How Often Should You Wax Your Car?
If you want to enhance the gloss of your vehicle and protect your car paint against the element, there is no simpler or better way to do so than to apply a coat of wax. However, many car owners still wonder whether waxing cars too much will cause damage. So, let’s dive into this topic and find out the answer to the popular question of how often should you wax your car.
Why Waxing A Car Is A Must?
Car paint is often very fragile and scratches quite easily, especially if the car owner has the habit of washing the car regularly. In addition, for most cars, the original paint layer is not as flat and smooth as you think. At this time, car waxing can fix all problems with the car’s paint layer.
Wax is an organic substance that’s put on top of your paint designed to protect it from the elements.
Waxing a car helps your vehicle always maintain its new look thanks to different types of waxers (a synthetic or polymer blend of wax). Professional waxing does not cause the paint layer to peel or turn yellow. This method creates a protective layer that helps the car’s paint to be durable, and shiny and cleans long-term dirt:
- Protect your car from scratches: The wax layer can absorb some of the force when soil, rocks, and objects on the road collide with the car, reducing the possibility of car paint peeling.
- Protect your car from the sun: there are ingredients made of oil, silicone, and polymers in wax that help the exterior paint reflect part of the sunlight that is harmful to the car’s paint.
- A protective layer of wax makes your car’s paint “hydrophobic,” or water-resistant.
Car waxing is one of the popular paint protection methods used on many different models. Drivers often choose the natural wax method (Carnauba wax) – a mixture made from Carnauba, beeswax, and solvents to ensure the paint layer is durable and ensures the necessary shine.
After a period of use, it is difficult for your car to maintain its original appearance. Car paint can have many scratches due to collisions, swirl scratches when washing the car, or improper car polishing. There is also oxidation, tarnish due to weather, and many other external factors…
If not fixed early, in addition to being an aesthetic issue, when left for a long time, these agents will accumulate and easily oxidize the inner core paint layer, damaging the paint structure of your car. When this happens, drivers will have no choice but to repaint the car.
To handle these problems and return the car’s beautiful appearance and shiny paint color, waxing the car is the only option if you don’t want to have to repaint it.
>> Related post: 10 Benefits of Waxing Your Car
How Often Should You Wax Your Car?
Most of us like to own a car with a clean, shiny look. Therefore, just noticing small scratches on the surface will make you immediately think about needing to wax the car. But really, how often should you polish your car? There are too many variables for us to tell you how often do you wax your car. In general, car waxing is contingent on many factors and to know the suitable time, you can consider the following factors:
- If your car is well-kept: often parked in the garage, covered and carefully stored, the car should be waxed every 2 times per year
- As for cars that are parked outside or often exposed to snow, rain, or harsh weather along with dusty environments, they need to be waxed every season or 3-4 months. Every 3-4 months is a good habit to maintain a protective barrier against UV rays and prevent premature aging of your paint.
- The car condition: If you have a new car, you might be able to wait 6 months or more before the first wax application. In contrast to used cars, the waxing process will be more frequent every 2-3 months to maintain a decent shine and protect the exposed paint.
If you wax your car, how long does it last? depending on the type of wax and wear and tear, car wax tends to last on average from 3 to 6 months. Natural carnauba wax needs more frequent reapplication every 4-6 weeks while some of the new ceramic-based waxes will last longer.
According to our experience, car owners should wax their cars every 3 months to 6 months to get the expected results. In addition, the driver can also use his hand to gently touch the waxed surface. If the surface is rough or not smooth, it means the car needs a new wax coating or a surface cleaning. Another way is for the car owner to just pour water on the car and see if the water condenses or remains on the car or not. If so, the wax coating is no longer effective and the vehicle needs a new coating.
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Waxing Your Car: Can You Wax Too Much?
Yes, you can but it’s not necessarily. Waxing your car too often won’t cause damage to your car’s paint If you use the proper techniques. However, there can be some downsides to overly frequent waxing:
- Applying a new wax too often might not significantly improve the existing protection. You can imagine that it’s like adding another layer of sunscreen on top of one that’s already working effectively and it will become redundant and waste your effort.
- Excessive waxing can lead to a buildup of wax residue in certain areas, especially on trim or around emblems. This can somehow affect your car’s aesthetic.
Car waxing is necessary, but it is not always possible and only waxing when the paint is no longer shiny, when the car collides, oxidizes… And you shouldn’t have to wax the car because the stains and small scratches are insignificant. If the scratch is likely to cause the paint layer to quickly oxidize and cause loss of aesthetics, it should be waxed.
Now, you got the answer, so how often do you wax your car at home, let us know in the comment!
>> Read more: Should You Wax A New Car?
