Tree Sap Remover?

RedlandRanger

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I haven't seen this posted but there seems to be a lot of experience here with detailing, etc. My truck gets parked outside and much of the time is under some fir trees - it currently has several blobs of fir sap on the roof. I've used bug and tar removed but it doesn't work great. Does anyone have a REALLY good product for removing tree sap?
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RedlandRanger

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And just as I type this I see a posting on "pine sap removal". Wondering if pine sap is similar to fir sap? I have some goo gone.
 

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Denatured alcohol works well. Just recently used it to remove pine sap on my daughters car. It dissolves the sap.
 

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We use rubbing alcohol to dissolve tree sap from clothes.
 

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Alcohol solves everything from depression to tree sap. ?

Regular old rubbing alcohol does the trick. Just make sure you wax the area again after.
 


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RedlandRanger

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Alcohol solves everything from depression to tree sap. ?

Regular old rubbing alcohol does the trick. Just make sure you wax the area again after.
Interesting - I used isopropyl alcohol on these spots and it came off really easy. But - what I found is that these spots have apparently ruined the paint somehow. Every place that had a sap spot on now has a darker spot where the sap was. I tried to take a photo but they didn't show up well. I tried a bit of polish/cleaner (less aggressive than rubbing compound) and it didn't do anything.

Has anyone seen this before? Is my paint ruined under these spots? I have the platinum white which might be causing some other issues due to the tri coat.
 

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Interesting - I used isopropyl alcohol on these spots and it came off really easy. But - what I found is that these spots have apparently ruined the paint somehow. Every place that had a sap spot on now has a darker spot where the sap was. I tried to take a photo but they didn't show up well. I tried a bit of polish/cleaner (less aggressive than rubbing compound) and it didn't do anything.

Has anyone seen this before? Is my paint ruined under these spots? I have the platinum white which might be causing some other issues due to the tri coat.

I've never had that problem with the sap etching the paint like that. We had a lot of pines back east and I would get sap on my truck a lot. I never had a tri coat color though but even on my black F 150 I would just rub a little alcohol on the spots or if there was a large area put some in a spray bottle and mist it on, let sit for a bit and wipe off with soap and water then wax.

Does it feel smooth or is there a dimple where it ate through the clear? How long was it on there?
 
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RedlandRanger

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I've never had that problem with the sap etching the paint like that. We had a lot of pines back east and I would get sap on my truck a lot. I never had a tri coat color though but even on my black F 150 I would just rub a little alcohol on the spots or if there was a large area put some in a spray bottle and mist it on, let sit for a bit and wipe off with soap and water then wax.

Does it feel smooth or is there a dimple where it ate through the clear? How long was it on there?
It feels smooth as far as I can feel.

TBH I'm not sure how long it was on there - probably a month or so. The spots were on the roof and I hadn't noticed them until I washed the truck a couple weeks ago - with all the fires and ash, etc I hadn't wanted to wash it again - I just thought I'd see if I could get rid of the sap today.

It isn't the end of the world if it is permanent since it is on the roof, but I hope I can get rid of it.
 
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RedlandRanger

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I just went out and checked again - they do feel smooth (I did some wax over the top of it after using the alcohol). The odd thing is that it looks like they are fading. We have sunshine today for the first time in over a week - I don't know why the sun would do anything but I will keep an eye on them - maybe they will just disappear?
 

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I just went out and checked again - they do feel smooth (I did some wax over the top of it after using the alcohol). The odd thing is that it looks like they are fading. We have sunshine today for the first time in over a week - I don't know why the sun would do anything but I will keep an eye on them - maybe they will just disappear?
That's good that they're smooth, doesn't seem like the clear it ruined. It might be the lack of oxygen and sun from the stain on the clear coat and hopefully it'll come back. Only other thing I can thing of is possibly buffing it out if it doesn't come back 100%. This will heat up the paint/clear and should bring it back to original. I would have a pro do it if you're not familiar doing this as you can burn through it very easy and cause more damage. I know you're out hiking a lot so you might want to wax the hood and roof every couple months. This way those flat areas will be extra protected.
 

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I just went out and checked again - they do feel smooth (I did some wax over the top of it after using the alcohol). The odd thing is that it looks like they are fading. We have sunshine today for the first time in over a week - I don't know why the sun would do anything but I will keep an eye on them - maybe they will just disappear?
Hi Rob,

How does it look now that the sap has been off for a couple days?
 
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RedlandRanger

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Hi Rob,

How does it look now that the sap has been off for a couple days?
I washed and cleaned up the truck yesterday and for the most part the spots appear to have disappeared (or faded). But I do see a couple of discolored spots still. There must be something in that sap that is interacting with something in the paint I'm guessing. You do have to look pretty carefully to see them, but I will try and remove the sap more often. The alcohol works REALLY well! Thanks for that tip.

The good news is that the minor scratches (pinstriping) I got over the last month or so going down the brushy Forest Service roads seems to have mostly buffed out. One of the primary reasons I got the white was to hide this kind of scratching, which is working well.
 

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I washed and cleaned up the truck yesterday and for the most part the spots appear to have disappeared (or faded). But I do see a couple of discolored spots still. There must be something in that sap that is interacting with something in the paint I'm guessing. You do have to look pretty carefully to see them, but I will try and remove the sap more often. The alcohol works REALLY well! Thanks for that tip.

The good news is that the minor scratches (pinstriping) I got over the last month or so going down the brushy Forest Service roads seems to have mostly buffed out. One of the primary reasons I got the white was to hide this kind of scratching, which is working well.
That's good news! It's always best to try and get anything like that or bird poop off asap but not to many check their roof as much as we should,I'm guilty too.

If you ever get a big glob of sap you can wet a small towel (microfiber preferably) with alcohol and lay it on top for a few minutes. It'll help loosen up the sap without having to scrub the hardened sap and scratch the paint.
 
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RedlandRanger

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That's good news! It's always best to try and get anything like that or bird poop off asap but not to many check their roof as much as we should,I'm guilty too.

If you ever get a big glob of sap you can wet a small towel (microfiber preferably) with alcohol and lay it on top for a few minutes. It'll help loosen up the sap without having to scrub the hardened sap and scratch the paint.
For me, it isn't a huge deal. It is a truck, and I use it as a truck, so scratches and dents will happen. I just try and keep it looking decent, but I don't sweat small stuff like this. My paint is certainly scratched already, but again, the white really helps hide it. I'm almost a year an a half in on this truck, and it still looks pretty much like new, so I can't complain.

Thanks again for the hints and tips.
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