...specs of plaster on my MINI!

Someone in the neighborhood re-whatevered their pool. I think the specs of plaster/whatever blew about and ended up on my MINI.

How do I get this off with out damaging/swirl marking/SANDPAPERING my clearcoat and paint?

I can feel the flecks of plaster...it's like I have Braille on my paint... and I'm not sure how to get it off without scratching the clearcoat/paint.

Sorry I am repeating myself but am mucho upset

Help?

 

Somewhere in the neighborhood some one did a stucco job, plaster is generally troweled and therefore wouldn't blow around much. There is also a paint product out that has texture in it, and that's probablly what you have, pait will blow a long way. I don't generally pressure wash cars or even reccomend it but I would pressure wash and CLAY a few times. Clay is not that aggressive but it's works great for pulling stuff off of paint. I got overspray from dryfall(yeah right) paint on a truck I owned and it took me a while but finally got it all off with a few applications of clay.

 

when I had my pool resurfaced step one was sand blasting the old finish off to a clean plaster for the new material to stick to. It was this blasting of the old that went everywhere.....

that made one h e double matchsticks of a mess ..... plaster dust and old paint. my old finish was painted plaster, the new was 'diamond brite' a colored and textured agrigate ... the DB did not go everywhere .... it was pretty well controlled to minimize waste.

I'd start with lots and lots of clean water ......

 

sounds like im going to have a similar situation now that the landscapers
put out new mulch for the season.... that stuff is nasty. dust + rain =
grime.

honestly, i was actually waiting for them to put down the mulch for this
year before polishing my commuters. now, after it rains a couple more
times and the dust settles, i will polish them.

Prima clay would be my first choice of weapon.

 

Clay for sure.

 

I had something that plastered itself to my bonnet also. I'm still not sure what it was. I took it to a car wash and pressure blasted it....I know, I know...hurts the paint...But it worked! All the dried gunk came off the bonnet and the mirrors. Then, I finished with a good wax to add extra protection.

 

Thanks for the input!

Question: Won't the clay bar push the bits of plaster/whatever around? Or is it designed to lift it off?

Got my MINI in August so not familiar (yet) with this process.

 

Good question! It's probably one that lots of others wonder too.

Clay is a miracle-worker that defies the laws of physics. No, just kidding! It just sometimes seems that way though.

As long as you use a lube spray when you clay, the clay will glide smoothly over the surface while grabbing up the plaster particles. Clay is soft enough that a majority of the plaster will press into the clay instead of the paint as you move it around.

Having said that, plaster can be a much larger particle than many other particles often removed with clay (paint overspray, sap, etc). So, you will want to make sure to continuously refold your clay to expose a clean side. Just keep looking at the clay make sure you aren't rubbing a side with lots of accummulationin it into the paint. Although still fairly safe and you're best bet, claying off chunky plaster does come with some risk. (if it is super-fine plaster then you should be fine)

If you do end up with a little scuffing here and there, you can usually buff it out pretty easily by hand. Even with the risks, I'd still say clay is the best way to go (after you've pressure-washed it, that is). If you leave the plaster on the paint, it could etch it (which is much harder, if not impossible sometimes, to fix). Last, toss that clay when you're done.

Good luck! Let us know how you make out.

-Heather

 

Wow, Heather, thanks for the clay bar tutoring. I've been reading about all your products and thinking about a Prima purchase. Guess it's time now!

 

What about blasting it off first at the local car wash and then hitting it immediately with the clay? Just asking.

 

My pleasure!

-Heather

 

Seems like the consensus is a power wash followed by clay. I think it was time for this anyway. After closer inspection, I can see (and feel) a number of different contaminants. Thanks to all for excellent input!

 

Update: I tried some Mothers Clay Bar this morning (Sorry Heather...am still going to get some DP stuff)! Was in Checker Auto and caved in when I saw the nifty kit!

It did lift the "grit" (that sandy, bumby feeling) but I can still see white flecks in the paint esp. on the black top. They are very small and definitely look like some kind of breeze-borne overspray.

I don't have a garage and live in AZ so didn't have time to use cleaner wax afterward. I was only able to complete the painted part of the roof (have a sunroof) and the back quarter panel. Since the quarter panels are vertical (Chili Red), there was only a bit of overspray junk on the upper "lip" just below the window.

My main question is: Will cleaner wax clean those specks after a proper clay bar? Or, do I need an additional step/process?

Thanks!

 

You might try going at them a little more with clay. Sometimes it takes a LOT of passes to get something off - I'm trying to get some sludge off hubby's Yukon with clay and it's taking forever, but it's slowly coming off.

But I would think a good paint cleanser polish would work as well, if all else fails.

 

First, I'm glad to hear that you're making progress!

I would agree with MLWagner though... sometimes stubborn gunk can take several passes of clay (like 10-15 minutes of rubbing per 2'x2' area or even longer!).

You're best bet is still clay... although if it's just a little bit of very small particles left then a good paint cleanser might clean up the rest.

Good luck with the rest! You're getting there!

-Heather

PS- No worries on the clay purchase! It's nice that you can get clay locally. Sometimes you just want to get started and not wait for an online shipment. Clay is clay for the most part so it doesn't really matter which brand you buy.