Love Bugs vs. Your Car
Love bug season is literally just moments away... is your vehicle ready for them? Living in Florida means living with love bugs. A quick drive to the grocery store can result in windshields, bumpers, and every other surface of your car being covered with black splotches - the splattered remains of love bugs.
It looks awful and it's a pain to continually scrub their carcasses off your vehicle,
but be forewarned, if you don't get them off, you will live to regret it! Love bugs contain acids that eat away at your paint finish if they remain on your car for any length of time. And our famous Florida sunshine doesn't help, (in fact, it speeds up the whole process) as the hot sun bakes those dead bugs making them even harder to remove. A good coat of car wax will make the removal job easier, but remember that you will need to re-apply the wax often to keep the paint protected. Some experts recommend applying a coat of wax at least twice a month, especially on older vehicles where the paint finish is already worn.Here are some tips to follow to help you protect your vehicle and survive love bug season:
- Keep a good coat of wax on your vehicle.
- Wash your vehicle and get those bugs off as soon as possible. The fresher they are, the easier they are to remove. The longer they stay on your vehicle, the odds of them creating paint damage increases.
- When washing the bugs off, don't use rough abrasive pads, cloths or kitchen sponges or scrubbies as they may do more damage to your paint job than the love bugs. They will all easily scratch your paint surface.
- Use a screen over your grille to help protect your radiator. It can become very dangerous if your radiator grille becomes clogged with dead bugs restricting the air flow.
- Whenever possible, plan your errands or leisure driving during the low love bug times: before 10:00 am and after sunset.
- Consult your local automotive dealer or retail store to find what products are safest and work the best.
- If you are travelling, stop at car washes whenever possible. Also major highway rest areas sometimes have hoses set up to help the bug stricken traveller.
Some insurance policies with road hazard coverage will cover damage done by love bugs. But, this is not the same as the road hazard coverage that comes with your new tire purchases. Love bugs are a pain, but they aren't strong enough to cause tire damage!Contact your independent insurance agent to find out more about road hazard insurance, what it covers and what it doesn't!
Read Original Article: http://www.wassonbayareainsurance.com/news/2013/05/love-bugs-vs-your-car
