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lewism1

Ruined my windscreen

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Hello,

So, I did something stupid.

I bought some autoglym window polish. I cleaned the windscreen, dried it - and then applied it following the instructions. Came out incredibly clear - was very impressed.

And then the sun hit it. The windscreen is absolutely covered in white specks. They're not scratches, they're not chips (not ones that I can feel at least). I cannot get them off. I have cleaned it again multiple time, even clayed it.

It's so bad that I'm considering just replacing the windscreen (there is a chip in it anyways that's pretty bad but not an MOT failure)

Any help would be appreciated.

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You sure they’re not on the inside? ;)

It’s weird that clay doesn’t touch them, I can’t think of many mechanical cleaners that would be better than that. If it’s bad enough you’re thinking of stumping up for a new windscreen, before splashing the cash I’d try a chemical cleaner like a waterspot remover and then go directly to a glass polish on a machine. 

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2 minutes ago, Lucas@PartBox said:

Same thing here, it's not as bad as yours sound, but it's visible in direct sunlight. I'd also appreciate if someone knows how to get rid of it.

I have a feeling they're very small chips, and the polish has settled in them - but I can't understand how there can be so many chips - there are easily 300+. I know the paint on these cars is shit, but the glass too?

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Just now, Stutopia said:

You sure they’re not on the inside? ;)

It’s weird that clay doesn’t touch them, I can’t think of many mechanical cleaners that would be better than that. If it’s bad enough you’re thinking of stumping up for a new windscreen, before slashing the cash I’d try a chemical cleaner like a waterspot remover and then go directly to a glass polish on a machine. 

100% not on inside - inside now just full of finger prints! lol.

Okay, I'll give the waterspot remove a go. I don't have a machine polisher though, and I guess a windscreen would be cheaper (£75) than the polisher.

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1 minute ago, chris_9011 said:

or white vinegar

Okay. Any recommended method of applying it? I imagine just on a soft cloth and go up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down?

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1 minute ago, lewism1 said:

Okay. Any recommended method of applying it? I imagine just on a soft cloth and go up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down up and down?

...don't forget to go up and down, and if you're feeling really adventurous, go side to side too!!

seriously though, and yes, I do mean seriously, a circular movement from the top corner, across the windscreen, and then slowly move down and come back across. Repeat this until you've covered the whole of the screen, then buff with a paper towel or something similar.
You could also use a lint free microfibre cloth, but use one to apply the cleaner (whichever you decide to use), and one to remove the excess and buff to a shine

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3 minutes ago, chris_9011 said:

...don't forget to go up and down, and if you're feeling really adventurous, go side to side too!!

seriously though, and yes, I do mean seriously, a circular movement from the top corner, across the windscreen, and then slowly move down and come back across. Repeat this until you've covered the whole of the screen, then buff with a paper towel or something similar.
You could also use a lint free microfibre cloth, but use one to apply the cleaner (whichever you decide to use), and one to remove the excess and buff to a shine

Okay mate thank you. I'll give that a go tonight!

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oh, and if you drive the car, unfortunately there's no getting away with small stone chips in the glass... mine's had a new windscreen last year, covered only 4k miles since, and looks like a starry sky at night when there's car lights shining through it...

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1 minute ago, chris_9011 said:

oh, and if you drive the car, unfortunately there's no getting away with small stone chips in the glass... mine's had a new windscreen last year, covered only 4k miles since, and looks like a starry sky at night when there's car lights shining through it...

Yeah, I had noticed them in the past - but I think hard polish being in them has just really brought them out lol.

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hate to say, but I find the only thing you should put on your windscreen is RainEX... if you have polish, wax, or anything else similar to that you will find that when it starts to rain, the product may smear across the screen reducing visibility.
RainEx is brilliant stuff, and the only thing that touches my windscreen

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If you think they’re tiny dents, ignore my suggestion about waterspot remover (not that it would do any harm).

 

I don’t like to just arbitrarily disagree with other peoples’s choice of detailing products, as it’s a lot of personal choice, but I’d leave my glass bare rather than use RainX. It’s durability is very poor in my opinion, requiring frequent reapplication, and it smears. Go for something from nanolex, gtechniq or gyeon if you want a glass sealant, but obviously don’t put it on a screen that isn’t clean!

Good luck mate.

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Panel wipe like this would probably be the most effective solution, if that doesn't shift it then you are probably out of luck.

https://www.slimsdetailing.co.uk/polishing/ipa-panel-wipe/gtechniq-pw-panel-wipe.html

It's a solvent intended specifically for removing wax and polish from surfaces.

 

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5 minutes ago, Adam9 said:

Panel wipe like this would probably be the most effective solution, if that doesn't shift it then you are probably out of luck.

https://www.slimsdetailing.co.uk/polishing/ipa-panel-wipe/gtechniq-pw-panel-wipe.html

It's a solvent intended specifically for removing wax and polish from surfaces.

 

Okay, that sounds quite promising. I'll give the white vinegar a go first and see if that helps - if not then I'll get that ordered. 

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47 minutes ago, lewism1 said:

I bought some autoglym window polish. I cleaned the windscreen, dried it - and then applied it following the instructions. Came out incredibly clear - was very impressed.

I've used autoglym car glass polish (the bottle never seems to run out, had it a decade). Mainly I use it on the interior face to remove the grease that accumulates, but I have applied it to the exterior on a newly fitted screen that was covered in greasy marks.

It's a bugger to buff off if it goes completely dry, and you get dust flecks hanging around everywhere after buffing, but I've never seen it leave permanent marks behind.

Think hard about your solvent choices - if the residue is polar, then water might have shifted it, vinegar or IPA will be better than water but not if it's an oily residue. I suppose you could try a small amount of tar remover or some similar heavy solvent. Lemme know if you're around Cambridge soon, I'm curious to see what has happened.

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3 minutes ago, nerdstrike said:

I've used autoglym car glass polish (the bottle never seems to run out, had it a decade). Mainly I use it on the interior face to remove the grease that accumulates, but I have applied it to the exterior on a newly fitted screen that was covered in greasy marks.

It's a bugger to buff off if it goes completely dry, and you get dust flecks hanging around everywhere after buffing, but I've never seen it leave permanent marks behind.

Think hard about your solvent choices - if the residue is polar, then water might have shifted it, vinegar or IPA will be better than water but not if it's an oily residue. I suppose you could try a small amount of tar remover or some similar heavy solvent. Lemme know if you're around Cambridge soon, I'm curious to see what has happened.

I'm around Cambridge most the time mate, work in Ely -  live in March!

Going to tackle it tonight, possibly tomorrow night.

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In my chemistry days I had to figure what solvents to use to preferentially dissolve things. The cleaning pattern in increasing severity went thus: soapy water -> scrubby brush -> acetone -> conc. hydrochloric acid -> ultrasound bath -> piranha solution. You're still at stage two so there's a few non-dangerous options to try yet!

See if you can cadge some nail polish remover and try that on a spot. It's just acetone with some perfume in it. Try to keep it away from the plastic and rubber parts.

WD40 is a lightweight and volatile oil blend, so it may or may not do the job.

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1 minute ago, nerdstrike said:

In my chemistry days I had to figure what solvents to use to preferentially dissolve things. The cleaning pattern in increasing severity went thus: soapy water -> scrubby brush -> acetone -> conc. hydrochloric acid -> ultrasound bath -> piranha solution. You're still at stage two so there's a few non-dangerous options to try yet!

See if you can cadge some nail polish remover and try that on a spot. It's just acetone with some perfume in it. Try to keep it away from the plastic and rubber parts.

WD40 is a lightweight and volatile oil blend, so it may or may not do the job.

Haha, kind of wish I was at the last stage. I'll try nail polish remover too, girlfriend has plenty of that laying around.

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I have never found much love for glass polish. Just use good old fashioned house hold window cleaner on my glass after a wash to rid of any water marks.

 

By the sounds of it its just dusty residue left in the imperfections so something along the lines of a solvent and a microfiber cloth to reach into them should begin to shift them. As others have said the glass polish is quite "dusty especially if you are liberal with the application :lol:

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Thought people might appreciate an update.

I tried @nerdstrike's suggestion of nail polish remover. Cleaned the windscreen like I normally would, dried it, and then applied the remover just using a microfibre cloth.

It worked! It's certainly not perfect, but I'd say 70% of the marks came out. When I have some time on the weekend, I'll do it again but put more effort in and see if I can get the rest out. 

Don't think I'll polish glass ever again!

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