Tiny paint blisters after washing
Discussion
I had the front of my TVR resprayed in September.
I haven't used the car a lot since, so have only washed it a couple of times. I can't remember if I've used car wash or just warm water in the past.
Anyway today I decided I would wash the car properly, to take some insurance valuation photos. After the car had dried, I noticed that the tops of both front wings are covered in tiny blisters - they look like the kind of thing you get from tree sap, but are in the paint.
Now they were definitely not there before washing - the car wasn't that dirty, and anyway I looked at the paint very closely on Friday after I had tyres fitted, to check for scratches.
I'll set out exactly how I washed the car:
1. Warm (not hot) water in a brand new plastic bucket - only used once before and that was to wash the Saab half an hour before.
2. Two caps of Turtle Wax Extreme wash/wax (you can buy it in Halfords in limegreen bottles) added to the water.
3. A quick flash over with a pressure washer (I'd been cleaning the front of the engine first). The washer was set on a wide spray soft setting, just to rinse the car and pre-soak the dirt - NOT a high-pressure jet.
4. Wash car with brand new (straight out of the packet) Meguiars sheepskin wash mitt - only used once before to wash Saab as above!
5. Rinse car with pressure washer again on wide spray soft setting.
6. dry car off with Meguiars synthetic "wonder drying cloth" or whatever they call it - now this wasn't new, and had been drying on a radiator since last time.
7. Final drying with a terry towel - although I did notice that this was tending to streak the paint as if it had polish on it so I stopped using that after a few wipes.
The weather wasn't that cold (in fact I was sweating after washing two cars) and there was a sort of low watery sunshine.
The blisters are on a bit that I wiped with the terry cloth, and a bit that I didn't, so I don't think it's that. As far as I can see, the Meguiars drying cloth is the only possible source of contaminant - but the rest of the paint on the car is ok.
I just don't understand. The garage who painted the car are closed until tomorrow but I don't know when I'll be able to take the car in. Anybody help please?
I haven't used the car a lot since, so have only washed it a couple of times. I can't remember if I've used car wash or just warm water in the past.
Anyway today I decided I would wash the car properly, to take some insurance valuation photos. After the car had dried, I noticed that the tops of both front wings are covered in tiny blisters - they look like the kind of thing you get from tree sap, but are in the paint.
Now they were definitely not there before washing - the car wasn't that dirty, and anyway I looked at the paint very closely on Friday after I had tyres fitted, to check for scratches.
I'll set out exactly how I washed the car:
1. Warm (not hot) water in a brand new plastic bucket - only used once before and that was to wash the Saab half an hour before.
2. Two caps of Turtle Wax Extreme wash/wax (you can buy it in Halfords in limegreen bottles) added to the water.
3. A quick flash over with a pressure washer (I'd been cleaning the front of the engine first). The washer was set on a wide spray soft setting, just to rinse the car and pre-soak the dirt - NOT a high-pressure jet.
4. Wash car with brand new (straight out of the packet) Meguiars sheepskin wash mitt - only used once before to wash Saab as above!
5. Rinse car with pressure washer again on wide spray soft setting.
6. dry car off with Meguiars synthetic "wonder drying cloth" or whatever they call it - now this wasn't new, and had been drying on a radiator since last time.
7. Final drying with a terry towel - although I did notice that this was tending to streak the paint as if it had polish on it so I stopped using that after a few wipes.
The weather wasn't that cold (in fact I was sweating after washing two cars) and there was a sort of low watery sunshine.
The blisters are on a bit that I wiped with the terry cloth, and a bit that I didn't, so I don't think it's that. As far as I can see, the Meguiars drying cloth is the only possible source of contaminant - but the rest of the paint on the car is ok.
I just don't understand. The garage who painted the car are closed until tomorrow but I don't know when I'll be able to take the car in. Anybody help please?
si_j said:
The old solvent based paint or "newer" environmental beneficial water based?
Water based - they recommend you don't wash the car for 6 months or so to let the paint cure and harden.
I don't know what they used. Nobody recommended that to me!
>> Edited by tvrgit on Tuesday 3rd January 16:07
alloypearltam said:
6 months????? My goodness that would mean not washing ours for 6,000 miles, I shudder to think what it would look like after that length of time.
Ok maybe a bit vague using the word "wash"
No wax/polish for 6 months as it creates a seal, therefore the paint cannot harden as the water based solvent cannot evaporate away anymore.
There was a thread here a few months ago about it - not sure which specific forum, most probably in General Gassing.
Seen it mentioned on other motoring forums too.
with regards to waxing the car after it has been painted this can actually be carried out within days and should be but only if you are using a natural product which allows the paint to breathe, the problem on your tvr is not down to anything you have done wrong it is either what was previously mentioned that it has been painted in a damp enviroment or the air line moisture reducer was not connected or was not working correctly, basically there is moisture under the paint and it needs doing again. good luck
My race car has this too...and its only 6 months old! I have been told that my car need a full re-spray! This is what a few people said about it on general gassing: www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&t=227967&r=2799717&hm=34191#2799717
Michal
Michal
Update:
The garage appeared to be fairly helpful last Thursday.
Today they have decided that it's not their fault: it's the quality of the replacement bonnet, which they say must have air gaps or air bubbles full of damp air. They say that because I have washed the car and then run the engine (even although I had shammied it dry by that time) the damp air has risen out of the panel and into the paint.
I don't understand how it hasn't happened before then, because I have no garage and the car is left out in the rain.
In any case, the question is: how does the damp air get into the panel? I think it's through the wet and dry preparation process and then not leaving enough time for it to dry out properly. Or is it because the paint is porous? Either way, I cannot see how they can simply say "not our fault" with certainty.
They are just not listening though.
More advice please guys?
The garage appeared to be fairly helpful last Thursday.
Today they have decided that it's not their fault: it's the quality of the replacement bonnet, which they say must have air gaps or air bubbles full of damp air. They say that because I have washed the car and then run the engine (even although I had shammied it dry by that time) the damp air has risen out of the panel and into the paint.
I don't understand how it hasn't happened before then, because I have no garage and the car is left out in the rain.
In any case, the question is: how does the damp air get into the panel? I think it's through the wet and dry preparation process and then not leaving enough time for it to dry out properly. Or is it because the paint is porous? Either way, I cannot see how they can simply say "not our fault" with certainty.
They are just not listening though.
More advice please guys?
I had something very similar covering the roof of my TVR Vixen when I first got it. I couldn't understand what they were either. The body was taken back to bare fibreglass for the respray followed by a few coats of etch primer and some base coats (cellulose by the way). After leaving the paint for a few weeks to allow it to settle I had noticed that pin-holes had appeared in the paint, obviously from air bubbles in the fibreglass. But they only appeared over the roof where I had seen these similar paint blisters. I just assumed that previously, the paint had been applied heavily or high build primer had been used and may have sealed the air in which at a later date had tried to expand?
I have since spent weeks opening out all these holes with a 4mm twist drill and filling them with stopper.
Don't know if this could be something similar?
So are they saying that every time you wash the car and then run the engine you should expect to see these blisters appear !!
you mention the replacement panel,as its a TVR we're talking about can we assume that its a factory panel ?
If so see what they have to say about it.
I had a similar experience with a door I painted on a Rochdale GT I owned, I had to sand all the gel coat off due to the cracks in it and after filling and sanding again I painted it only to see blisters appear however this was on a 40 year old car in my own garage and not what I would expect from a 'pro' they're talking S
te
you mention the replacement panel,as its a TVR we're talking about can we assume that its a factory panel ?
If so see what they have to say about it.
I had a similar experience with a door I painted on a Rochdale GT I owned, I had to sand all the gel coat off due to the cracks in it and after filling and sanding again I painted it only to see blisters appear however this was on a 40 year old car in my own garage and not what I would expect from a 'pro' they're talking S
te hal 1 said:
So are they saying that every time you wash the car and then run the engine you should expect to see these blisters appear !!
Apparently!
hal 1 said:
you mention the replacement panel,as its a TVR we're talking about can we assume that its a factory panel ? If so see what they have to say about it.
No it's not a factory panel - it's a pattern bonnet. I am going to phone the supplier though, good idea.
Eddie, Glyn, Miracle - thanks for confirming my thoughts.
I don't know how I am going to prove this to them though - I can't prove I'm right, but there again neither can they - but the benefit of the doubt will no doubt go to the "experts".
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