Do you clay or do you use a decontamination product?

S

Striker

Active member
Been wondering this since I learned about decon products.

If I decon a car, does this process make claying unnecessary?




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I’ve used both but for the most part I clay. I work on so few cars and just about everything I work on is something I keep up on a regular basis. I’ve used decon products on brand new vehicles to get them started right first thing out of the gate.
 
I`ll spray the ironx type product first but usually still clay. The iron removers make claying a bit easier. I usually use a nanoskin, instead of clay anymore. Less fussy.
 
Striker said:
Okay so If one clays- it eliminates the need for a decon?


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No, but a vehicle that is cleaned properly (including mitts or clay) and often has less chance of letting the paint get bad. There is definitely a time for IronX or like products and stronger as the need arises. Just my opinion.
 
I decon wash with a tar remover and an alkaline product and last a iron remover. If the paint feels rough and has contaminants left I clay. Then the claying is easier to do and if I decon wash sometimes it take longer apart to have to clay.
 
Detailing story goes something like this: 3 kinds of stuff on paint - 1) loosely bonded contaminants (dirt), 2) bonded contaminants (sap, overspray, etc.) and 3) embedded contaminants (iron melted into the clear coat). 1) is eliminated by normal washing. 2) is removed by clay. 3) requires the decon products that dissolve and/or push out the iron from the paint. Clay would (theoretically) just shear off the particle above the paint line while leaving the subsurface piece to do bad things to your clear coat.

Not sure I completely buy this but I generally decon and clay - especially before I coat a car.
 
If you want to do the job right, decon and then clay is the way to go. Decon gets the paint clean, clay gets the paint smooth.
 
Can someone talk to me about these mits that replace claying?

What’s the deal what are they and how long do they last these Nano skins.


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Striker said:
Can someone talk to me about these mits that replace claying?

What’s the deal what are they and how long do they last these Nano skins.


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Its like comparing a horse to an F1 car. The only reason to even consider having a clay bar anymore is to get into weird contoured areas. They last longer than a clay bar.
 
I`d go further than Dan in that they last longer due to being able to rinse them off if they fall on the ground, they generally have a larger surface area which equates to more efficient time usage (big flat surfaces are done in a fraction of the time) and they don`t require HULK strength to kneed them when cold.
 
Good point about being able to rinse if you drop! Some other things that you reminded me of, you can use them as a part of your wash if you want, some clay bars broke down in some soaps. Last but not least, they won`t leave clay goo on your car on a hot day should you run a little dry on QD.
 
I hardly ever need to decontaminate these days, but I spot-clay at most every wash.

I do think that anybody with genuine contamination issues oughta use the Chemical Decontamination approach (e.g., ValuGard`s ABC).

I`d never use one of the mitt/towel approaches for fear of causing abrasion. The ones I`ve seen even warned not to use them on certain finishes lest they cause damage.
 
Accumulator said:
I`d never use one of the mitt/towel approaches for fear of causing abrasion. The ones I`ve seen even warned not to use them on certain finishes lest they cause damage.
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That`s gotta be the lawyers talking. I don`t see how it would be possible for the sponge to cause any more damage than clay. In fact the opposite. Clay is heavy and the nature of it makes you apply a bit of pressure on the surface of the car. The sponge just glides. I guess clay could swallow a large particle, but then again, what is that doing on the surface of your car while you are claying?
 
Dan- I`m kinda extreme about my claying...most people can`t imagine (not like I cover inches at a time, tiny little areas with kneading/replacing after every contact..). I`m disappointed if I have to reLSP after claying, let alone if I found any marring from it. But again, eh..just me and contamination isn`t much of a concern any more.

With the towels, it`s my understanding that they are inherently abrasive to the extent that using them on, say...flat/satin/matte surfaces will abrade such surfaces enough to cause glossing. And they seem, just by their nature, to be geared towards doing areas that are at least a few square inches in size.

(Q: people don`t move clay/mitt/etc. a few inches under continual pressure do they? I mean..if some speck of contamination *does* get caught up and cause marring, that`d cause a scratch that`d be long enough to really show.)

Not trying to dissuade anybody from using the towels/mitts *IF* they already know that the approach works for them..different strokes and all that. If I were doing a full correction-type detail on something really contaminated, and didn`t have ABC/etc., then I might use one if I had it.
 
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