So, you just waxed the car, but your buddy is talking about how great his ceramic coating is. It looks great. So, why shouldn’t you try it out? You can just set up the appointment, get it done, and have all the benefits, right?
Well, it’s not quite that simple.
Ceramic coatings are generally far better than traditional wax, but you don’t want to just apply them on top of one another.
We’re going to go over seven reasons why you shouldn’t put ceramic coating over wax, and then we’ll give you some advice to handle that situation.
1. Poor Adhesion
Wax doesn’t adhere to the car. It’s a little sticky, but it more or less wipes right off. That’s why you have to get it re-waxed every couple of weeks if you want to keep the benefits of wax.
Think about a candle. If you smear a little candle wax on your hand for some reason, it doesn’t actually adhere to it. It’ll all come off.
Well, a ceramic coating does adhere to your car’s paint. Once applied, it lasts quite a long time. You could say it’s semi-permanent. It doesn’t stick to the point that you can’t have it removed if you want, but for it to work, it needs to touch that bare paint without anything else getting in the way.
Traditional wax acts as a barrier, and you’re essentially trying to adhere the coating to the wax rather than your car. As the wax wears off, that coating is going away, too.
2. Uneven Application
Any application you get needs to be done evenly. Even traditional wax.
However, a lot of people DIY apply their wax, and when an expert isn’t doing the job, there’s a high likelihood of uneven application. Then, there’s the uneven wear that wax experiences. If you wax the car and wait a few days, then you apply a ceramic coating, that wax is likely worn down in some areas and fine in others.
This leads to a poor application of the product, and in the worst-case scenario, you might get the coating bonded in some locations and not bonded in others. That can be very difficult to fix, even for a professional.
The worst part is that it’s not easy to see if this happens right away, either. You start to notice it most of the time when issues pop up, like pooling water or part of the coating wearing away shortly after application.
3. Inefficient Performance
A ceramic coating can do some amazing things for your car. It helps prevent oxidation and fading and even shields against sand damage in Carlsbad’s harsh climate. But if it’s not applied properly and evenly, it won’t protect it efficiently.
You might very well start to see fading in spots where it didn’t apply well, or it might let water pool up in certain areas.
A ceramic coating isn’t too expensive, but it’s also not dirt cheap. When you pay for it, you should get great results.
4. Incompatibility
It’s bad enough that you can’t properly apply the coating on top of wax, but the wax can actually harm the coating if it doesn’t apply well.
Many wax compounds contain chemicals that react with the coating’s compound, and this can cause the coating to degrade rapidly. That can mean weakening the adhesive and coming right off, not protecting against UV rays and the elements, and all kinds of other things. The effects are pretty unpredictable.
So, you can pay a lot of money to get your car coated, think it applied perfectly despite the wax, and then experience premature issues because the wax chemically damaged it.
5. Trapping Debris
Wax is not good at staying uncontaminated. Dirt and debris are basically attracted to it. If you apply wax and get your car coated a few days later, guess what happens to all the dust and debris that the wax collected? It gets trapped in there until the coating comes off.
It’s like not cleaning something and then spraying it with sealant. The sealant just keeps that in there, and it’s visible.
Most of the time, this makes it dull when we’re talking about a ceramic coating.
6. Dullness
We just mentioned this, but dirt trapped in wax isn’t the only reason for dullness. The wax itself can make the sheen of your car dull.
One of the benefits of a ceramic coating is that it makes the car glossy. So, getting a dull appearance from wax under it is a bummer. Even if it turns out okay functionally.
7. Scratches During Cleaning
So, you have dirty wax under the coating, you go to clean it, and you start moving things around with a little elbow grease. Well, some of that debris that got trapped might actually scratch your car.
This is a big issue with build-up.
Even if it doesn’t, because it wasn’t applied properly, you’ll end up having to fork out more money to maintain the coating.
Professionally applied coatings offer good protection against scratches and are designed to be low-maintenance. However, if you apply them over wax, you can end up going back for professional maintenance a lot more frequently.
How to Handle Getting a Coating After a Fresh Wax
If you just got your car waxed, and you really want a coating, we think it’s obvious now that you need to hold off for a bit. When can you get it, though?
Well, it’s typically best to wait until the wax is fully gone. Most wax coatings are very short-term. They last a couple of weeks, and then you need to strip it all off and reapply the wax. You can do that and skip the reapplication step.
However, it’s best to get the car professionally coated, and just tell the team that you had it waxed.
At Finetactic Detailing, we make sure your vehicle’s surface is perfectly prepped before applying a ceramic coating. That means removing any leftover wax and polishing where necessary to ensure the long-lasting protection your car deserves!
We also provide the best-in-class mobile detailing and paint correction services to keep your car looking flawless.
If you want a team you can trust to handle your ceramic coating, don’t wait! Give us a call or shoot us a quick email. We’ll make sure your car gets the best possible care.