How to Mix IPA for Inspecting Correction Results

[Mike Moore]

How would Menzerna Top Inspection compare to these other options?

Any idea of the chemical composition of Menzerna Top Inspection?

[Mike Phillips]

How would Menzerna Top Inspection compare to these other options?

Like Erasure it's specifically made for working on car paint.

IPA and MS are not, at least not in the context of this topic.

Any idea of the chemical composition of Menzerna Top Inspection?

Nope, at least not without doing research.

[FUNX650]

How would Menzerna Top Inspection compare to these other options?

Any idea of the chemical composition of Menzerna Top Inspection?

Not yet...but its description says it's water-based, has no silicones, no fillers, only cleaning agents.
If someone that has Menzerna's Top Inspection, and requested the MSDS with their shipment, would reply....


Besides IPA, Mineral Spirits....Other paint inspection options I've used with excellent results:

Optimum Power Clean @2:1
Groit’s Paint Prep
3M Prep Solvent
DuPont PrepSol
Wurth Clean Solve



Bob

[Witchdoc]

Odorless Mineral Spirits


Mineral Spirits are another option for chemically stripping an automotive finish, from my discussions with chemists on this topic, odorless Mineral Spirits should be chosen as the process for removing the odors is actually removing a lot of nastier substances through further refining of the product. Mineral Spirits will tend to wipe easier than most other options and leave a more clear finish.

Percent Volatile
When discussing Mineral Spirits, the idea has been brought up that Mineral Spirits may leave behind a film that could, like compound or polish residues, mask defects and thus defeat the purpose of stripping the finish after correction work. I brought this up with two of my chemist friends and they both said that it's not an issue, but if you want to be sure, choose a brand of Mineral Spirits that states the "Percent Volatile" is 100%

Here is the MSD Sheet for the Klean-Strip Odorless Mineral Spirits. I have circled the "Percent Volatile" percentage.

Percent Volatile




Here's a generic MSD sheet for IPA as I could not find one that was specific to the Walgreen brand, but chances are very good all quality brands of IPA are similar to the "Percent Volatile" figure below, which is greater than 99% or >99

Percent Volatile



FWIW
My colleague stated that Mineral Spirits will tend to penetrate deeper into automotive paints, but it's safer than IPA.

Again, DON'T chemically strip FRESH PAINT as it has not finished fully cross-linking, drying and hardening and you risk harming the paint.


All Purpose Cleaners and/or Degreasers
On the topic of using All Purpose Cleaners and/or Degreasers for chemically stripping paint, the consensus is that the more simple the product, (Products specifically formulated for this procedure or IPA or MS), are safer and preferred.

All Purpose Cleaners and Degreasers are more complex in their formulas in that theycontain more ingredients to give them the ability to clean or dissolve a wide spectrum of substances like grease, oil, road grime, etc. It's this expanded ability to dissolve a wide spectrum of substances that make All Purpose Cleaners and Degreasers excellent for cleaning things like engine compartments but for this same reason makes them riskier to use on a delicate, clear coat finish where they can stain or dull paint.


Again, I wrote this article because it's a reoccurring topic on detailing discussion forums and I couldn't find any real substantial article on the topic or the process. I've done my best to make sure the information presented is correct to my knowledge.


Personal thoughts on inspecting correction work...
I tend to use a combination of all of the above, I don't have an allegiance to just a specific product or process, but instead which product I will use may depend upon what I'm trying to accomplish, or even simpler... what's closest to my hand at the time I'm working on a project.


Personal thoughts on removing previously applied waxes or paint sealants...
My personal opinion and habit is to use a light polish or paint cleaner to remove any previously applied waxes or paint sealants to get down to a fresh base.

Not only will a quality light polish or paint cleaner effectively remove any previously applied wax or paint sealant, it will also create a clear, high gloss surface perfect for application of wax or paint sealant. This is what I call working forwards in the process.

For those that are concerned about proper bonding of a wax or paint sealant to the paint due to any trace residues left behind, see my article,


Miscible and Immiscible - Wax and Paint Sealant Bonding

That's all I use to strip my cars to detail.

[Mike Phillips]

That's all I use to strip my cars to detail.

I learned about using MS from the chemists at Meguiar's and they are some of the best at what they do...

I too like how it wipes and it seems to do a really good job of removing any polishing oils off the paint.

A guy can get crazy if he wants and strip using,

MS
IPA
Detergent Wash
etc.


As long as you're not re-introducing marring into the paint if these stripping steps are done before application of LSP that's the main thing.

[SR99]

re: "Mineral Spirits are another option for chemically stripping an automotive finish, from my discussions with chemists on this topic, odorless Mineral Spirits should be chosen as the process for removing the odors is actually removing a lot of nastier substances through further refining of the product."

Compared to odorless MS, I've found the "smelly" mineral spirits to be more effective at removing waxes, oils, and adhesive residue from wood, prior to finishing. With wood, you can actually see how effectively it's removing the residue because you can see the parts of the wood darkened from the residue actually disappear and match the rest of the wood.

I looked into this once (wondering why), and what I found was the process of making odorless MS less smelly removes (among other things) most of the toluene and xylene (smelly, and very toxic parts), but those are very effective at removing oils (and wax and adhesive residue if I recall). I didn't take it much further since that seemed to explain why the smelly MS seemed to be more effective than the odorless.

This doesn't contradict what Mike wrote ("the process for removing the odors is actually removing a lot of nastier substances through further refining of the product"), but makes a different point about cleaning effectiveness. The odorless is less toxic though.

Mike, any chance you can run this by your chemist friends, to see if they think it's plausible that smelly MS is more effective at cleaning (oils, waxes, and/or adhesive tape residue) due to the presence of the toluene and xylene? Who knows, maybe the info I found was completely wrong.

PS, any rags soaked with MS should be laid flat, preferably outside and away from anything, until completely dried. They can spontaneously combust.
From a mineral spirits MSDS:
"NOTE: Under certain circumstances, absorbent materials soaked in this product and heaped in a corner can undergo spontaneous combustion. Always dry used absorbent materials thoroughly before discarding."

[Mike Phillips]

This doesn't contradict what Mike wrote ("the process for removing the odors is actually removing a lot of nastier substances through further refining of the product"), but makes a different point about cleaning effectiveness.

I agree. Some good word-smithing there...

Mike, any chance you can run this by your chemist friends, to see if they think it's plausible that smelly MS is more effective at cleaning (oils, waxes, and/or adhesive tape residue) due to the presence of the toluene and xylene?

Just from a common sense, big picture point of view, it sounds very plausible but... the even bigger picture is washing and waxing your car should be fun and/or profitable, not rocket science and dangerous.

I always try to accommodate requests for help or information from everyone, at the same time I like to only call in favor when it hits a certain threshold. Next time I'm in a position to ask your question because I'm in the position, then I will as I will remember this discussion. But I'm not going to initiate a phone call or an e-mail just because of it.

I'm a huge fan of KISS approaches, that is Keep it Simple Simon. In my life I've already been exposed to way too many nasty solvents and now days I like to try to work a little safe and the Lord willing, maybe live a long life, I know my son and my fiancé would like this...

At some point everyone can figure out an approach that works for them when it comes to taking care of their own cars or their procedures for taking care of customer cars, I like to try to keep it simple. An example is the most complicated automotive device I ever want to own is an HEI ignition system.

I don't mind learning about specific application procedures and then sharing them with others to showcase a company's product, there's plenty of examples of this on this forum already but for general practice, simpler tends to end up being better, at least for my preferences...


Good question though...

[TOFAST4U2C]

Wow, there is some really great information here. Mike must be part machine to not only put his thoughts, and ideas into words here but illustrations too. Very time consuming. I do have a question and I hope I didn’t miss the answer if it was already asked and answered.
Does it make any difference in using either the IPA or MS method on single stage, non clear coated paint?

[Bill220]

After reading through this thread, a thought came to me that maybe one could use 1 ounce of ONR mixed with 31 ounces of water in a spray bottle. Dampen a microfiber cloth with the mixture, mist the area you want to clean and wipe it off. Would this work?

[psynx]

Odorless Mineral Spirits


Mineral Spirits are another option for chemically stripping an automotive finish, from my discussions with chemists on this topic, odorless Mineral Spirits should be chosen as the process for removing the odors is actually removing a lot of nastier substances through further refining of the product. Mineral Spirits will tend to wipe easier than most other options and leave a more clear finish.

Percent Volatile
When discussing Mineral Spirits, the idea has been brought up that Mineral Spirits may leave behind a film that could, like compound or polish residues, mask defects and thus defeat the purpose of stripping the finish after correction work. I brought this up with two of my chemist friends and they both said that it's not an issue, but if you want to be sure, choose a brand of Mineral Spirits that states the "Percent Volatile" is 100%

Here is the MSD Sheet for the Klean-Strip Odorless Mineral Spirits. I have circled the "Percent Volatile" percentage.

Percent Volatile




Here's a generic MSD sheet for IPA as I could not find one that was specific to the Walgreen brand, but chances are very good all quality brands of IPA are similar to the "Percent Volatile" figure below, which is greater than 99% or >99

Percent Volatile



FWIW
My colleague stated that Mineral Spirits will tend to penetrate deeper into automotive paints, but it's safer than IPA.

Again, DON'T chemically strip FRESH PAINT as it has not finished fully cross-linking, drying and hardening and you risk harming the paint.


All Purpose Cleaners and/or Degreasers
On the topic of using All Purpose Cleaners and/or Degreasers for chemically stripping paint, the consensus is that the more simple the product, (Products specifically formulated for this procedure or IPA or MS), are safer and preferred.

All Purpose Cleaners and Degreasers are more complex in their formulas in that theycontain more ingredients to give them the ability to clean or dissolve a wide spectrum of substances like grease, oil, road grime, etc. It's this expanded ability to dissolve a wide spectrum of substances that make All Purpose Cleaners and Degreasers excellent for cleaning things like engine compartments but for this same reason makes them riskier to use on a delicate, clear coat finish where they can stain or dull paint.


Again, I wrote this article because it's a reoccurring topic on detailing discussion forums and I couldn't find any real substantial article on the topic or the process. I've done my best to make sure the information presented is correct to my knowledge.


Personal thoughts on inspecting correction work...
I tend to use a combination of all of the above, I don't have an allegiance to just a specific product or process, but instead which product I will use may depend upon what I'm trying to accomplish, or even simpler... what's closest to my hand at the time I'm working on a project.


Personal thoughts on removing previously applied waxes or paint sealants...
My personal opinion and habit is to use a light polish or paint cleaner to remove any previously applied waxes or paint sealants to get down to a fresh base.

Not only will a quality light polish or paint cleaner effectively remove any previously applied wax or paint sealant, it will also create a clear, high gloss surface perfect for application of wax or paint sealant. This is what I call working forwards in the process.

For those that are concerned about proper bonding of a wax or paint sealant to the paint due to any trace residues left behind, see my article,


Miscible and Immiscible - Wax and Paint Sealant Bonding

RTU or dilute this as well, since it says its a safer alternative to Alcohol?