The content of the article:
- What is waxing for?
- Varieties of wax
- Choosing wax
- Body processing process
- Advantages and disadvantages
- The price of protection
The appearance of the so-called "bugs" on the body of a car is not the most pleasant news for its owner. An equally unpleasant situation is when the paintwork is damaged, which leads to the most unpredictable consequences with the car body, from a damaged appearance to the appearance of rusty spots.
There are many ways to protect the car body from this kind of damage. You can open it with a special polish and keep the car in a dry garage, carefully bypass every detail and sound the alarm at the slightest hint, but an equally effective way is to wax the car. Consider the principle of processing, the type of wax and the price of such protection for the car body.
Why treat a car body with wax
Most often, the car body waxing service is offered at car washes. But drivers who are unfamiliar with this procedure often refuse, the price of the service is also not cheap. Throughout the history of automobiles, owners have processed car bodies, ranging from grease-based products to various chemicals, but wax has proven to be the best.
Typically, wax-based protection products are used to protect paintwork from various environmental factors. Thus, forming a thin protective film, such materials will help keep the car body from rust, paint cracks and scratches.
It can be concluded that by treating the car body with wax, you not only improve the appearance, but also protect it from the effects of the external environment, water rolls off the surface of the body much faster. As a result, drying is much faster, the number of stains after water is reduced, and it protects against paint and varnish fading.
Which wax is best to use for processing
The first wax materials for treating the car body were liquid or solid, progress does not stand still, as a result, synthetic and in the form of a spray appeared. Still, the latter is not so good in terms of efficiency. Wax spray is considered the worst, since its protective properties are enough for two or three washes, which means that you will have to apply and buy it much more often. Compared to other types of materials, the spray is applied quickly and easily, the entire car body can be treated within 15-30 minutes.
Liquid wax or in the form of a paste is more resistant to detergents and external factors. It is better to treat the body with liquid wax on a washed surface, followed by rubbing in order to apply as much as possible to damaged areas and microcracks. Hard wax is considered the best, but as noted by car owners who had to use it, this is the most laborious among all possible ways to protect the paint and varnish surface.
You need to apply hard wax on a dry surface, the work takes a lot of time, and if you also take into account hot weather and direct sunlight, it can take a whole day. The protection effect of such a wax film lasts quite a long time, about 3-4 months, with good resistance to rough environmental factors (dirt, salt on the roads in winter, rain, snow and frost). The most resistant is synthetic, it is the most resistant to external factors and is able to maintain its properties for six months. In addition to products for treating the car body, synthetic wax is added to car shampoos.
In addition to the classification of wax by properties, it is divided by the type of application. Cold types of application include formulations that include active cationic substances and emulsion wax in a sufficiently large amount. Typically, this wax is applied by hand. The main disadvantage of this type is fragility, often after each wash it is necessary to reapply a layer of wax.
The second type of car body wax is hot wax. By the type of base material, the main part is fat-like or synthetic. According to experts, carnauba wax is recognized as the highest quality. To treat the body of a car with such wax, it is necessary to warm it up to 90 degrees Celsius. At home, it is almost impossible to carry out such a procedure, since the product hardens almost instantly after warming up. The cost of the material is also not cheap, but the resulting film retains its properties for up to a year.
The last type of wax on the technology of applying foam. The composition of such wax includes the same substances as for hot application, but the application technology itself is completely different. This will require special equipment capable of creating a special foam, or rather its emulsion, by mixing air, a special composition and water. Thanks to the pressure under which the foam is applied to the surface, this method has obtained the best adhesion and application results. Polishing the applied foam is several times easier than hot wax.
When choosing a wax for car body treatment, it is necessary to take into account its origin. Leading manufacturers divide it into four main types - vegetable, mineral, animal and synthetic. Considering that the properties of each of the types are almost the same, this parameter is almost not taken into account when choosing a material for processing a car body.
How to choose wax for car body treatment
The choice of wax for the treatment of the car body should be approached very carefully, since the result of how the final result will look will depend on some factors. The first thing you should pay attention to is the price of one set, often cheap ones lose their properties until the date indicated on the packaging. For processing the car body not older than five years, it is better to use liquid or hard wax. The paintwork is not yet so tired and the film lays down evenly. Older cars (from 5 years old) are better off using abrasive mixtures or wax-based polishes. In this case, microcracks and defects in the paintwork are better filled.
It is very important that for brand new cars it is better not to use products that contain abrasive elements, otherwise the paintwork can be damaged!
Abrasives are most often used for cars, the paintwork of which has obvious defects (cracks and paint fading). When choosing such a material, it is worth considering the hardness, since you need to smooth out the cracks in the paintwork as efficiently as possible or restore other flaws.
How to properly handle the body with wax
Depending on the wishes of the car owner, waxing the car body can be done manually or with the help of tools. Most often, they offer a manual version of waxing the body, but if you choose hot body processing, then you cannot do without a special tool. For each type of wax, you can say its own application and processing technology, but there are basic rules that should be followed.
Regardless of the type and method of application chosen, the first thing to do is to ideally wash the car body from dirt and other substances. This is best done with a pressure washer and non-contact foam application.
In no case is it recommended to wax in direct sunlight or hot summer weather. In this case, the wax cools very quickly, and instead of a shiny surface, a matte lump will turn out.
The scheme for treating the body with wax is simple, in any case, it is necessary to allow the body to dry completely, you cannot apply wax to a wet surface, it instantly rolls off. The whole process begins with a uniform application of wax to the surface of the body, it is best to do this in small areas, and to achieve a greater effect, it is recommended to rub the mixture with a napkin. After complete drying, wipe again with a felt or woolen cloth. It is worth wiping in a circular motion, in which case the wax will better fix on the surface and fill in all microcracks. It is not recommended to polish the body with a polishing machine, the wax film will be very thin and, in fact, will not be able to fulfill the task. The whole procedure should be started from top to bottom, so that the napkin or cloth does not pick up small grains of sand, thereby not scratching the paintwork of the car.
As the statistics of various service stations show, liquid wax and spray are most in demand, since their application does not take much time, and the price of the procedures is not so exorbitant. Synthetic and hard wax for body treatment can take from half a day to a whole day, besides, the price is several times more than the previous two options.
Pros and cons of waxing car body
Like every process, waxing a car body has positive and negative sides. The positive side - this is a natural result, as a rule, the paintwork is restored, all microcracks are removed and the saturation of the paint shade is restored. In addition, in different weather conditions, wax treatment will show its best side, in rainy weather the water from the car will roll off faster, and after drying, tiny white spots will not appear on the surface. In winter, waxing the car body protects against salt corrosion and damage from ice crust, which means that the body will last longer.
But there is also a negative side of car body processing, first of all it is the price. Often, the cheaper option is chosen, expecting the same effect as in the treatment with hard or synthetic wax. Even the simplest procedure will take at least an hour, and the highest quality one will take all day. Believe me, not everyone will allow you to kill all day for waxing the body. Another disadvantage is the processing process itself, you need to carefully select the time and weather conditions, since the ambient temperature should be moderate and without direct sunlight. Wet weather will also not work, the wax will simply not cling to the surface of the car body.
Car body waxing price
The price for treating the body with wax will largely depend on the material chosen, the method of application and the subsequent properties of the wax film. The simplest waxing of the body will cost about $ 15-20. Typically, an inexpensive, liquid wax or spray is used for this procedure, and the process does not take long, often about an hour.
The use of hard wax or synthetic wax increases the cost of the procedure by at least 10 times. As a result, such treatment of a car body with wax will cost about $ 150-300. There is no maximum price, the use of expensive wax and the application procedure itself can significantly increase the cost. The car body will also affect the price, the more it is, the more you need to pay extra for the material itself and the processing process. At home, it is absolutely possible to apply wax to the car body and the maximum cost will be for the material itself.
Despite the fact that even the simplest procedure for waxing a car body is not cheap and can be washed off after the second wash, they are worth it. Microcracks are removed, the saturation of the body paintwork is restored, and, albeit not great, but effective protection from external factors appears.
