Water spots

[jvamagic]

Hi,

Our silver 10' Lexus IS250 was egged as where other vehicles down our street. My wife caught this and in the morning (egged at night) she wiped down with a wet towel. I came home to a very dirty car with water spots.
I went at it with fine grade clay, menzerna fg400 (mf pad), menzerna 4000 (white pad) on my 7424xp.....then sealed with jet seal. It looked pretty good but then again it was getting dark by the time I was sealing.

Last night while at a drive-thru, I stepped out and with different lighting I noticed that there were lots of water marks on the hood. I did not see this before.

What should be my strategy now? I hear a mix of white vinegar with dish soap is very helpful. Ideas please?

Thanks in advance.

 

[spazzz]

Trying vinegar won't hurt anything.

How can there be water spots after all of the polishing

 

[Rsurfer]

Trying vinegar won't hurt anything.

How can there be water spots after all of the polishing

I agree..400 with a MF pad should have removed fresh water spots and any left over egg. Are they round water spots or just random shapes?

 

[jvamagic]

I agree..400 with a MF pad should have removed fresh water spots and any left over egg. Are they round water spots or just random shapes?

I actually worked on the water spots the following day. They are random shapes.

 

[Rsurfer]

I actually worked on the water spots the following day. They are random shapes.

I realize that it was the next day, but in my view "fresh"..not like it was baking in the sun for weeks. You said your wife used a wet towel, meaning she did not rinse it off with a hose? Just trying to see how you got the spotting.

Rather than removing more clear coat, try using a chemical water spot remover. AG carries several, Car Pro's Spotless seems to get good reviews. If the water spot remover doesn't work, you need to compound and polish again. You need good lighting to inspect and if possible use the sun as your inspection light.

 

[jvamagic]

I realize that it was the next day, but in my view "fresh"..not like it was baking in the sun for weeks. You said your wife used a wet towel, meaning she did not rinse it off with a hose? Just trying to see how you got the spotting.

Rather than removing more clear coat, try using a chemical water spot remover. AG carries several, Car Pro's Spotless seems to get good reviews. If the water spot remover doesn't work, you need to compound and polish again. You need good lighting to inspect and if possible use the sun as your inspection light.

Yes, my wife used a small bucket with a mf towel and wiped the car. Should I try a vinegar/soap combo before purchasing 'car pro's spotless'? Regardless, do I need to do a previous step being that these parts have been sealed (jet seal)?

 

[AutowerxDetailing]

If polishing did not remove the water spots it is highly unlikely that an acidic water spot remover will fix the issue. Perhaps the water spots have been there for a while and were not so visible until you polished the panel and removed the other defects. It certainly wouldn't hurt to try something like CarPro Spotless; although, you'll probably just need to compound the affected areas more until the etchings have been fully removed. In some cases water spot etching is irreparable due to the depth of the defects.

 

[tedj101]

I've had good luck with the Carpro Spotless - but you need to wash the car when you are done. The chemicals are harsh...

<TED>

 

[Rsurfer]

I've had good luck with the Carpro Spotless - but you need to wash the car when you are done. The chemicals are harsh...

<TED>

May I add, to use eye protection and gloves, as it is an acid.

 

[Mantilgh]

Maybe the spots are from the egg?

One of my cars was egged, and it etched the clear coat. It was on the paint longer, but it was in the middle of winter.

I had spots of egg all over the car. It was hit in the back passengers side, and there were spots on the hood and over the drivers front fender.

 

[GSKR]

Carpro spotless is not that strong.I would try iron x with extra dwell time and agitation.xmt 360 cleaner polish with a micro cutting pad.slow arm speed at the highest speed the machine will do.If all is good refine the finish with a polishing pad.Hard to advise on promblematic situations,you can spend 100.00 on products that may not work or just improve.for 40.00 I would start with that,the ironx can always be used on wheels.If there embedded than you would have to seek professional advice from someone who is present looking at your car.

 

[jvamagic]

Thanks to all for your input. I will start with either cp spotless or ironx and go from there. Do I wash the car with regular car wash soap or dish soap prior to working on the car (would dish soap remove the jetseal)?

Do you guys want me to keep you posted on the outcome?

 

[Rsurfer]

Thanks to all for your input. I will start with either cp spotless or ironx and go from there. Do I wash the car with regular car wash soap or dish soap prior to working on the car (would dish soap remove the jetseal)?

Do you guys want me to keep you posted on the outcome?

I doubt that Dawn will remove the Jet Seal, but Spotless or IronX will. By all means, please do.

 

[jvamagic]

I went ahead and ordered and Iron X. I proceeded to wash the car, use ironX as instructed on the hood and roof, wash the car again, and then clayed the car.I then went with a MF pad with Menzerna FG400 on a Dewalt 849 and the water marks seemed to disappear for the most part. I did a second part on parts of the hood to get rid of 95% of the water spots. I then followed it up with Menzerna SF4000 with a white foam pad on my PC 7424xp. Finished it with a coat of 'jetseal'. Man I was tired after this! The water spots are about 95%-98% gone (I can see a water spot or two on the hood but it has to be under extreme light and at the right angle. My car was due for a 2-3 stage paint correction job anyway.