Cause of water spots

[carlg]

The water in my area is so bad, that you almost need to do a full detail every time you wash the car. The water spots are impossible here. Even drying the car does not always help.

But, I noticed when we do our dishes (yes the glasses we drink from), they come out spotless (hand wash or machine).

So why could it be that my dishes and glasses come out sparkling clean, but the cars always come out awful?

Could it be the sun?

Maybe something in my garden hose?

It's essentially the same water.

[Rsurfer]

Are you washing in the sun?

[carlg]

Are you washing in the sun?

Sometimes, sometimes not.

You think this could cause water spots?

[Rsurfer]

Sometimes, sometimes not.

You think this could cause water spots?

Definitely, even in the shade, if you let it dry without wiping. You may want to use a drying aid that will help with the spotting and add gloss to your paint.

[Bruno Soares]

Your dishwasher has a product in it to help it dry with no spots.
For the car you’d need deionized water. CR Spotless is one brand but there are others out there.
The sun makes the water evaporate fast and leaves behind whatever was mixed with it, like calcium and whatnot. Those are the spots you see.
Washing in the shade gets you more time to dry without spotting. Also look into rinseless washes as those are done one panel at a time and won’t leave you with spots.

[MarkD51]

Here!

Minerals. Given enough time, your car would look like this, Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park (U.S. National Park Service)

[MarkD51]

Your dishwasher has a product in it to help it dry with no spots.
For the car you’d need deionized water. CR Spotless is one brand but there are others out there.
The sun makes the water evaporate fast and leaves behind whatever was mixed with it, like calcium and whatnot. Those are the spots you see.
Washing in the shade gets you more time to dry without spotting. Also look into rinseless washes as those are done one panel at a time and won’t leave you with spots.

That product in Dish Soap is probably Silicones. Yeah, see your face in the reflection shine like one commercial used to tout. Joy perhaps?

[PaulMys]

Have you tried a rinse less wash?

They contain water softeners, and you only wash one panel at a time, then dry.

This definitely helps with the water spot problems.

[FUNX650]

In a condensed version:
•It’s just Physics at work.

In a more wordy version:
•Water is a liquid.

•Liquids will evaporate.

•When water, that contains minerals, evaporates
from surfaces, it leaves all of that mineral content
behind in the form of a whitish residue; aka: Spotting.

-I’ve noticed that the longer the spotting
sits on the surface, usually the harder it
is to remove.

-And to add insult to injury:
If this spotting is further exposed to a thermal
source, such as the Sun, the spotting can then
become etched into the paint surface: a ‘Damage
of Consequence’ not to be taken lightly.



Bob

[keithonroll]

The spots on car would be due to water hardness in water. The minerals dissolved in the water remain stuck to the car paint surface causing the spot to appear. The use of soft water eliminates this problem for good.