+1 to the above.
Question on using clay bar
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8
Exactly. If you maintain your wax there is no reason to clay bar more than once a year (I always do mine at the end of winter). As long as there is good wax on the car you won't have to re-clay because the paint is protected by the wax. In winter if you live in areas where there is salt on the roads there is a 99% chance your wax won't survive. Easiest way to tell is by feel. Once you wash your car if it doesn't feel smooth the paint is contaminated. I use Zaino (have for YEARS, it is awesome stuff) and as long as you use their detailing spray after every wash, add a coat of wax every month or 2 there is no reason you can't get away with claying just once a year.
For the people in the apartments, my personal opinion is if you are using a car wash then you should not be claying your car. Car washes (even when you use the do it yourself) DO NOT get the car clean enough to clay. Especially if you drive home after. You want the surface as clean as possible otherwise you can end up scratching it. If you don't have a place where you can wash the entire car get a bucket and a sponge and do one section at a time. I also recommend if you are going to clay use a good dish detergent (I use Dawn) and it will strip off all the old wax so you are working on bare paint. Once you finish with the clay, and depending on the wax you use, you want to apply multiple LIGHT layers of wax. Another reason I like Zaino, you can get an additive for their wax to do up to 3 consecutive coats without waiting for it to harden. After that I generally let it sit overnight if possible so the wax gets good and hard, most likely you will have a few cloudy areas where too much wax built up, I then wash it quickly with a car soap to remove the excess wax, dry it off and enjoy. Spend the time to do it right in the beginning and maintenance for the rest of the year is ridiculously easy.
Do it right and you end up with paint looking like this
I agree with everything u said except I wouldn't recommend using dish detergent to strip wax off. It not only strips the wax off it eventually strips the clearcoat off over time. I would recommend just using the quick detailer spray with clay barExactly. If you maintain your wax there is no reason to clay bar more than once a year (I always do mine at the end of winter). As long as there is good wax on the car you won't have to re-clay because the paint is protected by the wax. In winter if you live in areas where there is salt on the roads there is a 99% chance your wax won't survive. Easiest way to tell is by feel. Once you wash your car if it doesn't feel smooth the paint is contaminated. I use Zaino (have for YEARS, it is awesome stuff) and as long as you use their detailing spray after every wash, add a coat of wax every month or 2 there is no reason you can't get away with claying just once a year.
For the people in the apartments, my personal opinion is if you are using a car wash then you should not be claying your car. Car washes (even when you use the do it yourself) DO NOT get the car clean enough to clay. Especially if you drive home after. You want the surface as clean as possible otherwise you can end up scratching it. If you don't have a place where you can wash the entire car get a bucket and a sponge and do one section at a time. I also recommend if you are going to clay use a good dish detergent (I use Dawn) and it will strip off all the old wax so you are working on bare paint. Once you finish with the clay, and depending on the wax you use, you want to apply multiple LIGHT layers of wax. Another reason I like Zaino, you can get an additive for their wax to do up to 3 consecutive coats without waiting for it to harden. After that I generally let it sit overnight if possible so the wax gets good and hard, most likely you will have a few cloudy areas where too much wax built up, I then wash it quickly with a car soap to remove the excess wax, dry it off and enjoy. Spend the time to do it right in the beginning and maintenance for the rest of the year is ridiculously easy.
Do it right and you end up with paint looking like this
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