Help for Water Spots on Windows

Gary Sword

Gary Sword

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In Cape Coral, FL they have a seperate non-drinking water supply you can use for you sprinkler system. It's great for watering your grass and plants but it leaves some bad water spots on your car. I have a Dodge Caravan that I park outside that always manages to get hit by the sprinkler system. I have been able to get all the water spots off the paint but not the windows. I have tried a lot of different cleaners but nothing has worked so far. I was thinking about claying the windows to see if that would work. Does anyone have any suggustions?

Thanks!
Gary
 
I have similar situation being in FL as well, our sprinkler system will leave waterspots that are a beotch to get off. I've said it plenty of times but if claying along with other cleaners doesn't work, AIO and #0000 steel wool are your only choice. I've tried even chemical cleaners you can buy online that industrial companies used on glass and didn't work. The waterspots are hard and etched and the steel wool will "grab" at the spots. It even removed spots on my truck that have been there for a couple years.

I even tried DP Glass Restorer on an 4" orange cutting pad on speed 6, wouldn't remove spots that were a few weeks old. AIO did though on the 4" pad. The AIO will also help clean and leave an acrylic layer that beads water like hell.
 
ive also had success with removing spots with poorboys ssr1 and a gray 6.5" finishing pad
 
eng811ine said:
ive also had success with removing spots with poorboys ssr1 and a gray 6.5" finishing pad
Click to expand...
Most polishes should, you just have to be real careful, seen a lot of people go at it with a polish and pad on the PC and end up marring the glass from the abrassives. Some people even mentioned using a polish for chrome. However I did try it with OP and it didn't really do anything, Steel Wool was the only stuff that would remove the etching.
 
Thanks to the Lime and etc we have been blessed with in Florida water 'water spots' are very hard to remove. I've had most sucess with Auo Internationals ABC System in conjuction with detailers clay.

Warning this is a 'good' but long read'

On the basis of least aggressive first; if the paint can be rectified by chemical means, this is a better solution than abrasive polishing. Using the correct chemical solvent cleaner will dissolve the contaminants rather than abrading the paint. With all cleaning products (especially solvents) always test a small inconspicuous area first to ensure it won't discolour, stain or etch the surface, and ensure that the pH of the product is suitable for the material it’s to be used on.

A safe alternative to abrading acid etching; Valuguard’s Decontamination / Neutralization system –
http:// www.autoint.com a three part neutralization and wash system formulated to safely remove industrial fallout, rail dust, hard water deposits, acid rain and alkaline residue and other forms of pollutants, this system comprises; an acid andalkaline neutralizer, which removes deposits and ferrous metal fallout and a surface conditioner, the third step in the neutralization process washes the paint surface to ensure that any chemical residues are neutralized and rinsed away.

Product A-an acid neutralizer that removes waxes, storage stains and neutralizes acid deposits, an 8:1 solution that should be allowed to dwell for 5-7 minutes (ensure it doesn’t dry on the surface by reapplication) before rinsing off.

Product B-the alkaline neutralizer that removes alkaline deposits and ferrous metal fallout, a ready to use formula that requires a dwell time of 5-7 minutes (use detailer’s clay during the dwell period) do not allow product to dry, reapply as necessary.
Tip: clay during the application of the alkaline neutralizer, rinse the bar with water often.

Product C – a surface conditioner (pH 7.0) and vehicle wash, the third step in the neutralization process that ensures any chemical residues are neutralized and rinsed away. This process (especially when incorporating detailer’s clay with the neutralizer step) leaves a spotlessly clean and contamination free surface.

This process stops the damage from acid rain or similar fallout (decontamination) when acids are present on/in a paint system every time water is added the acid is re-activated, to avoid this, these acids need to be neutralised. This system will also neutralize rusting caused by rail dust or other steel/iron fallout. It also helps with the removal of tree resin (sap) bird and bug excrement, and other harmful airborne contaminants. Clay is not enough to completely remove the steel filings from brakes / rotors it just ‘shaves’ them at paint surface level, but it won't dissolve the rust caused by them.

Notes:
1) Use separate wash mitts for the acids neutralizer and the surface conditioner, using the ValuGard dispenser / mixing system will ensure the correct ratios and maximum economy. Other prep or reconditioning operations should be performed during product dwell times.
2) To obtain a level paint surface any etched depressions should be abraded with a suitable polish Using a rotary or an orbital polisher and an LC Orange or Yellow foam pad. Some stubborn marks cannot be removed without an aggressive compound or wet-sanding, which may compromise the clear coat beyond repair.
3) There comes a point when you must judge wither removing a scratch will compromise the clear coat and if so you’ll have to ‘live’ with the imperfection (these can be aesthetically masked by using a Glaze)
(See also Acid Rain, Reactivity, Corrosion, Water acting as a catalyst for Acid)

Alternative products- Finish Kare Paint 119/883 – http//:www.fk1usa.com/decontamination.htm

{Knowledge; don't ever stop learning; [always keeping an open mind]
 
Thanks Surfer, eng811ine and TOGWT for you suggestions. I tried claying one of the windows last night and it did not remove any of the water spots. I ordered some AIO today so I'm going to try that next. If that does not work I'm going to move on to the next suggustions. I don't want to do anything to mess up and windows and have them look worse then they do now. The water spots are only real noticable on the dark tinted windows on the side of the van.

Thanks again for your sugguestions.
Gary
 
eng811ine said:
ive also had success with removing spots with poorboys ssr1 and a gray 6.5" finishing pad
Click to expand...

Likewise. SSR1 makes short work of removing waterspots from glass.
 
Your not going to like this , but it usually works. Get some Lime Away , CLR, or Rustoff. Wipe the windows and then wash off rather quickly. These products remove minerals like calcium and rust that are man culprits from well water.
 
killrwheels@autogeek said:
Your not going to like this , but it usually works. Get some Lime Away , CLR, or Rustoff. Wipe the windows and then wash off rather quickly. These products remove minerals like calcium and rust that are man culprits from well water.
Click to expand...
I think I'll have to agree with this, particularly with CLR (I personally am afraid to use Lime A Way as it is sulfuric acid... I'm not sure what CLR is, as I couldn't figure it out from the feel/smell/color/etc).

In my experience, AIO has never done anything for water spots on sealed/waxed paint, so I am not sure that will do much for glass. Maybe I was using it incorrectly, but it didn't seem to do too much with the water spots for paint.

If you do use any of these chemicals, I recommend using it in conjunction with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser for a little extra "bite"

Also, be sure to rinse an extra couple of times just to make sure you got rid of the CLR/Lime a Way/whatever you will use.
 
Tried Lime Away and Rust Off and it didn't do anything to my waterspots, and yes wash it off fast, you don't want it to get on and sit on rubber or plastic. AIO and Steel Wool, the chemical cleaning of AIO and grabbiness of steel wool was the only thing that worked for me. Took a long ass time but worked. And I had spots that were baked on for a couple years.
 
I wanted to thank everyone again for all your sugguestions. Today I tried Pinnacle Swirl Remover on the windows and to my surprize it took off a lot of the water spots. I had previously used the Pinnacle Swirl Remover on the paint and it did a great job taking all the water spots off on paint. I had never thought about using it on the windows until hearing some of your suggestions to use swirl remover on the windows. I think if I go over it one more time with the swirl remover I could get off about all of the spots.

I had received the Pinnacle Swirl Remover as a freebee on an order a while back and I had never used it for anything. There a lot of talk of the forum about getting rid of swirls but not much talk about preventing them. I never get swirls on my cars so it would probably be something good to bring up on another thread. A know a lot of you professional detailers have to deal with getting the swirls out of your customer's cars but the people on the forum who detail their own cars should know how not to get them in the first place. I have always found the best way to get ride of swirls is not to get them in the first place and save yourself a lot of work, money and your clear coat.

I did receive the AIO I ordered late today and I still think I'll put a coat on the windows after I hit them with the swirl remover once more. The windows already look 100% better and I think the AIO may help them stay that way. I also want to try the AIO on a 24' enclosed car trailer that I have.

Thanks again to everyone for all of your sugguestions. I appreciate all of your comments.

Gary
 
Did you know that Lake Country makes a glass polishing system?
GPS-DIY
I have not had a chance to use it. The kit states that it will

Restore clarity by removing wiprt tracks, water spots and other minor defects.

The kit contains,
1 37/8" drill pad
1 MF towel
1 2oz glass polish
1 2oz glass sealant
1 polishing pad
1 gel applicator

You will ne a drill for this kit.
I will give it a try next week after Christmas.
 
Surfer said:
Tried Lime Away and Rust Off and it didn't do anything to my waterspots, and yes wash it off fast, you don't want it to get on and sit on rubber or plastic. AIO and Steel Wool, the chemical cleaning of AIO and grabbiness of steel wool was the only thing that worked for me. Took a long ass time but worked. And I had spots that were baked on for a couple years.
Click to expand...
I'm with Surfer on this!
 
Feed back please Hey, any of you guys ever used th DG water spot remover spray? Just curious as to what you guys think aout this product for use on our 98 Caravan that is going to be sold.
Thoughts, anyone?:) :) :) :)
Thank you!
 
Feed back please Hey, any of you guys ever used th DG water spot remover spray? Just curious as to what you guys think about this product for use on our '98 Caravan that is going to be sold.
Thoughts, anyone?:) :) :) :)
Thank you!
 
I tried a lot of things but not the DG Water Remover. Today I went over the van windows once more with Pinnacle Swirl Remover then put a coat of AIO on them. They look much better then before. I like the way the AIO feels on the windows. I think it will help protect them from future water spots. I may even put a coat on the windows of my other cars. I still want to put a coat on Liquid Souveran on the Van. So far I clayed it, used Pinnacle Swirl Remover and put a coat of Wolfgang DGPS on it. I should have taken some before pictures. It as looking pretty bad. The following is a picture of what it looks like so far. Thanks again for everyones suggustions.

05Caravan_sm.jpg
 
ltoman said:
Sorry... ?????
Click to expand...
If your talking about DP Glass Restorer, it only removed fresh spots for me, but any regular qd'er would do that as well so......
 
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