Sealant and rain

[koj11]

Hi everyone. I'm detailing my 2014 Ford Fusion tomorrow. I've had the car about two weeks. For the exterior, I'll be washing, claying, then using Blackfire gloss enhancing polish, followed by Blackfire wet diamond sealant.

My schedule is very full, and tomorrow is the only time in the near future I can do the job. I'll have use of a garage in the morning/afternoon to work on the car, but then it will be back to my house in the evening where my car lives garageless parked outside.

The weather forecast tomorrow is calling for possible scattered thunderstorms in the evening. Is this going to have an adverse effect on the sealant if it gets rained on too soon after application? This will be my first time doing a sealant, so any input is appreciated. Thanks.

Chad

[Calendyr]

It's preferable to have at least 24 hours without having any water on a freshly sealed paint to allow the sealant to cure. I don't know what it will do if it does get wet though...

[swanicyouth]

I doubt it. I did some "playing around" with chemicals and similar sealants, and found this stuff is very difficult to strip chemically. I wouldn't fret too much about water. Yes technically it MAY require 12 hours to 100% cure in ALL conditions, but I understand it cures to a very high degree fairly quickly. Just see how much comes out of your applicator with water.

So, I'm speculating, the rate of "curing" is directly related to the amount of "un-cured" sealant on the panel. As the amount of sealant that isn't cross linked on the panel goes down, so does the rate of the cross linking or "curing" of the sealant.

That's how I think of it anyway. I know drugs, so I'm sort of relating it to what's known in pharmacokinetics as a first order kinetic model of drug metabolism.

My reasoning may not be 100% correct, but I think you will be fine.

[FUNX650]

The weather forecast tomorrow is calling for possible scattered thunderstorms in the evening.

Is this going to have an adverse effect on the sealant if it gets rained on too soon after application?

This will be my first time doing a sealant, so any input is appreciated. Thanks.

Chad
Yes...there will be an adverse affect on polymer Sealants if they come in contact with moisture within a typical 12-24 hour time frame after application.

This time period is needed to totally "transition" Sealants' linear polymers (thermoplastic) to a thermoset(plastic) by what is often referred to as: cross-linking via covalent bonding---polymerization, so to speak.
(There's also some amount of hydrogen, dipole-dipole, and van der Waals bonding that'll occur)

Otherwise the "strength of the polymerization" will be compromised, which in turn will affect Sealants' durability and performance---Again: The adverse affects.

To Note:
It's the total cross-linking of linear chain polymers into thermosets that also makes them insoluble in solvents that would otherwise dissolve linear chain polymers.

I did some "playing around" with chemicals and similar sealants, and found this stuff is very difficult to strip chemically.


Bob

[The Critic]

Yes, I once applied Menzerna powerlock and had to drive the car in the rain about an hour afterwards. The following day, I noticed very weak beading and sheeting during the wash...

[swanicyouth]

This is from Autopia Car Care via Todd H. regarding curing of BFWD. Interpret it how you choose:


"Cure Time: The estimated time from application until the product is fully cross-linked. Wet Diamond Polymers are hyper reactive. The product begins to cross-link almost immediately and the overwhelming majority of cross-linking occurs very shortly after application. The remaining time is to get maximum benefit. Applying the liquid products too thick, high humidity, or cool temperatures can effect cure time.

Wait as long as you can- One of the advantages of Wet Diamond Polymer products is that the polymers begin to cross-link on contact. The overwhelming majority of curing takes place very quickly, the rest of the cure time is waiting for the last couple of percent. It is why we don't print official recommendations for many of the products. Such a huge portion of the curing is so fast that if you cannot wait you will likely never notice the difference and sometimes it is not feasible to wait in order to gain several more percent of benefit."

[FUNX650]

............^^^^............
•Why am I not surprised?
•Why, I am not surprised!
•Etc.; Etc.

{JMI}

Bob