Bug removal off wing

sand paper or scotchbrite works well too......:D
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What grit sandpaper? Surely 40 or so?
I'm having real good success with my angle grinder:
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Water. And then do it after every flight, before they get crusty.
 
Funny thing about this thread? Anyone else notice that since water works so well that all the other products attested to are working because they are simply WETTING the surface and the bug remains and not necessarily because they have some magical formula...:confused::rolleyes:
 
Checkout_my_Six said:
sand paper or scotchbrite works well too......:D
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Funny story about that. When my wife and I first started dating, I asked her what the dull white spots on the hood of her car were. She said that's what happens when a bird craps on the car. Puzzled, I asked for details. Turns out, when she was in college she decided to use a scotchbrite pad to clean her hood in a couple spots.

She's not allowed to touch the cars to clean them at all now.
 
FlySince9 said:
Funny thing about this thread? Anyone else notice that since water works so well that all the other products attested to are working because they are simply WETTING the surface and the bug remains and not necessarily because they have some magical formula...:confused::rolleyes:
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Don't confuse the issue with facts. We all know that some water is wetter than other water....:D
 
Similarly...

It's far easier to get the bugs off your windshield while filling up if you wet it down with the scrubber, go about your business for a few minutes to give it time to soak...then come back to it with the scrubber freshly wetted. Saves a lot of elbow grease.

The windshield needs to be in the shade for this to work and you have to be in a part of the country where they actually change the scrubber fluid occasionally and have scrubbers that were purchased in this century.
 
FlySince9 said:
Funny thing about this thread? Anyone else notice that since water works so well that all the other products attested to are working because they are simply WETTING the surface and the bug remains and not necessarily because they have some magical formula...:confused::rolleyes:
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You are right that just water will do the job of removing bugs, but the product I recommended above also has polymers that helps maintain your wax job, which adds additional protection to the finish and leaves a nice shine afterwards.
 
timwinters said:
Similarly...

It's far easier to get the bugs off your windshield while filling up if you wet it down with the scrubber, go about your business for a few minutes to give it time to soak...then come back to it with the scrubber freshly wetted. Saves a lot of elbow grease.

The windshield needs to be in the shade for this to work and you have to be in a part of the country where they actually change the scrubber fluid occasionally and have scrubbers that were purchased in this century.
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I remember stopping in Russell, KS off I-70 for gas and trying to scrub off a collection of bug DNA from my windshield. A typical central KS summer day - hotter than hell, and about a 30 mph wind. That water/cleaner evaporated as fast as I could put it on, and I used a lot. I never did get a chance to squeegee it off, it was dry before I could flip the thing over. That was some bad windshield.
 
Stewartb said:
Interesting how many guys refer to waxing their planes. My Cessna is painted with Imron. Waxing is not recommended for Imron and similar polyurethane paints. Beware.
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I have a good friend from high school (that's 38 years ago in case you're wondering) who's a very successful paint and body man. And he lives in an area with lakes so he not only paints a lot of cars/trucks, he also does a lot of boats; specializing in houseboats. He sprays lots of Imron.

So I called him and asked. He said "you know, I've heard those rumors but I've never had any problems. Let me call my DuPont rep and get back with you."

He called back today. He'd talked with his rep and the rep just laughed. He said it was urban legends spread on the internet and was likely started by some marine guy who didn't know what he was doing and had an Imron job fail.

"You just need to wait 90 days like every other paint in the world." Was his story and he's sticking to it. That jibes with the docs that Matthew posted...albeit a bit more conservative, the docs say 60 days.

:popcorn:

(HEY, ALL THE OLD SMILIES ARE BACK!!!!! COOL!!!!!!) :happydance:

(wait...why doesn't it work?)
 
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aggie06 said:
Funny story about that. When my wife and I first started dating, I asked her what the dull white spots on the hood of her car were. She said that's what happens when a bird craps on the car. Puzzled, I asked for details. Turns out, when she was in college she decided to use a scotchbrite pad to clean her hood in a couple spots.

She's not allowed to touch the cars to clean them at all now.
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My first wife thought it was okay to dry my car with newspaper...:yikes: I said only to dry the windows and I banded for from cleaning my car also...:yes::yes::yes:
 
Suppose that one were to use extreme simple green aircraft cleaner to clean the leading edges after flying. Would this be worse than using lemon pledge (or collenite, or wash wax, or whatever), since presumably it would strip off any wax and make subsequent cleanings harder?
 
Rip old Tshirts in half long ways and drape over wing. Soak in water. Just before they dry, remove them and wipe off the bugs.
 
coloradobluesky said:
Rip old Tshirts in half long ways and drape over wing. Soak in water. Just before they dry, remove them and wipe off the bugs.
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Yup. Another hydration trick, at least if your plane is parked outdoors overnight, is to clean the leading edges before the dew burns off in the morning. Then follow with a detail spray to preserve the paint/sealant.
 
Pressure washer ,, works great
 
timwinters said:
The windshield needs to be in the shade for this to work and you have to be in a part of the country where they actually change the scrubber fluid occasionally and have scrubbers that were purchased in this century.
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Mythical creatures...
 
I use water mixed with Hydrogen Peroxide (small mixture). Plexus will do it also but much more expensive than Hydrogen Peroxide. On my motorcycle, the bugs get baked on quickly and I soak a rag and lay it on the area for a few minutes and the peroxide "eats" the proteins from the bugs and they wipe off without scratching the paint or plastic.
 
Scrub Daddy kitchen sponges and distilled water will take the bugs off easily with very little effort. These sponges will not scratch your paint.

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Flew from the east coast to South Dakota and back. Killed most of the bugs in Iowa. Taking them off seemed much harder than I expected until I remembered how much easier it is if you use a net covered sponge with any liquid. Then they came right off. Crazy how I have to relearn this every couple of years.
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Johnson & Johnson Pronto. Spray on the bugs wipe them off 2 min later with a microfibre cloth. Then spray wing again distribute with the microfiblre and leave a thin layer of Pronto on the wing. Bugs will not stick well any more. Inexpensive & effective. I use it on the windshields as well.
 
brien23 said:
Best soap or A1 steak sauce for bug removal off wing. Not having tried the A1, any other product that work good on dried on bugs.
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Wash & Wax spray after every landing, takes less than 5 minutes and the bugs just wipe right off after using it a few times.
 
Lemon pledge is what I always use for a quick clean on the windscreen and the tin. After that, a bucket of soap and water will take care of the bug splat.
 
I found this video on YouTube it works pretty well:


I soak dryer sheet in water and gently rub bugs first, keep wet then come back after they are softened. The dryer sheet substance along with water seems to soften them faster and more thoroughly than just water.
 
No. Steel wool. Or a grinder. You'll never worry about bugs again.

Seriously, water and a clean cloth. That means you have to have a few, take them home and wash them from time to time.
 
+ 1. Aero Cosmetics - Wash & Wax All is a good product for light cleaning and leaves a nice shine!
We use it daily.

MyassisDragon said:
Wash & Wax spray after every landing, takes less than 5 minutes and the bugs just wipe right off after using it a few times.
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GeorgeC said:
http://washwax.com/how-to-remove-bugs.html

I'm tempted to give the stuff a try for both the leading edges and the windshield.
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Yes, it works great (Aero Scrubber - or something similar is the key for the bugs) on the wings/struts/tail. I don't use the scrubber on the windows though...
For cleaning the heavier grime I find something that cuts grease better, like Wash Wax All Belly Wash or Simple Green Aviation. Then I come back over it with blue Wash Wax All.
 
MyassisDragon said:
Wash & Wax spray after every landing, takes less than 5 minutes and the bugs just wipe right off after using it a few times.
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From their website:

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They further define the "let soak" as five to ten minutes.

Sounds exactly like what I do with water!

And...

Wait for it...

The results are the exact same.

Wash and Wax = $30/gallon.

Water = $0.0001/gallon.

I think I'll stick with water.
 
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