Paint Sealant Application Constraints

[tjonesdfw]

I have a new light colored vehicle that has black anodized aluminum parts and pebbled unfinished plastic trim on nearly every panel. There is also a rubber rub rail all the way around the vehicle. I live in a hot climate where its over 90-100F for much of the year, and have an unconditioned garage for detailing, however ambient can still hover near 100F. Truck has partial front PPF, is parked outside much of the time, and gets hand washed about once a month.

I don't have the time to apply a full ceramic coating and let it cure, so I started looking at the various spray on and or rub on/wipe off coatings such as CarPro, Opti, Gyeon, Griots, etc. Fellow owners have ruined the plastic trim on this vehicle when using products like Turtle Wax Hybrid Solutions Ceramic 3 in 1, and TEC582 on nearby paint. Some sealants also report incompatibility with rubber trim. Between those reported incompatibilities with the plastic and rubber trim and lower required application temps, I'm at an impasse.

What would you recommend I use to give the truck some meaningful protection? I'm fine with twice a year application if it doesn't require taping off all the plastic and ambient application temps below 85F.

 

[Mike Phillips]

Considering all aspects you just described, here's what I would suggest.

After washing and drying the truck, tape-off any trim you don't want to accidently stain. The best way to avoid stained textured black plastic trim is to avoid getting anything on it in the first place. See my story below.

Once the truck is washed, dried and anything you don't want stained is covered and protected, next choose a spray-on sealant or even a spray-on ceramic coating and follow the directions for application. Ideally - you want to apply anything in a garage, shop or even carport, out of direct exposure to the world.

I have not kept up with all the favorite flavors of the month type products, so do your own research. In most cases, as long as you pick an established and respected brand and then apply the product according to the directions, the product should perform as advertised.

Besides the above, the next best thing you can do is wash the truck often. Because it's stored outside, exposed to the sun and the elements, plus all the airborne dirt and pollution, the best way to presever the exterior, (all surfaces), is to keep her clean. Keep junk from building up on the surfaces. And of course, hand washing is always the safest approach, but if you must take it through a automatic car wash, pick a touchless option. Don't take your truck through a Swirl-O-Matic.

Not sure if the above helps, but it's common good practices.


Mike

 

[Mike Phillips]

More...

Even if you are only using a spray-on sealant or coating, there's still a possibility for staining or altering the appearance of trim. I found these pictures on a Facebook Detailing Group. I apologize to the owner, I should have reached out to get permission to use the pictures.

Expert Advice on Facebook
I participate on a few Facebook Detailing Groups and am often times both amazed and aghast. Half the people are giving great advice and the other half are probably still learning via trial and error.

Example
A lot of Facebook detailers will tell you that you don't have to tape-off and protect Textured Black Plastic Trim. They say just be careful and avoid buffing over the trim. But the way human muscles work, even if you try to not accidently run a spinning buffing pad over the trim, a lot of times, you do it anyways - always by accident. It's unavoidable in my expereince as I have tried to do this same thing.

What I've discorved is, I hate staining the trim on other people's cars and it's pretty much impossible to avoid without tape. And when you do tape-off trim, you can still stain it if you're not focused on the task at hand.


Real-World Mistake
Here's two pictures showing the detailer did in fact tape-off and protect the trim adjacent to the paint. But somehow ran the spinning pad PAST the protective tape and stained the plastic.

From decades of expereince, I'm stating it as a fact - the compound or polish residue will NEVER be removed 100% without damaging or altering the appearacn of the affected areas. Never. The most you can do at this point is clean the stained area as best as you can using any safe solvents or cleaners you can get your hands on. Then after that, DYE the trim with a product like Solution Finish, and then seal the surface with a plastic trim sealant or coating. But from expereince, after a few weeks, after a few rains and after a few washes, the staining will re-appear.


So I go against all the sage advice offered by Facebook detailers that say you don't need to tape-off and protect


My Normal Practice
I always tape-off and protect any Textured Black Plastic Trim. First - I don't want to be the guy that stained someone else's trim. Second - I don't want to try to remove any compound or polish staining at the end of the project when I'm tired.

Here's a brand new 4-door European job that shows how much of the stupid, Textured Black Plastic Trim Mercedes chose to punish their customers with. I was quite frankly shocked at how much of this junk they put on a quarter million dollar SUV. And around the outer edge of the roof? Looked like the Rubber Rub Rail found on a lot of boats to protect the boat from damage when tied up to a boat dock. Weird.

A few dollars in protective painter's tape and zero staining.


Summary
As long as you apply whatever you buy carefully, you shouldn't need to tape-off and protect any of the trim on your truck. But if you want to be hyper-carful, then protect it.


Mike

 

[Mike Phillips]

I have a new light colored vehicle that has black anodized aluminum parts

Sad to hear. Like Textured Black Plastic Trim, once any form of anodized aluminum is stained, there's not much you can do to fix it.

Anodizing is an electrochemical process that converts the outer surface of the aluminum into aluminum oxide. This protective layer grows both into and outward from the original surface, becoming an integral part of the metal.

Thus the anodizing is not ON the surface, it's in the surface and a part of the material. Thus once it's stained, abrading it will not fix the staining unless the staining is mearly topical.

I do not know of any protective product you can apply over black or any color of anodized trim that will prevent staining and/or normal deterioration over time. What I've seen is this type of anodized trim will show rainbow colors of staining merely from exposure to time, UV rays and the elements.

I wish I had better news and information for you, but alas, they don't build them like they use to.

Mike