Washing after new paint?

[jvrotter]

Just paintred my M1009 with Gillespie 383 green and flat black and was retouching up a few spots. I washed off the hood to clean it up first and got some water spots that I couldn't remove. Ended up painting over them.
Question is how long should you wait to wash the vehicle after your paint?

 

[epitts]

Good question would also like to hear the answer!!

 

[WarrenD]

One Month, minimum. Just let it sit, don't put on the letters, stars or other markings. I'd also protect it from getting wet, no washing. Gararge vehicle if possible.

 

[SCSG-G4]

The paints do need at least 48 hours to cure under 'normal' circumstances (several posts that I remember reading here). There will be a skim/surface dry in an hour or so, but the paint is still quite soft underneath. Even more so if you put it on thick. In California, a week of sunshine should do it. Cooler or cloudy conditions will take longer. The summer temps here in the south (2011) would probably bake the finish on in a day or so. YMMV.

 

[flyxpl]

Depends on the temp and paint . Gilispie in hot weather I would wait a couple days , in cold weather I would wait weeks . Ureathane just one day in warm weather would be good and a wash will cure it out ( dry ) even more . The hardener in ureathane actually pulls moisture out of the air to harden the paint . I can paint a car ,clearcoat it , bake it 18 minutes ,pull out of booth and hose it down with water to cool it off and help the paint cure , then buff it out and wash it ASAP . You can actually paint over water spots/ acid rain and the spots will come back though the new coat of paint .

 

[Mike929]

I know the water spots are calcium when I pull my boat out of the lake. A 10% vinegar in water solution will dissolve them. I have no idea what it will do to paint, this is the solution for fiberglass boats.