Paint Protection Types

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Once your car is cleaned and the paint has been corrected, a layer of paint protection can be applied.  

There are generally three (3) types of paint protection coatings: wax (paste or spray), polymer sealants, and professional ceramic coatings.  A1 Mobile Detailing (Wollongong) has available each protective coating.  

A Paste Wax is a naturally occurring substance that has hydrophobic properties.  It repels water. The main ingredient of most professional car waxes is Carnauba wax.  Carnauba serves to shed water from the paint, prevents contaminants from sticking to it, and protects from harmful UV rays. The higher the concentration of Carnauba in the product, the higher the quality.  The product is applied using an applicator pad.  

A Spray Wax is thinner than paste wax, applied via a spray nozzle and spread with  microfibre cloths / applicators.  Because the liquid is so thin, it is eaier to spread it in a perfectly level layer. As with paste wax, a spray wax is best applied as thin as possible.  Spray waxes provide gloss and protection, but not as long as a paste wax.  

Polymer Sealants are similar to waxes - they form a thin, waterproof barrier against the elements.  But sealants are synthetic, man-made products.  They bond extremely well with the paint and provide a hard protective layer.  They tend to be more durable than waxes and can last for up to a year.  Some auto enthusiasts argue that Carnauba wax holds a richer gloss and provides more intensified colour depth than sealants.  Others prefer the durability of a sealant.  Some car enthusiasts might layer a sealant over a wax, thus getting the best of both worlds.  

A Ceramic Coating, offers the highest degree of paint protection. Primarily composed of silica and titanium dioxide, ceramic coatings create a strong chemical bond with your paint and form a nano-ceramic shield over your clearcoat

Once applied, it will cure and turn completely transparent (often called a “glass” finish), giving you a brilliant high gloss and long-lasting durable protection.  Being highly hydrophobic, the coating will create “water beading”, which offers long term dirt repelling properties. This makes the process of exterior cleaning easier and faster.  A Ceramic Coating will protect from light scratches, and acts as a durable UV shield to prevent paint fading and oxidisation.

It requires a lot more preparation prior to application, but will offer great resistance to environmental contaminants.  It doesn’t fill in imperfections very well and is considerably more expensive than waxes and sealants.  It excels at protection and performance.  

A1 Mobile Detailing (Wollongong), uses high quality paint protection products to achieve outstanding results.  We are certified applicators of Osren Coatz 01: Absolute Paintwork Coating.

When does a Paint Protection product need to be re-applied?  

In general, a paint protection product needs to be re-applied when the paint surfaces no longer display signs of “water beading” (hydrophobics).  

The durability of waxes, sealants and ceramic coatings vary significantly, whereby re-application time frames are generally as follows: waxes -1 to 3 months, polymer sealants – 6 months to 1 year, ceramic coatings - 2 to 10yrs (depending on the specific coating used).    

The durability / longevity of paint protection products is affected by how often a vehicle is cleaned and how much exposure it receives to the outdoors.  A vehicle that is washed frequently and garaged, will require less frequent re-application of paint protection than a car that is not frequently washed and which is always kept outside.  Regardless of which paint protection is used, the key to long lasting paint protection is regular car washing and re-applying paint protection when required.