dansshin Posted December 16, 2013 Share Posted December 16, 2013 I just purchase Opti-Coat 2.0 for my brand new car and I want to apply this after I've clay and polish it. Question I have are: Would there be any issues polishing the paint with electric buffer in the cold weather? Could you apply Opti-Coat 2.0 in temperatures that are below freezing (0 - 30 degrees)? I have attached garage but it isn't heated. I could put the little space heater near the car as I apply if that will help. How long will it take to set if I leave the car in the garage in this cold weather? Are you able to put paint protection film over the Opti-Coat 2.0? How long should I wait during winter when the temperatures are always below freezing sometimes going into the negative range? Also I read Chris recommend using the Optimum polish but I've already purchased 3M Perfect-It Ultra Fine polish. Would there be any problems using this instead? Thank you in advance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dansshin Posted December 16, 2013 Author Share Posted December 16, 2013 cold weather makes just about all detailing related tasks a little more time consuming, but all polishing and cleaning can still be don above freezing. the surface temp of the panels need to be above 50 degrees Fahrenheit. It can be applied slightly lower...but, you will have issues with flash times and cross linking will be slowed...so, the car will need more time before you expose it to weather. you can use a blow dryer to warm the panel and to aid in flashing the product. normally you can expose the car after only an hour. depending on the temp and whether or not you use a blow dryer 1-4 hours should be fine. ppf can be applied over OC after 72 hours in normal temps...any recommendation for lower temps would only be a guess. PPF also has a recommended application temp and it WILL cause issues with adhesives more so than Opti Coat if the recommendations are not followed. You can use any polish you like, but there is issues with bonding and smearing with most brands. My suggestion is to use Hyper Polish or Polish II pre Opti Coat. It's better to buy a little polish that to have to reapply the coating. Thank you Chris. I think I can get my garage to be ~ 40 degrees and get the car surface bit warmer by placing space heater near by the area that I work. While this may be harder it's nice to know that this could be an option since I really would like to get my car protected before doing the PPF. PPF will be installed by installer that has indoor facility so temperature should be closer to ~ 65 - 70 degrees. But if I can't get the car polished and Opti-Coat 2.0 on than I'll probably postpone the PPF install. Which of the two polish product is better for my situation? I planned to have the car washed at touchless car wash (maybe couple times) and then come home and use your no rinse wash to handwash. I would like to clay the car too if needed assuming this is ok to do in cold temperatures and then polish. Someone indicated I didn't need to wipe down with alcohol if I used Optimum polish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dansshin Posted December 17, 2013 Author Share Posted December 17, 2013 Thank you Chris. I'll go with Hyper Polish based on your preference. My plan is to do another ONR wash with warm water after the polish to prep for Opti-Coat 2.0. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dansshin Posted December 20, 2013 Author Share Posted December 20, 2013 Do you mean just wipe down with plain water and micro fiber towel? Someone mentioned Hyper Polish may be too aggressive for soft Lexus black paint on a brand new car but isn't that determined by the pad you use with hyper polish? Would hyper polish and Lake Country Hydro-Tech Tangerine or Crimson pad be ok to polish brand new Lexus black paint before Opti-Coat 2.0? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 If for some odd reason you find the Hyper polish hard to remove(and normally that is caused by using too much of it) a fast and easy way to remove it is by using diluted ONR to dampen a clean, fine polishing pad, then use that follwed by a MF towel to work off the polish residue. The ONR will also aid in the aplication of the opti-coat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dansshin Posted January 16, 2014 Author Share Posted January 16, 2014 I was able to apply the opti-coat in heated garage @~60 degrees. Unfortunately I was only able to leave it in that temperature for ~ 16 hours before taking it out to <30 degree winter weather here in MN. Also during drive home I had some melted snow and road salt splashed on to the car panels. Would this cause any issues with opti-coat bonding/curing? It's been now 3 full days since I've had it but outside is still <30 degrees but is stored in the un-heated garage in the evenings @ ~ 40 degrees. Do you see any issues with Opti-Coat being able to fully bond to the paint? How long will this take under these conditions? When is it safe to take the car through a touch-less car wash to wash off some of the road salt? I read it's ok to put water on the car few hours after applying opti-coat but I wasn't sure if any of chemicals used in the touch-less car wash will cause harm. How long should I wait before I have my PPF put on over the opti-coat? I would like to get this done sooner than later since each day I don't have this I risk paint chips. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dansshin Posted January 17, 2014 Author Share Posted January 17, 2014 Could anyone help me with above questions please? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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