- Did you know that allowing bird poop to stay on your car for long damages your car after some time?
- Bird poop is acidic and when left to sit in your car, it gradually starts eating into the car’s paint.
- We have highlighted reasons why you should immediately wipe off any signs of bird poop on the surface of your car.
Regardless of where you live, we all experience the same issue with car ownership. Birds love to poop on your car, whether it’s while driving or parked. However, could the bird bombs be doing more harm than you might know about?
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You should clean bird poop off your car immediately or as soon as possible to avoid spending money on some serious car repair and maintenance.
So, does bird poor damage your car? We explain all of that below:
How Bird Poop Will Damage Your Car Paint
According to experts, birds do not have separate locations to evacuate their solids and liquids on their bodies. Instead, birds use their cloaca to drop both in a single shot. As a result, we see a green or black substance, which is bird poop, while the white part is uric acid. Moreover, uric acid, or the bird’s urine, is dangerous to a car’s paint.
Furthermore, the acid in bird poop is more concentrated than in humans or other mammals. The Drive says human urine is around 6.0-7.5 on the pH scale, while a bird’s excrement ranges from 3.0-4.5. That’s why a bird’s mess is sticky and thick instead of pure liquid like a mammal’s. It often can’t easily be washed away with a hose or water, as it will grip onto the car for its life. With all the acidity and resilience to staying on a car’s paint, bird poop will eat away and do some damage over time.
What Damage Will Bird Poop do to a Car?
First, a bird’s poop will eat away the clear coat from a vehicle’s paint. Once that layer is eaten away, the paint will lose its shine. Moreover, it will become very noticeable at all distances and look like an ugly, blotchy blemish on the car’s exterior.
Sometimes, damage like this is repairable, but it’s always a little different. If left on the surface long enough, it will eat down to the base layer. The result is that the body panel will need paintwork instead of just some polishing. That’s why it’s crucial to remove bird poop from paint as soon as possible.
Here Are the Easiest Ways to Clean Bird Poop From your Car
Cleaning bird poop off your car as soon as possible is important and can make car cleaning easier. The longer you allow it, the more likely it will damage the paint job. In addition, hot weather will increase how fast the car gets damaged. If your car is indoors or in cool/damp weather, the paint will hold on for much longer than when the car is under direct sunlight and heat. In that case, the acid will bake into the paint much faster in sunlight, and removing it will be very challenging.
Luckily, cleaning most bird poop off your car should not be challenging. Use water, a microfiber towel, and car-safe soap, and remove the poop gently. The key is to wipe and rinse gently, don’t scrub. Scrubbing the poop into the car could worsen things depending on how long it’s been there.
Lift the towel away after contact with the bird poop, and fold the towel over so you’re not wiping it back on more of the vehicle. Bird poop that hasn’t been there long should come off fairly quickly.
Can I Repair the Damaged Car Paint?
A vehicle’s paint job comes with many layers, and bird poop takes a long time to penetrate every layer. Usually, your car will have primer, a base coat, and a clear top coat. Most of the time, you’ll be able to catch it before it gets through the clear coat. A quick polish will do the trick if the acid hasn’t eaten through to the base coat. However, once the clear coat is compromised, you will need to do some extra work.
Conclusion
Car owners might see bird poop as harmless, but it does a lot of damage to your car. Practice proper car care by always wiping off any signs of bird poop.
