A ceramic coating is low-maintenance, not no-maintenance. A simple maintenance routine is all it takes to keep your vehicle looking slick, glossy, and protected for years to come.
The Two-Bucket Basics
When it’s time to wash your vehicle, keep it simple. Use a dedicated wash mitt, two buckets, and a good pH-neutral car soap. There are plenty of great soaps out there—we’re fans of products like Adam’s—but the important thing is using something that is safe for coated vehicles.
And one big rule: skip the automatic car wash. Even the “touchless” or brushless ones can use harsh chemicals and high-pressure equipment that can shorten the life of your coating. You invested in protecting your paint, so don’t undo that work with a $12 car wash.
A periodic ceramic-safe topper or maintenance treatment can also help refresh the coating’s hydrophobic properties and keep that slick feeling going. If you had your coating installed by us, we recommend taking advantage of our yearly maintenance appointments. It gives us a chance to inspect the coating, give it the proper maintenance it needs, and stay involved with the care of your vehicle.
In Between Washes: Proper Car Care Maintenance
One of the things we notice with ceramic coating customers is that they often become a little more involved with their car care—and that’s a good thing.
A lot of people are used to simply driving through the car wash whenever the vehicle gets dirty. Once you have a ceramic coating, you may actually find that you don’t need to wash the vehicle as often, and when you do, the process is much easier.
That said, don’t let the coating do all the work.
Bird droppings, bug residue, tree sap, water spots, and other contaminants should be dealt with sooner rather than later. For small areas like these, a damp microfiber towel combined with a quality detail spray or rinseless wash can be a great way to safely spot-clean the vehicle without doing a full wash.
The coating makes caring for your car easier—it doesn’t make your car invincible.
Quality Cleaning Matters
Washing the car is actually the easy part. I’d argue that what you do after the wash is just as important, if not more important.
Think about it: What’s the point of washing your vehicle if you don’t properly remove the dirt, or if you leave water sitting on the paint long enough to create water spots? And leaving soap residue behind isn’t doing your coating any favors either.
There are times when you can get away with a simple foam bath, thorough rinse, and blow-dry. When done correctly, it’s a great way to maintain a coated vehicle with minimal effort.
But there’s a catch: you have to know when you can get away with it—and when you can’t.
For example, let’s say you just spent the weekend tailgating at a Penn State game in your new Chevy truck. You’ve got road grime, food, dirt, bugs, and probably a little bit of everything else stuck to it. When you get home, you’re not going to just foam it down, rinse it off, and call it a day.
No way.
That’s where experience comes into play.
The more familiar you become with ceramic coating and proper vehicle care, the more you’ll develop an almost intuitive understanding of what your vehicle needs and when it needs it. You’ll learn when a quick maintenance wash is enough, when you need to break out the wash mitt, and when the vehicle needs a little extra attention.
That’s really the beauty of ceramic coating. It makes proper car care easier—but it also gets you more involved in taking care of your vehicle.
You’ve Got a Friend at Blackout Haus
Every customer who has a ceramic coating installed by Blackout Haus receives a complete after-care instruction manual, and you also have access to the knowledge and experience of our team whenever you need it.
Have a question? We’re always just a phone call away.
Want to take the guesswork out of maintaining your vehicle? We also offer VIP maintenance programs for customers who are too busy to keep up with everything themselves. We offer both 6-month and 12-month maintenance packages to help keep your vehicle looking its best.
But most importantly, we’re here for you.
We don’t believe in slapping a coating on your vehicle, handing you the keys, and sending you on your way. A ceramic coating is an investment, and we want to help you get the most out of that investment.
Our goal isn’t just to make your vehicle look amazing the day you pick it up.
We want it to look amazing for years to come!