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WHAT EVERY DETAILER NEEDS TO KNOW ABOUT WAXES AND PAINT SEALANTS
By Bud Abraham
from Car Appearance Systems
Waxes have been around for millions of years but it was not until man learned to use them that the real story of wax begins.
Early on, there were only natural waxes. But as research and development increased more natural waxes were discovered and more waxes were produced by a variety of methods of extraction and chemical reaction.
With this came, of course, new uses for waxes, including the use on motor vehicle surfaces for protection and shine.
Both the chemical and physical properties of waxes differ. How waxes are gathered, produced and refined has a major affect on the properties and composition. Also, properties of true waxes are affected by other products that might be used in the formulation. As a result, the term wax has been erroneously and carelessly used over years, especially in the detail chemical business.
Waxes have many, many physical and chemical characteristics which, in the case of an automotive wax product, will effect it's color, texture and appearance. Nothing magic, just basic chemistry.
Various Kinds of Waxes
There are a number of different waxes available that would meet the needs for a good automotive wax products:
• Vegetable Waxes such as carnuaba
• Animal Waxes such as bees-wax
• Petroleum Waxes such as paraffin & microcrystalline
• Mineral-Fossil Waxes such as montan
• Synthetic Waxes such as ethylene polymers
The "specifications" that are important in formulating a good automotive wax are:
• Hardeners
• Melting Point
• Water Repellency
• Resistence to Breakdown
What is a Automotive Wax?
An automotive wax product is one formulated to be used on a painted surface to enhance appearance and provide some depth and shine. This is done by smoothing out the surface and hiding imperfections.
NOTE: When we speak of waxes from this point on we can, and do include "paint sealants" too which are nothing more than an evolution of automotive wax technology.
What Are the Ingredients in Waxes?
Contrary to what some salesmen might like you to think, waxes are simply basic chemistry, no magic, no razzle-dazzle, just a combination of ingredients to make a product that performs a function.
They include the following: water, solvents, oils, silicone fluids, wax, color and at times fragrance that are held in suspension by emulsifiers. It is the combination of these ingredients that gives a wax it's form (whether paste; creme or liquid), shine, durability and depth.
A properly formulated wax will provide shine to a painted surface and some temporary protection. The protection is obtained by creating a buffer surface between the paint and the environment.
Waxes in themselves, and the silicone in the formulation, will resist many environmental contaminants only for a period of time, not like the sales would have you believe for 1,2 or 3 years without a re-application.
How Long Will They Last?
The length of time a wax/sealant lasts depends on what the formulator was trying to do. But a standard wax will last about 30 to 45 days tops. On the other hand, what we call a paint sealant can last up to 6 months, under the best conditions.
It is the inclusion of what are called, "amino-functional" silicone fluids that give us a paint sealant, rather than a wax. The standard wax product contains silicone fluids which are not as durable as the amino-functional silicone which will be explained later.
What is the Best Wax?
According to most chemists, when it comes to a wax/sealant product there is no advantage between pastes, cremes or liquids. Which form a product comes in has to do with what the formulator is trying to achieve, which is usually dictated by the sales department.
Often form has to do with cost; ease of application; ease of removal; emulsification ease; protection; gloss.
There is really no difference between hard pastes, cremes or liquids when you are speaking about a true automotive wax/sealant. Given the formula has a high percentage of wax, the form does not effect the product's performance. (there is normally no more than 15% to 20% wax content in a product).
However, there are some spray waxes and "fast" waxes on the market that do have a very small quantity of wax and silicone in them and as a result these products offer very little in the way of protection and durability. Most retail, off-the-shelf products have very little wax in them and are loaded with what we call "fillers" to fill the bottle, diamacetaneous earth. This is evidenced by the large amount of powdery residue left on the car when it dries.
Understanding Paint Sealants!
Ever since the term paint sealant was coined there has been a great deal of misinformation disseminated on the subject. Some, intentionally by many of the manufacturers and/or marketers of paint sealant protection products.
It Began with Polyglycoat
One of the first big names in the paint sealant field was a product marketed under the name of Polyglycoat, a paint sealant that producers claimed to have fantastic protective properties, better than anything else on the market. Their impact on the market was so great that many of the "BIG" names in automotive chemical products followed suit and produced their own versions of paint sealants.
Sealants vs Waxes
In order detail business operators to provide customers with honest information a full understanding of the differences between waxes and sealants is necessary. Further, it also helps them to sell their own services better, having this knowledge to counteract the car salesman's admonishment to his customer, "your car has a clear-coat finish, it never needs any kind of waxing." Or, "you have purchase a lifetime paint sealant protection, your car never needs to be waxed."
By simple definition is paint sealant is something that seals. But, does not a wax seal? So is it not a sealant too? Technically speaking you are correct. But typically automotive waxes are not thought of as a sealing product.
Sealants may have wax in the formulation but they are more than just a wax because they contain, as mentioned earlier, amino-functional silicone fluids in them.
If a wax contained amino-functional silicones then it properly speaking is not a wax by our definition, but a paint sealant.
There are waxes on the market that are formulated with amino-functional silicones and are marketed as having a longer life than other waxes. This is done because the marketing department feels that it needs to market a wax to compete with other products, but needs a wax, that has longer durablity. It has nothing to do with the chemistry of the product, just what is included and what the selling company chooses to call it.
A paint sealant for all intents and purposes contains as a key ingredient, amino-functional silicone fluids which form a cross-linking film over the surface of the paint that forms a durable barrier on the paint that will, in fact, last longer than wax, sitting on the surface of the paint.
Sealants, like waxes, contain: water, solvents, oils, wax, color, fragrance held together by emulsifiers. They are usually available in liquid or cremes, but not in paste form, which I suspect has to do with marketing more than anything else.
Often on the label of the sealant product or in marketing material you will see terms such as "polymers and resins". These are really nothing but marketing buzz words intended to make their products sound better, when in fact, all products have polymers and resins in them.
What you must understand is what a POLMER and a RESIN are to be completely knowledgeable.
WHAT EVERY DETAILER NEEDS TO KNOW ABOUT WAXES AND PAINT SEALANTS
By Bud Abraham
from Car Appearance Systems
Waxes have been around for millions of years but it was not until man learned to use them that the real story of wax begins.
Early on, there were only natural waxes. But as research and development increased more natural waxes were discovered and more waxes were produced by a variety of methods of extraction and chemical reaction.
With this came, of course, new uses for waxes, including the use on motor vehicle surfaces for protection and shine.
Both the chemical and physical properties of waxes differ. How waxes are gathered, produced and refined has a major affect on the properties and composition. Also, properties of true waxes are affected by other products that might be used in the formulation. As a result, the term wax has been erroneously and carelessly used over years, especially in the detail chemical business.
Waxes have many, many physical and chemical characteristics which, in the case of an automotive wax product, will effect it's color, texture and appearance. Nothing magic, just basic chemistry.
Various Kinds of Waxes
There are a number of different waxes available that would meet the needs for a good automotive wax products:
• Vegetable Waxes such as carnuaba
• Animal Waxes such as bees-wax
• Petroleum Waxes such as paraffin & microcrystalline
• Mineral-Fossil Waxes such as montan
• Synthetic Waxes such as ethylene polymers
The "specifications" that are important in formulating a good automotive wax are:
• Hardeners
• Melting Point
• Water Repellency
• Resistence to Breakdown
What is a Automotive Wax?
An automotive wax product is one formulated to be used on a painted surface to enhance appearance and provide some depth and shine. This is done by smoothing out the surface and hiding imperfections.
NOTE: When we speak of waxes from this point on we can, and do include "paint sealants" too which are nothing more than an evolution of automotive wax technology.
What Are the Ingredients in Waxes?
Contrary to what some salesmen might like you to think, waxes are simply basic chemistry, no magic, no razzle-dazzle, just a combination of ingredients to make a product that performs a function.
They include the following: water, solvents, oils, silicone fluids, wax, color and at times fragrance that are held in suspension by emulsifiers. It is the combination of these ingredients that gives a wax it's form (whether paste; creme or liquid), shine, durability and depth.
A properly formulated wax will provide shine to a painted surface and some temporary protection. The protection is obtained by creating a buffer surface between the paint and the environment.
Waxes in themselves, and the silicone in the formulation, will resist many environmental contaminants only for a period of time, not like the sales would have you believe for 1,2 or 3 years without a re-application.
How Long Will They Last?
The length of time a wax/sealant lasts depends on what the formulator was trying to do. But a standard wax will last about 30 to 45 days tops. On the other hand, what we call a paint sealant can last up to 6 months, under the best conditions.
It is the inclusion of what are called, "amino-functional" silicone fluids that give us a paint sealant, rather than a wax. The standard wax product contains silicone fluids which are not as durable as the amino-functional silicone which will be explained later.
What is the Best Wax?
According to most chemists, when it comes to a wax/sealant product there is no advantage between pastes, cremes or liquids. Which form a product comes in has to do with what the formulator is trying to achieve, which is usually dictated by the sales department.
Often form has to do with cost; ease of application; ease of removal; emulsification ease; protection; gloss.
There is really no difference between hard pastes, cremes or liquids when you are speaking about a true automotive wax/sealant. Given the formula has a high percentage of wax, the form does not effect the product's performance. (there is normally no more than 15% to 20% wax content in a product).
However, there are some spray waxes and "fast" waxes on the market that do have a very small quantity of wax and silicone in them and as a result these products offer very little in the way of protection and durability. Most retail, off-the-shelf products have very little wax in them and are loaded with what we call "fillers" to fill the bottle, diamacetaneous earth. This is evidenced by the large amount of powdery residue left on the car when it dries.
Understanding Paint Sealants!
Ever since the term paint sealant was coined there has been a great deal of misinformation disseminated on the subject. Some, intentionally by many of the manufacturers and/or marketers of paint sealant protection products.
It Began with Polyglycoat
One of the first big names in the paint sealant field was a product marketed under the name of Polyglycoat, a paint sealant that producers claimed to have fantastic protective properties, better than anything else on the market. Their impact on the market was so great that many of the "BIG" names in automotive chemical products followed suit and produced their own versions of paint sealants.
Sealants vs Waxes
In order detail business operators to provide customers with honest information a full understanding of the differences between waxes and sealants is necessary. Further, it also helps them to sell their own services better, having this knowledge to counteract the car salesman's admonishment to his customer, "your car has a clear-coat finish, it never needs any kind of waxing." Or, "you have purchase a lifetime paint sealant protection, your car never needs to be waxed."
By simple definition is paint sealant is something that seals. But, does not a wax seal? So is it not a sealant too? Technically speaking you are correct. But typically automotive waxes are not thought of as a sealing product.
Sealants may have wax in the formulation but they are more than just a wax because they contain, as mentioned earlier, amino-functional silicone fluids in them.
If a wax contained amino-functional silicones then it properly speaking is not a wax by our definition, but a paint sealant.
There are waxes on the market that are formulated with amino-functional silicones and are marketed as having a longer life than other waxes. This is done because the marketing department feels that it needs to market a wax to compete with other products, but needs a wax, that has longer durablity. It has nothing to do with the chemistry of the product, just what is included and what the selling company chooses to call it.
A paint sealant for all intents and purposes contains as a key ingredient, amino-functional silicone fluids which form a cross-linking film over the surface of the paint that forms a durable barrier on the paint that will, in fact, last longer than wax, sitting on the surface of the paint.
Sealants, like waxes, contain: water, solvents, oils, wax, color, fragrance held together by emulsifiers. They are usually available in liquid or cremes, but not in paste form, which I suspect has to do with marketing more than anything else.
Often on the label of the sealant product or in marketing material you will see terms such as "polymers and resins". These are really nothing but marketing buzz words intended to make their products sound better, when in fact, all products have polymers and resins in them.
What you must understand is what a POLMER and a RESIN are to be completely knowledgeable.
