Don't even think about it!!! You might as well dust your car with a piece of sand paper.....

 

What are you talking about? The California duster does not harm the paint if properly maintained. Mine has worked great for years.

 

That is why I was asking before I tried anything. What do you suggest doing?

 

yeah i have one and no problems. works great between washes

 

I need something. My truck is turning yellow there is so much pollen on it!! I can't stand that.

 

I wouldn't use a duster just buy a bottle of quick detailer or something and give it a wipe down. I generally don't touch anything dry to my paint.

 

I have some quick detailer but i think that combined with the pollen will make more of a mess than help. My problem is solved for this week....it is supposed to rain the next couple of days. But this info will be good because I'm sure the pollen isn't going anywhere

 

I have the dash duster and regular duster. Both work great.

 

Because I basically use it before and after every drive, I use the dash (because it is smaller) duster. My paint is cherry! I use the duster before the detail spray and wipe down. My theory, and it is unproven, is that if you get the truck dirty and leave it dirty for any amount of time, it doesn't come as clean as if you cleaned it immediately, or never let it get dirty. IMO The duster is mandatory whether you have pollen or not.

 

There is a lot of debate as to whether dusters are safe to use or not... it comes down more to knowing when to use it and when not to use it.

I personally use a california duster, but only when its safe to do so...

ONLY when there is a light coating of dust... like the kind that settles on the paint after being in the garage for a few days. I don't think I would recommend it in cases where you are dealing with outdoor contaminants.

Also when using it I only LIGHTLY let the ends of the fibers come in contact with the paint, move steadily in one direction and don't touch panels much below the 1/2 way point on the doors (road contaminants on the lower panels)

It should be noted that a new cali car duster needs to spend 24 hours wrapped in newspaper before using in order to leech all the excess oils and waxes from the fibers otherwise you'll end up w/ streaks on the paint.

Short answer to the original question is USE COMMON SENSE... if its more than a light coating of dust then do not use a duster.

 

I use a duster if the car is clean. I would say for the first couple days or so after a wash, it's cool to use. don't drive it for 2 weeks and then bust out the duster, the debris will be too thick and can streak the paint with fine scratches. If you wash it, let it sit at a car show, and want to wipe it off half way through the day, your good to go, but dont wash it for the car show this week, and then dust it off next week after a week of driving. Or, test it out on the roof or something. Just dont "test" it on the hood! I say use it. Also, keep the duster clean. If it gets nasty, it doesn't matter how clean the car is, you could end up with problems.

 

For me I just feel more comfortable not using something like that, just because I know that it has the chance of scratching my paint, even if its not likely. I dont know about the dirty theory, mines gotten pretty filthy and always comes clean. I can't see why it wouldn't as long as you wash and wax it properly.

I have seen the results of someone who misused a california duster and it wasn't pretty, but as long as you only use it for very light dust you should be ok. Try the technique dylan suggested.

 

I use one here and there. Similar to what dylan said, if its very light surface dust, I will use it gently. Havent had a problem yet. Just be cautious and dont go overboard on what it can handle.

 

Sounds good. Of course it would have to be a daily thing otherwise the pollen will become so thick that it will require a wash as suggested. It sucks but there is nothing I can do about it.

 

I use the Zymol wool duster. More expensive but it works well for light dust and pollen. If the pollen is turning the car yellow, then I would rewash.

 

Definitely sounds like you have more surface contamination than any duster will safely handle. Probably more than QD spray and an MF will take care of safely as well.

Just get used to washing more frequently and garage the beast whenever possible.

I also find it useful to use compressed air to get heavier contaminants like pollen off the surface... unless the pollen hits the surface when its sunny or hot outside you can typically blow it off w/ some compressed air. May not be the best/quickest solution, but it might help a little bit.

 

Well its not that bad at first but after 2 days it was bad. I have to park outside so the pollen does sit on the surface in the sun and heat. I have an air compressor in the garage that I thought about using....it blows out a little water though. I don't mind washing that much. So I guess that is obviously going to be my best bet. Thanks for replies.

 

I probably screwed up and didn't leave it in newspaper for 24 hours at first.. Who knows. The thing has been sitting in my garage in the bag for over a year. Can I clean it and start using it again??