How to Prepare Your Car or Truck for a Ceramic Coating- (CLAY BAR DETAILING)
When it comes to overall quality and appearance, preserving your car's paint in excellent condition will take effort and money. Over the past couple of years, a large number of products have hit the market that claim to be the very best which will keep the paint of your car in great condition.
Ceramic coating has truly been at the forefront of everything within the last decade or so. We are going to discuss whether ceramic coatings will be worth the expense and whether they will be worth the time and effort. During the last several years, ceramic coatings have grown in popularity, providing the very best paint protection available.
There are a lot of places throughout the country that market it, from automotive social media content creators to neighborhood detailing shops, and everywhere in between. People swear by it. People get turned off by the price tag the first time they look at it. Let's begin by understanding what ceramic coating actually is. The main ingredient of a ceramic coating is silicon dioxide or silicon carbide.
It is available in liquid form which allows it to be put on to a vehicle and protect finish.
Once solidified, the Silicon dioxide and other characteristics of the coating combine to produce an additional protective layer that repels water and provides some protection from the sun's UV rays and other harmful rays. Traditionally, waxes have taken over the paint protection and auto detailing industries. Using animal fats and animal oils to clean horses' carriages in the 1800s and 1900s soon evolved into using plant-based products. Different waxes were used for detailing cars in the 1900s to ensure they had that nice glamorous shine their owners desired.
If you wanted to keep your paint looking good, repel water and add just that good little bit of layer of protection, adding a good layer of wax was your solution.
Using nano-ceramic technology, 360 Products (found at ADSO stores) has a series of products that help protect your vehicle's painted surface. And this literally changed everything. But like, why?
How did this new product change the game? What were the key differences between car wax as well as ceramic coatings, and why did ceramic coatings cost so much? The biggest difference between a wax and a ceramic coating is its longevity. You'll need a reapplication after about three or 6 weeks with a good wax. In contrast, ceramic coatings last for anywhere from two to five years depending on the application and the quality.
It's better to use ceramic coating because it protects against UV rays and other things that can damage your paint.
It works fine, you've seen the videos of people throwing mud on their own car and it just slides off and they can just rinse it off. However, sometimes people just like to over-hype it just a little bit. It is my understanding that some detailers and people who promote ceramic coating tend to stretch the truth just a bit because it is so popular. Meaning there are some common misconceptions about the product and ceramic coating.
First and foremost, it website does not eliminate water spots. I'm sorry, it's the truth, although it does help. As a result of the hydrophobic properties of the ceramic coating, it allows water and droplets to run off easier, which explains why you see it in the videos. In the videos you'll see that the ceramic coating is extremely hydrophobic, so the water sticks to the surface of the coating, not the surface itself, so it runs off much, much more easily, hence reducing the likelihood of water spots. Number two, a ceramic coating will not prevent rock chips and scratches.
Even though it may protect against light scratches here and there, I wouldn't really rely on it too much. Always combine it with some common sense. If something like that happens, maybe you should invest in some protective film or Clear Bra. The third thing is that it's really not that expensive.
Ceramic coatings were quite expensive when they first appeared, reaching upwards of $1500 But now you can have your car professionally ceramic coated by the inventors of the stuff itself, for right around $700.
In most cases, when you receive a quote to have your car coated, you might have to have your car's paint corrected first. This is where the extra cost comes from. That said, if you wanna just get a bottle of the stuff and do it yourself, learn the process, maybe screw it up a few times, that's cool.
Whenever a new technology like ceramic coating launches on the market, it will likely be quite expensive at first and then over time, the price will reduce, that's just how it works. Getting your car ceramic coated is a lot of work, so you'll have to pay someone to do it for you. Ultimately, it has to be worth it for you and your vehicle.
If you own a nice paint job on your car, you should protect it. Spend a few hundred dollars on a ceramic coating for your car. Your car isn't the only thing you can apply a coating to. It is extremely popular to coat your wheels with ceramic coatings. It's so popular that we've started offering Whip Our Wheel And Tire packages as an add-on when you're checking out, we can literally ceramic coat them for you before they head out the door and honestly it makes cleaning them so much easier.
Also, people get stuff like their seats and other interior parts ceramic coated, so they don't have to worry about scrubbing them off, and it's just so much easier.
If you think that's something worth it to you, then go for it. Honestly, the technology of ceramic coating has helped a ton of people and I know a ton of people here have it done to their vehicle because they just absolutely swear by it. All in all, it's gotta be worth it to you, it's gotta be worth it to be putting on your car or part of your car.
You want to protect your investment. So let us know your thoughts on ceramic coating down below and whether or not you've had it done to any of your cars or your wheels or seats, cause that's a thing apparently.