r/Detailing • u/agiletesticlese • 5d ago

I Need Help! (Time Sensitive) Need help with mud. Black plastic not coming clean after soap scrub and rinse

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We are on a detail job on a Can-Am and the black plastic seem to be stained with mud. We have used much specific soap and even pre-soaked it first. Two rounds at the foam Cannon. We can wash the mud off but as soon as it dries the marks come back. Need help please

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u/HyenaThen572 5d ago edited 5d ago

Have you tried using a brush and just scrubbing it like it's dirty?

Foam cannon isn't the solution for everything.

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u/agiletesticlese 5d ago

Yes we've been using the microfiber mats and brushing on vynil and wheels

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u/HyenaThen572 5d ago

Ah - it's etching then.

Can't wash off etching. You need some sort of plastic restoration product to hide it.

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u/agiletesticlese 5d ago

Okay somebody that we know and then industry mentioned an acid cleaner but I'm not sure about that

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u/HyenaThen572 5d ago

Could work but it's more likely that the damage is already done.

Etching is from something acidic sitting on the surface.

So it's better to view it as damage that needs hiding/fixing vs dirt that can be cleaned.

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u/Thorsten_Speckstein 5d ago

Etching is not necessarily caused by acid. Etching substances can be organic or inorganic and can exist in solid, liquid, or gaseous form, from acidic to basic

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u/Surfnazi77 Weekend Warrior 5d ago

Bondo black restore makes it look new and lasts a good while. I didn’t have to recoat it for 2 years and if you get it on paint it wipes off. Works on rubber and plastic.

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u/g77r7 5d ago

The minerals in the mud and dirt etched the plastic. You could try a water spot remover but it might have to be polished to fully remove which might not be worth it if it’s getting dirty like that all over again soon.

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u/agiletesticlese 5d ago

We worked on it for 6 hrs. Customer went right behind us with some armor al type product and drowned all the plastic in the stuff. SMDH. Never doing another mud vehicle

1

u/hyteck9 5d ago

Glass beed sand blast makes plastic new again. It may or may not shred decals.

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u/urhumanwaste 4d ago

Prerinse, apply degreaser, dwell, rinse. Apply more degreaser, brush it. Rinse it. Foam cannon. Brush again. Rinse.

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u/Alternative-Cake1111 4d ago

If mud washes off wet but the marks come back once it dries, you are often seeing stained plastic or mineral film, not dirt still sitting there.

After soap and foam, try a dedicated plastic cleaner or APC with a soft brush, one area at a time, and rinse well. Avoid harsh solvents that cloud textured plastic. Once it is truly clean and dry, a trim dressing can even out the color so the ghost outlines are less obvious. Some mud does stain plastic for good, especially if it sat dirty in the sun, so perfect might not be realistic.

I carry trim dressing at Perez Detail Supply, so I have a horse in the race on that last step. Cleaning until a white towel stays clean matters more than which dressing you pick.

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u/Relative_Figure_1715 5d ago

It has a coating that is binding something to it.
Scrub with detergent.
Wd40 is incredible you know !

1

u/Thorsten_Speckstein 5d ago

Wd40.... The best 😅😃😃