Proper Care & Feeding of Your Vehicle Vinyl Wrap

We’re like proud parents every time we finish a job for our client.  But unlike with kids, who take 18 years (or more!) to get out of the house and into the world, our “parenthood” for vinyl wraps isn’t nearly that long.  But then you, the client, get to take over as parents.  Vinyl wraps, whether on a vehicle or on a flat surface, are tough and durable: if you treat them right they will last five to seven years.  That said, every new parent needs some tips and we’ve got some for you!

Wrapped vehicles, unlike the wrapped walls of your home or office, are out on the road and in the elements a lot, so they need to be cleaned regularly.  Here are a few things to keep in mind.

Wash Regularly

You should wash your vehicle whenever it looks dirty.  You may need to do so more frequently during winter (thanks snow and salt!).  

Hand Washing

Hand washing is best, every two weeks, using non-abrasive detergent.  Pro tips (which we share in our maintenance schedule) include:

• Start from the top of the vehicle and work your way down  

• Use a soft sponge or a rag and avoid excessive scrubbing 

• Take extra care on matte or textured finishes

• Finish by drying with microfiber cloth

Use the Right Cleaners

If you want some suggestions for non-abrasive detergent, here are four:

• 3M Car Wash Soap 39000

• Meguiar’s NXT Generation Car Wash

• Deep Crystal Car Wash

• Croftgate Wrap Care (matte or gloss)

Sometimes you’re going to need to do some prep work, especially if you’ve gotten some “difficult contaminants” on your wrap, like tree sap, bug splatter, or everyone’s favorite, bird droppings.  The longer these contaminants stay on your wrap, the more difficult they may be to remove (and the more damage they can do).  You have a few options to help you with these contaminants:

• Professional formulas, like:

  • Meguiar’s Gold Class Bug & Tar Remover

  • 3M Citrus Base cleaner

• Isopropyl alcohol and water, in a 2-1 ratio of alcohol to water

• Very hot, soapy water

• Croftgate Wrapcare Heavy Duty Cleaner

Do not use rough scrubbing or abrasive tools, and do not use any of the following:

• Oil-based cleaners

• Orange oil

• Oven cleaner

• Engine degreaser

• Kitchen and bathroom cleaners (seriously!)

• Solvents 

Speaking of solvents, gasoline is a solvent, and if you have any fuel spills on your wrap you should wipe it off immediately and then get the vehicle washed, rinsed, and dried as soon as possible!

Pressure Washing

Hand washing is ideal.  If you must pressure wash, please consider the following:

• Keep your water pressure between 800 and 2000 psi.  Excessive pressure can damage the graphics.

• Use a water temperature range between 72 and 180 degrees

• Spray directly at the vehicle perpendicular (at 90 degrees) to the graphic

• Use a spray nozzle with a 40-degree wide angle spray pattern

• Keep a minimum distance of 12-18 inches from the graphic (4-6 feet is ideal)

If you’re still not sure we’ve shot some videos for you here, and here.

Machine Washing

If hand washing is the ideal and pressure washing is the “okay, if you have to,” machine washing is a solid NO.  Many automatic car washes use brushes which can:

• Scratch your wrap

• Cause edges to lift up or chip

• Dull the appearance of your wrap

Even if you go to a brushless wash, some of the materials we use for wraps can be voided if a car has been taken through an automatic car wash.

Don’t machine wash your wrap!  You’ve spent too much time and money to give it a great look only to risk it for a bit of convenience.

Parking & Storage

For fleet vehicles especially, we recommend parking your vehicles with the opposite side facing the sun half the time.  This will ensure that the sun fading is consistent on both sides instead of giving one side of your vehicle the sad panda look (trust us, we’ve seen it, it’s not good). If possible, store your wrapped vehicle indoors or under a cover. This will protect your wrap from UV rays, but also those contaminants we mentioned above.

You’ve spent a lot of time and money to get a wrap that looks great. It just takes a little bit of care and effort to keep it looking great year-round.

If you don’t yet have a vehicle wrap, what are you waiting for?  Tell us your ideas!

Download our Vinyl Care Instructions Here