How long do you keep vehicles in your shop after a wrap/decals are installed

[204SignGuy]

Our lead installer is constantly insisting that all graphics, whether it be a 2'x1' logo on the door or a full wrap, need to be kept in the shop overnight. I get this for the colder months of the year (being in Canada), but is this really necessary for a 25C (77F) day? What do you guys do in your shops? I haven't been able to find any proper documentation either way.

 

[Gino]

Ask him, why ??

 

[brdesign]

Some the the low tac super repositionable easy slide wrap vinyls do recommend waiting 24 hours and re-squeegee the entire vehicle to make sure it's stuck. This came from an Oracal rep trying to sell their proslide vinyl. Sure it's easy to peel off an entire panel and reapply it if you make a mistake but it can take some extra effort to really make it stick, I'm not a big fan of those vinyls.

 

[Stacey K]

No, most of my jobs are dropped off the night before, I work on them the next morning/day and they get picked up that afternoon/night. To be without a work vehicle for 2 days is almost a hardship for some small businesses. If it's winter then I do keep the vehicle in the heated shop for as long as possible or for at least a few hours. Especially if there's any wet application involved. Not in summer...apply and out the door.

 

[rjssigns]

Stacey K is on point.

Many years ago we used to letter all the vans for a plumbing company. Owner said time is money and each van was worth $900 a day in his pocket. We worked out a plan to keep him happy. He would pull the van into the shop and as he sat in the drivers seat I would hand him the newspaper and an ice cold Coke.(his request) Wife did the passenger side while I did the drivers side. Graphics/lettering were huge but we had it down pat and took about an hour. He was always happy and kept coming back until he retired.

 

[XtremeXccessories]

Not everything, no. Simple logos or lettering can go straight out. If it's something like a full color change I definitely try to keep inside for the recommended 24 hours during the Utah winter.

 

[WB]

Full wraps partial wraps yes. Anything else goes out if it's in the way, if it's not it can stay in until the customer comes to pick it up.

 

[GAC05]

The rule here: We keep them until the check or credit card clears.

 

[myront]

Here in "god awful hot florida" we pull it out of the climate controlled wrap room and park it and call the customer for pick up. Only thing we tell them is not to wash it for a few days.

 

[brentjosker]

a good yard leaf burner with a propane tank, a thermal thermometer and a good post install heat to 220 degrees should ensure the vinyl wrap can outside immediately.

 

[zspace]

We have customers waiting to drive them away as soon as we finish. In Houston, TX we don't have the extreme cold weather so maybe the question never came up.

 

[CKCUSTOMKC]

less than 2 days most times, sometimes my installer will finish the morning of pick up, ideally I try to have the wrap done and finished at least two full working days before the customer pick up, but since we are the manufacture of what we are installing on as well, I typically have a larger window for printing and application than most places

 

[gabagoo]

I usually let them go once they are done if I have to. I can only think on cold wintery days, maybe a complex logo that needed to be put down wet would need time to dry, but only an hour or two. Never have had any customers return with any issues, so it must be OK.

 

[Scotchbrite]

We don't do wraps except for a few rare cases. Everything we install is dry so we don't worry about keeping them inside after install. The only thing we get particular about is having them in the heated shop for a few hours before install in the winter months. As others have mentioned we do tell customers not to use high pressure car wash for a few weeks. In general we warn them about pressure washing anyway. We've had several redo's for customers that had employees get carried away with the Hotsy machine.

 

[Gino]

Just had a vehicle leave this morning and I was telling her not to wash in a carwash for a month or two, as it's not down tight yet. In fact, if you can avoid car washes altogether that would be good. She said, being a Remax person, we have a contract to run our vehicles through a carwash several times a month. She said, I'm not gonna do this by hand. This stuff should last. Oh well...............

 

[De.signs Nanaimo]

I tell the clients the car needs an overnight stay otherwise I can't guarantee it, that drops responsibility to the client. That said I did a colour change on a retired ambulance that didn't fit in my home based shop. Wrapping it under a tarp during the coldest winter here on record, and 3 feet of snow fall was not fun, but everything has stayed in place after 3 months now!

 

[rydods]

In winter months, anything smaller that we can apply a consistent amount of heat over so the adhesive can bond better, we'll send out same day. Wraps are overnight for sure but I usually try to do wraps late in the week so there is a possibility the vehicle can be left in our shop through the weekend and picked up on Monday.

I have had a hood stripe come off a guys truck one winter. I applied the graphic in a cold garage and didn't apply enough post heating. Better safe than sorry but in some cases, it's a bit overkill.

 

[McDonald Signs]

If it's really cold outside I try to leave a full or partial wrapped vehicle in my shop overnight. If it's summer time I just pull them outside and the sun will heat the wrap up. If it's just decals on a flat surface on the vehicle they can go right then.
I do tell people to wait a week or two to wash the vehicle though.

 

[Gino]

Had one leave the shop yesterday and all the graphics came off today. It wasn't wrap material, though.

 

[Stacey K]

Had one leave the shop yesterday and all the graphics came off today. It wasn't wrap material, though.

I sure hope this is the loser customer you were talking about and not a new issue! LOL