Sealant cure time before 'nuba?

[PAR Detailing]

I am trying to really build up my detailing business and I want to offer my clients a sealant and a 'nuba wax combo. I am wondering how long a sealant has to cure before a 'nuba can be applied. I want to get the car back to the customer as soon a possible (after it is done and meets my standards of course) and I know they want the car back quickly too.

If I seal and then 'nuba how long does the sealant have to cure?

What cure time is "ideal" and what is "enough" if you know what I mean?

Thank you and Merry Christmas! :dblthumb2:
Jon

[loudog2]

12 hours is ideal. You can probally get away with 8 hours. It also depends on what sealant you use.

[frosty]

What sealant are you using? WG DPG 3.0 specifies 12 hours protected from moisture.

If you look at some sealant products some will have this info in the product instructions.

Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant delivers a deep, wet, liquid shimmer unlike anything you can imagine. (http://www.autogeek.net/wg5500.html)

I haven't used Zaino yet but it has an accelerator to where you can cut out the wait time for layering.

[PAR Detailing]

Ok, first off thank you for the response. Second that is longer than I thought. I would be using NXT 2.0 since I am doing mostly DD's. (I will pick up a wolfgang or equilivent for any showcars I do)
Anyone know about cure time for NXT2.0?
Am I wasting my time if I only wait like 2hrs?

[akimel]

The optimal cure time for NXT (http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23685) is 12 hours--but sometimes you only have 30 minutes. You can only do what you can do. A second coat, no matter how quickly applied after the removal of the first coat, is always better than just one coat.

[detail viking]

Time is always an issue when doing daily drivers. What I will do in that case is put a coat of sealant on after polishing. Then start on the interior of the car. That normally takes about two to three hours on average for me. Then I wipe the car lightly with spray and wipe to remove any dust kicked up from vacuuming the car. After that I apply a light coat of either 915, Natty's Blue, and/or Auqawax. Almost everyone who I do a car for calls me or emails me about how long the "wax job" lasted. I also call or email each of my clients a day or two after every detail to see what they think of the car and see if there is anything that I can take care of if they are not happy. Granted the optimum cure time is much longer than that, but that's what I do sometimes. :xyxthumbs:

[mastrjeff1]

I would give the sealant at least 12 hours before applying anything else.

[ScottB]

I have gone as little as 4 hours and saw no real damage. Maybe it reduced durability a bit but never get to end of any combo. Real benefit is keeping sealant away from water during that time and my environment (hot/sunny/humid) might have helped also. I would tend to suggest 8-24 as possible.

[PAR Detailing]

Thanks guys I appretiate it. If I can give it 8-12 hrs then I will but like akimel & detail viking said time can be a constraint and I am not always afforded the luxury of a long period of time. I was just wondering if I would be waisting my time if I only gave it a few hrs like 2 or so. So consenses is 2hrs is workable but not "ideal"

Thanks everyone, Merry Christmas

[Mike Phillips]

Most of the detailing work I've done in my life involved me driving to a client as most people wont' take their "baby" to you if you live very far away.

For example a few years ago I buffed out Sniper, a 1954 Plymouth Savoy built by Troy Trepanier and designed by Chip Foose and there's no way the owner was going to drive Sniper to me. So I had to drive to the Sniper. Sniper is now a part of the Petersen Museum Collection.

Taken after I removed the swirls... I also taught the guy driving it how to use a Porter Cable DA Polisher and have pictures of him working on this car which is kind of funny as he's really tall and the car sits really low to the ground. Cool guy. Also owns a 1967 Shelby Cobra, (real one) and a few other authentic race cars.
http://www.autopia.org/gallery/data/500/2704sniperwithnxt.jpg

Back to the point, it already takes a long time to buff out a car and at the end of the process I can't hang around for 12 hours to pass so I can apply a second coat of anything and I always apply to applications of the LSP of choice as a best practice.

So I apply the first application, allow it to dry and then wipe it off and then find something else to do like dress the tires or detail the car where any painter's tape was applied and then apply the second coat after about 30 minutes. Allow this application to dry and then wipe it off.

Tell the owner now that if he touches the paint in the wrong way he'll probably put a scratch or mar into it, give them a few tips on how to wash and wipe and wax the car and then leave.

Don't make things any more complicated than they have to be, ESPECIALLY for daily drivers.


On display at the Peterson Museum
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/715/sniper.jpg

:)

[Dust2Glory]

Just use Collinite 845IW, its a nuba based that will outlast most sealants and give a great look.

[Bunky]

The optimal cure time for NXT (http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23685) is 12 hours--but sometimes you only have 30 minutes. You can only do what you can do. A second coat, no matter how quickly applied after the removal of the first coat, is always better than just one coat.

I know several LSP's that seem to improve with time overnight. Interestingly though, when I used WG DPS for the first time several 10 weeks ago it seemed as slick and glossy as immediately upon removal as it was the next day. I did let it cure in the garage for more than 12 hrs.

I want to wash it to see how it is holding up -- outside 24x7. When I washed it last, it still was easy to dry...no real need to do the sheeting trick.