Discussion
Anyone else really suffering from sporadic deposits of red dust? I vaguely recollect that it is linked to weather patterns bringing sand from the Sahara up to the UK.
Could just as likely be a big building site just down the road.
I'm more interested in how you get rid of it without scratching the paint? Plenty of water to start, Two buckets, lambswool mitt and I still have the feeling I might as well be sandblasting the car.
Any suggestions?
Could just as likely be a big building site just down the road.
I'm more interested in how you get rid of it without scratching the paint? Plenty of water to start, Two buckets, lambswool mitt and I still have the feeling I might as well be sandblasting the car.
Any suggestions?
Just pre-wash, ie remove as much dust as possible with a pressure-washer or hose (if you can use a snow foam or dose with shampoo via a feed hose or bottle, then so much the better). Then contact wash with double the normal amount of shampoo to ensure maximum lubricity, using the twin bucket method. When drying use a quick detail spray or 'drying aid' (specific drying quick detailer) to ensure any deposits left are lubricated.
Thanks for the tips.
And by coincidence, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26844425 - will wait a few days before attempting anything.
And by coincidence, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26844425 - will wait a few days before attempting anything.
As i have just wrote some info on the subject on my Business facebook page i will copy and paste here.
"So for the last few days have you noticed sand spots over your car?
We have more to come too (unfortunately), these sand spots come from pollutants in the air that settle on surfaces here where the most recent has comes from
http://www.maidstoneandmedwaynews.co.uk/Killer-smo...
This is actually happening all the time (pollutants air borne) and does not come from just the Sahara desert, it’s from industry / power stations / trees pollen etc., unfortunately in the UK our weather means it can be very harmful to our pride and joys painted surfaces.
The UK weather and why it’s bad
The catalyst needed to make these air borne contaminants to become nasty and stain/etch into the surfaces is Heat and moisture, irony is if we were to have really heavy rain constantly it would wash away the contaminants and keep panel surface temps low enough to not allow the catalyst to happen, at the other end of the scale if we were to have weather like Dubai where there is very little moisture the catalyst would not happen either.
When these pollutants sit on our car overnight and then we have dew in the morning as the sun comes out and the dew dries slowly this is enough for the catalyst to start.
Or when it rains on a car that’s been sitting in the direct sun light so already very hot (more so on dark coloured cars) if we only have light rain it’s not enough to cool the surface or wash away the contaminants so again the perfect situation for the catalyst to do its nasty stuff.
Even invisible pollen that’s in the air all the time is inert until its mixed with moisture and should therefore be removed from paint surfaces as soon as is practicable.
The above will of course be more noticeable and take greater effect on the colour of the car dark colours easily reach 80 plus Deg C in the UK on the same day same conditions a white car ONLY reached 30 Deg C , Heat is the issue, its why staining happens in the summer and not the winter even thou the public think winter is more harmful to cars paint in fact UV light (cause high panel temps) is far more damaging.
To Put in into laymans terms , freashly painted cars/panels are baked in spray booth for 20-40 minutes at 60 Deg C air temp which results in panel temps of 40-60 deg c for less than 10-20 miuntes , a black car can be at 80 degc for hours per day in the UK summer.
The solution is the protect your car with a LSP (last step protection) this comes in the form of a wax, sealant or nano technology coating, even then the surfaces should be cleaned as soon as possible as these won’t protect for ever against such pollution.
To clean, rinse off as much as possible with jet wash or hose used double the amount of shampoo you normally use to up the lubricant properties (remember sand in the air is the same as sand paper to abrade paint) rinse the vehicle surface for longer to remove the shampoo and contaminants then be extra careful with a light touch when washing.
Do NOT wipe this type of contaminants "dry" to remove it."
Also to helpout is a download PDF file on aftercare for your car which covers all areas of a vehicle not just painted surfaces.
http://www.kdskeltec.co.uk/images/kds/pdfdocs/kds-...
kelly
"So for the last few days have you noticed sand spots over your car?
We have more to come too (unfortunately), these sand spots come from pollutants in the air that settle on surfaces here where the most recent has comes from
http://www.maidstoneandmedwaynews.co.uk/Killer-smo...
This is actually happening all the time (pollutants air borne) and does not come from just the Sahara desert, it’s from industry / power stations / trees pollen etc., unfortunately in the UK our weather means it can be very harmful to our pride and joys painted surfaces.
The UK weather and why it’s bad
The catalyst needed to make these air borne contaminants to become nasty and stain/etch into the surfaces is Heat and moisture, irony is if we were to have really heavy rain constantly it would wash away the contaminants and keep panel surface temps low enough to not allow the catalyst to happen, at the other end of the scale if we were to have weather like Dubai where there is very little moisture the catalyst would not happen either.
When these pollutants sit on our car overnight and then we have dew in the morning as the sun comes out and the dew dries slowly this is enough for the catalyst to start.
Or when it rains on a car that’s been sitting in the direct sun light so already very hot (more so on dark coloured cars) if we only have light rain it’s not enough to cool the surface or wash away the contaminants so again the perfect situation for the catalyst to do its nasty stuff.
Even invisible pollen that’s in the air all the time is inert until its mixed with moisture and should therefore be removed from paint surfaces as soon as is practicable.
The above will of course be more noticeable and take greater effect on the colour of the car dark colours easily reach 80 plus Deg C in the UK on the same day same conditions a white car ONLY reached 30 Deg C , Heat is the issue, its why staining happens in the summer and not the winter even thou the public think winter is more harmful to cars paint in fact UV light (cause high panel temps) is far more damaging.
To Put in into laymans terms , freashly painted cars/panels are baked in spray booth for 20-40 minutes at 60 Deg C air temp which results in panel temps of 40-60 deg c for less than 10-20 miuntes , a black car can be at 80 degc for hours per day in the UK summer.
The solution is the protect your car with a LSP (last step protection) this comes in the form of a wax, sealant or nano technology coating, even then the surfaces should be cleaned as soon as possible as these won’t protect for ever against such pollution.
To clean, rinse off as much as possible with jet wash or hose used double the amount of shampoo you normally use to up the lubricant properties (remember sand in the air is the same as sand paper to abrade paint) rinse the vehicle surface for longer to remove the shampoo and contaminants then be extra careful with a light touch when washing.
Do NOT wipe this type of contaminants "dry" to remove it."
Also to helpout is a download PDF file on aftercare for your car which covers all areas of a vehicle not just painted surfaces.
http://www.kdskeltec.co.uk/images/kds/pdfdocs/kds-...
kelly
Thanks Kelly, I am sure we all agree that is very generous free advice from a pro.
I've just spent the best part of two days giving the Corvette it's spring spruce up (clay then 4 very slow pass Megs 205 DA followed by Techwax 2.0 NXT by hand). Guess it doesn't look too bad for a 145,000 miler!
I will follow your advice to remove the crap when it lands. Only 3 more cars to go, but the good news is the Vette paint is the hardest of them all!
ETA: a pic - with wheels, glass and interior to go!
I've just spent the best part of two days giving the Corvette it's spring spruce up (clay then 4 very slow pass Megs 205 DA followed by Techwax 2.0 NXT by hand). Guess it doesn't look too bad for a 145,000 miler!
I will follow your advice to remove the crap when it lands. Only 3 more cars to go, but the good news is the Vette paint is the hardest of them all!
ETA: a pic - with wheels, glass and interior to go!
Edited by SeeFive on Wednesday 2nd April 16:30
What happens if you remove this red dust with waterless cleaner and a microfibre (to a small area)? Surely the waterless cleaner would have given that region enough moisture to remove dust? (this is in a small region)
I did this yesterday as I wanted to (ironically, perhaps) apply some megs scratch X to remove this blemish off my car.
I did this yesterday as I wanted to (ironically, perhaps) apply some megs scratch X to remove this blemish off my car.
Do you have any large conifers near your motors? Before the sahara sand this week, the conifers in our garden were shifting pollen by the bucket load - pinky/red in colour. It lasted about a week. With a moderate wind (or shaking a branch) - you could see clouds of this stuff coming off
M42TYN said:
Do you have any large conifers near your motors? Before the sahara sand this week, the conifers in our garden were shifting pollen by the bucket load - pinky/red in colour. It lasted about a week. With a moderate wind (or shaking a branch) - you could see clouds of this stuff coming off
Ahh that explains the dust I had all over my car when went out for dinner last Sunday. Parked at the far end of the car park (away from all the riff raff!), and next to some tall conifers. When I got back the car was absolutely covered in a pink dust and you could see clouds of it billowing through the conifers.Gassing Station | Bodywork & Detailing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff