Really Stubborn Bug Guts

clm65

clm65

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I admit I haven’t been diligent about keeping my truck clean recently. I am trying to whip it back into shape, but I have a section in the front that has been pelted with love bugs and I just can’t seem to get them off. I don’t have much trouble getting them off the painted metal, but there is a piece of painted plastic above the bumper that just doesn’t want to let them go. I’ve tried many of the popular products that work fine on fresh bugs and don’t strip the protectant, but they don’t make a dent on these aged remnants. Before I resort to sanding and repainting this section of my truck, is there an aggressive, effective product that actually works on old stubborn bug guts? Obviously I’m not concerned about stripping wax or sealant. I just want the bugs gone. Does a miracle product exist?
 
Have you tried WD40

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Klasse Act said:
Have you tried WD40

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No, I have not tried that. I have tried tar remover, which seemed to help a little, but didn’t get all of it. I will give WD40 a shot. Thanks!
 
clm65 said:
No, I have not tried that. I have tried tar remover, which seemed to help a little, but didn’t get all of it. I will give WD40 a shot. Thanks!
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Let it dwell and do its thing. Its 100% safe, just clean it off with some RW or WW afterwards

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It is very possible they are etched into the paint. I have that on my black Frontier, from before I joined this forum. They are very smooth, after being polished several times, but they are still there.

When I have a car covered in love bugs I try to soak them off first. Take several thin microfiber towels and dampen them in the solution in the wash bucket (works with rinseless or regular car wash soap). Then place the towels over the 'buggy' area for 5-10 minutes (I usually take this time to wash the wheels). When I come back most of the bugs will wipe off, and I have not removed the protection (but it is a good idea to add more anyway). For ones that remain, I add a fresh, damp towel to the area and let it sit again.

This works with any towels, but thinner towels usually 'stick' better to non-horizontal surfaces.
 
mc2hill said:
It is very possible they are etched into the paint. I have that on my black Frontier, from before I joined this forum. They are very smooth, after being polished several times, but they are still there.

When I have a car covered in love bugs I try to soak them off first. Take several thin microfiber towels and dampen them in the solution in the wash bucket (works with rinseless or regular car wash soap). Then place the towels over the 'buggy' area for 5-10 minutes (I usually take this time to wash the wheels). When I come back most of the bugs will wipe off, and I have not removed the protection (but it is a good idea to add more anyway). For ones that remain, I add a fresh, damp towel to the area and let it sit again.

This works with any towels, but thinner towels usually 'stick' better to non-horizontal surfaces.
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ETCHED! That is exactly what i have. I used jeweling wax and thought i removed it, but this morning it is still there. How do i remove it?
 
I also have the same question. I was wondering if using Jeweling wax with a polisher is enough to get the etched in bug guts off?
 
I got caught with love bugs last fall. Bugs were on the leading edge of the hood, plastic headlights and plastic grill. Tried Citrol 266, Prep-All solvent, Poor Boys bug squash, Tar-x and a bunch of other product that I can't remember. Most came off but a few stubborn one's were left. The Porter cable, a Lake Country CCS white pad and some Sonax 04-06 made short work of the remnants and etching. The etching hasn't come back.


I'll never travel through Northern Florida in September or May again. If I can help it. :nomore:
 
I live in that area and religiously pluck them from my paint immediately when I get home. It’s tough enough doing that so I can’t imagine what it’s like if I had to keep them on for a while. You’d definitely need to polish out the etchings.
 
The reason they won't come off is because they've dried on. Similar to the way that wax dries onto your paint surface. My suggestion is like some of the others above, soak a microfiber towel with rinseless or waterless wash solution, and place over the bugs for a bit. Let them re-hydrate. Then, I would take a clay glove or something and go to town if they won't wipe off. Be prepared to polish after however.
 
Love bugs don't follow the normal rules of bug removal. If you catch them the same day they aren't bad to remove. Wait a few days or longer and they harden like cement. Especially in the high heat and UV of Florida. Extreme soaking and scrubbing with chemicals will get most of them off and even with claying a few will remain that will defy your best efforts. They won't soften up and wipe away. In those cases polishing is your only option because the acid in their bodies have etched into the paint.
 
Thanks for the help and replies. The WD40 did seem to help a bit. But as several of you mentioned, my paint is etched. Pretty bad. I will break out the polisher and see how much I can fix.
 
CarPro Bug Out is a fantastic product. In my opinion and experience it is a superior bug removal product. When you spray it on, you can actually see the color from the insects running with the product after it dwells. Use it in conjunction with a bug sponge and a wash mit.
 
cvwebb said:
ETCHED! That is exactly what i have. I used jeweling wax and thought i removed it, but this morning it is still there. How do i remove it?
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As 'dennis b' pointed out the acid in the love bug bodies have etched INTO the paint. Once it gets that far, there is no removing them - only smoothing them over. The only complete solution is a repaint. My truck is over 20 years old, so I live with them.
 
I agree with the below.


mc2hill said:
As 'dennis b' pointed out the acid in the love bug bodies have etched INTO the paint.

Once it gets that far, there is no removing them - only smoothing them over. The only complete solution is a repaint. My truck is over 20 years old, so I live with them.
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The etching is where the acids from the bug guts have literally EATEN or ETCHED you could also say DISSOLVED the clear layer of paint.

Most of the instances of this that I've seen can never be fully corrected. The MOST you can do is COMPOUND HARD then polish and seal. This will tend to improve but not fully remove.


:)
 
And just to add....


For everyone reading this into the future - if you have to drive in an area with heavy concentrations of flying insects, take a quality waterless wash with you and a pile of clean microfiber towels. Then pull over once in a while for gas and wipe the bugs off before they can cause damage.

Or - if it works for you - rent a car. Let the rental car take the hit.

There's also Bug Blockers on the market, the BLACKFIRE Bug Blocker works great.


Review: Black Fire Bug Blocker on my Ford truck



I know some people that have gone to this extreme,


2014 BMW 535i - Removing Dealership Holograms, Swirls and Scratches


The owner lives on the East Coat of Florida and would be driving his new BMW to the West Coast and that's about a 3 hour drive and during Love Bug season that can mean a lot of dead bugs on the front of a car.

I spoke with the owner before hand to discuss the Love Bug issue here in South Florida. I actually suggested holding off on detailing his brand new BMW till after the Love Bug season passes so we wouldn't have to worry about bug impacts for his drive home. He really wanted to get the paint corrected without more time going buy so I sent him the link to a write-up by another forum member showing how to make a Blue Painter's Tape Bra.

This is how the car arrived.

watermark.php


watermark.php


watermark.php



So the first thing we did was carefully remove the Blue Painter's Tape Bra...

watermark.php



And of course - we removed the swirls and did this,


watermark.php



2014 BMW 535i - Removing Dealership Holograms, Swirls and Scratches


:)
 
That's a lot of blue tape.

You might want to check out a product vinyl wrapers use to apply lettering. I think it's called transfer tape (or application tape). 3M makes it. TransferRite makes it. It comes in low, medium and high tack; varying widths (Think feet, not inches); and you can get it in clear, so you don't look like Jethro going down the road. 100 yard rolls and not that expensive.
 
Wow that’s a lot of tape. I was going to suggest a vinyl bra but that doesn’t cover the whole hood like you can with tape.
 
And for a less 'blue' option there is Tracwrap, Track Armour, and TrakkTape temporary CLEAR paint protection films. There is also a roll-on version, but figured that is not something this group would be comfortable using!
 
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