— FAQ —

Why have my new car Detailed?

You would be forgiven for expecting your brand new car to have flawless paint, free from and marks with nothing to hide, well unfortunately this is rarely (if ever) the case! We've seen it all, buffer trails/holograms, swirl marks, marring, sanding marks from resprayed panels. Dealerships often get a total of just two hours to prepare you vehicle as a result leaving next to no protection and charging you a fortune for protection that barely sees a few months in reality!

If I have my paint corrected, will the swirl marks ever reappear?

Maintaining paint to a high swirl free standard is solely dependent on a good wash routine and technique, which must be learnt. Based on my experiences with my own cars and overseeing maintenance plans for customers, I've found that it is possible to keep paint swirl free up to three years at a time, even with regular washing.

I am always more than happy to offer detailed advice in order to ensure that my customers are able to safely and effectively maintain the finish Icegleam leaves them with.

Do you fill the scratches/marks?

No! I do not use any fillers to mask the finish in anyway. The finish you recieve is the true one, as i am re-leveling the paint surface.

I have a new car, why detail it?

Unfortunately when a car leaves the factory it is not perfect. In the majority of cases it has been neglected from the start! Washed with sponges, cheap leathers and harmful chemicals - so when you see the paint reflection, you can see swirl marks, scratches, holograms etc. therefor the light does not reflect perfectly. We get rid of these giving the "perfect" shine! This is called Paint Enhancement or Correction.

My paintwork is rough to the touch?

Your paint is rough in feeling because it has bonded contaminants on the surface, these may not be removed when washing the vehicle, and as a result you will have to use a clay bar which is designed to remove bonded contaminants.

Have you attended any training?

Yes, i am fully trained/qualified and have recently spent £300 on a detailing/paintwork correction specific training course.

Are you fully insured?

Yes! Here at CK Detailing we are fully insured to work on your vehicle safely, including insurance to deliver, collect vehicles.

Not a Franchise

Icegleam Detailing is not a franchise meaning that all the work is carried out to the highest standard by Christopher Keir only. This ensures that each individual vehicle gets the same level of expertise, care and attention to detail using the safest techniques as well as the finest detailing products on offer; providing the utmost in correction and protection your vehicle deserves!

Will you travel to me?

As i am operating as a mobile business, i am more than happy to travel anywhere within the UK, I will travel within a 30 mile radius of NE23 8EW at no extra cost. However, i will happily travel further afield with a small extra cost to cover my travelling time and expenses. I charge £0.50p per mile after 30 miles of NE23 8EW.

Pre wash/snow foam

The prewash is the first and probably the most important stage when it comes to cleaning your vehicle safely. Snow foam is a cleansing foam which is blanketed over the entire vehicle which will lift grit and dirt away, once left for around 10 minutes to dwell it is then rinsed off leaving a car that can now safely be washed via the two bucket method without causing any damage in the form of marring, holograms.

Snow foam is designed to create a thick blanket of foam when used through a foaming device/lance. It is designed to be safe on all paint types, encapsulating dirt without stripping any protection (wax/sealant) that is on the car. The foam really does cut through dirt, removing traffic film without having to touch the car. When used as part of the wash routine, the pre-wash using snow foam removes grit and grime safely away from the paint. That means when you do come to wash using a mitt it is much safer and will not inflict wash marring, swirls and scratches that affect the appearance of your vehicles finish.

What is the "Two-Bucket Method?"

As suggested by the name, the two bucket method uses two buckets, not one. In the first bucket, you have your car wash solution as normal. In the second bucket you have clean fresh water. First off you soak your mitt in the wash solution and begin washing the car. Then, before dunking the wash mitt back into the wash solution, you rinse it out in the second bucket of fresh water - this rinses out the dirt and grit particles from this mitt so that they cannot come into contact with your paint, reducing the risk of causing damage to the paint.

A grit-guard is also a very worthwhile investment and sits at the bottom of the bucket. When dunking your mitt into the fresh water bucket, rub it across the grit guard to increase the amount of grit particles which are removed from the mitt. Also, it keeps those trapped particles at the bottom of the bucket therefor there will be less chance picking those particles back up and transferring them back onto the car inflicting damage such as swirl marks, scratches and marring.

What is Tardis

Autosmart Tardis is an essential product for any wash kit, it performs a key step between the wash and clay stage.

Its outstanding ability to remove tar and bug splatter ensures that minimal claying is needed thereafter to completely de-contaminate your paintwork.

What is IronX

During the use of your vehicle, brake dust and road grime become sintered to the surface of the car paint , rims and wheels due to the high temperature conditions they are normally exposed. Brake dust contains high levels of iron and once sintered to the rim, becomes extremely difficult to dissolve or remove without the use of harsh chemicals. IronX opens up the paint's pores to release ferrous particles and to neutralize caustic compounds that have developed in the paint's subsurface. On-going damage is immediately stopped and future damage is prevented by removing the ferrous particles.

Highly effective, acid-free and pH balanced (6~7pH) for car paint, wheels & glass (safe for all wheels including aluminium and alloys). This formulation is also effective and safe for use on all car surfaces and will not deteriorate clear coats.

This preventative measure puts a stop to corrosion; IronX contains unique chemical ingredients that effectively dissolve the sintered iron by forming a water soluble iron complex. No other method cleans paint and wheels as deeply as IronX. The IronX Paint and wheels Decontamination System was developed as a method of removing paint contamination beyond what can be removed by washing or claying. If you are familiar with detail clay, you know it is capable of removing above surface contaminants that have bonded to the paint. The IronX is designed to remove what lies below the paint surface.

All about Claying

This is process of using a well lubricated bar of clay to remove all contaminants from the paint surface which would usually be invisible to the naked eye. It is a vital step in the process to ensure the vehicle is prepared and thoroughly clean and contaminant free ready for any polishing either by hand or machine to begin.

Acid rain, brake dust, road silt and a range of fallout are brutal enemies of your paint. Regular use of water and Shampoo wash away loose dirt but not the embedded contamination. The sun helps these pollutants on their journey to penetrate, oxidize and eventually damage your paint.

Claying your car removes the following:

Rail dust - Tiny, sharp bare metal shavings that can adhere and imbed into the paint finish and cause serious damage when left untreated. Over 70% of new vehicles are transported from the factory using the rail system. In many cases, new cars are stored near a railroad and become infected with rail dust.
Brake Dust - Similar to rail dust, brake dust is also in the form of tiny, sharp metal shavings. In recent years, asbestos brake pads were replaced with metallic brake pads, which are actually brake pads made from tiny metal or metallic shavings. Anytime a vehicle is braking; brake dust is disbursed into the air and onto the paint finish. Since the brake dust is now actually tiny particles of bare metal, this form of brake dust can seriously damage the paint finish when left untreated.
Industrial Fallout - A general term used for pollution and can be found in many forms. Eventually, pollution settles onto the paint finish of all vehicles and can cause serious damage when left untreated.
Tree Sap, Road Tar, Bug Residue, Paint Overspray, and Acid Rain Deposits - These contaminants adhere to or imbed into the paint finish. Left untreated, they will cause permanent damage to your car's paint work by staining and weakening the protective properties.

Drying

Drying your car may sound straight forward and it is if done correctly, however if done incorrectly it can also cause damage to your paintwork. In fact most of the defects that your vehicle may obtain are inflicted at this stage. Using chamois leather is not advisable and the likes of a drying blade, well that is a lethal weapon as far as your paintwork is concerned. All you need is a single grit particle to get in between the blade and paintwork and you are affectively dragging that particle across your vehicle, as a result inflicting scratches.

I find that using a waffle weave drying towel is far safer and more effective way to dry a vehicle. You should only pat dry the car rather than dragging it across the surface, again to reduce the likely hood of inflicting damage.

PTG (Paint Thickness Gauge)

This is a vital aspect in the detailing process that enables me to fully understand the vehicles paint work. It allows me to carefully and precisely examine the paint all over the vehicle so I know what I have to work with. The PTG will allow me to identify any areas that may cause concern for example if the car has been re-sprayed at any point the gauge will read differently ( often these repairs are not easily or quickly identified when relying just on eyesight and/or fingers). Therefor I will know to take extra care in these areas. It is a vital tool that helps me correct your vehicle in the safest possible way and not jeopardising the finish and future of your vehicles clear coat (which is the most important thing).