Does Bird Poop Damage Car Paint? (Read This First!)

If you ever park your car in an open space then in many ways your car can get dirty and cause your trouble. Bird droppings are one of the reasons why cars get dirty. Today we are going to discuss what kind of damage can a bird dropping do to your car

Does bird poop damage car paint? 

Bird poop can cause damage to the car paint. Since it contains high uric acid and its pH is around 3.5 to 4.5, it is considered a corrosive element. It can penetrate the clear coat and leave a permanent stain. So, leaving your car stay in the open will damage the paint by burning it.  

Car paint is made of polyurethane enamel base coat and applied with an additional layer of topcoat to protect its glaze and quality from external stains. So, leaving your car parked in open areas will make it dirty due to bird poop.

Since car paint contains a very thin layer of paint, it can quickly cause significant damage to exposure to contaminants such as various chemicals or acids, including bird droppings.

Because the digestion process of birds is a bit complicated, the food particles in their body break down and are excreted as waste with the help of acid. So, it can quickly mess up your paint very easily as well.

As a result, the car paint can be easily damaged due to the harsh chemical contents present in bird poop. Moreover, the pH level in bird poop is between 3.5 to 4.5 which makes it harmful for the car paint.

Leaving your car with bird poop will leave a temporary stain on the car paint and it also might cause corrosion to your car.

Does bird poop permanently stain car paint?

Since bird poop contains harmful acid chemicals, it can leave permanent stains on the car paint. Bird poop contains materials that can cause corrosion on metals.

So, when birds poop is excreted onto your car paint, it could penetrate and damage the topcoat of your car paint, leaving a permanent stain on your car.

This stain can end up damaging car paint due to an acidic reaction from rainwater that contains harmful acids.

The acids in bird poop start to burn the clear coat and damage your car paint by leaving a temporary or permanent stain, finally ending up forming corrosion as well.

Can bird poop eat through car paint?

Bird poop contains powerful acids since the poop is digested material of their daily meal. Since bird urine contains uric acid, which has a pH of 5.00 to 6.00. And it is known as an intensely strong acid.

So, in this case, if you leave the car without cleaning it, uric acid will start to damage the paint by eating at the clear coat layer on the top of the car and end up damaging the car’s body.

So, you should be careful when removing the bird poop from its surface, dried poop might leave a scratch on the car paint if you scrub it too hard.

What does bird poop do to car paint?  

Bird poop causes significant damage to your car paint. Leaving your car with bird poop might cause corrosion to build upon the car paint surface and damage the metal part of your car body. Moreover, it will damage the paint by fading it.

They are very stubborn since they are highly sticky and difficult to remove once dried. Birds cause different types of stains to build upon the car surface, they are discussed below: 

Topical stain etching:

These are very easy to remove as they appear as a faded stain. You can simply apply a cloth and put pressure to take them off the car paint surface to avoid unwanted damage from your car paint. 

Fractured etching:

These stains are difficult to remove once they are dried as they become wrinkled.

Applying the same method used to remove topical stain etching might cause damage to the car paint. So, it is recommended to use WD-40 when removing them.

Why does bird poop ruin car paint?

Many people may think that a little bird dropping will not affect the color of the car and leave the car in that condition day after day. But this causes the car to start rusting.

Basically, the acid with a higher ph that presents in bird poop ruins your car paint. 

This is very obvious that bird poop will damage your car paint because the food that the bird eats mixes with the acid and leaves the bird’s body as waste.

And this high acid-mixed poop stays on the car for a long time and causes damage to the car’s clear coat which is a very thin layer of paint. So, try to avoid leaving bird poop on your paint to avoid unwanted stains on your car.

How long does it take for bird poop to damage car paint? 

It takes no less than 48 hours or 2 days to damage your car paint. Because, when you leave the car with bird droppings on top of it for a long time, it damages the clear coat by the acidic element it contains.

After a certain time, it dries up and starts to cause wrinkles and fractures on the car paint, which might be very difficult to clean. The amount of pH that bird poop contains is higher than 3, which is almost as acidic as lemon juice and harmful for the car paint.

So, leaving your car with car poop for more than 2 days will start to cause considerable damage to your car.

How to get rid of bird poop from car without damaging paint?

 Bird droppings lying on the car often dry out and sit on the surface, causing color damage as well as leaving stubborn stains on the car paint.

The reason why car paints get easily exposed to harmful contaminated chemicals is, the paint and the clear coat are applied using a thin layer of coatings and can be damaged easily by using acid.

The high pH present in bird poop is another reason that could cause serious damage to your car paint. Bird poop mixed with bird urines can cause stains on your car if you leave it for too long.

You might need to use any sharp object to take off the poop but it has a risk of putting scratches on the car paint.

But you can easily get rid of bird poop from the surface without scratching the car paint if you follow some instructions and execute them properly. The instructions are described below:

Clean the poop early:

As soon as you see the bird poop lying on your car surface. Do not hesitate to clean it instantly. The more you keep waiting, the more it starts to cause damage to the car.

Leaving bird poop on the car paint surface might leave the poop to become dry and difficult to remove. So, use a tissue or a cloth when and put press the poop by putting pressure using the cloth and wipe it off from the car. 

Hot water and baking soda:

Hot water mixed with baking soda will do the job very easily. The baking soda will react to the acidic solution in the bird poop and the hot water will melt the dried poop and help you take it off from the car surface.

Since the car surface is slippery, the poop can be removed easily by pouring hot water and baking powder on it.

Bird dropping wiper or spray:

You can find these wipes or sprays in automobile shops very easily. Simply spray the solution over bird poop and wipe the poop off using a wiper. This simple procedure won’t cause a single scratch on the car paint.

How to protect car paint from bird droppings? 

Since bird poop can cause you expensive damage by leaving major scratches and permanent stains. The reason why bird poop damages your car paint is that it contains acids such as uric acid, which causes damage to the topcoat of your car.

So, you need to follow some steps to protect your car paint safely from bird droppings. The followings are listed below:

Keep your car covered:

Keeping your car covered to avoid bird droppings causing your car to damage is one of the simplest ways to secure your car paint.

Avoid parking under a tree:

As you know birds sit on the branches of trees so the next thing is expected of them is to poop while sitting on the tree. So, avoid parking your car under a tree to protect your car from bird droppings.

Final thoughts

Since bird poop contains high-value pH and acids, it can damage your car paint. Besides, bird poop can damage the clear coat of your car paint and cause corrosion to build upon the surface. So, it is better to remove the bird poop immediately or it will cause permanent stains on your car.