Water Spots on relatively fresh coating?

Jaretr1

Jaretr1

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Hello,

A week or so ago, I corrected the paint and coated a vehicle with Pinnacle Black Label coating. It drizzled down here a little bit a few days ago and there are water spots now etched into the coating. I personally have never experienced this on any car Ive coated or with this coating. My guess is it was very acidic rain to have done this?

The person is going to bring the car back to me so we can see how to "fix" it.

Has anyone experienced this before with coatings in general? Maybe I am foolishly under the impression coatings are supposed to be more resistant to this type of thing. Or, on the other side, if only the coating was damaged, then it did its job? I dunno.
 
Could it have been from a sprinkler system?

They may have formed from dust sitting on the water beads. Have you tried a quick detailer or waterless wash?
 
FrankS said:
Could it have been from a sprinkler system?

They may have formed from dust sitting on the water beads. Have you tried a quick detailer or waterless wash?
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The owner of the car did, neither of them worked.
 
Jaretr1 said:
The owner of the car did, neither of them worked.
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Coatings are susceptible to water spots. Some are more resistant than others.

You could try a water spot remover or Carpro Essence Plus.
 
In my experience many coatings are susceptible to water spots. One of the main reasons I like to use sacrificial spray toppers.
I agree with Frank. Try a water spot remover and if that doesn’t work, try something like Essence +
 
I gave up on coating due to water spotting issue..It's more headache to maintain than sealant or wax..
 
Water spotting here in AZ is very tough because all the minerals in the water. Not to mention a good rain storm is usually preceded with some kind of dust storm (which never helps!)
I had the issue on my dd, and it was right after a full correction and coating with CQUK. I was miffed to say the least.

I polished the horizontal panels down and then reapplied CQUK. What I did different, I went back and did a second coat. Then when that cured, I went back and used Reload. And at least for the next several weekly washings, I reapplied reload on the horizontal flats. After that, my issue went away.

So on horizontal panels, I now tend to go "heavy" on the coatings as well as "heavy" on the Reload. Knock on wood, it's been about 10 months and I haven't had the issue again. It's rained several times, leaving ringlets of brown spots, but they all seem to come out in the wash.

Good luck!
 
Yes I have read this many times. The reason for coating causing more water spoting seems to be the increadible level of beading you are getting with a coating. This means water collects in smaller areas (beads) and dry there leaving a spot behind. Unless the coating has not have time to cure, it should not have damaged it. Try washing the car and use vinegar to remove the water spots. There are also water spots remover you can buy but I don't know if they are gonna be more effective than simple vinegar.

As other said, having a sacrificial layer is not a bad idea. Something like CarPro Reload should always be applied after completing the coating to protect it from moisture and water for the first week. Afterwards, using a Silica detail spray or Sealant as a drying aid when you wash the car is a very good idea.
 
Never had a issue with water spots and we get a lot of rain in PA at this time of the year. Has been raining nonstop for about 8 days. Only waterspots I see is from new clients that come by that want me to inspect that paint prior to paint correction.
 
None of my clients have complained about water spots either. But I have not done that many coatings so far. It might be product dependent. I use McKee's 37 Paint Coating and I top with CarPro reload. So far (crossing fingers) that combination seems to work well.

I have been pushing back coating my car for 3 years. Everytime we have nice weather I had appointments booked so I never get a chance, but this year I will take the time to do it. I also ordered new Kia replacement badges that I think look a lot better than the OEM badges so I will need to swap them at the same time. Also have to remove the dealer stickers (been pushing that for 3 years too) ;)

I am thinking some coatings might be for prone to water spots. I have never heard of Optimum coatings creating water spots. I think the complaints are coming from newer coatings like CQuartz, but I might be completelly wrong on that. Never did any research, just trying to remember what I have read over the years.
 
Calendyr said:
I have been pushing back coating my car for 3 years. Everytime we have nice weather I had appointments booked so I never get a chance, but this year I will take the time to do it.
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That’s what holidays are for..☀️
 
For me, the Pinnacle BL paint coating was very susceptible to water spots. At least the first version was. Have not bothered to try the new version. The glass coating really lasts a long time, but it too will end up with little water spot rings.
 
Wow! Thank you all for your comments! I have learned so much from these comments. I am pretty new to coatings and have not experienced any water spot issues (YET). I experienced high spots and did not know how to get rid of a high spot until the Yoda Mike Phillips posted a how to on this forum. But I do have Gyeon Water Spot removal and so far it has worked great on my Non coated rides. I hope the water spot remover will work in the future. If it doesn't on a coated ride then I will use Yoda Mike's technique which is an AIO and a re-apply technique.

But again, great opinions here!
 
Lots of good info. I have used this coating before with no issues. And also used the current version of Mckees37 coating which has intense water beading (I love it) and not had any problems with water spots. So this is very strange.

The car will be brought back to me later this month and Ill see what works. If the spots dont come off with a water spot remover, I might just polish the car down again to remove the coating and reapply the Mckees37.
 
Calendyr said:
As other said, having a sacrificial layer is not a bad idea. Something like CarPro Reload should always be applied after completing the coating to protect it from moisture and water for the first week. Afterwards, using a Silica detail spray or Sealant as a drying aid when you wash the car is a very good idea.
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^^ this. I love ceramic coatings and the above is why I use a combo of ECH20 and Reload as my detail spray of choice on my vehicles after every wash. I always give my customers a small bottle of it mixed up for them to use after they go home as well.

Overall though, Carpro Spotless should do the trick. If not, move up to 3D Eraser Gel and then top with either Reload or Essence Plus. I like Reload best.
 
Calendyr said:
I am thinking some coatings might be for prone to water spots. I have never heard of Optimum coatings creating water spots. I think the complaints are coming from newer coatings like CQuartz, but I might be completelly wrong on that. Never did any research, just trying to remember what I have read over the years.
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Not sure about the current versions, but with previous versions there were complaints about water spots on the pro version. But, my understanding is that the coating would absorb/reject them after a week or two. In the end, nothing permanent left on the coating. Odd to say the least compared to SiO2 based products.
 
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