They may have parked their car on the wrong street in Johnsburg as it is covered with bird droppings and sap while attacked by UV rays.

Ringwood has escaped from the days of snow, ice and roadsalt that challenges car, truck and SUV owners to maintain the exterior finish of their vehicles. But there are several other antagonists out there ready to attack the bodies of their autos.

This time of year, while stones kicked up in traffic near road construction is a hazard that can leave nicks and scratches in the paint of Ringwood owners of cars, trucks and SUVs, even when parked, vehicles aren’t safe from conditions.

One threat to that shiny painted finish is the sun. UV rays of the sun insidiously attacks a car’s paint. Those UV rays will suck the color right out of the paint. Left in the sun long enough, a car, truck or SUV’s paint job will be completely ruined.

Of course, the sun’s incessant assault on paintjobs is a slow process.

The answer to parking a vehicle out where the sun can get at it is to park the vehicle where the sun can’t reach it as directly. The best alternative is to park the car in your Ringwood garage. But the garage is not available everywhere you go.

If you can’t park the car, truck or SUV in a garage, you can always park under a tree. A tree will filter the sun’s UV rays to a significant degree. Unfortunately, trees come with a couple threats to the finish, too.

One problem is that birds like to roost in trees. And while roosting, birds will frequently respond to, shall we say, ‘Nature’s Call.’ The car, truck or SUV owner will find bird droppings on their vehicles. 

Birds can also bomb a car from the open sky. But that’s not as likely as the areas that are not under trees are greater than the areas under trees. The birds are moving and it’s not as likely when compared to a location where birds are perching. It does happen, as we can all attest, but not as frequently.

The problem with bird droppings is that they are acidic. They can actually mark their territory on your car, truck or SUV’s finish in the course of a single day. Their ability to damage your vehicle’s paintjob is exacerbated on hot, sunny days. In other words, you don’t want to leave bird droppings on your vehicle’s finish where the droppings can fester.

The other problem parking under trees is that trees drip. What trees drip is called ‘sap.’ Some trees drip sap more than others. And some saps contain more acids than others. 

The point is that you want to wash away bird droppings and sap sooner than later. Other than not parking your car, truck or SUV in the sun, you can also apply a UV resistant wax to your vehicle.