With car polishing it is such a thing. What you imagine at the start: paint that shines like it’s fresh from the showroom, not a scratch in sight – the full program, in other words. How it often ends in reality: even more scratches and a lot of frustration. But it does not have to be!
Here we explain, how you can polish the car with a microfiber cloth, how to polish the car properly in the first place, what the benefits are – and why it is sometimes better not to polish.
What to expect?
Which cloths are good for polishing cars?
Is it possible to polish a car with a microfiber cloth??
Yes, of course! As far as no question at all – the question is rather, which microfiber cloth is best for polishing. Before we get into the practical side of things, have a quick read through some theory. We’ll keep it short, we promise!
Polishing cloths must be soft to avoid swirls in the paintwork. That’s exactly why microfiber cloths with their fluffy surface are so popular for car care.
You use a cloth or polishing pad to apply the polish to the car (= polishing).
A second microfiber cloth you use to remove the polish residues (= polish out/polish off).
A microfiber cloth is suitable for polishing rimless microfiber cloth perfect.
A medium to high GSM value is ideal.
What does GSM mean for microfiber?
GSM is the abbreviation for grams per square meter, d. H. grams per square meter. this number is an important value for a microfiber cloth for car care. Why? Because reveals how absorbent the cloth is.
Rule of thumb:
the higher the GSM value, the more liquid the microfiber cloth can absorb. A microfiber cloth for car polishing must completely absorb the polish residues – for this purpose a GSM number between 400-1.100 optimal!
the same applies to microfiber drying cloths: when drying your car, you are also well advised to use a high GSM value.
polishing your car with a microfiber cloth: 4 +1 basics to get you started
For all of you who are about to make your polishing debut, here are a few more tips notes on what polishing is actually about. what is feasible, what is unrealistic?
After all, car polishing is an elaborate affair- would be annoying if the result is not as desired. In this sense we would like to the following basics point out:
With polish you can reconditioning weathered paint. However, this works only to a certain degree. A spot where the paint is already completely worn off, you could polish endlessly- it would not make any difference. In other words: what’s gone is gone.
With every polish, a small layer of paint is removed. So it’s not a good idea to polish every few weeks.
What to take to apply the polish? To do this, you either use a polishing machine or else you put by hand go, z. B. With an applicator sponge.
The machine polishing car paint requires some practice. Newbies we would rather recommend to polish the car by hand.
Last, but not least: polishing is only a part of the paint care. Because when polishing, as I said, some paint is removed. After that, the surface needs a protective coating, d. H. It’s time to wax/seal.
While we are on the subject of paint care- what’s the point of all this fun for now concretely?
car polish and paint job: why polish at all??
Car polishing is firstly about, to compensate for small scratches, so that the car paint shines more again. Attention, the emphasis is on small.
To explain this, we need to backtrack a bit: any scratch, no matter how small, means that a tiny difference in height on the surface exists. It’s only a matter of millimeter-deep differences- but they already cause the light to come out at a different angle than it falls on the surface.
Or, to put it in less complicated terms: only smooth paint can shine.
Secondly, on the smooth polished surface can be apply the sealant more evenly. The paint more precisely, the sheet metal is then again better protected from environmental influences.
Recap: so what happens during polishing and how does it affect the paint??
Polishing means in effect sanding. the car polish removes a tiny layer of clearcoat (about 0.1-0.5 microns). Fine scratches are thereby evened out.
clear varnish is the top layer of the car paint. Below that is paint/metal, filler, primer, corrosion protection and finally the sheet metal.
polish for heavily weathered paints must accordingly have a high abrasive content.
paint layers cannot be removed indefinitely – at some point the primer shines through. The older the car, the more care you need to take when polishing it.
Is it bad across the board to polish the car? No, that’s not what we mean! It simply comes TO THE ORIGINAL STATUS on, and on it, how to proceed. And exactly this like let’s look at it now!
Application: how to use a microfiber cloth as a car polishing cloth?
We already know that microfiber cloths are the best polishing cloths for cars. Remains only the question of correct application – and the question "who does it?". Dear polish by hand or leave it to the professionals?
How to polish my car properly? A quick run through
To polish the car to perfection, you must first clean the car paint. Take yourself for it absolutely enough time. After all, you don’t want to accidentally damage the paint while polishing dirt particles rub into the paint and ruin all your efforts.
Before you polish the car with the microfiber cloth comes the preparation:
– remove superficial dirt with car shampoo or snow foam.
Knead the car – with a piece of cleaning clay, even the last bit of dirt is removed and the paint is nicely pre-polished. attention: wash the car again with clean water afterwards. How to remove the knead lubricant.
The varnish with amicrofiber dry clothdrying – no residual moisture and dirt should be left behind.
Masking plastic and rubber areas – the polish only belongs on the paint!
Polishing – use a polishing sponge, a microfiber polishing cloth o. a. The polish on. Limit yourself to one for now small area and work your way there with cross movements always alternate between horizontal and vertical polishing.
Wait – the polish is "absorbed" as soon as it takes on a milky color (usually already after a few minutes).
Polishing with the microfiber cloth – take a clean, soft polishing cloth made of microfiber and wipe off the polish residues with it.
Degrease and seal the car paint – finally, apply a protective coat (wax or sealant) to the polished paint.
Washing out polishing and waxing cloths – rinse out the product residues as soon as possible so they do not harden in the cloth. After that, it’s best to put your cloths in the washing machine soon. (with the dry cloth this is not absolutely necessary.)
You can also polish with circular movements, but the cross pattern is more useful. Because if swirls do appear, they are not as conspicuous as wild circle patterns as straight lines.
And finished! You see, a cleanly polished car is not magic.
What we can tell you directly: if you want to polish the car with the microfiber cloth, you will need patience and good strength in the arms. Still unsure? Then maybe the next section will help you.
Polish the car yourself by hand vs. Professional car polishing
Do it yourself, use a polishing machine or go to a pro? Let’s take a look for this decision, what for or. Against the DIY method:
The hand polishing is good for beginners, because too much can’t go wrong. since you are working with muscle power, you can easily estimate how much pressure you are exerting. This is not so easy with the polishing machine.
By hand you can wonderfully polish the small, punctual scratches dedicate.
Experts charge for polishing 100-150 euro upwards. With DIY polishing equipment, you get out clearly cheaper, but have more effort.
polishing by hand takes time for quite a while. You only work on a small area at a time and use a lot of force. It’s not a job that can be done in an hour – but it’s a good workout for the arms. Also not bad.
To polish the entire car, you should clearly more than one day plan.
If in doubt, just try it with the hand polish.
It doesn’t have to be with a professional polishing machine – maybe you know someone who can help you with some of the equipment (e.g., a polishing machine). B. A microfiber cloth to polish off) lends. Then you only need suitable polish and can test on a small spot, how you get on.
In principle, you are now ready to go… or not?? Maybe there is still one big question floating around in your head: microfiber cloths can cause scratches?
Does a microfiber cloth cause scratches when polishing a car??
No, it does not. Unless you don’t care about any application instructions. In case of emergency because it is not the cloth itself that causes the scratches. However – in normal condition such a cloth has a soft, fluffy structure. A problem for the varnish is rather the dirt stuck in the cloth.
You don’t have to worry as long as you use your microfiber cloths…
Maintain neatly.
Wash it out thoroughly after use.
Wash them regularly in the washing machine.
Immediately put aside when they have fallen on the floor.
don’t use them on the varnish as soon as they feel too scratchy and worn out.
So, to put it bluntly, we come to the conclusion: if you put your mind to it, can you can ruin all kinds of!
Checklists: how to polish your car with a microfiber cloth
So that at your next or. to make sure that absolutely nothing can go wrong during your first polishing session, we’ve prepared a little to-do-list put together!
This equipment is important if you want to polish the car with a microfiber cloth by all rules of the artwant:
▢ car care cloth: for polishing, a rimless microfiber cloth is the best choice.
▢ separate polishing cloth: you need a separate cloth each to apply and remove the polish.
▢ polish in the right color
▢ adhesive tape to protect sensitive areas
▢ car shampoo/snow foam and two buckets for the car wash
▢ cleaning dough including lubricant
And this is how you go about it:
▢ wash car thoroughly and dry off
▢ go over the paint with cleaning clay and lubricant
▢ rinse and dry the car again thoroughly
▢ rubber, plastic, chrome surfaces etc. masking
▢ apply and work in polish
▢ polish can be removed with a microfiber cloth
▢ degrease and seal paint
▢ wash microfiber cloths by hand (remove polish/wax/sealant) and clean in the washing machine
