Hello, dear friends! I think many motorists are familiar with the problem of scratches appearing on the windshield. Moreover, factors independent of the driver and mistakes of the car owner can lead to their appearance. Therefore, it will be relevant to talk about such a topic as polishing a windshield with your own hands.
The procedure can actually be performed independently and at home. And to be more precise, in garages. You shouldn’t do this outdoors, because there is too much dust and pollution around.
There are various tools described on Drive2 and thematic forums. Many people suggest using toothpaste, polishing the glass surface without a machine at all, etc.
But if you want to get a good result, and not contact the service, you will have to do everything smartly and technologically.
The main factors influencing the transparency of the windshield
While the car is moving, layers of dust and precipitation - snow, rain - adhere to the surface of the windshield. Various objects and contaminants from the road surface in the form of crushed stone, asphalt chips, sand and dirt can get in and cause scratches and cracks.
Also common causes of damage to the surface of the windshield are:
- fine and coarse fractions of sand caught under the compaction of automatic glass cleaners;
- stones, screenings, sand flying out from under the wheels of oncoming and ahead cars while driving;
- rough cleaning of snow deposits and ice from the windshield with a scraper;
- abrasives used during car washing;
- using dry cloth made of hard fibers as a glass napkin;
- general unskilled glass care.
If the transparency of the windshield of a new car is considered 100 percent, then in 1-2 years, taking into account the state of our roads, and without taking preventive measures, it will be about 80%, etc.
The anti-scratch glass polishing technology will help improve transparency. It is recommended to carry out such polishing when the glass has worn out due to age and has lost its transparency and appearance.
Do-it-yourself polishing, video:
Several proven options
Anyone who wants to remove a scratch from glass must first assess the scale of the tragedy. Only in the most advanced cases, that is, with very large and noticeable scratches, will it be practically impossible to influence the appearance of the product in any way. In all other situations, you can try the following:
First, make sure that what you see is actually a scratch. How? Very easy! It is enough to wash the glass thoroughly and gently wipe it with a lint-free soft cloth. No matter how strange it may seem, very often scratches are mistaken for ordinary stuck dirt! Therefore, quality washing comes first! If there is still a scratch, use ordinary toothpaste. Even better - whitening. Do not use gel paste. Soak a cotton swab in it and rub circular movements into the defect, first clockwise, then counterclockwise. Several of these approaches should be repeated. After this, you need to completely wash the entire glass to avoid the appearance of toothpaste stains that will not come out.
GOI paste copes much better with this problem. Previously, it could be found literally at every step. Now the situation has practically not changed, with the only difference being that it is almost impossible to find real glass grout and not a fake! But if you are lucky and become the proud owner of the original paste, you need to rub it in exactly the same way as in the point described above. Instead of a cotton swab, you can use a piece of felt. Special polishing products from car cosmetics performed well. However, we recommend that you first treat an inconspicuous piece of the surface to make sure that the product will not harm the product. This especially applies to surfaces painted or otherwise decorated.
If a noticeable deep scratch has formed on a window or glass cabinet door, it will no longer be possible to get rid of it. But if replacing glass is not yet part of your plans, use stained glass film. It will not only hide the defect, but will also instantly help transform the interior of your home. It is very easy to glue
It is necessary to pay special attention to air bubbles, expelling them from under the surface of the film. An alternative is to glue it onto a slightly damp surface.
Existing polishing methods
Professional polishing of car glass from scratches is carried out in almost all specialized car service centers. The technologies used there to remove cracks and scratches of various ranges, plaque and acid stains on various types of windshields guarantee a high degree of efficiency in maintaining the optical transparency of the glass in a fairly simple process.
You can polish your windshield yourself in your home garage.
If you have no polishing experience, it is not advisable to start with polishing such a large and important glass as a windshield, because this can ruin it.
It is better to first practice polishing some other rougher glass, for example, headlight glass.
What to choose, grinding or polishing?
When choosing how to polish a windshield from scratches, we must not forget that polishing the surface of the glass and grinding it are two different things that differ from each other.
Windshield grinding is done using diamond-coated abrasive materials and is designed to work with deeper and more severe damage.
There are the following types of grinding:
- deep scratches are polished;
- minor scratches are polished;
- sanding barely noticeable scratches.
Only after grinding the windshield, starting with the deeper ones and ending with minimal scratches, do they begin to polish it.
The polishing process is carried out using felt and polishing paste or powder. Polishing turns the matte surface of the glass after grinding into a smooth and transparent one.
Polishing the windshield with your own hands
Experienced car drivers do the polishing themselves, as there is a desire to do the job cheaper and of better quality.
But not all car enthusiasts know how to polish car glass with their own hands, because for proper polishing certain conditions must be met.
Step by step polishing process
The polishing process requires the availability of the necessary materials, and when producing it yourself, also the appropriate tools, inclusive:
- special paste or powder for polishing windshields;
- polishing machine with special felt wheels;
- polyethylene film for covering the car body;
- glass cleaner and a set of wipes;
- a good spray bottle or atomizer;
- masking tape and marker.
Along with visual diagnostics, we check the depth of scratches on the glass using a fingernail:
- if the edge of the nail does not cling to the protrusion of the scratches, then it is advisable to use a paste that removes a layer of 1 micron;
- if the edge of the nail clings well to the scratch, then it is recommended to remove it using a photopolymer, since polishing is ineffective here;
- cracks, chips, deep scratches and other large defects also cannot be removed by polishing, but require other processing methods.
Direct polishing of the windshield includes the following steps:
- We visually inspect the surface of the glass to detect damage of varying degrees, such as chips, scratches, air pockets, etc. We mark these zones using a marker on the inside of the windshield.
- We fix the plastic film on the car body to prevent it from being contaminated by paste, powder or polishing dust.
- We do a preliminary cleaning and wash the glass using glass detergents and wipe it until dry.
- According to the instructions for use, dilute the polishing paste or powder to the desired consistency.
- Apply 2-3 tablespoons of paste evenly onto the plane of the polishing felt wheel and begin polishing, covering the area of glass with damage of 25x25cm. We make slow circular movements over the intended area, periodically spraying the paste on the surface of the glass and felt with a spray bottle or spray bottle to prevent them from drying out and the formation of new scratches.
- When performing polishing movements, the pressure on the glass should be minimal and distributed over the intended area to prevent the formation of a lens effect on the surface of the windshield.
- After polishing, we perform a visual inspection of the working part and, if matte areas are detected, we carry out repeated careful polishing until they disappear.
It is difficult to determine the polishing time in advance. It all depends on the quality of the glass and the extent to which it has damaged areas that require polishing.
You also need to remember that polishing a windshield with your own hands is not something to be rushed, but requires scrupulous attention to avoid damage to the glass. Basically, this process takes about 3 hours.
Basic mistakes
When practicing experiments during polishing, car enthusiasts get disappointing results in the form of a damaged windshield. Is it possible to polish a car windshield with improvised means? In answer to this question, we list the main mistakes made during polishing that must be avoided. Remember that:
- It is prohibited to polish a thin windshield with tooth powder, as this will lead to the appearance of new micro-scratches and cracks. The windshield requires more gentle handling compared to polishing the headlights.
- The information found about removing scratches using GOI paste is not justified in practice, since its consistency is too coarse for such delicate work as polishing a windshield. Treatment with the paste is also guaranteed to give the effect of microlenses, distorting the transparency and visibility of the windshield.
- Also, excessively vigorous polishing and polishing with a dry felt wheel can lead to the formation of microlenses. With such polishing, the windshield may overheat, after which it may burst.
Pros and cons of DIY polishing
When polishing your windshield for the first time, you will get impressive results as the clarity of the old windshield will be equal to the new one. Subsequent polishings will give a more modest result, but the consolation is that they will be practically free, taking into account the previously purchased materials. This is a definite plus.
When choosing how to polish a windshield with your own hands, it is better to use practice-tested materials and methods, because otherwise you may get the opposite result.
A disadvantage of manual work is also considered to be the long duration of the process, which requires constant monitoring of the polishing progress to eliminate negative results.
If you are unsure of your professional abilities regarding polishing a windshield, practice suggests the rationality of seeking help from a car service center.
Carrying out a comparative calculation of polishing the windshield yourself and with the help of a car service, we get approximately the same amount of costs. But do not forget that you can use the material you purchased for home glass polishing several times to polish not only the windshield, but also the headlights, body, and other parts of the car.
Removing scratches, video:
Scratches on the glass of household appliances
Colorless varnish is the easiest way to disguise a scratch on the glass of household appliances. Before starting work, the surface should be cleaned and degreased. Using a manicure brush, apply the polish to the defect and let it dry slightly. To avoid leaving traces of restoration work, use a rubber spatula to remove excess varnish.
If the glass has a concave or convex shape, then the varnish can be removed with a piece of cardboard. It is applied to the treated area and dried a little, while the cardboard follows the curves of the scratch. The results of the work may be slightly disappointing, because the refractive index of varnish and glass is different and the flaw can be obvious.
Polishing paste and powder
The consequences of aggressive environmental influences on the surface of the windshield, as already mentioned, can be eliminated using polishing pastes. Depending on the depth of the defect, the appropriate windshield polishing paste is used.
Small scratches, no more than 200 microns, and stains are removed with a felt circle using fine-grained paste. For more pronounced scratches of about 300 microns, a paste with a coarser grain size is used.
Modern polishing uses an effective diamond paste, also available in different grits. Such pastes are divided into:
- coarse diamond paste, red color;
- medium grain, green color;
- fine-grained, blue;
- thin suspension, yellow color;
- the finest finish, white color.
Coloring pastes in different colors helps to avoid mistakes when using.
Interpretation of tire markings and load index. - there is more useful information here.
If your watch is scratched
It is quite easy to eliminate defects on watch glass if you use the recommendations provided. First, you should purchase GOI paste, it is available under different numbers. Number 4 is intended for rough surface treatment; this composition is used first. Rub it on the watch glass in a circular motion for a couple of minutes. Remains of the product are removed with a damp cloth and wiped with a dry cloth.
Next, paste number 3 is used; it has a smaller particle diameter. The processing steps are repeated in the same sequence. Finally, apply paste number 1 to the watch, which will polish the product to a mirror finish. Finally, treat the watch glass with mineral oil. The result will certainly please you.
