braveheart3158

So after having Ceramic Pro and Clear Bra installed. I left my car our of the garage for one night by mistake, my sprinklers hit the hood and rear corner during the night. Next day the water dried and left some water spots. I contacted ceramic pro company on FB for suggestions. They recommended a vinegar water solution. It did not work.
I understand that the ceramic pro is not supposed to be polished. What can I do?

FYRARMS

Yikes. One of the reasons I don't use ceramic coatings---can't do any polishing. I would look into specific water spot removal products. Not sure if any of them are okay or not for ceramic coatings, though. 3D, Nanoskin, and Chemical Guys have such products. I think every company offers something similar.

23/C8Z

Meguiars ultimate compound I've used it on opticoat for same reason. Did nothing to the ceramic coating.

if something as non abrasive as meguiars ultimate takes ceramic pro off? Theres a problem.

Anything u like

FYRARMS

A compound will most definitely take off a ceramic coating. In fact, just a finishing polish will in most cases. Hell, Mike Phillips actually removes ceramic coating high spots with one of those soft foam finger pads and a one-step cleaner wax.

https://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...-coatings.html

Opti-Coat removal:

https://www.autopia.org/forums/waxes...-opticoat.html

Anything u like

FYRARMS

Why wouldn't sprinkler water leave spots when it dries? That isn't distilled water coming out of there. I can only imagine what chemicals and minerals are in city water.

Well, it is definitely the only sure-fire way. It is virtually impossible to predict what type of contaminants are going to be in whatever water it is that touches a vehicle. Regardless if a paint surface is protected by a natural wax, a synthetic sealant, or a ceramic product, allowing water drops to dry in the hot sun and bake is the fastest way to get etched water spots. Ceramic coatings are definitely more durable than sealants and waxes, and offer superior protection against things like chemicals and fallout, but they are still just a thin liquid coating. While better protected against water-spotting, it can still happen, as the OP has proven.

braveheart3158

Called Chemical Guys and Griots Garage. Griots says they do not have anything that will remove the spots with Ceramic pro on the car. The Chemical Guys say they have a calcium remover but no garentee it wont remove the ceramic pro.

Anything u like

I probably didn’t explain myself very well in my previous post. My issue isn’t that the ceramic can water spot, it’s that the spots apparently are very difficult to remove.
If I keep my car waxed and it gets water spots they can be removed rather easily. Remove the wax and re-coat. It seems that water spots will “etch” ceramic much the same as they etch paint. Does anyone wax over ceramic?

FYRARMS

Exactly why I choose not to use ceramic coatings. It is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to do any spot corrections without having to strip and recoat the vehicle. Screw that. If I get a scuff/scratch/water spot on a body panel, I can polish it out and re-seal/re-wax it in a jiffy.

Not traditional wax. It won't stick, and it will be very streaky and gummy. There are a number of ceramic-friendly synthetic sealants/spray detailers available, though. My best friend has a ceramic coating on one of his cars, and when it gets dirty, he gives it a waterless wash with Optimum No-Rinse, and then wipes the whole car down with CarPro Reload spray.

Dave1

What a waste of time and money to have to do that......

Grzldvt1

STOP!!!
A simple wash with Gyeon's Water Spot Remover will solve the problem. This happens sometimes with ceramics. It is not a big deal, no need for buffing, Ceramics are the only way to go, do they have some idiosyncrasies, yes, but then so does any product.But in my professional opinion, ceramics are the only way to go.
In fact, I am thinking about starting up a new detailing business and just doing ceramics only, in Southern California, as I have a non-compete agreement in Northern California,but they are an amazing product.
Is there snake oil out there, you bet. I see a ton of junk ceramics advertised, but if it is advertised on FB, you can be assured it is junk.

Grzldvt1

Sorry, but I don't agree with this at all. I have corrected 10's to 100's of cars with ceramic issues that other installers screwed up and it was quite easy to correct small problems, scratches and recoat that particular area. You simply need to use a very, very mild compound, I use Zaino';s Z-PC with a Porter Cable, Rupes Yellow foam pad with the speed set to 1 or 2. Cleans up stuff like they never existed, is there a technique to it, you bet, it is more than a product buffer combination, it is the feel and pressure needed to clean up without remove all of the coating. I do a quick recoat over the area I worked and it is fixed.

DK83

Did you get the water spots within the week of getting it coated? Do pick up a water spot remover from carpro, gyeon, or other companies that also offer coatings. Vinegar/water solutions are a good homemade solution for water spots, but sometimes these products do work better. good luck!

pickleseimer

I have switched over to retail coatings for all of my vehicles. Specifically the Gyeon products for polishing, coating, and bucket washing. Each vehicle annually gets a polish with Q2M Primer and a DA, and then hand-applied CanCoat. Applying the CanCoat is about as much effort as using a spray wax. Essentially a strip and coat effort. These are basic and easy to apply non-pro products offered by Gyeon. Maintain with Q2M Bathe+ when grimy. Durability not as great as the pro-only products, but the protection and gloss is evident at the end of the year. The daily drivers get rain, snow and salt throughout the year depending on the season. Specific to this thread - no water spotting, period,

For detail spray a light mix of CarPro Reload and CarPro EcH2O mixed in distilled water offers lubricity and helps maintain the coating, as well as the appearance I'm looking for (and it's inexpensive).

charley95

Not to drift here but I just spent all last week paint correcting my metallic black daily driver. I use a product called Glare and it satisfies my needs for what I'm looking for in paint correction. I'm so burnt out right now going over the car 3 times that I'm not real excited to polish any car in the near future. I know ceramic is the best thing for it after this process but I just can't bring myself to do it from extreme burnout. I usually get a year out of the Glare before it's time to reapply next fall from driving in all the seasons till next year. I'm hoping in the future that ceramics advance to ease the application/removal process. Only time will tell.

braveheart3158

Found it on Amazon and then looked at CarPro Spotless. The car pro has better reviews. Have you tried both? My water spots would not come out with distilled water mixed with vinegar so I am guessing they are baked in. Luckily I only have a few spots.

DK83

I've tried both gyeon and carpro water spot remover. They work equally well in my opinion. Used it on a car that got snowed/rained on the night it was picked up after ceramic coating. I don't think you can go wrong with either.

pcbreflectionsllc

Hard water is what caused these water spots. Irrigation, Well Water, or water that some U.S. counties unfortunately have to use from there tap. Here in Greenville SC our water hardness out of tap runs about 43ppm on average, we still detail with deionized water and our system will produce roughly 16,000 gallons of water. Unfortunately it wouldn't have mattered if your car was coated with Ceramic Pro, Gtechniq, Opti Coat, Cquartz, Igl, or NO COATING at all, Hard water would have left mineral stains and possibly etching. Welcome to earth, where our environment is harsh.

CarterRuss

I agree with Grzldvt1. CarPro Spotless should take car of you. The downfall to ceramic coating is they water spot somewhat easily. Simple solution? Park out of the rain. For those without that ability? Just don't let standing water bake on your car in hot temps (even if your car isn't coated) . Even letting my daily sit outside in the rain, water spots would come off with a simple wash. Most will come out with ease, for the few stubborn ones just get Spotless.