What Causes Orange Peel on Car Paint? And How to Avoid This Paint Defect

A car’s paintwork is a tell-tale sign of whether a vehicle owner has properly looked after the exterior. Paintwork can also affect the vehicle’s resale value and raise concerns about the car’s overall condition, which can say a lot about its durability and longevity. Well-maintained paintwork can make a car look 10 years younger, while any imperfections can do the opposite.

Is the paintwork faded, full of swirls, or dents and scrapes? Worse yet, has the car been badly repaired, leaving an orange peel effect on the paintwork where it should be perfectly smooth?

Orange peel on a car is a dead giveaway that paint hasn’t been applied properly, usually through a cheap, low-quality repair that doesn’t represent the attention to detail and dedication to providing optimum results that the painting and refinishing industry is known for.

In this blog, we’re going to take a look at what orange peel is, what causes it, and how to avoid it so that you can deliver a high-quality refinishing job every time. If you’ve ever been tasked with repairing orange peel paint, we’ll even cover that too.

What is orange peel in car paint?

When painting or repainting a car, a smooth, even finish is the desired effect. If you end up with a bumpy, uneven finish, something has gone wrong somewhere in the painting process.

Orange peel in car paint can appear when the paint hasn’t dried properly, leading to a bumpy finish resembling the peel of an orange.

It’s an avoidable problem that you can steer clear of by simply using the right techniques and tools for the job at hand.

What causes orange peel in car paint?

Although the end result is the same, there isn’t just one thing that can cause orange peel in car paint. There are a few different missteps that can cause this all-too-common, yet avoidable, issue to occur.

Poor preparation, such as not properly cleaning the area, may lead to an uneven application process. This is something that may require a complete rework on the job.

The paint must also be at the perfect viscosity to adhere to the bodywork correctly, if it’s not, you may end up with orange peel paint.

Poor spray gun technique, possibly from an inexperienced bodywork professional, may also lead to this mishap. Practice makes perfect with paint application, so be sure to practice on scrap before turning your hand to a client’s pride and joy.

If the paint looks good when it’s applied but comes out of the oven with an orange peel finish, it could be down to improper curing or environmental factors like temperature and humidity when it was applied.

How to prevent orange peel when painting a car

Now you know what can cause orange peel paint, you’ll probably want to avoid it. Here are six handy tips to make sure that the final product is even and smooth.

1.      Prepare the surface correctly

Making sure that you’re starting with a smooth, clean surface that has been properly sanded can help avoid orange peel paint.

2.      Configure the spray gun to the correct settings

Adjust the settings on your spray gun to ensure that the nozzle size, pressure, and fluid are controlled so that the paint application is even.

3.      Ensure professional spraying technique

The spray pattern, distance, angle and applying paint in several thin coats are all crucial to ensuring a professional, high-quality finish. Maintaining consistent overlapping spray passes also ensures even paint coverage and prevents dry spots. Maintain these throughout to avoid orange peel.

4.      Ensure paint viscosity is as recommended

Paint manufacturers spend a lot of time and money developing paint to be applied at a certain viscosity. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions for thinning your paint with the correct reducer to ensure the paint is prepared to the required viscosity.

5.      Paint in the right conditions

The more tightly controlled the conditions are when painting, the more likely you are to get a great finish. Controlling things like humidity and temperature is essential.

6.      Take extra care when drying coats

The drying process is just as important as the painting process. Ensure that the drying process is thorough and you allow enough time at the correct temperature to complete this process.

How to fix orange peel on car paint

Sometimes mistakes happen, or you might be tasked with fixing someone else’s work. If that’s the case, you might need to fix orange peel paint. Here are some tips to do so.

Sand & polish

For most minor instances of orange peel paint, a simple sand and polish will fix the issue. Mask off the affected area with a high-quality tape like JTAPE General Purpose Cloth Protection Tape or JTAPE Black Premium Cloth Tape to ensure a premium finish that protects the area without requiring any rework. Once complete, it can be easily removed, leaving no adhesive residue behind.

Wet sanding the area

For particularly bad examples of orange peel paint, you might opt to wet sand the area. Following this process can help ensure that orange peel paint is a thing of the past.

That concludes our blog about orange peel paint and how you can avoid it. Whether you’re fixing your own work or someone else’s, you’re now equipped with the knowledge to be able to solve the problem with ease.

With the right knowledge alongside JTAPE’s range of high-quality tapes, you can ensure that each paint job is completed with precision and professionalism.