Ask the Detailer

Ya, sucks but there it is. It does allow me to use the pile of products I've been stockpiling while I waited for the thing to be delivered. I'm thinking Hydr02 Ech2o and beadmaker will come in handy... Now if only the weather here in Canada would improve enough for me to get any of it on I'd be happy.

 

Ron, did you use Hydro2 or anything first, or just the Beadmaker? I’m thinking that us using the Hydro2 underneath may have a negative effect on Beadmaker’s durability.

I’d done it to begin with to make sure I still had protection when the Beadmaker wore off. It does seem to look better when using both, but I wonder if it’s just my imagination. Some products bond better with others. I know it won’t bond well with Powerlock. It pretty much wipes off. This doesn’t happen with Hydro2, but I wonder if it lasts longer by itself.

 

When semi permanent si02 coatings like TAC's moonlight, that are said to last around nine months, start to fail what is the process for reapplication or even removal if we wanted to try something else?

 

If you’re just refreshing it, and your paint still looks good, I’d just do a paint decontamination and reapply.
If you want to remove it completely and start over, you’re probably going to have to use a dual action polisher.

That said, if it’s advertised to last nine months, it’ll likely be completely gone by then anyway. The advertised durability of these products is based on optimal conditions (garage kept, not a daily driver, etc.). Unless you’re meeting these conditions, pretty much anything will begin to fail sooner than advertised. Even then if it’s supposed to last nine months, it will have started degrading well before that.

So, basically I don’t think you’ll have much issue either way if it’s been that long. I’d only worry about it if you can tell it’s still on there, just not performing well.

 

Good info. It’s likely that my method is shortening the lifespan, which makes sense. I think the first time I used Beadmaker was the last time I used it on it’s own. The next time I applied it, I’d put the Hydro2 on first, and felt like it looked a lot better with the products stacked.

Looking back at my review, it looks like I only waited around six weeks before doing that. I hadn’t realized I never gave it very much time on it’s own. I’ve been basing my durability statements off of the combo. From your experiences with it, it seems I’ve been short-selling it for the last 14 months.

I’ll probably need to add a post to my review stating this. @Pudge since you use the same process I do, what are your thoughts?

Thanks for not washing your truck for three months Ron!

 

I have only used beadmaker over something else usually hydro2 or reload. In my experience it lasts a month or 2, but like you, I wash more frequently than that and usually apply sonething at least as a drying aid. I do know that either the hydro2 and/or beadmaker is still working great on my moms car after 10ish weeks. She has been thru 2 auto washes since and its beading well and looks great.

 

I've been using Beadmaker as a stand alone for the last 5 weeks. It's hard to measure it's durability because I often use it as a drying aid as well, so it keeps getting reapplied and like Pudge and WM, I wash my truck at least weekly. I have some Hydro2 sitting on a shelf and was planning to do the Hydro/BM combo at some point, but haven't found the need to right now. The standalone BM has been working excellent.

 

That’s really my issue. I’m generally going to put something on after every wash. I haven’t even used Beadmaker much over the last several months, as I’ve started using waxes more.

About the only thing I’ve left alone is Jescar Powerlock on the old Sequoia. I did get almost six months out of that for sure. I think in a year I only put it on there twice, and a third time right before we gave it to the in laws. I applied it to the new one a couple of weeks ago, so we’ll see if I let it play out.

 

Good info to have, and awesome that you guys all share these experiences.
So, @War Machine with this new info, would you still recommend doing the Hydro2 + Beadmaker? If not, which would you use exclusively? I only ask so I can update my list of washing items that you provided earlier in the thread.

 

I have an issue that when I use my foam cannon or even do a bucket wash that a lot of areas immediately bead or sheet off the foam or soap and dry almost immediately. I assume this is from over application of sealants or washing too frequently.

 

#firstworldproblems

I wish I had the problem of nothing sticking to my truck..... On that note, what do you guys find works best for making it so bugs are quicker/easier to hose off the truck. I swear that I almost need a putty knife to get some of these little bastards to let go of the paint and grille.

 

Both of these work great for bugs.

https://www.carpro-us.com/deep-cleanse/carpro-bug-out-insect-removal-1-liter-34oz/

https://shinesupply.com/products/bug-off?_pos=4&_sid=9d4d048df&_ss=r

 

I may do a complete clay, hydro2, beadmaker of my wife's Highlander soon so I can compare side by side....the stand alone BM vs. BM over Hydro2 combo.

 

I look forward to the update.

 

Hoping to do the detail in the next week or 2.

 

Not sure. I’d like to see someone else that’s tried it both ways to give their opinion. I’d originally done it as a test, just to see what happened. At the time, I thought that it looked even glossier with the Hydro2 under it. More of the “wet” look. This was just my perception after doing it once each way. Logically I don’t know why the Hydro2 would make a difference in the appearance of Beadmaker, but it’s just how it looked to me.

Eventually it became just as much about keeping a layer of protection on the paint so we didn’t have to worry about reapplying Beadmaker is often. Now I question whether or not the lower durability of Beadmaker was as much an issue as I thought, or if the Hydro2 was accelerating the process.

@NewImprovedRon may be getting longer durability because he hasn’t washed it in a long time. Weather permitting, I wash my truck at least once a week, which will cause pretty much anything to degrade faster. Until one of us does a real test, it’s up in the air.

It’s hard for me to say which I’d recommend if only choosing one. It depends on what your goals are. Do you want maximum gloss and slickness, or ease of use and durability? Regardless of how the two work together, as a stand alone Hydro2 definitely lasts longer and is easier to apply.

Pros and cons of each:

Beadmaker:

Pros:
1) Unmatched gloss, slickness, and water shedding properties.
2) Low cost.

Cons:
1) Low end of durability for sealants. Regardless of the question at hand, this is the consensus of pretty much every detailer or enthusiast on the internet. How much it falls short is up for debate, but I know it doesn’t last as long as Reload or Powerlock.
2) You have to use a lot of it when applying, which reduces the cost savings somewhat.

Hydro2:

Pros:
1) Easiest to use on the market.
2) Lasts as long as just about anything short of ceramic.
3) Highly concentrated, so a little goes a long way.

Cons:

1) Expensive. Though the fact that it’s concentrated mitigates this quite a bit, the up front cost is high. For reference, I use this quite a bit. I checked my Amazon history, and I haven’t bought a bottle since March of 2018.
2) Adds no gloss whatsoever.

Seeing as how you are in a climate where you won’t be able to wash often over the next few months, I can say for sure that Hydro2 will get you through the winter. But....if infrequent washing is the reason it lasted longer for Ron, you should see the same results he has.

I’d say it comes down to whether or not you’d rather spend 35 bucks and be out of it by next summer, or if you’d rather spend 70 bucks and have enough for a couple of years at least.

 

Out of curiosity, what color is her Highlander? I know a lot of people think color makes no difference in how a product looks, but I 100% disagree.

 

Hers is pearl white. Almost 5 yrs old.

 

What have you been using? My wife has a Pearl Sequoia and nothing improves the look very much.

 

Truthfully, I gave up detailing my wife's vehicles years ago. She travels a ton for work and is always going through automatic car washes, so felt like I was throwing money down the drain with the PH levels of the auto washes always stripping what I put on. It's literally been 2-3 yrs since I've done anything to it. I'm doing this more as an experiment now that it looks sooo bad, to see how much better I can make it by ironX, clay, Hyro2 and BM. I thought about breaking out the G9 on it, but we'll be replacing it with a 2020 Highlander in the next 6 months, so I don't want to put a ton of time into it.

I agree though, the pearl doesn't ever seem to gloss like the darker colors....even my white pro glosses surprisingly well by comparison. It's been a good color for her though because it does really hide the swirls from the car wash very well.

 

she doesn't use the touchless wash?

Even before I read all the posts here I only used touchless...

As and aside, if it's cold and crappy and slushy, is it better to go through the touchless or go to the wash bay and do nothing but hose it off (without actually using soap) and "air drying at speed"? I'd be worried about water spots but the truck is wet regardless just from the weather.

 

I have coached her to at least use touch less whenever possible. It’s more about the soap stripping away what I lay down. I have a feeling the 2020 will be the gray mica, which will force me to keep up on the detailing more because it’s gonna be a lot less forgiving

 

lol. I can't be too judgy as mine doesn't wash hers at all...

 

Haha. Feels like a losing battle sometimes

 

Yeah, I wouldn’t bother with the G9. I spent most of a day polishing my wife’s and couldn’t even tell the difference afterwards. Part of that was because it was pretty new anyway and didn’t have a lot of defects, but overall the color is just impervious to serious detailing.

 

I use a touchless wash on occasion to get major crud off, but I’m applying sealant or wax pretty regularly anyway. If you aren’t, then the wash will strip any protection you have.

What I’d likely do in your case is off in the bay, followed by a detail spray or a quick ONR wipe down. The touchless isn’t going to get the truck completely clean anyway, so the only real benefit is that it’s easier and you don’t have to get out in the cold.

 

Neither does mine.....

 

Good to know

 

Released today. Maybe War Machine will test for us all and report back!

https://www.griotsgarage.com/produc...l&utm_campaign=EMGCLB&code=EMGCLB#navTarget02

 

Also got that email. Will be interesting to give it a shot.