Originally Posted By: Ed_Flecko
From what I understand, and as a general rule, washing your vehicle with most car wash soaps will remove your wax.
You are misunderstanding the situation then. Most car wash soaps are specifically formulated to leave any wax/sealant alone. In fact, some car wash soaps even come with a wax/sealant mixed in so that they leave behind some protection when finished (though I wouldn't count on this level of protection for very long, it should not be trusted to last nearly as long as a regularly applied coat of wax/sealant).
Originally Posted By: Ed_Flecko
It seems like most people will use a very small amount of their favorite wash soap to periodically clean their vehicle in hopes that it won't remove all of their wax to avoid re-waxing.
If people are doing that, they are being overly cautious IMO. Assuming they are using a good quality car wash soap, they should not have to intentionally cut down on the amount used to wash a car in the hopes it will leave their wax/sealant alone. Just follow the directions on the soap, usually one ounce per gallon of water, and it'll be fine.
Originally Posted By: Ed_Flecko
My questions is: does a typical hand-wash remove the sealant that you've applied?
No, not if you are using a car wash soap meant to hand wash a car with, and you are using it in the correct dilution, e.g. 1 oz per gallon of water, give or take.
Originally Posted By: Ed_Flecko
I'm assuming you've polished your vehicle to your satisfaction, used some product (i.e., Dawn soap, IPA wipedown, etc.) to remove and residual polish, and then applied a sealant and finally a wax.
If pre-wax prep is taken this far (most people don't BTW), and the application/removal and curing period are similarly done right, the wax/sealant layer you put down should bond well enough with the paint that you could hand-wash the car (with the proper car wash soap, in the proper dilution) every day for a month and still see some evidence of the wax/sealant layer on your paint.
Originally Posted By: Ed_Flecko
If you hand-wash your vehicle, do you have to worry about removing the sealant (and thus, starting all over) or will you just likely have to re-wax?
Thank you,
Ed
If you hand wash your vehicle and use the proper product(s) in their proper amounts, you will not have to worry about re-waxing the vehicle for a long while*, depending up on the wax/sealant applied.
* - as a general rule, you can count on a natural, carnauba-based wax to last a month or two, maybe three if you are lucky. You could get even more time in between such waxings if you used a Wax-As-U-Dry with every car wash. But natural, carnauba-based waxes are hard to find nowadays, you'd have to specifically go hunting for them and likely have to order online somewhere to actually get one.
What you are more likely to find on the local auto store shelf (or Wal-Mart, etc.) is a hybrid natural/synthetic wax/sealant that will last upwards of 6 months if you prep the paint correctly and take care to apply according to the instructions and allow 24 hours moisture free curing time. Again, the length of time in between waxings can be extended with the usage of a Wax-As-U-Dry product during each hand wash session.
There are some fully synthetic waxes (your actual paint sealants are an example) that can go beyond 6 months with all the proper prep and care in between, but that life is also subject to the environment much more than others. Extremely hot climates, harsh climates, or similarly non-standard operating conditions will diminish the life of the sealant somewhat, so that it may not reach its full lifetime claim, e.g. 12 months. But in all fairness, any such wax would also be similarly diminished, not just the synthetic waxes/sealants.
