Preventing Dust/Pollen layer?

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Emt1581

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I have what I consider a good routine down for cleaning my car and then keeping it looking nice with sealer and then wax. Just on the exterior body/wheels I spend about 4-6 hours the first day and then about 2 hours the following day getting it that way but the result is totally worth it. I only drive on dry warm/hot pavement so my car does not see rain/snow/salt/etc. However, the biggest issue I have...by far!!...is dust and/or pollen gathering on the surface.

The car will look absolutely gorgeous at a distance and then when up close these huge patches of dust/pollen can be seen (even a few days after being cleaned) and it looks HORRIBLE!!

The last thing to go on my car is Collinite 845. Is there another product I can put on top of that or maybe another wax I can use that will repel dust/pollen? If I could just get that figured out, my car would look great for months at a clip!

Thanks!
 
Eliminating dust and pollen build up is nearly impossible - especially in the spring when the pollen in the air is at it's peak. Staying away from real wax (i.e. carnauba, monton, beeswax, etc.) will help. Collinite 845 is a terrific product, but it is a hybrid that does contain some actual carnauba wax. Staying with LSPs that contain only synthetic ingredients can be better, but they are no holy grail either. Paint sealants and coatings etc. are the best way to try and defeat dust & pollen build up in my experience.
 
BadgerRivFan said:
Eliminating dust and pollen build up is nearly impossible - especially in the spring when the pollen in the air is at it's peak. Staying away from real wax (i.e. carnauba, monton, beeswax, etc.) will help. Collinite 845 is a terrific product, but it is a hybrid that does contain some actual carnauba wax. Staying with LSPs that contain only synthetic ingredients can be better, but they are no holy grail either. Paint sealants and coatings etc. are the best way to try and defeat dust & pollen build up in my experience.
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Thanks for sharing.

EDIT: I misread "terrific" for "terrible."

Just curious, but what do you use?

EDIT2: I see you mentioned paint sealants...I use Jet Seal. But the wax goes on top of that. So isn't the wax the primary target for dust/pollen avoidance? Should I not be waxing at all maybe and just let the sealer be it? I feel like the wax puts the shine over the edge which I love.

Thanks!
 
If the primary goal is to try and avoid dust and pollen build-up, then yes my advice would be to skip the wax topper as this is a contributor to the problem. Don't get me wrong I love the look of waxes just as you do, but you sort of need to decide what's more important. Perhaps wait until we get a little further into summer before topping up your synthetic sealant with something that contains real wax.

Parking the vehicle indoors as much as possible will also (obviously) help.
 
Pollen is undefeated, it always wins. You just have to battle it, there's no real cure to avoid pollen.
 
BadgerRivFan said:
If the primary goal is to try and avoid dust and pollen build-up, then yes my advice would be to skip the wax topper as this is a contributor to the problem. Don't get me wrong I love the look of waxes just as you do, but you sort of need to decide what's more important. Perhaps wait until we get a little further into summer before topping up your synthetic sealant with something that contains real wax.

Parking the vehicle indoors as much as possible will also (obviously) help.
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It's garaged kept, even when I'm only going to be home for 5 mins.

I'll forget the wax the next time I do a full strip/wash. So it'll just be sealant. Will also take that second day of effort out of the equation. Now is that okay for the life of the vehicle (decades)...to just never wax the car and only use sealant?

Thanks!
 
Two very good detail sprays that actually have anti static properties are FK1 FK425 and the Kentotek Showroom Shine. The pollen and dust will still accumulate but these help slow it down.
 
Emt1581 said:
I only drive on dry warm/hot pavement
so my car does not see rain/snow/salt/etc.

However, the biggest issue I have...by far!!...
is dust and/or pollen gathering on the surface.
Click to expand...
IMO:
To your “I only drive on dry warm/hot
pavement” criteria list, you should add:
’I also only drive on the more humid days’.



Emt1581 said:
The last thing to go on my car is Collinite 845.

Is there another product I can put on top of
that or maybe another wax I can use that will
repel dust/pollen?
Click to expand...
Sorry; I’ve yet to find that silver bullet.


Bob
 
LEDetailing said:
You can defeat pollen, it just takes a very big bubble with really good filtration:)
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Ha! So true. In all seriousness, if the vehicle is outdoors this time of year, it WILL get pollen on it. Nothing can prevent it from landing on your car. Product choice will only have an effect on ease of clean-up.

DBAILEY said:
Two very good detail sprays that actually have anti static properties are FK1 FK425 and the Kentotek Showroom Shine. The pollen and dust will still accumulate but these help slow it down.
Click to expand...

I'm using Kenotek right now, and while it is a great product, it does have it's limits. I've found it does keep the pollen from sticking pretty well up to a point, but with enough exposure the build-up gets so thick you simply have to bucket wash the car to get it off. Very light dustings will simply blow off when your drive. If you get rain AND pollen, the yellow, sticky mess left behind needs to be washed no matter whether you used wax, sealant, or a coating.

I'm a big fan of 845, but found it did seem to attract and hold on to pollen and dust. Hitting it with a layer of Meguiars Ultimate Quik Wax did seem to help. Ultimatly, I started using a coating and it made life much easier when it comes to pollen accumulation.
 
Emt1581 said:
Now is that okay for the life of the vehicle (decades)...to just never wax the car and only use sealant?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Absolutely. A good quality paint sealant applied at regular intervals will help to keep your paint protected for decades. It's paint that is abused and neglected that will ultimately fail.
 
Not to hijack, but...

  1. What is the safest way to remove that layer of pollen? Quick detailer spray or hit it with the hose?
  2. Should I stress about removing pollen every morning, or can I leave it until the weekend?
 
mightypudge said:
Not to hijack, but...

  1. What is the safest way to remove that layer of pollen? Quick detailer spray or hit it with the hose?
  2. Should I stress about removing pollen every morning, or can I leave it until the weekend?
Click to expand...

really all personal preference, and what works best for your paint. If you take pollen off in the morning, it will come back so you'd just be constantly cleaning. How much time a day do you want to devote to a car sitting outside that will always see pollen? Once a week should be fine but it's all what is your preference and fits your schedule.
 
mightypudge said:
Not to hijack, but...

  1. What is the safest way to remove that layer of pollen? Quick detailer spray or hit it with the hose?
  2. Should I stress about removing pollen every morning, or can I leave it until the weekend?
Click to expand...

The answer for question #1 is based on question #2.

Like cleanmycorolla mentioned, the pollen is constantly falling for weeks/months depending on where you live. It's a never ending battle unless the car is sealed in a bubble.

If you want to attack the pollen on a daily basis, I'd use a waterless wash. I'm not a fan of using QD sprays for anything more than removing random smudges, isolated bird droppings, or water spot removal after a wash. I'd feel safer taking a waterless wash to a slightly dirty/dusty/pollen covered car. Should you wait a week, a bucket wash is perfectly acceptable and, IMHO, the safer option.

This time of year, my car is always covered in pollen. It builds up WHILE I'M WASHING/DRYING, and is really frustrating. However, I'm much more comfortable doing a bucket wash every weekend vs. doing a wipe-down on a daily basis.
 
Emt1581 said:
I have what I consider a good routine down for cleaning my car and then keeping it looking nice with sealer and then wax. Just on the exterior body/wheels I spend about 4-6 hours the first day and then about 2 hours the following day getting it that way but the result is totally worth it. I only drive on dry warm/hot pavement so my car does not see rain/snow/salt/etc. However, the biggest issue I have...by far!!...is dust and/or pollen gathering on the surface.

The car will look absolutely gorgeous at a distance and then when up close these huge patches of dust/pollen can be seen (even a few days after being cleaned) and it looks HORRIBLE!!

The last thing to go on my car is Collinite 845. Is there another product I can put on top of that or maybe another wax I can use that will repel dust/pollen? If I could just get that figured out, my car would look great for months at a clip!

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I have been using Meguiar’s Ulitmate Fast Finish. It does a great job at keeping the car cleaner longer. By no means does it prevent pollen actually landing on the car. With that said, it is the product I would reach for to battle against the pollen issue.
 
Coatings have anti static properties and great slickness especially when paired with toppers such as Skin, Gliss, Topcoat 1.0. These combinations will help pollen and dust slide off. But the dream of a totally “Teflon” non stick surface for vehicles has not been realized, yet.
 
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