Why a ceramic-coated car is so easy to maintain

Ceramic CoatingPPF

Mar 11

No one likes driving around all day with a dirty-looking car or having to clean their car every other day. When you bring your vehicle to VIP Auto Spa/Ceramic Pro Reno for ceramic coating, these two concerns cease to exist! A bold claim, but it's 100% backed by science.

It all comes down to one of the most incredible words in the English language — the hydrophobic effect. 💦

So, what is the hydrophobic effect? 🧐

You see, ceramic coatings contain microscopic SiO2 (silicon dioxide) and TiO2 (titanium dioxide) particles less than 100 nanometers in diameter. You can line up 25,400,000 of these nanoparticles within one inch!

As the coating cures and the carrier fluids evaporate, the nano SiO2 particles harden (with the help of TiO2) into a flexible thin glass-like layer embedded into your car’s clear coat. This glass shield has an ultra-high surface tension that repels everything and causes liquids to bead into oblivion.

For instance, if water from the rain or a hose comes into contact with your car's surface, it will effectively remove everything, gliding off smoothly. The rolling water droplets then carry away most of the dirt and grime. This makes cleaning your vehicle a super easy and smooth process.

That's why we advocate for ceramic coatings so much! Their outstanding hydrophobic quality is indisputable and has been proven throughout the industry time and time again.

This is why most clients always call us back so excited to let us know how much they love how water, mud, dirt, and other contaminants now just slide off their vehicles.

And this naturally leads to a question we hear frequently...

Do I have to clean my car if it's ceramic coated? 🚘

Though ceramic coatings provide some self-cleaning properties, that's only half of the equation. For all their might, they don't make your car maintenance-free. Eventually, some small contaminants will stick and begin to layer on the car's surface. The answer is YES; you have to clean your ceramic-coated car.

The good news is, properly cleaning your car to #protectyourinvestment is very simple. Keep reading and follow the four recommendations below and your car will maintain that enthralling #alwaysnew look for years to come.

HOW TO CLEAN YOUR CERAMIC-COATED CAR

Tip #1: Clean your car regularly (at least every two weeks). We recommend sticking to the good, old-fashioned, two-bucket car wash method. One bucket holds your car wash soap and the other pure water for rinsing your wash mitt.
Tips #2: Wash your vehicle under a car canopy or in conditions of low sunlight (cloudy day, early in the morning, or close to sunset). Sunlight/high temperature will quickly dry soap on top of the coating and can cause water spots or lead to streaks.
Tip #3: As tempting as it might be, refrain from taking your ceramic-coated car to your local automated car washing facility. Because of their harsh brushes, curtain-looking mop-type cleaning rags and aggressive soaps, these drive-thru car washes will only degrade the quality of your ceramic coating.
Tip #4: Not everyone has the time to routinely hand wash their vehicle. So if you are short on time but still want to keep your car in picture-perfect shape, talk to us. Our 'members only' car wash program is the only car cleaning service in Reno that's optimized for ceramic-coated cars.