray before applying paint sealant  

[BluedogGMC]

Sorry I guess I should have said would it be better to wash the vehicle again after using detail spray before applying paint sealant  

 

That is one thing I can't remember ever seeing about after you clay should you strip wash, just wash, do a alcohol wipe down or what? I know if you are doing a paint correction you can just go ahead and start buffing after claying but what if you just want to go straight to sealant?

[stripesace]

That is one thing I can't remember ever seeing about after you clay should you strip wash, just wash, do a alcohol wipe down or what? I know if you are doing a paint correction you can just go ahead and start buffing after claying but what if you just want to go straight to sealant?

 

I did a strip wash after claying. Man that paint was SMOOOOOTH. I added 4oz of APC to my bucket of shampoo.. I'm trying to figure out what a good ration might be for the foam gun now.... 

[butters]

Sorry I guess I should have said would it be better to wash the vehicle again after using detail spray before applying paint sealant  

 

If it's not the very first application and you only wiped the car down, I don't think you really need to wash the car again.

 

If it's your base layer of sealant, and/or you clayed the car, I would suggest that the best practice is to wash the paint before sealing, or perhaps wipe it down withe 50/50 IPA.

[Dan@Adams]

Hey guys, great input and questions!

 

It did look like he poured a lot onto the glass, but afterwards it didn't appear that much was really used in the bottle. I have not used the glass sealant before, but I would imagine as long as you can see a thin layer being applied it will be just as effective.

As far as paint sealant goes, you want to start with a clean clay barred surface prior to applying sealant. Once it cures and you top it with wax you will still be able to use detail spray without ruining the protection you put on the paint.

 

With the Glass Sealant, a few drops onto the microfiber applicator and a few drops onto the glass itself is certainly enough, but if you pour a little more onto the glass it will just help spread a little easier and get more of the sealant down into any pores, tiny imperfections, small rock chips, etc to ensure you have great protection for a longer period of time. Just like you said Jared, even pouring a little bit more onto the windshield and rear glass for example, since those two surfaces are going to take the brunt of the winter weather, doesn't really use too much product out of the 4oz bottle. Then you can use fewer drops on the side windows.

 

I've always used a small amount of glass sealant and it has worked great. But I might try more now just to see if it's any better that way.

 

Using a small amount is fine too. If you do add a little more product onto the glass, let us know how it works out for you. Thanks!

 

Sorry I guess I should have said would it be better to wash the vehicle again after using detail spray before applying paint sealant

That is one thing I can't remember ever seeing about after you clay should you strip wash, just wash, do a alcohol wipe down or what? I know if you are doing a paint correction you can just go ahead and start buffing after claying but what if you just want to go straight to sealant?

 

Hey Jeff and Ron! It's not totally necessary to wash the vehicle again after claying the vehicle and using detail spray in regards to Winter Preparation. In the interest of saving time, especially for a winter prep where you aren't trying to make your vehicle look 100% perfect if you live in a snowy messy area, it's just not time effective for me personally to go over the car again with a strip wash, a regular two bucket wash, or an alcohol wipe down after I've clayed the surface. If there is a significant amount of DS residue left over from claying, I like to give another quick shot of DS and wipe it down with a Single Soft or Double Soft to get the majority of that residue off, but the LPS will still bond to the surface if there is a little bit of residue left over and it will last several months to get you through the winter season

The idea behind this winter prep video was to show a quick and efficient way to get your vehicle ready to be protected through the winter months, similar to how Adam did the daily driver video a few weeks back. You can absolutely do a strip wash or an alcohol wipe down to get the surface absolutely perfect for adhesion of LPS, but if you want to save some time, it's not necessary. As an example, I sometimes put down a layer of Brilliant Glaze right onto the bare polished surface after I do a paint correction with a machine polisher and before I put on an application of LPS...I know that goes against the popular opinion of most people, but I've found no degradation or longevity issues with LPS in doing that, and it still beads water and offers great protection for 4-6 months. This same idea applies to DS.

So the summary would be that either option is fine in this case, whether you want to add a little more time to your process and give the vehicle an extra wipe-down, or to just apply the LPS after claying. If I'm going all out with getting a show car to be 100% awesome for the upcoming show season, I will definitely spend the extra time going through a very thorough and meticulous process, because I love detailing and it's a relaxing and educational experience for me on every car I work on. But if I'm working outside on a car in colder, often windy fall temperatures in my area of the country to prepare a vehicle for winter, then for me, I want to be as safe and efficient as possible

 

I did a strip wash after claying. Man that paint was SMOOOOOTH. I added 4oz of APC to my bucket of shampoo.. I'm trying to figure out what a good ration might be for the foam gun now....

 

For a high concentration strip wash with the foam gun, you could use 1oz of Car Shampoo and 1oz of APC. This should foam like crazy!

Edited October 29, 2015 by Dan@Adams

[jeffh]

Thanks for the great information Dan time saving is always good.

[BluedogGMC]

Thanks for the info Dan, Very informative.

[boobaru]

Definitely what i was looking for in a video when i made the post about it and even all the responses in this help a lot too. Thanks for all the useful information.

[GratefulDiver]

Looks like my routine except I'll apply two coats of wax on top of the sealer.

[keeylyme]

That's a great video.  Never thought about winterizing the wheel wells.