Clayed, polished, and waxed. Now what?

[AKPS4]

So for the first time ever I used clay bar and polished and waxed the car using griots orbital. Car feels amazingly smooth now. I know I didn't get everything off with the clay because there were a few things I just couldnt pull out of the paint. Not sure how well i did the polish and wax but the car def looks cleaner than ever and smoother.

Question is, now what do I do going through winter to maintain the wax? I call this my winter prep. Maybe I'm crazy but will I get through winter with just this one time clean up?

[Crucible35]

That's up to you depending on how OCD you are with your paint. I did my winter prep a couple of weeks ago with a polish and seal and then a week later applied a top coat of carnauba. With our Canadian winters, I'll end up applying another two coats of wax during the winter months to keep it well protected. Probably once every two months since most waxes are gone within 6-8 weeks.....where sealant will last 4-6 months.

[AKPS4]

I used glanz wax. I heard this stuff can last up to 4-6 months. If applyingore wax how would you prep the surface again? Would you wash dry and then go straight to wax or polish again first? I'd worry about the was removing the initial wax application. I wanted to put on 2-3 coats of wax but ran out of time. The car stays in a covered car port over night which is a big plus.

I have hydro express sealant. Does it make sense to spray some on now and wipe off to seal over the wax? Or would that remove wax or not help at all and waste time/material?

Will see how this winter goes I guess.

[Borti]

I am an Einzett dealer and I am testing Glanz Wax on my car. I have it on the hood, roof and trunk. One coat.

It has been there for 6 weeks and the car has had 3 washes. Lots of driving in crappy weather though note it is garaged. The beading is still strong and there is very minimal black streaking from road grime / crazy wet roads we get out here. I also have a white car. Surface still has decent slickness (not great as in day 1) but the gloss is very good even after three washings.

If you are using the quick sealant in between washings then you will get likely 30% or 50% more distance out of the coat of wax. Reason being that you are applying a micro-thin layer of sealant on top of the Glanz-wax, so road grime, water blasting from rain and other cars, general exposure to contaminates, and wax removal from washing will be attacking the spray sealant coating until it's removed (thus exposing the Glanz-wax layer once more). How long the spray sealant lasts depends on too many variables to accurately predict, but if applied correctly after every washing I wouldn't be surprised that each spray sealant application will last about two solid weeks (likely more - but best to be conservative) during the winter months or until your next wash.

The reason I am not applying it in between washings is because I would like to see the full life / durability I can get out of Glanz Wax with no special treatments or retreating the coat. I have a customers car with Menzerna applied right now to compare results.

[AKPS4]

If you don't mind please post your results. So when you wash the car sometime after the wax is applied do you do anything different or just rinse, use some bug/tar remover, soap with wash mit, and then rinse and dry again (basically)? Anything to be careful of to not remove the wax accidentally?

[Borti]

Will do.

To maintain as much sealant as possible during a wash I will spray the car down with a high powered hose to remove leaves, bugs and any large residue that has adhered to the paint. Then I follow that with a presoak with a foam sprayer. I let the foam bathe / rest on the car for 5-7 minutes then rinse off with a high-powered sprayer. Then the actual washing begins with the two-bucket method and etc...

Most sealants provide enough slickness that a prespray with bug and tar is not always necessary. I typically use a detail spray as that has enough saturation and lubrication to help bugs, tar / bird crap slide off (though honestly you should carry this with you in your car and remove bird crap / bug guts as soon as you spot them).

Lots of bug and tar removers are wax safe but its always best to use the least concentrated / aggressive option when you can.

[Borti]

Oh and make sure that you use long straight strokes with the wash mitt. You really should not apply a lot of pressure. Let the wash mitt glide across the surface of the car. You always want to maintain lubrication and too much pressure causes friction and dirt trapped in the mid-layer of the mitt can be pressed against the paint causing scratches and remove sealant / wax protection.

Regularly examine the mitt looking for discoloration and dirt. Often times it is necessary to rinse the mitt even after washing one panel (especially near the wells) to get rid of dirt that will scratch the clear coat. I also use two mitts, one for all panels above the wheel wells and one for the panels below. It's a good idea to wash your mitts in between uses.

BTW - Uber makes the best wash mitt I have ever used, though Swissvax makes one that is quite good as well.

[AKPS4]

Thanks for all the help. I like the idea of two wash mitts. I'll def follow that for sure.