Remove water marks
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 26
Likes: 0
Remove water marks
Hi guys. I just washed my car, clayed it, and washed it again, and was going to apply zaino, but then I noticed I have water marks on my car (as if I let plain water or soapy water dry on my car). I don't know how to get them out.
How do you get rid of these water marks? Or how do you wash your car so that you don't get water marks?
How do you get rid of these water marks? Or how do you wash your car so that you don't get water marks?
Team Owner
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 96,209
Likes: 75
From: Houston Texas
St. Jude Donor '09
Water marks can be a pain in the ***.........
If they get heat dried in bright sun it will probably require a polish and a machine to get them completely removed.......
Some are worse than others and if you can post a picture or two it would be helpful.........
If they get heat dried in bright sun it will probably require a polish and a machine to get them completely removed.......
Some are worse than others and if you can post a picture or two it would be helpful.........
Advanced
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 99
Likes: 0
From: Northern Utah
Bummer,
If you QD do they go away, if not you have hard water spots that will likely require polishing with a fine grit polish. You might also try Vinegar as a wipe down since if its a hard water, the mild acid should break it down if its on the surface.
In the future may I suggest you take off any sprayers on the hose and just allow the water to sheet off as you "push" it along using the flow out of the hose. Start from the top and work down, then dry quickly.
Cheers,
GREG
If you QD do they go away, if not you have hard water spots that will likely require polishing with a fine grit polish. You might also try Vinegar as a wipe down since if its a hard water, the mild acid should break it down if its on the surface.
In the future may I suggest you take off any sprayers on the hose and just allow the water to sheet off as you "push" it along using the flow out of the hose. Start from the top and work down, then dry quickly.
Cheers,
GREG
Last edited by Greg Nichols; Feb 4, 2009 at 09:33 AM.
Former Vendor
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 14,104
Likes: 244
From: South Florida
water marks (well the minerals in the water) can etch painted surfaces and be a real bugger to remove. Polishing works on newer spots, and sometimes even wetsanding is needed. Keep a car outside of water sitting on surface and baking in sun is nice if possible, keeping good sealants and waxes on a finish helps too. Never park anywhere near sprinklers as well water and canal water can add all sorts of contaminents.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 8,744
Likes: 2
From: The King of Bling
St. Jude Donor '10
Providing they are just deposits and not etched I would try QD first. If that did not work give Z-AIO a try. If that still didn't work step up to ZPC preferable with a ROB. You could also try claying.
If none of the above work chances are it is lightly etched and you will need to compound or in severe cases wet sand and then compound. If all else fails you will need to paint the car but that is only in the most rare and SEVERE conditions.
If none of the above work chances are it is lightly etched and you will need to compound or in severe cases wet sand and then compound. If all else fails you will need to paint the car but that is only in the most rare and SEVERE conditions.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 1,030
Likes: 1
From: Douglasville Ga
I agree with what was said above. If they are fresh from recently being washed, a QD should take care of them. I am not sure how much soap you used but adding too much soap to the bucket can do that as well as the minerals in the water. You could try getting that Mr. Clean gun (not sure how well that works but I have heard good things). Also, try washing in a shaded, cool area, keeping the car wet the whole time, and drying off right away. Use the QD when drying.
Advanced
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 63
Likes: 0
From: Los Angeles CA
water marks (well the minerals in the water) can etch painted surfaces and be a real bugger to remove. Polishing works on newer spots, and sometimes even wetsanding is needed. Keep a car outside of water sitting on surface and baking in sun is nice if possible, keeping good sealants and waxes on a finish helps too. Never park anywhere near sprinklers as well water and canal water can add all sorts of contaminents.
also seeing that you have already clayed it and that didn't remove it you may need to step up to a paint cleaner. Meguiars has Color X which is a one step cleaner/wax and works pretty good. This is an over the counter product which makes it easy to obtain. If that doesn't remove it than it is more than likely the water has begun to etch into the paint and may have to move onto polishing the paint with a dual action and possibly a rotory. I haven't tried this myself but some have used vinegar with water to remove water spots. Below is a photo of a car that I worked on. By hand I was able to remove about 85% of the water spot but could still see the outline. I had to use a machine to polish out. Wash your car like you normally do but do it in the shade and when the paint is cool to the touch to avoid the water drying out so quickly on the paint. Or you can use a de-ionized filter system.
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Advanced
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 99
Likes: 0
also seeing that you have already clayed it and that didn't remove it you may need to step up to a paint cleaner. Meguiars has Color X which is a one step cleaner/wax and works pretty good. This is an over the counter product which makes it easy to obtain. If that doesn't remove it than it is more than likely the water has begun to etch into the paint and may have to move onto polishing the paint with a dual action and possibly a rotory. I haven't tried this myself but some have used vinegar with water to remove water spots. Below is a photo of a car that I worked on. By hand I was able to remove about 85% of the water spot but could still see the outline. I had to use a machine to polish out. Wash your car like you normally do but do it in the shade and when the paint is cool to the touch to avoid the water drying out so quickly on the paint. Or you can use a de-ionized filter system.
Advanced
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 63
Likes: 0
From: Los Angeles CA
Those water spots were pretty stubborn to remove. Believe it or not the car was no more than 2 months old. It's a 2008 Mercedes CLK500. Here is after some polishing
The owner would park the car next to sprinklers. Baking in the sun didn't help.
The owner would park the car next to sprinklers. Baking in the sun didn't help.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 1,030
Likes: 1
From: Douglasville Ga
