Jump to content

Tree sap...help!


Wizbit
 Share

Recommended Posts

I spent 8 hrs doing my first detail on my car on Saturday and it looked absolutely stunning afterwards. I started with a wash & dry, then clay bar, then a coarse polish on selected areas of small scratches. Next a coat of super resin polish, then a coat of Carlack acyrilic sealer, followed by a coat of meguiers paste wax. After doing all this by hand I have decided that a DAS-6 machine polisher is on the shopping list for next time!

Anyway, took the car to the pub for lunch yesterday and parked under a tree. We were only there for one and a half hours but when I got back to the car it was covered (and i mean covered) in sticky sap. Gutted. :ffs:

How am i best removing this? Just a wash or do i need to go over it all again with a clay car? If i do use a clay bar again, will it also strip off the wax and sealer?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi!

Thats pretty bad to hear after all the hardwork, it might just wash off. Pine sap seems to be pretty tough to remove other types sometimes come off easier.

There are a couple of ways to get it all off, i would start by getting ready to wash the car, so pre-rinse then then sink a couple of MF cloths in to some very hot (normal strengh soap) wash mix and leave them on the car until they cool down. Its work well at softening bugs and sap! Then was wash the area as normal, use your finger to see if the sap will easily come off.

Failing that your probably back at stage one with needing to clay. It will probabaly remove the protection and you will need to apply SRP again to ensure that pores of the paintwork are clear/clean otherwise the Carlack sealant wont have as good bonding as it requires.

Pre-soak tough sap spots with APC or bug and insect remover first.

Geoff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

To get hardened pine or eucalypt sap off my babies, I fill a watering can with fairly warm (not hot) water and flood the affected surfaces - works every time for me. Especially just after they have been cleaned...

Otherwise i make sure I have a very warm water rinse as the first rinse when washing them - that too seems to lift the sap.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The car looks great....and what a lot of car it is too! Im not suprised you dont want to want to go over it all again.

As with Rachels suggestion and my towel suggestion, if you can get sap soft it should come off a lot easier with out extra chemicals etc.

The silvery colour looks great, which Meguiars wax did you use?

Geoff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sounds like you wont have too much trouble getting it off as its fresh but for anyone looking to get more stubborn tree sap off that has hardened try Isopropyl (rubbing alcohol) it works great but will strip any wax / sealant applied.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for all the suggestions guys. I used some warm MF towels last night before a wash and it all came off reasonably easily in the end. Phew!

Someone told me it might have been aphid droppings? There was a hell of a lot of it, so i'm not sure about that...

The silvery colour looks great, which Meguiars wax did you use?

I used Meguiars #16 paste wax. Only £12.95 for a tin, but it came out awesome.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...