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Rain, snow, ice and salt will not leave a nice signature on your car. If you want to protect it, make sure you follow at least some of the points below.
Even we are getting ready for winter, getting new shoes, warmer coat well, even the car needs to be treated similarly. What people usually do is they change the tyres and replace the necessary liquids with the ones with lower point of freezing. You can do much more and you will be happy you did so when the winter will be gone.
The paintwork needs to be well protected also, because that is the main part that has to resist all the agents used on the roads in winter salt, grit, water and others. All these materials usually bond with dirt and other chemicals and you can see the result of their job on the paintwork of your car. The oxidation, rust and damaged plastic parts. Its very important to use good protection, especially for the coming winter months..
Normal de-icing salt consists of rock salt (NaCl), natural minerals like anhydride, sulphate magnesium, clay, chloride calcic (CaCl2), chloride magnesium (MgCl2), sometimes it contains Kainit.
The de-icing salt is working on the basis of physical-chemical effect of molecular reduction of the freezing point of the liquids. It is, unfortunately, responsible for the corrosion of the vehicle paintwork. It is mainly ions of chloride that attack the paintwork.
So how to protect your car against the unpleasant reaction of winter? The best is to give it a resistant coat. The basic protection starts with good cleaning. It needs to be mentioned, that automatic car wash or just simple wash is not sufficient. You need to remove all the dirt embedded in the paintwork. It is tar and adhesive that needs to be removed with the clay bar. If you would use the protection without removing the contamination it would cause severe damage to the paintwork in the long term run.
After that the polish is following. The best time to polish the car is not surprisingly in summer, but right before winter. Only then it has not only esthetical role but mainly the practical reason because the car will not be only much easier to wash during the winter but it will also give a great base for the protecting layer of wax. The polish will remove the little tiny scratches that are usually the best spots for start of corrosion.
Clean and polished car is now ready for the next procedure. Its the second layer that protects your car not only against the mechanical and chemical damage, but there is a great choice of hydrophobic products that will keep the water of the bodywork. The car will not suffer so much from snow, ice and frost. It is also easier to remove these contaminants and the paintwork will not get damaged so fast. Still, it is advisable to preheat the car a little bit before you start removing the ice or snow form its surface since the heat will release it.
There is a wide choice of different waxes on the market, so it is up to you and also your pocket which one you decide to go for. In winter, even the best wax should be renewed at least once to keep the car well protected. You should use pH neutral shampoo that will not damage the wax layer.
You can also use so called sealants that are more durable. These are special car care products that work on the basis of nanotechnology. The sealant protection lasts at least 1 year, again depends on the brand and type. There are sealants designated for using for windows, bodywork and plastics.(For more information on our car valeting and detailing services in Kent, please call us)
There is a new product on the market nowadays, which is so called Ceramic coatings. Due to the chemical reaction it will create very hard and durable protective layer on the paintwork. It is suitable to be used on the most stressed parts of body work ie front bonnet.
As for the tyres these suffer the most so that good protection should be used on them as well. There is a lot of sprays or gels pre dressings - that can be used on the sides of the tyres. Never use any product directly on the part of tyres that touches the ground.
It is always good to call for a professional help, at least once a year and especially before winter. That way you will ensure the safe and trouble free winter journeys.