Difference between sealents and waxes

L

lairdness

New member
I've heard may people talk about the "glow" or "depth" you get from wax as opposed to a sealent...which is supposedly more reflective or shiney...



Can anyone show in pictures what this means?...I'm still trying to make a final decission on what to use on my new car and I'd like to have some idea of the difference without having to wax my car in order to figure out which look I like.



Does anyone have pictures of a sealed finish before and after waxing? or is that something you won't be able to see in pictures?



Thanks
 
lairdness said:
I'm still trying to make a final decission on what to use on my new car and I'd like to have some idea of the difference without having to wax my car in order to figure out which look I like.

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If you are looking for longer lasting protection, then I would recommend that you use a sealant.



If you are looking for depth of gloss, especially on a dark colored vehicle then I would recommend that you use your favorite wax.
 
Welcome!



Pictures have way to many variables to show the somewhat subtle differences.

Frank is right. And, many of do both; wax over a sealant...



Jim
 
lairdness said:
I've heard may people talk about the "glow" or "depth" you get from wax as opposed to a sealent...which is supposedly more reflective or shiney...



Can anyone show in pictures what this means?...I'm still trying to make a final decission on what to use on my new car and I'd like to have some idea of the difference without having to wax my car in order to figure out which look I like.



Does anyone have pictures of a sealed finish before and after waxing? or is that something you won't be able to see in pictures?



Thanks
Click to expand...



There is no way a picture can accurately show the difference between a "glowing" carnauba and a "reflective" sealant finish, because it's just too subtle. I can take pictures of identical cars and make one look like the other. 99% of the time, you can barely tell the difference in waxes or sealants.



You might want to have a friend pour each into anonymous bottles, and try to tell which is which from only the results. It's harder than you think...
 
mirrorfinishman said:
If you are looking for longer lasting protection, then I would recommend that you use a sealant.



If you are looking for depth of gloss, especially on a dark colored vehicle then I would recommend that you use your favorite wax.
Click to expand...



I know...I also know many people put wax over sealents.....



what I don't know is what "depth of gloss" looks like...I have no idea what that means...I always thought "gloss" and "shine" were the same thing so when people say "depth of gloss" it makes no sense to me...even theoretically the term gloss refers to the ammount of light reflected off a surface. Therefore, even the concept of "depth of gloss" really doesn't make any sense to me because then it's more refraction than reflection when there is depth to it...and therefore no longer a "gloss" in the classic sense of the word.....see so I'm confused...



I also believe that this subtle difference may well be impossible to capture in a picture...but I had to ask because if I can make up my mind ahead of time to wax or not it will change what I use...for example if I only want a shine and want longevity Zaino sounds pretty good...but if I don't like "that look" then Klasse / S100 sounds like a good way to go....problem is I have no idea what "that look" looks like...if I use Zaino and don't like it that's allot of work to go and redo it because you're not supposed to wax over Zaino.....but then again waxing every month is allot of work too........



so in the end if I knew what "depth of shine meant, it would save a ton of time and money.....and again, I am fully aware it may be impossible to put that in a picture
 
lairdness said:
I know...I also know many people put wax over sealents.....



what I don't know is what "depth of gloss" looks like...I have no idea what that means...I always thought "gloss" and "shine" were the same thing so when people say "depth of gloss" it makes no sense to me...even theoretically the term gloss refers to the ammount of light reflected off a surface. Therefore, even the concept of "depth of gloss" really doesn't make any sense to me because then it's more refraction than reflection when there is depth to it...and therefore no longer a "gloss" in the classic sense of the word.....see so I'm confused...



I also believe that this subtle difference may well be impossible to capture in a picture...but I had to ask because if I can make up my mind ahead of time to wax or not it will change what I use...for example if I only want a shine and want longevity Zaino sounds pretty good...but if I don't like "that look" then Klasse / S100 sounds like a good way to go....problem is I have no idea what "that look" looks like...if I use Zaino and don't like it that's allot of work to go and redo it because you're not supposed to wax over Zaino.....but then again waxing every month is allot of work too........



so in the end if I knew what "depth of shine meant, it would save a ton of time and money.....and again, I am fully aware it may be impossible to put that in a picture
Click to expand...



Good questions. Sadly, the only way is to blindly try it yourself and see if what other people are saying make sense.
 
When thinking of depth, imagine a reflecting pool in the evening.



When thinking of shine, think of a perfectly clean mirror under bright lights.



Correcting for the obvious physical differences, compare the "deep" look of the pool to a hood in which you can see your reflection *and* feel as though you could reach into it.
 
BW said:
There is no way a picture can accurately show the difference between a "glowing" carnauba and a "reflective" sealant finish, because it's just too subtle. I can take pictures of identical cars and make one look like the other. 99% of the time, you can barely tell the difference in waxes or sealants.



You might want to have a friend pour each into anonymous bottles, and try to tell which is which from only the results. It's harder than you think...
Click to expand...



well sh*t if that's true then what all the hubbub about? if there's that little difference then I'll stick with the longer lasting sealents...



so why all the hype about carnuba then if sealent and waxes are so close?...why does everyone make a ton more work for themselves every month by using carnuba which breaks down something like 6 times faster?
 
thinksnow said:
When thinking of depth, imagine a reflecting pool in the evening.



When thinking of shine, think of a perfectly clean mirror under bright lights.



Correcting for the obvious physical differences, compare the "deep" look of the pool to a hood in which you can see your reflection *and* feel as though you could reach into it.
Click to expand...



Thank you for trying...I appreciate it...but I can't say that clears it up for me....I'm trying to picture it, but I don't see it...I never said I wernt thick
 
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