Preserve That Shine ... A Crash Course on Car Polishing
06/02/09
Every car owners enjoys the look of his brand new car. The pleasure, however, does not last long as over time the car's exterior paint develops scratches and gathers dust grime and oil marks. Ageing of the exterior paint is a natural process that gives a dull look for the car. Application of car polish helps restore shine to your car as also give it a bright look. To do that, the car polish has to have some essential ingredients which work hard to remove dust; grime and oil as also remove the minor scratches that develop.
One must recognize how car polish differs from car wax. A car wax merely provides shine and a water repellant layer to the paint. Since car waxes normally do not have abrasive ingredients they cannot remove scratch marks. Abrasive ingredients present in the composition of car polish helps remove scratches. Car polish has hydrocarbon solvents that help remove dust, grime and oil marks, and scratch marks are taken care of by the abrasive elements in the polish. Abrasive ingredients works by removing a thin layer of paint, only a few microns thick. This peeling of thin layer removes the old paint leaving a brand new layer on the top.
However, this new look does not yet have the 'shine' due to the abrasion carried out. To get back the shine, the car polish must have a wax component. There are different varieties of car polishes available in the market. Some are based on water soluble polishing agents. Automatic car wash systems use aqueous dispersion car polish. Silicone based car polish are most popular variety with car owners. Silicone has some very useful properties for getting a good shine. The silicone acts as a lubricant, water repellant and as a high gloss ingredient.
Car polish comes in various forms - in tins as a liquid, or even as a spray. Aerospace technology used by NASA has also been incorporated to produce patented car polish. Their sprays are based on "Electrophoresis Dynamics" wherein the ingredients on following a strict application procedure meld very close to the paint surface after the abrading and cleaning process is over. The paint ingredients and the metal of the car are bonded tightly on account of magnetic attraction for a long time. Polishing a car involves hard labor, either manual or by use of automated tools. Polishing a car is a three-step process of polishing with hard, medium and soft pressure. Car polish is not just 'nice to have' but a necessity for the upkeep of a car.