What is the biggest enemy of car paint?

The paintwork primarily determines the appearance of a car, but it also protects the bodywork. Car paint is constantly exposed to external influences and can be damaged both mechanically and chemically. The paint is affected by air temperature and insects that get stuck to the car body on summer days. This is why it is so important to protect the paintwork properly.

The paint can be damaged by everyday substances and products, such as:

• poor-quality windscreen washer fluid,
• pencils used to hide scratches,
• hydraulic oil,
• biofuel.

Matte spots on car paint

Contact between the paintwork and the substances listed above, combined with sunlight and high temperatures, causes matte spots to form on the car paint. Corrosive substances have the strongest effect on paintwork at temperatures between 50 and 60 degrees Celsius, and the body of a car parked in direct sunlight can easily reach these temperatures. This is the most common cause of dull spots on the paintwork. The paint can also swell and become wrinkled. Unfortunately, in these cases, it can no longer be saved. The damaged area of the car body must be sanded down and repainted.

The most important thing is to avoid this kind of damage by removing any dangerous dirt with a cloth or tissue.

Weather conditions

The second group of factors that threaten the paintwork, besides chemicals, are the weather conditions. What damages car paint? In frost, the paint shrinks, and in heat, it expands. This causes the paint to deform and the structure to weaken. In addition, rain, snow and, in particular, hail can also damage the paintwork. Hail can cause microcracks and more serious damage to the bodywork.

However, strong winds are just as dangerous for the paintwork, as they can transfer various small particles, dust and sand to the car. These particles can also cause micro-cracks.

Bird droppings also have a significant impact on the appearance of the car body, causing dull spots on the car paint. For this reason, it is worth removing them from the car body as soon as possible.

Ways to get rid of old paint

Sometimes, when you want to get rid of old and damaged paint and protect the body with new paint, you have to sand down the car paint. How do you do it? The easiest solution is to use one of the special rotary polishers. There are several very effective products on the market that make polishing car paint a breeze.

Remember that for large scratches, it is advisable to sand the part with a large grain. Start with coarse sandpaper and then move on to finer grain. Then all you need to do is polish the paintwork by applying a little polishing paste with a suitable pad. This is an effective way to remove dull spots on car paintwork. However, when using these types of products, always read the manufacturer's instructions carefully and make sure you protect your eyes, skin and respiratory tract. It is best to polish the paint in a well-sealed, ventilated room to avoid new scratches caused by external contamination.

 

Another way to get rid of old or damaged paint is sandblasting. This method involves spraying fine sand with a special gun. This technology allows for complete exposure of the car body. However, the disadvantage of sandblasting is that we remove the entire paint layer, and an unsuitable grain size of the sand can damage the car body.