Outside Temperature?

F

fotodad

New member
Since I live in Wisconsin, I have to deal with extremely different outside air temperatures when I detail my car. We all know detailing in direct sunlight is a no-no, but what about outside air temperature. Today the temperature outside was 49º; it was cloudy but there was no wind. We all know how warm we get when working hard on detailing our cars, so the 49º temp didn't bother me too much. But I wondered it the products (cleaners, polishes, waxes) I'd be using would work at their optimum in this temperature. Should I wait until it's, say, 60º or more? Then, on the flip side, can it be too warm and/or humid to detail outside?



Thanks for any guidance!
 
Temperature conditions:

These are the temperatures and conditions that are relative to the application of car care products; the most important is the actual surface temperature of the vehicle. The other things that will have a direct bearing on this is the humidity as this will effect the cross-linking (cure) time, excess humidity will also affect â€Ëœhowâ€â„¢ a wax or sealant dries (i.e. it may cause hazing or clouding of the surface)



The other climate related condition that should be avoided when applying car care products is direct sunlight, as this will dramatically increase the surface temperature compared to ambient temperatures causing the product to dry prematurely and may render it ineffective.

â€Â¢Surface Temperature (Actual surface temperature of the vehicle) between 50 and 80oF, products will work well within a much broader temperature range, (40° to 90° F) but the best results will be achieved in the 60° to 70° F range surrounding air temp (ambient or room) must be 55oF + to ensure the minimum vehicle surface temperature of 50oF(recommended as a minimum by most manufacturers)

â€Â¢Ambient Temperature (Outside air temperature)

â€Â¢Relative Humidity (Moisture content of the air)- RH 50% +/-10%

â€Â¢Inside Air Temperature (Room Temperature) 70 â€â€œ 75oF +/- 10oF and 50% relative humidity +/- 10%

â€Â¢Air movement or windy conditions will increase the evaporation rate but potentially make some products more difficult work with, especially sprayed products. Perversely this can lessen wax / sealant drying time.

â€Â¢Swipe Test after sufficient drying times do a quick swipe test with your finger, if no smearing or drag is evident; the residue is ready to be removed.



In summary, the ideal conditions for the application of car care products; cool and dry, away from direct sunlight, a surface temperature between 60° and 80° F, 50% RH or lower humidity, and a light air movement.

JonM
 
Jon,



Thanks so much for your concise and informative response. You brought up points I hadn't even thought about. Guess I'm going to have to wait until the weather gets a little nicer!
 
Something to be aware of with acrylics and other products that cross-link is they re-start the process when they get warmer. So if you apply them and it only warms up to 60 degrees, when it gets up to 70, they start up again. Same with going up to the hundreds. This makes boat building in cold weather real interesting btw. It really shouldn't affect you, unless you're working multiple layers of a product.



Cold works great for claying in my experience.
 
foxtrapper said:
Something to be aware of with acrylics and other products that cross-link is they re-start the process when they get warmer. So if you apply them and it only warms up to 60 degrees, when it gets up to 70, they start up again. Same with going up to the hundreds. This makes boat building in cold weather real interesting btw. It really shouldn't affect you, unless you're working multiple layers of a product.



Cold works great for claying in my experience.
Click to expand...

Interesting-Iâ€â„¢ve always thought of the process as â€Ëœslowing downâ€â„¢ if used in colder temps/ high humidity but didnâ€â„¢t think it would stop and then re-start

JonM
 
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