How do you remove hard water stains

My car was parked next to the sprinklers and got  water stains real bad. They have really hard water out here. The feels ruff when you run your hand over it. Even after i was it you can still feel the hard water. How can i get this off, what product do i use. Thank you:pat:

dawn and APC wash, aggressive claybar with lube, then try an aggressive professional grade waterspot remover. the acidic type is pretty strong and should be used with gloves. i cant recommend any specific brand because it all depends on what area u live in and how much product you need. most pro grade products come only in gallon size. gotta shop around. 
your best bet for glass is duragloss nu-glass. available in like a 12oz bottle for around 10 bucks. i always recommend duragloss for home users looking for quality products and dont wanna spend more than 15 bucks per type of product. i dont think their waterspotremovers/paint cleaners are strong enough for what youre looking for though.

you will also most likely need to lightly polish the paint after because it will be a lil dull from all the claying and marring from washing and scrubbing the paint clean. 

maybe try posting a few pics in good lighting.

let me take some pics

oh and be sure to read the instructions for the acidic remover. gotta keep the area wet and keep reapplying product so it doesnt dry out anywhere. sometimes on trashed paint i gotta keep wiping the same area for nearly 5 minutes til the spots fully disappear(and this stuff is strong)

if you can afford to pick up a used porter cable 7424 or XP and a few pads you will save time and have a better outcome. your hand can only move so fast compared to a machine.
its possible to clay, remove waterspots on paint and glass, compound/polish paint, and wax or seal the paint, all by machine. just need about 100-200 for machine and pads.

steel wool grade 000 and vinegar for the windows im not sure about the paint. It works really good most tint places use it

I used lime a-way diluted in warm water before

'#0000' wool, if anything, but i personally dont use it. would much rather chemically clean glass then possibly micro marr it. tint shops use it cause its fastest not because its the best choice. same as gas stations hastily razor blading off sticker tags from bumpers instead of a solvent cleaner.
i agree it does work and is very economical, but so is pouring cocacola on your windshield lol. or using toothpaste for that matter. those are more diy home remedies that work in a pinch.
i dont even like to use 0000 wool on exhaust pipes unless they are absolutely caked. 
we live in a modern age with modern chemicals that can perform nearly any task. why not take advantage?  i rarely need to use 1970's methods anymore.  just my .02 cents not trying to offend anyone i just like people to know their options.

i should mention the main reason i mostly dont use steel wool on glass because of that damn saf-t-lite replacement glass and lower end oem glass. high quality glass on most platform cars wont be affected by well lubricated #0000.

awesome info. my car is in need of some waterspot removal VERY BADLY...lol. 

Jaynick808: where can i purchase some of the chemicals you recommended to the OP?

I have used the clay bar method brfore and I was very happy with the results.

[QUOTE=mrduece88;346897]I have used the clay bar method brfore and I was very happy with the results.[/QUOTE]

Where in palm springs are you?

[QUOTE=JP-LS400;346908]Where in palm springs are you?[/QUOTE]
I'am actually closer to Indio just say Palm Springs since people are more familiar with that name/area.... Why the question?

[QUOTE=mrduece88;346917]I'am actually closer to Indio just say Palm Springs since people are more familiar with that name/area.... Why the question?[/QUOTE]

I'm in cat city

[QUOTE=JP-LS400;346931]I'm in cat city[/QUOTE]
Nice I live in Indio and just picked up a 97 Q.... its my new daily

just buy a clay bar kit. very easy to use and you dont have to try all these other methods with steel wool or lime-a-away or etc.

Thanks. I'll try the clay bar first.

oh and you can get it at just about any auto parts store. mothers makes one...

[IMG]http://image.superchevy.com/f/8989288/0606sc_03_z+car_waxing_basics+mothers_clay_bar_kit.jpg[/IMG]

after you feel how smooth it leaves the glass... you'll wanna do the entire car.

If your in socal near me (Long Beach) I can get you some of this acid stuff that works wonder. My detailer uses this all the time to remove hard water spots on windows/glass and sometimes on the car's body.

Dara

hard water stains on paint usualyl needs to come off with polishing.

windows could be fixed with a vinegar water solution.

[QUOTE=LiCelsior;348431]hard water stains on paint usualyl needs to come off with polishing.

windows could be fixed with a vinegar water solution.[/QUOTE]

^^....confirmed for the polishing.  It really depends on how bad the water stains are.  This happened on my '04 miata.  I moved to a new place and didn't know there was a sprinkler setup there.  I parked my car by the sprinkler and left it there for weeks. I finally noticed it one day and it got so bad, the chemicals were embedded in my paint.  This is in SoCal(West Covina), in the summer, BTW.  If you don't got  the hook ups, I suggest you just buy a porter cable or the Meguiar's g110v2, get the polishing compound and polish it.  Don't be like me! I spent bunch of money and time trying to do it the cheap way.  I ended up buying 6 different bottles of polishing compounds, from mequiars, 3M, turtle wax and even clay bars.  If you can't get a hold of that magical chemical, then i wouldn't bother going further w/out a DA polisher.  On top of that, the clay bars and other chemicals are used for minor surface removal.  Anything deep will require you to polish anyways, unless there's a special chemical out there that magically smooths out our etched paint.  One last thing, this is no 10 min job, it takes time.  Let us know how you do!

will do

Does anyone know how to take water spots out of diamond cut wheels??

[QUOTE=RajahCasti;352694]Does anyone know how to take water spots out of diamond cut wheels??[/QUOTE]


Good question:dance:

Just came back from out of town, and my car was parked in front of the sprinklers for the month while i was gone. My car did not get moved like i asked and it was baking in the sun and getting sprayed with the sprinklers for about for weeks. The wheels on the right side of my car are super  jacked up with hard water stains. Especially where the water puddled up on the lip of the wheels. I used straight vinegar on them to try to get the stains off but it didn't really work. I don't think that it would mess up the clear coat. I need some serious help. Thanks

Like I said before... Lime a way works wonders. Just do 1 panel at a time

Im not worried about the car, its the wheels that im concerned about.

Hey I'm always on a Benz forum and someone there highly recommended a product called "Spot-X Hard Water Stain & Spot Remover" for tough water stains, sold on amazon. Give that a try. Later.

hmm...I need a DA polisher after reading this.

I have always been curious...i wonder how plastic polish would work.(?)  Novus makes good stuff.  If it is less abrasive to polish soft plastic, would it work for clear coat?  Thoughts...

dang! so many Palm Springs peeps on here haha. i am part time "guilty by association" Rancho Mirage. The fam owned Builder Supply