Taking Care of Your Vehicle Graphics

This article will outline practices that will help you care for and maintain the life and quality of the graphics on your vehicle.

Vinyl Graphics Design:

• Wash any applied vinyl graphics with a mixture of clean water and a mild care wash or detergent (such as Dawn dish soap or Ivory soap);
• Be sure to test any cleaning solution on a small patch of the vinyl graphic before covering the entire thing to make sure it won’t react with the graphic and damage it;
• Always read the warning labels on any care products you use so you can use them properly and safely;
• Once you wash your vehicle with soapy water, rinse it with clean water;
• Then, you can either let your vehicle air dry or dry it with a microfiber cloth.

What Things Not to Do:

Signs of vinyl failure may include loss of gloss level, fading, embrittlement, cracking, chips, or peeling around graphic edges. Doing the following things will damage the vinyl film:

• Allowing fuel to be in contact with vinyl for an extended period of time. You must be vigilant in cleaning up all spills as soon as possible;
• using an automatic car wash, truck wash, caustic cleaner, or pressure washer to clean your vehicle;
• applying carnauba-based wax polish to matte or carbon fiber finish vinyl;
• applying any type of wax product or polish to matte or carbon-finished vinyl;
• Using mechanical brush washing.

Taking Care of Perforated Vehicle Window Graphics

Replacing window graphics is very cheap, however, you should never compromise on your safety and make sure you always have maximum visibility.

• Avoid using the rear windshield wipers and use them only when it is absolutely necessary as they can scratch the laminate over time and reduce your visibility. It is best to clean any dirt and sediment off the rear window using a wet squeegee to help avoid any scratches;
• Avoid using your rear defroster, and only use it when absolutely necessary as it can potentially reduce the lifespan of your viewable perforated window film;
• Avoid repeatedly rolling windows that have graphics on them to avoid scratches;
• Do not use ice cubes on any window covered with vinyl perforated window film as it can scratch and damage the graphics.
• Here are some simple guidelines for extending the life of your window graphics. When it comes to safety, common sense should always be used to ensure that you have maximum visibility at all times.