NEWB: Zaino one panel at a time... (extending application over a period of days).

B

Bis

New member
Hello, just got a number of Zaino products and thanks to this forum I will be going absolutely nuts on my car as soon as I get a chance.



But I was thinking that I am going to find it very difficult to deal with a whole car at a time if I have to wash it, clay it, polish it with AIO, seal it with CS and then finish with Z8. That would be a whole day of work (not including door jambs, etc).



With exception of the Z8, would it be wise for me to focus on a few panels panels per day and just take about 3 days to finish the whole process?? :nervous:



Any feedback regarding this method is appreciated.
 
I'm sure that would be fine, but it sounds like a lot more work than just settng aside some time and getting it done.
 
You could always wash and clay, then seal with CS. Then next time use the AIO to polish a bit.
 
I've never used clay in a car before and I want to do it right. I am now familiar on how to do it but I am sure I am going to take my sweet old time, specially since it is the first time. Just the careful wash that I am gonna have to give it to remove old wax and the clay may take a whole afternoon which is all I have twice a week.



15951 what do you mean by more work?
 
Bis said:
I've never used clay in a car before and I want to do it right. I am now familiar on how to do it but I am sure I am going to take my sweet old time, specially since it is the first time. Just the careful wash that I am gonna have to give it to remove old wax and the clay may take a whole afternoon which is all I have twice a week.



15951 what do you mean by more work?
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Claying shouldnt take you all afternoon. If you are moving slow then 2hrs max. I havent ever had to spend more than an hr claying. I personally like to wash the car and while it is still wet after the rinse I clay it using ONR as lube. I clay the whole car and then rinse it off again. Dry and begin the next step of the detail.



When he says more work I am assuming he is referring to having to clean the car every time. You cant wash a car on sunday and go and polish it on thursday if you have been driving it. That is where the extra work comes in, you have to reclean atlest the section of vehicle you will be working on. But above all else do it how you feel comfortable, afterall it is your vehicle and you are the one doing the work so if you want to do it a certain way then by all means go for it. You really cant go wrong as long as you abide by the fundamental principals.
 
I do it both ways- taking a vehicle off the road for an extended session (that might last weeks) or doing it one panel at a time, usually after my regular washes.



And you can do it *all* panel by panel (well, except for the wash)...clay, polish/AIO, seal.
 
Bis said:
Hello, just got a number of Zaino products and thanks to this forum I will be going absolutely nuts on my car as soon as I get a chance.



But I was thinking that I am going to find it very difficult to deal with a whole car at a time if I have to wash it, clay it, polish it with AIO, seal it with CS and then finish with Z8. That would be a whole day of work (not including door jambs, etc).



With exception of the Z8, would it be wise for me to focus on a few panels panels per day and just take about 3 days to finish the whole process?? :nervous:



Any feedback regarding this method is appreciated.
Click to expand...



But thats the fun in it. Actually you'll get the hang of their products or just split it up a couple of days. With customers cars i try to finish it for them the fastest I can while still doing the job right but with my cars, I'll do exterior one day then interior the next.
 
Yes, I guess filling up the buckets with water and wash fluid every day and prepping the gear to be used every time is extra work, but yeah that's not a problem for me.

I won't be able to take in the beauty of the whole car at once but I think within 2 to 3 days every panel will be done.

I am thinking to focus on each panel and complete it so I don't have to re-wash the panels and waste time. Thinking of something like this:



Day 1 | (Wash, clay, AIO, CS): Roof first, then rear barn doors and bumper. (gives me a chance to practice on the roof first).

Day 2 | (Wash, clay, AIO, CS): Sides, (including side windows and plastic door mirrors?)

Day 3 | (Wash, clay, AIO, CS): Fenders, hood and front bumper. (Should I do the windshield? This is not a show car FYI, its my DD).

Day 4 | (Wash, clay, AIO, CS): Door jambs and wheels.

Day 5: Interior and Other detailing, not mentioned above.



IMG_20110715_113107.jpg
 
Looks like the onset of a Click N Brag thread in the making?? Once you get your Astro all Z'd up, I say it's time to update the picture in your avatar.
 
And you would be right about the avatar...

But hey, thanks for the expert contribution to the thread, David Fermani, Marketing Manager, South Florida's Leader in Vehicle Preservation & Perfect Paint Finishes.
 
Wanted to follow up this post with my results using Zaino's "Triplet Bundle".



I have applied the three products in the kit everywhere, including a new set of chrome wheels and the side/rear windows, the hood received a double coat of Z-CS. So far I am seeing great results with water repelling on the windows and the side of the car, but for the most part I am not amazed by Zaino's ability to repel water and durability is also proving to be a disappointment over a period of a few weeks only!??? Shine is nice, but even after using Z-8 I don't really see the blinding gloss and wetness that the website tries to sell me on. Cheap Turtle Wax with a layer of Mother's Liquid Spray Wax wasn't too far from the results I am getting with Zaino I'd say!



The nice beading effect that existed when I applied the Zaino Triplet Combo went away and now after only a couple of weeks and two coats of CS on the hood (for example) I get a sheet of water that dissipates unevenly and slowly, nothing compared to the way it occurred when the product was applied. It almost seems like the two layers of CS on the hood are performing worse than what was applied to the rest of the vehicle??? The instructions say that Z-CS CAN be layered. I applied one layer one week and another layer after a wash on the second week. Now after two weeks I am reporting this.



Humid weather may have hampered the application process as it was really hard to put on the Z-AIO and even the Z-CS was challenging. Z-8 was much easier.

My biggest problem is the even distribution of product (be it Z-AIO or Z-CS) over the paint. The car is cool to the touch and I know not to use too much product, so I dab only a little bit on the cotton applicator and begin to spread it over the paint. The product does not spread very well, as I have to put a lot of pressure to get it to move over to the rest of the 18"-24" panel I am trying to cover, but even that does not give me enough product to cover a whole panel. I try to move quickly with the pad to try to cover as much as I can from the moment the pad hits the paint with fresh product, but I can't seem to be able to spread the products quickly enough before its just stuck in one place. Hesitantly I have to apply some more to the pad to try to continue to evenly coat a panel. Otherwise I see a thicker layer of product on one part of the panel and no evidence of coverage on the other part of the panel. This also leads me to having to really put a lot of elbow grease into the application of both Z-AIO and Z-CS which should not be necessary from the videos I have watched.



I see consistent results on both, AIO and CS while working outside on the car, its very difficult and frustrating to apply.

Applying the product to a set of wheels in a temperature and humidity controlled room proved to be a lot easier, much like what I expected and what I have seen on videos.



Has anybody seen this kind of results?



I have read over and over the tips and info on the product's website and the product instructions, none of which has helped me.

I paid good money for the "simplicity" that is a big selling point on these products but I am feeling sort of ripped-off after seeing these results. Specially, the durability problems I am seeing.



Any suggestions would be appreciated.
 
The big secret with Zaino is it doesn't look that amazing on day 1. Many OTC products shine just as much. Its strength is in maintaining that shine even after several washes. As to durability, ZAIO is particularly sensitive to moisture. I've applied it (in a hurry) to a recently, but sloppily dried car and got less than a month of durability. It also seems to like some cure time.
 
Having a shine that lasts and the ability to repel dust for a few days is a nice feature, I'll take that over extreme shine any day.

Your comment about durability sounds pretty much dead-on. The car was fully dry when I applied it, but again, humidity was close to 100% that whole week and I had to wait for the late part of the afternoon to be able to apply the stuff so that I would get a nice cool surface.



At that point I thought that spending a night on my driveway and letting it sit the whole next day would be enough of a "cure time", but maybe the humidity in the air messed that up too?



Sucks because I put so much time into it. I guess I will have to do it again now that temperatures and humidity are a bit more moderate...



Thanks Yakky.
 
Well, at least you got the prep work out of the way, applying another coat shouldn't be too bad.
 
I have been experimenting with many sealants and waxes over the years and have never been disappointed with the wet look and extreme shine I get from Zaino. Especially Z2 and Z8. It's my sealant of choice on silver. Comparisons between a Zaino'd and non Zaino'd silver Audi (my friend has a twin of my car) is really obvious and impressive.



As mentioned, high humidity and cool weather slow the cure time but I never have had any issues with durability after waiting for the Z to dry properly. Remember, VERY thin coats are best.
 
Bis said:
Wanted to follow up this post with my results using Zaino's "Triplet Bundle".









Humid weather may have hampered the application process as it was really hard to put on the Z-AIO and even the Z-CS was challenging. Z-8 was much easier.

My biggest problem is the even distribution of product (be it Z-AIO or Z-CS) over the paint. The car is cool to the touch and I know not to use too much product, so I dab only a little bit on the cotton applicator and begin to spread it over the paint. The product does not spread very well, as I have to put a lot of pressure to get it to move over to the rest of the 18"-24" panel I am trying to cover, but even that does not give me enough product to cover a whole panel. I try to move quickly with the pad to try to cover as much as I can from the moment the pad hits the paint with fresh product, but I can't seem to be able to spread the products quickly enough before its just stuck in one place. Hesitantly I have to apply some more to the pad to try to continue to evenly coat a panel. Otherwise I see a thicker layer of product on one part of the panel and no evidence of coverage on the other part of the panel. This also leads me to having to really put a lot of elbow grease into the application of both Z-AIO and Z-CS which should not be necessary from the videos I have watched.



I see consistent results on both, AIO and CS while working outside on the car, its very difficult and frustrating to apply.

Applying the product to a set of wheels in a temperature and humidity controlled room proved to be a lot easier, much like what I expected and what I have seen on videos.



Has anybody seen this kind of results?



Any suggestions would be appreciated.
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You are talking about an AIO which is an all in one, which means that it contains polish. Anything with polish isn't going to spread easily. If the surface needs polishing, it is rough, and so it is going to be difficult to work the pad over the panel until you have it smooth. Also, you don't just use a regular wax applicator for an AIO. You need a tougher pad, as in a polishing pad. For example, Griot's Garage sells an orange polishing pad which is harder and coarser, and a red waxing pad, which is finer and softer.



A nice wax pad won't hold up to an AIO for long. When using an AIO, you will need to use a lot more product than you would if it was just a LSP. The cars in the videos you have seen might have paint much smoother than yours, and so there would be less effort needed to use the AIO. You don't apply an AIO, you use it, by working it. with a LSP, you just apply it by spreading it, with little effort.



You want to go over the same section with 3 passes sometimes while it is still very wet as you are doing it to ensure thorough bonding with some products, which is what Mike Phillips recommends with the Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant. I've tried it one pass and several passes, and I seem to get a better look and more durability when I overlap like that, while still maintaining a thin application.
 
Bis said:
My biggest problem is the even distribution of product (be it Z-AIO or Z-CS) over the paint. The car is cool to the touch and I know not to use too much product, so I dab only a little bit on the cotton applicator and begin to spread it over the paint. The product does not spread very well, as I have to put a lot of pressure to get it to move over to the rest of the 18"-24" panel I am trying to cover, but even that does not give me enough product to cover a whole panel.
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Don't use a cotton applicator. Foam applicators are FAR BETTER at providing an even and thin spread of product on the surface. This will make a huge difference.



Cotton applicators, even when lightly saturated, are affected by balling of the fibers and uneven stretch of the cotton over the foam inside. This causes high and low surface areas and causes uneven application. This causes the wax/sealant to be thick in some areas and then they don't dry evenly. And this means you may be inadvertently rubbing off wax/sealant that isn't dry along with some that is.



These high spots on the applicator are also 'hot spots' with regard to friction and can easily cause scratches if you push to hard trying to obtain even pressure. All bad stuff.



Get some foam applicators. They make great ones, but even the cheapos are better than cotton. Use the cotton applicators for leather cleaning and such.
 
Brad B. said:
Don't use a cotton applicator. Foam applicators are FAR BETTER at providing an even and thin spread of product on the surface. This will make a huge difference.



Cotton applicators, even when lightly saturated, are affected by balling of the fibers and uneven stretch of the cotton over the foam inside. This causes high and low surface areas and causes uneven application. This causes the wax/sealant to be thick in some areas and then they don't dry evenly. And this means you may be inadvertently rubbing off wax/sealant that isn't dry along with some that is.



These high spots on the applicator are also 'hot spots' with regard to friction and can easily cause scratches if you push to hard trying to obtain even pressure. All bad stuff.



Get some foam applicators. They make great ones, but even the cheapos are better than cotton. Use the cotton applicators for leather cleaning and such.
Click to expand...



What you mention here makes a lot of sense. I just don't understand why Zaino pushes those cotton pads so hard (and why they were included in my purchase).

On the instructions of the product it says to use the pads as well. But using foam makes a lot of sense.



Do you recommend using foam for the clear seal coat as well? Or should I keep the cotton pad for that?



Thanks for the input, guys.
 
Brad B. said:
Remember, VERY thin coats are best.
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So with Zaino applying very little means that while I am applying the product I may NOT SEE anything on the paint I just covered? And it will feel as if there is NOTHING being applied?



I just have to keep "spreading" the little bit of product that is on the pad even though I can't see it or feel it on the paint, right?



It's just very tricky not seeing or feeling what you are applying. There is no way to know if you covered the area properly or not!
 
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