What do you look for in a coating?

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Hydrophobics, gloss, durability, all of the above?

There are so many coatings on the market now. For myself, if I can get a year out of a coating I'm happy. Polishing is usually necessary after a year or so, (maybe two years), so anything longer than that is not necessary for me.

With that said, I think most brands make a coating these days that is good for at least year. Many of them are so easy to use now too.

Brand is becoming less relevant as time goes on it seems.
 
ALL of the above. And EASE OF APPLICATION. For me TWHS SC hits all of the boxes. Maintained with wet wax, it lasts me a good long time. Took me thru the past winter without issue.

Just went thru the process last Saturday. TWHS P & W followed up with 2 coats of the SC. Agree, polishing is labor intensive, but so worth the final result. And the two products work great together.
 
Ease of application and durability. I'm not usually one to dive in head first, so I thought I'd give a spray coating a try. Dr Beasleys LS-10 has given me a year, and I'm happy with that. The truck is ready for a polish anyway....so who knows....maybe Undrdog or another round of LS-10.
 
For me 2 years durability as I don’t want to polish more than then. For DD self cleaning and a PH resistance of 13 as it will see BH AutoFoam. Simple application.

For garage queens just looks/gloss.


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Here's a question I thought of last night, despite hearing many many times about it...

What exactly is the "maintenance" that needs to happen with a coating? I hear all the time that coatings have to be maintained. As in, periodically washed? With a special soap?

*CarPro Reset enters the chat*
 
vaca22 said:
Here's a question I thought of last night, despite hearing many many times about it...

What exactly is the "maintenance" that needs to happen with a coating? I hear all the time that coatings have to be maintained. As in, periodically washed? With a special soap?

*CarPro Reset enters the chat*
Click to expand...

To get the true longevity and characteristics out of a coating they do need to be periodically "decontaminated". While a coating is an awesome and durable thing, it's far from bulletproof. I don't subscribe to the thought that a good coating needs constant toppers and SiO2 this and that. Only that every once in a while it needs a good deep clean with an alkaline soap and a decontamination with an iron remover or acid based water spot remover. Other than that, coating maintenance should simply be to keep it regularly clean to reduce the build-up that can occur over the surface. Good thing a coating makes washing a breeze.

To answer to the OP's question, in a coating I look for a couple things. It needs to be somewhat user friendly (at which point in time most are), it needs to offer noticeable protection and longevity for 1-2 years, it needs to be chemically resistant so I can take it through the touchless wash when I'm feeling lazy (or use strong chemicals for decon), and as a personal preference I like a coating that produces a slick, smooth surface feel.
 
The only reason I would add a topper on a base layer coating is to help extend the coatings life. Ease of use is number one for me so I went with Can Coat. I don't often see coatings last beyond 3 years that have retained a good percentage of their hydrophobicity.
 
NJNinja said:
The only reason I would add a topper on a base layer coating is to help extend the coatings life. Ease of use is number one for me so I went with Can Coat. I don't often see coatings last beyond 3 years that have retained a good percentage of their hydrophobicity.
Click to expand...

If I have to keep topping a coating to extend its life, then I feel that the coating didn't have a long enough lifetime and durability for my needs. Topping somewhat defeats the purpose IMO. I will top with a lighter ceramic quick detailer type of product for gloss (and the fun of it) occasionally however. Usually just Ech2O or Meg's HCD/Griot's CSS.

CarPro SiC has met my needs in all the listed above so far. Super Slick and very chemical resistant. Longevity is yet to be seen but I easily got over a year out of a single layer of the previous TiO2 formula, and that was my first coating application ever so probably with a subpar installation. I also abused that coating with acid and touchless washes as a test of its capabilities.
 
crg001 said:
If I have to keep topping a coating to extend its life, then I feel that the coating didn't have a long enough lifetime and durability for my needs. Topping somewhat defeats the purpose IMO. I will top with a lighter ceramic quick detailer type of product for gloss (and the fun of it) occasionally however. Usually just Ech2O or Meg's HCD/Griot's CSS.

CarPro SiC has met my needs in all the listed above so far. Super Slick and very chemical resistant. Longevity is yet to be seen but I easily got over a year out of a single layer of the previous TiO2 formula, and that was my first coating application ever so probably with a subpar installation. I also abused that coating with acid and touchless washes as a test of its capabilities.
Click to expand...

What are you thoughts on SiC vs. Gliss?
 
vaca22 said:
What are you thoughts on SiC vs. Gliss?
Click to expand...

I have not used Gliss unfortunately. SiC has the advantage of being able to layer over UK within a 1 hour timeframe, whereas Gliss was a 4 hour wait. SiC can be a little tricky to time the wipe off though, I had to wait around 8 minutes to wipe off. Gliss I believe is a wipe on/wipe off process.

I did layer SiC over UK, and picked it because it is listed by CarPro as having a 2-13pH resistance. As well as being very pleased with the old formula.

Gliss does have a listed 115 degree water contact angle vs SiC's 110 rating. Which means Gliss is likely to be more hydrophobic.
 


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vaca22 said:
Here's a question I thought of last night, despite hearing many many times about it...

What exactly is the "maintenance" that needs to happen with a coating? I hear all the time that coatings have to be maintained. As in, periodically washed? With a special soap?

*CarPro Reset enters the chat*
Click to expand...

Some will consider topping maintenance. Weather your in the do or don’t (I’m a do) I would at least do the heavy hit panels (lower rockers, front bumper etc) as to help protect those areas. I see no less seeable performance from my coating when topped.

Then there is the maintenance wash. I like to use something stronger than Reset. Even CarPro came out with Descale (acidic) to revive coatings.

I have been using Mckee’s Coating prep soap (alkaline).

I will foam. Dwell. rinse.

BF iron remover. Dwell. Rinse.

Bucket wash (same soap). Dwell. Rinse.

Dry

Wipe down with panel wipe.

Apply Topper.

This helps remove traffic film, stuck on debris and broken down I’ll performing toppers and i do this once before fall and once after winter.


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I use the TW HS Wet wax after each wash to maintain the SC. Could not be any easier. 2 sprays per panel on the wet washed and rinsed surface, then dry.
 
1) Durability
2) Ease of application
3) Resistance to water spotting
4) Hydro Fobik axion
5) $
 
pro 4x said:
I use the TW HS Wet wax after each wash to maintain the SC. Could not be any easier. 2 sprays per panel on the wet washed and rinsed surface, then dry.
Click to expand...

Wet wax is the All star of the TWHS line.


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