New Paint can't wax or polish?

[fred2167]

I just have my rear bumper replaced and painted. When I picked up the car, they told my dont wax the bumper in 30 days. I am just wondering, why can't I wax it? can I polish it after 15 days?

Thanks

[Phinox]

The reason they told you that is most paints take 30 days to fully cure> if you wax or seal the paint prior to this you could trap paint thinner or other VOC's in the paint. This can cause the paint to suffer a whole mess of problems ranging from poor adhesion to becoming cloudy or milky looking. The best thing to to is wait the 30 days then use a mild clay to remove and contaminants and over spray then seal or wax the paint with your favorite product.

[Mike Phillips]

Read my comments on page 2 of this thread,

How long to wait before I can wax fresh paint?

[JasonTSAI]

Read my comments on page 2 of this thread,

How long to wait before I can wax fresh paint?

[Wax Gorilla]

Follow their instructions ! I attended the Dupont "College" of Paint and there are a number of reasons not to "SEAL" the paint for atleast 10 plus days. 30 days may be a stretch but when we were in the lab we looked at and worked with a number of fininshes that were in two day intervals all they back to 45 days earlier. Single Stage Paints can be waxed, sealed and polished sooner. But with the variety of clearcoats in the market most require what is known in the trade as a 250 Hour "incubation" where no secondary chemical product should be added or used to cover the finish.

I read Mike's Post and concur with his comments. They are very helpful and provide great insight into finish technology from a layman's point of view.