Review: BLACKFIRE Water Spot Remover




BLACKFIRE Water Spot Remover





From the Autogeek.com Store page

BLACKFIRE Water Spot Remover quickly breaks down the minerals that cause water spots, making them easy to simply wipe away. This non-abrasive, acid-free formula is safe and gentle on all paint types. Water Spot Remover even prevents the risk of future water spots by leaving behind a hydrophobic layer of protection.

BLACKFIRE Water Spot Remover features:

  • Non-abrasive, acid-free formula
  • Safely removes topical water spots
  • Leaves hydrophobic protection




I started answering questions professionally on discussion forums in 2002, so I'm going on 17 years of answering "how-to" questions mostly related to car and boat detailing. One of the TOP TEN questions I have had the pleasure of answering is,


How can I remove water spots?


In fact - I get the question so much that I wrote an article on the topic but in order to answer this question and thus write the article we have to

DIG A LITTEL DEEPER!


When we talk about removing water spots first we have to determine which type of water spots we're trying to remove.

What's that you say?

That's right, there are DIFFERENT types of water spots. Technically, there's 3 types with a sub category called imprint rings. But to get to the point, the type of water spot we're talking about for this product is a Type I Water Spot. You can read more about the different types in my article here,


3 - Types of Water Spots - Type I, Type II and Type III


From the above article...


Type I Water Spots
These are Mineral Deposits or what people commonly call "Hard Water Spots". It's the minerals in water that people are referring to when they use the word "hard" in the term "Hard Water Spots.

Type I Water Spots are primarily a mineral or dirt deposit laying on the surface of paint. Type I Water Spots can be the results of minerals suspended in city water or well water that are left behind after the water evaporates off the finish. This can happen by washing a car but not drying the water off the paint or if a sprinkler goes off next to the car covering the car with water drop that are not dried off the paint.

Type I Water Spots can also be dirt or pollution particles left behind after water from rain or inclement weather evaporates of the finish. Type I Water Spots can also be Type II Water Spots in that the water can leave both a deposit on the surface and an etching in the finish.


Real-World Test
Below is a Honda Pilot with Type I Water Spots. To remove them I'm going to use the new BLACKFIRE Water Spot Remover.

Here's how it works... this product, unlike a normal spray detailer has a paint-safe ingredient that DISSOLVES or breaks down the bond the minerals have that is attaching them or sticking them to your car's paint. It's a chemical cleaner in other words and it works great. It has a mint scent, but a vinegar odor, but it's NOT vinegar.

I don't know what it is and don't really care as I'm not a chemist and I don't play one on this forum. Instead of trying to figure out what's inside a bottle I focus on the performance of the product because at the end of the day that's what's really important. Also to be honest, I've tried a lot of these types of product in my life and most of them don't work very well. Some work a little bit but most don't work very well to impress me. So I go through the steps to use this product and take pictures along the way and to my surprise.... it works! Not only does it work but it works pretty darn well.


Check it out.... here's the hood of the Honda Pilot....





Those are mineral deposits or Type I Water Spots







The tape is to show before and after...









I have covered the other side of the hood to avoid any overspray because I want to as I like to say,

preserve the ugly





Spray spray spray...




Spray spray spray...




Spray spray spray...





Wipe wipe wipe...




Wipe wipe wipe...




Wipe wipe wipe...




Wipe wipe wipe...





Then I switch to a secondary, clean dry microfiber towel...





Give the paint a final wipe...

There's something in this product that also leaves behind a HYDROPHOBIC surface and you can feel it wipe off, kind of like a spray wax....




Wipe, wipe wipe....






Shazam!

This stuff really works! Paint looks like I polished it and ALL the spots are gone!







That's the real-deal buddy... this ain't no mock-up!

(By the way, the word ain't is a word - Elvis Presley used it in the song, "You ain't nothing but a hound dog" Good enough for the King... good enough for me)













And yeah.... I did do the other side before giving the Honda Pilot back to the owner.



Review

This product really works. The chemist that created this formula knows their stuff. If you have hard water and thus mineral deposits or Type I Water Spots on your car's paint - this will remove them. Be sure to have plenty of clean, dry microfiber towels on hand to apply and then do the secondary wipe to work clean. The product has an almost oily feel to it when spreading it around and this is likely both a lubricant to protect the paint finish and also part of whatever is needed to embody the active ingredient that does the chemical dissolving work. The odor is kind of funky but you get over it when you see clean, shiny paint. Nice product.



On Autogeek.com


BLACKFIRE Water Spot Remover

BLACKFIRE Water Spot Remover - 1 gallon