Is Bat Poo that Dangerous for my Car?

At Detail Artisan, we often receive phone calls either asking about the strength of our paint protection or if we can help somebody whose car has been defecated on by birds or bats.

Unfortunately, for those who have suffered visible signs of damage on their vehicle, guaranteeing successful removal is often quite difficult due to the nature of the damage. This is further explained below.

However, for those looking to prevent this damage from occurring, our series of glass coatings do wonders in protecting the paint both long term and from acidic etching or the elements.

As you will see below, a young owner of a new VW Polo in black came to us distraught as a bat had done it’s business all over the roof of the new car. Unfortunately within a few hours, the highly acidic bat droppings had eaten into the car’s clear coat. By the next day, the owner had tried to wash it off with water but to their dismay the stain would not disappear.

Wet-Sanding the Bat Droppings with 1500, 2000 and 2500 grit

Even after polishing all the sanding marks, the bat poo stain remains.

If you look carefully at our photo’s above, you can see the frayed cracked appearance. This is what acidic etching looks like when it’s eaten all the way through your clear. Had the bat poo remained on the surface for another half a day, the clear coat would be peeling even though it’s a new car.

We informed the customer that the likelihood to removing it successfully was less than 50%. We proceeded with sanding the area with fine grits of sand paper in order to remove the etching. However, it became clear quickly that the sanding was only going to assist slightly.

While the surface has become extremely glossy, the acid marks from the bat poo remain.

This is a key focus on why paint protection is extremely important. The finishes on our modern cars are not designed to resist certain elements like water marks, acid etchings or swirl marks. To find out more about our paint protection options check out: