It’s fire season and a good time to remember that ash from these fires can travel hundreds of miles and settle on your car. Mix that with our all to common Fog or drizzle and you have the formula for a car paint disaster. Taking an ash-covered car outside on wet nights or foggy mornings can result in chemical etching and, in some cases, cause serious damage to a vehicle’s painted surfaces. Mixing water with fire ash can create potassium hydroxide, which has similar corrosive effects as drain cleaner.
The San Luis Obispo County Air Pollution Control District (APCD) says smoke and ash is impacting the air quality here on the Central Coast. Much of this ash and smoke is coming from the massive fires in Sonoma and will likely impact our air quality and cars for weeks to come.
Do not try to wipe ash off a car; it is abrasive and will damage the paint. Our car care experts know how to remove the ash without causing damage to the paint. The key to this is pre-rinse and brush-less washing – exactly what our All Hand Wash format does.
