Polishing in direct sunlight?

[WRAPT C5Z06]

I never usually do this, but I tried today. The paint was very hot, too. I tried M205 and a MF cutting disk.........wow, it marred the crap outta the paint!!! :eek: Does this happen with all pads and polishes?

[cutter]

I have the XMT Series of polishes that are supposed to take the heat of South Florida, I'll give them a try in Central Alabama and let you know how they work, or don't work...Temps next week will be in the mid 90's, that should be hot enough.:xyxthumbs:

[C. Charles Hahn]

I've always heard that the Poorboy's SSR line is supposed to work well in direct sun, but I've never used them nor do I ever polish in direct sun. I'm always either in the garage or under a carport.

[Garry Dean]

I make it a point never to polish in the sun.

[embolism]

clearcoat normally expands when hot and contracts when cool that is why the damage occurs when bird poop is left on the paint through a heating and cooling cycle (the clear contracts around the poop differently). I'd imagine that the clear would also soften slightly when the panel is really hot.

It's best to polish on a cool panel when the clear is as hard as it can be so I'd never risk polishing in the sun on a hot panel.

[Phinox]

I wont say it happens with all pads and polishes but it happens with most. When a panel is hot the clear coat is softer and easier to marr. if i have to work out doors i put up the EZ-up to get some shade and let the panel cool off or flush it with cold water to get the temp down.

[godd1000]

I've always heard that the Poorboy's SSR line is supposed to work well in direct sun, but I've never used them nor do I ever polish in direct sun. I'm always either in the garage or under a carport.

I use it all the time in direct sun light and on a hot car. The only thing I do is change my pads out frequently.

[FUNX650]

I never usually do this, but I tried today. The paint was very hot, too. I tried M205 and a MF cutting disk.........wow, it marred the crap outta the paint!!! :eek: Does this happen with all pads and polishes?

M205's MSDS:http://www.meguiars.com/msds/2009/M205.PDF

IME...Polishing with M205 in direct sunlight allowed the solvents listed in the MSDS to evaporate, so to say, at a more rapid rate, not allowing enough "lubricated working time" for the aluminum oxide abrasives to break down to the "finishing phase", as it were (the causal effect could show up as the "marring", IMO). That, and the Meg's MF system's cutting disk absorbed some of the solvent carriers, not helping the situation.

Perhaps spritzing with a QD or H2O might of helped. A bigger help, IMO, would have been to not have polished in direct sunlight. :)

Even though some car care products claim/say they can be used in direct sunlight, I have better results not doing so!

[Being that I'm portly, I may actually benefit from the abuse of direct sunlight detailing sessions. But everyone complains of the aroma wafting through the muggy air around me; swears a little at me; and leaves the premises. Sweating profusely does have its rewards.] :D

Bob

[WRAPT C5Z06]

I just did a test spot, not the whole car. I was curious more than anything. I'm polishing the whole car in a garage tomorrow.

Thanks for the education everyone.

[Hoytman]

Hi Mark,

Let me share something with you I learned working construction...then I'll share something I discovered just the other day and realized I should have known better. It may shed some light on heat transfer from moisture in a product that you may not have been aware of.

Construction workers who work on a asphalt paving crew sometimes get their feet really hot walking on that fresh hot asphalt. The first thing you teach a new guy is; when his feet gets so hot that he can no longer stand on the fresh asphalt simply walk off of it onto the side of the road and let them cool off, or take the boots off and take a break. Many times these new workers, in a hurry to cool their feet off want to step in a puddle of water (that may be left by the finish roller), and the heat is immediately transfered into their feet and often times causing serious burns to the bottom of the feet. Unless you're aware of what will happen, turning to water to cool off the feet is a natural thought process.

Second thing...

Just the other day I had clayed the hood of my car late in the evening. The idea was to get up the next morning and put a 1 step on it. Well, some things came up and I didn't get to the hood until about 2pm. By this time the sun was beating down hard on the dark blue hood and some dust had gathered on it. I decided that before waxing I should spray on some quick detailer just to remove the light dust....real light dust. I touched the hood with my bare hand and it was pretty warm to the touch so I knew I'd have to work fast as the detail spray would surely dry quickly. I could, however, leave my hand on the hood without burning my hand to bad. I didn't really think too much about it. So I commenced to spraying my micro fiber heavily with detail spray (I should have know what was about to happen) then I sprayed some on the hood and went to wiping. Keep in mind I saturated the micro fiber real well. By about the third wipe the heat had transfered through the micro fiber and burned by hand so bad that I had to run cold water on it for several minutes. Scared the bageebees out of me even though my pain tolerance is high. Of course, my wife didn't understand this concept so I demonstrated it again to her (with much more caution of course), and she said she would have never dreamed that the heat would transfer that quick.

It should be obvious by now from my example, and from what you experienced on that car, that the moisture allows the heat to transfer at a high rate of speed which is what caused your problem. Several factors come into play to create this. The sun of course, a dark color, and outside temperature. The first and last of course alone can cause the problem. Throw in a dark color and it's makings for disaster.

I'm not trying to come across as a know-it-all because I'm sure you've detailed more cars than I have. However, it's a simple thing really, and we usually realize it after the fact when it's too late. I've seen guys blister their feet (to the point of a medical emergency), and I've now burned my hands, but burning my hands shouldn't have happened because I knew better.

Moral of the story, shade is your friend when working on paint because any moisture will magnify the heat ten fold (drying the product much too fast), and tranfer the heat at lightspeed.

My problem is that with my bad luck if I tried a canopy a big wind would come along and it would be a disaster on someones car. I like the idea, but I'd need to take some major precautions to prevent such disaster.

[S2K]

Very good analogy Hoyt! This time of year really sucks for detailing, but let us all remember to be safe and watch what we touch and especially stay hydrated, take breaks and drink water (except at night then drink beer or Crown).

[silverfox]

Deck and backyard portable canopies can be had for $100 at walmart. Why spend hundreds of dollars on every product under the sun yet work under the sun? Makes no sense

[tuscarora dave]

I suppose that necessity is the mother of invention as it concerns compounding/polishing in direct sunlight. When I started doing this type of work I was mobile and working in direct sunlight all the time. I have used a lot of different products in direct sunlight on both hard and soft paints. I haven't experienced any problems in regards to getting the job done, even with products that say to work in the shade on a cool surface.

Almost all of my customers are repeat customers and none of the cars that I have done previously have had any paint issues from being worked in the direct sun.

I once had a dog (Shar pei) that during birth, the mother dog had accidentally chewed off one of his rear legs while cleaning the puppies for the first time. By the time this dog (Wilbur) was one year old he was running with (and as fast as) a full grown German Sheppard.

Wilbur learned from day one how to operate with only three legs and never knew what he was missing so he absolutely "ran with the big dogs". (pun intended) True story however.

I guess it's the same with compounding/polishing paint. I never had shade from day one, so I developed a technique that works. I do now have a canopy and do use it when the sun is baking hot but can still get great results without it too.

I used Poorboy's World products for the first year or so that I was mobile and did have a lot of trouble using and developing a technique for M-105, that is until talking to Kevin Brown and adopting his method of pad priming and using wetting agents.

[BobbyG]

Most product state to use them in the shade out of direct sunlight. Poorboy's World products on the other hand can be used in direct sun and are formulated to do just that.

Temperature and vehicle evaporation go hand in hand. Once the liquids begin to dry up the it's viscosity changes leaving you with sticky mess between the pad and the finish.

I've never really thought about the science behind it but there are several plausible explanations stated here that make allot of sense...