How to Remove Car Stickers without Damaging the Paint?

Do you have stickers or bumper decals on your car that you wish to remove without damaging the surface and the paint of the car? Decals and Stickers don’t have an unlimited lifespan. No matter if you apply them on the windows or the paint, they’re still removable. 

If you know the correct steps, you can easily remove the stickers or decals without damaging your car’s paint. While there are tons of products and tools that can help you to remove the adhesive and stickers, it’s not guaranteed that the tools will protect your car’s paint.

In this article, we will discuss some tips that you should remember while removing stickers from your car.

Clean the Stickers with Soapy Water

Stickers go through tons of dust particles. These dart particles around the car decals can scratch and damage the paint of your car when you start peeling off the adhesive. Hence, it’s your responsibility to clean them before the removal process. Use a sponge or cloth and soapy water to clean the surface as well as the stickers and the surrounding area. If you don’t want to clean like that, you can also run your car through a wash. This will also help you with the removal process. 

Heat the Stickers

The next and the most important step are to heat the car decals. The heat will weaken the adhesive. However, you shouldn’t use a heat gun as the extreme temperature can damage the paint. As per JD Power, it’s advised to use a blow dryer for this job. Set the temperature of the blow fryer at its highest. Make sure you distribute the heat throughout the whole sticker as the adhesive around the edges is strong. 

You can also pour boiling water into the car stickers to weaken the adhesive. But remember that this is a messy process and you need to pour boiling water several times. However, this will also work effectively if you don’t happen to have a blow dryer. 

Peel the Sticker

You just perform this step immediately after heating the stickers. Use a plastic card such as a rewards card or old debit cards. Remember that the cards should be made from plastic as knives and blades can damage the car’s paint job. If you’ve provided enough heat, a plastic card is sufficient enough to remove the decal from the paint. Once you’re done releasing the edges of your decal with the card, you’ll be able to peel off the remaining part of the sticker. 

Use Vinegar or Glue Removal Products

Even if you successfully peel off the sticker, you’ll notice some adhesive residues are left on the surface of your car. Don’t panic after noticing the residues as this is completely normal. Use some glue removal products to remove the residue. If you don’t have this type of product, use vinegar from the kitchen. However, don’t use the vinegar or any other product directly on the paint. Apply them on a soft cloth and rub off the adhesive residue.  

Wash and Dry the Area

After you’re finished removing the residue, use a sponge or soft cloth to wash off the area. This will remove any residue from vinegar or other adhesive remover product. 

Wax the Surface

Now that the decal is removed, the next step is to apply wax to the paint. The waxing process will protect the paint. 

Conclusion

This is how you can easily remove decals from the surface of your car. Remember that the removal process isn’t easy and people make some common mistakes. Hence, you should be careful while removing the decals otherwise it might permanently affect the paint job of your car.