Opti-Seal and UPGP Cure time ?'s

[Hoytman]

How long does it take for these products to cure once wiped on?

How long do they last if vehicle is kept clean? Not clean?

Worth applying two coats of sealant?

[Hoytman]

62 views and no replies...

...I'm referring to using each product seperately on different vehicles.

Off to wipe some doors down. Work starts early.

[CEE DOG]

I missed this. Not sure about opti-seal but I would assume 12 hours which is typical for polymer sealants.

UPGP used to be 12 hours but was reformulated so that you can apply another coat after 45 minutes! Its not fully cured until 12 hours though. IN other words I wouldn't get it wet any sooner than you have to. You can drive it after 20 minutes which in fact increases the speed of curing but if layering I wouldn't drive it just because you don't want to get dirt on it before you go rubbing the next layer on.

I have never applied it after 45 minutes myself but Rick from Ultima said you can do it that way after Dr. Oldz told me you could and I double checked.

I would say yes, you absolutely want at least 2 coats and I would recommend 3 if it is convenient. I see a visible difference between 1, 2, & 3 coats. Especially between 1 & 2.

Here is the reply from Rick of Ultima:

"Yes, since the first version back 5 or so years came out I added a faster drying agent so the wait could be reduced. Depending on humidity, 45 minutes should be fine as long as a thin coat had been applied. I have seen shorter time when temperatures are around 75- 80 and humidity low. I do recommend the vehicle not to be washed or left over night with dew settling for 12 hours to fully cure."

[fredcandetail]

I use upgp and on a 85degree day in the sun it can take about 30 mins for most of it to flash and disappear. What I do is 30 miNs before handing over the keys to a customer I will QD the car to. Remove any spots that didn't haze and disappear and then hit it again with a second coat .. when I give the customer a call 3 mins before he walks over to get his car I will hit the high spots AGaIn with the QD as he will see me doing what I call the LAST TOUCH
SOmewhat of a little play but it all works and yes two coats is noticeably different ... It goes from shiny to Hard as candy look

[CEE DOG]

Oops, forgot your other question. There are too many variables to give a good timetable on how long the sealant will last but you should be able to count on more than 4 months unless some major abuse is taking place. In perfect conditions you can more than double that time.

[Dr Oldz]

I can confirm that 45 Min between UPGP application works. I suggest at least 2 coats as you will be pleasantly suprised how amazing 2 coats looks. Durability is also very good with 2 coats. I have seen 5+ months in some pretty harsh weather.

[Hoytman]

Well,
Tahoe is back with the owner now, my first one. I put opti-seal on it about 3 hours before the dew fell, and only one coat of opti-seal.

Looks like I shouldn't have applied the sealant when I did, and perhaps another 1-2 coats as well. Water beading was small and tight this morning though. I realize over-all time protection may be compromised.

I did this job for a good friend, and an American hero (Vietnam Vet), which is why I wanted to do the job. It was alo for a learning experience, and money wasn't the driving factor. Had it been I'd have lost my butt on labor as it took me 21 hours (over 2 1/2 days) to complete. I wish now I'd have taken pictures with my phone, but I'm not used to stopping work just to take pictures. I now regret that and it won't happen again...I'm a bit sick that I didn't take photo's.

I washed (stripped), washed again, clay, sealed (outer paint and door jams), and interior including carpets, seats, windows, and any rubber seals as well.

Tree sap was everywhere on the top, back hatch and glass. Ruined half of my clay bar and used he biggest portion of the second half.

Beige metal flake paint, with tan interior showing every black mark, blue plastic residue from a lunch cooler. Just really bad plastic...this thing was not well cared for.

I got all the spots (except one area of red stain) clean with Folex. All the plastic trim was first cleaned with Meguire's APC+ 20:1 to remove all the marks (they were everywhere), then protected with Hyper Dressing. Some of the stains only came off with Meguire's #39 (I've always loved this stuff). I had a few stronger mix's off APC+, but decided the #39 was closer at hand and it worked well.

Ultima Tire and Trim Guard went on the outside Trim and the tires.

Long story short, the guy really thought he was going to get a 6 hour detail like the last one he paid for for his wife's Trailblazer (150). He didn't squabble about the time I was taking, and the look on his face was worth it all. I don't think he expected the job to turn out like it did. He was thoroughly impressed. Said it looks like new again.

It was 2005 model with 90,000 on it and had never been detailed. Lives outside on a farm 24/7 (gravel lane), so you can imagine the dirt and dust accumulated behind the doors and rear hatch especially.

I don't think I'm slow. It was just bad, and I'm a perfectionist and I've been accused of such. My reply is always, "I resemble that remark."

Perhaps someone else could have did the work much quicker. All I know is that interior cabin is huge. The top of it isn't small by any means.

[dad07]

Stopping work to take pics is hard to do for me also(I get into that Zone) but spending that amount of time I can imagine the results were awsome.

I bet your friend (everybodys American hero, a vet)was floored!

[CEE DOG]

Bill, great work hooking up one of Americas heros. I'm sure it looked great and completely understand how difficult and time consuming it is to stop and take pictures, movies, etc when trying to detail.