Hi Everyone -
We've all heard that silicone is bad in general for detailing but I've either forgot why or never knew. Can someone out there enlighten me on why silicone is supposed to be bad? Thanks in advance.

 

Copied and pasted direct from Mequiar's website...


Are products that contain silicone bad for my car's finish?

No. In fact, automotive paints worldwide contain silicone as an ingredient to help the paint to spray and flow more smoothly.
Most of the concerns people have about silicones and products that contain silicones stem from the problems associated with them in the early 1950's. Back then, 40 and 50 years ago, if the surface wasn’t properly prepared, residual silicones on the surface or in the shop environment, could cause surface adhesion problems. The most common among them is a defect referred to Fish Eyes in the paint.
Fish Eyes are a small, circular craters that appear in the finish where the paint piles up in a circle surrounding a point on the surface that contains some type of contaminant that creates high surface tension, usually some type of wax, grease or silicone. The reason freshly sprayed paint does this is because contaminants like wax and silicone tend to create high surface tension and do not allow the freshly applied paint to stick or adhere properly. Instead of laying down flat over the top of these contaminants, the paint moves away from these contaminants, forming a ring around them that has the visual appearance of what is historically described as a "fish eye".
Knowledge of chemistry, as well as most other technologies have evolved and grown substantially since the 1950's (just look at modern cars and personal computers as two very visible, common examples of how technology has progressed). The problems painters encountered 50 years ago are more easily addressed with today's modern paint prepping chemicals, shop environments, paint additives, and most importantly, education. Back in the 1950's, there were no formal training programs available for young men and women entering the automotive repair industry. Most of the time, a person would start out at the bottom, sweeping and cleaning up, and slowly move up the ladder through knowledge gained by on-the-job training. Today there are hundreds of certified schools that specialize in formal education for the automotive industry. This includes paint manufacturers, who provide in-depth training for anyone who uses their paint systems.
Most professionals in the refinishing industry understand that a majority of the paintwork they do, day-in and day-out, is on cars that have been waxed using products that contain both wax and silicone.
Professionals in the body shop industry always perform the necessary preparation work required to insure that "fish eyes" are not a problem. This includes using special degreasers, wax and silicone removers that effectively remove these substances from the surface or chemically alter their molecular structure in such a way to insure they pose no problems. If there is ever any question or doubt about the surface to which new paint is going to be applied, painters will include a Fish Eye Eliminator into the paint, which insures a finish free from fish eyes. Interestingly enough, Fish Eye Eliminator is typically a special silicone additive.
There are many kinds of silicones available for use in car care products, the one thing all silicones have in common is they are completely inert. This means they do not react in either a negative or a positive manner with any substance they come into contact with, including your car's paint.

Silicones are primarily used to modify or enhance a specific characteristic of another ingredient in a Meguiar's formula. If the silicones Meguiar's relies on didn't offer some type of positive benefit to the product, or the end-user and the results they are trying to achieve, Meguiar's wouldn't include them in their formulas.
For example: The use of some types of silicone in a formula acts to make the product easier to both spread and wipe-off, thus reducing the effort required to apply and remove the product, which then helps to reduce the potential for application or wipe-off inflicted scratches. That’s a benefit to you.
Meguiar's has been the leader in creating paintable, body shop safe products because of our history and continuing leadership in creating state-of-the-art formulas for use by new car manufacturers as well as the collision repair and custom painting industries. Because of our expertise in creating wax and silicone-free products for fresh paint environments, you will find many of our paint cleaners and polishes are paintable and body shop safe.

Because Meguiar's is a major supplier to the automotive finishing industry, both to OEM (factory level) and the re-finishing industry (collision repair, body shops and custom paint shops), Meguiar's can offer you a complete selection of paintable products including at least one polish that contains a paintable polymer for increased protection.
The fear and confusion surrounding this single ingredient, silicone, is an ongoing problem people run into when they get caught up in the hype and misinformation spread from person to person, generation to generation and now-a-days, on the internet, which exaggerates the problems surrounding the use of silicones in car care products.
There are some sources that even go so far to say that silicones are harmful to paint. This is not only dishonest; it calls into question the credibility of that resource and any and all claims they make. Silicone is inert. It cannot harm paint, let alone anything else it is formulated into, or sitting on top of, especially in the form of a coating of wax.

 

It's not good or bad (except in a bodyshop where it can fvck with fresh paint prep work). However, I wouldn't use it or any glazes - if you decide to try to repolish, it'll basically hydroplane the buffer and you won't end up doing any correction work.

So while it's not good/bad, I try to avoid it when I can.

 

Excellent research! I'm not sure when or even where I had heard that silicone is "bad" but I notice on some of the boutique detailing sites they go out of their way to say "contains no silicone". It got my curiosity up and I knew you guys/girls could help me out.

Thanks for the reply

 

There are low grade silicones (like those in some OTC tire dressings) which can harm the natural casing of tire over time. There are however acceptable and even good silicones that can indeed be used in car care without harm. To say in general silicones are bad is not fair as too general a statement.

The reason boutiques offer the makeup of products like polishes is so that the end user can choose the products that fit there wants and desires. Unfortunately we have to address the customers percieved needs and also the manufacturers design to appease to both sides of the table.

 

That's what I recalled, that over time poorer grade silicone could cause damage.

BTW: I'm glad there are "boutique" detailing supply centers! You folks provide us detailers with a variety of products as well as being a good source of information.

 

Rule of thumb: if you don't know why some silicones are "bad," then you shouldn't worry about it. If you're not buying no-name products, you're fine.

Painters know why some silicones are bad, and part of the problem is they talk to consumers and give them misinformation.

 

Do you have any pics of what these fish eye's look like in the paint?
Does it look like a small pimple protruding through the paint finish?