How to Clay a Car
By Marc Howe on Jun 22, 2010 with Comments 0
The only thing, which keeps your car look shiny and good, is its paint job. But there are certain matters, which make the look of your car shabby and unattractive. Paint vortexes, dirt, specks and certain contaminants need to be cleared, if you want to give your car good and shiny look. In the coming paragraphs we will provide you with useful information about how to clay your car. Follow the steps carefully and you will find how easy it is.
What is Clay Bar or Claying?
With the passage of time many pollutants and contaminants take hold of paint on your car. Paint over-spray, tree cap, paint vortexes, brake dust all these impurities embedded into the paint surface. A clay bar is used to remove all these impurities and pollutants from paint.
The right choice of clay is always important. The clay used by profession auto detailers is highly abrasive while the consumer grade clay bars are usually less abrasive and mostly used for maintenance purposes.
Tools
Following tools are required to clay your vehicle:
Clay Bar: Consumer grade clay bars are mostly less abrasive than those used by auto detailing experts. The clay bar has the tendency to remove the pollutants and dirt from the paint with the help of abrasive particles contained in it.
Clay Lubricant: You can use window-cleaning solution watered down as a lubricant. However, you can use the specific lubricants, which are available easily in the market.
Instructions
By following these instructions you can do a clay job in better way.
- Take the clay bar and divide it into four equal parts; pattern each of them into disk shape.
- Wash the car to remove the dirt or dust visible on the surface.
- Take a lubricant and apply it on the surface you want to clay. You can use an excess amount of lubricant than needed to avoid damage to the paint of your car.
- With slight pressure move the clay smoothly over the lubricated surface. Do not exert too much pressure that will damage the paint. Clay bar weight is enough to remove the surface pollutants or contaminants.
- Have looked at underneath of the clay, you will see that contaminants or pollutants already implanted into the bar. To make the bar clear you can fold it over to render the fresh clay surface.
- In the same way move the clay bar smoothly over the entire contaminated surface to make them free from paint vortexes and pollutants.
- Use a sealant or a wax on the clayed surface to avoid any further damage.
If you want to give new shiny look to your car, claying would be of great help. It will remove all the contaminants and swirls from the paint and make it look more smooth and shiny. You can clay your car at home by following the instructions given above to give your car a sparkling look.
Filed Under: Guides/DIY