Dumb Dents – Removing Auto Body Dents Yourself
It seems that no matter where you park your car, someone or something manages to slam into it and cause a dent. Before you go and take your car to the auto body shop to have the dent removed, there are a few tricks that can help you get the dent out yourself to save you the time and expense of the trip to the auto body shop.
Bumpers
Bumpers are dented often. If your plastic bumper has a dent in it, you may be able to pop the dent out quickly with nothing more than boiling water and some elbow grease.
Tip: If you have a water percolator, you can use it with an extension cord and your hose to make as much boiling water right there at the car as you will need.
Start by parking your car directly in the sun. The sun will work to heat the bumper and decrease the amount of hot water it will take to heat up the plastic.
Now, boil some water and pour it slowly over the dent. This will make the plastic more pliable and easy to work with. Reach up under the bumper and push on the dent with force. If the plastic is hot enough, the dent will begin to pop out as you push on it. You may need to reheat the plastic several times before the dent is fully removed.
Body
When you get a dent in the body of the car, you have a few different options, including special tools that use suction cups to pull the dent out. Other options include:
Heat and Cold
Use a heat gun to heat up the area of the dent. Be sure not to get the surface too hot or you could damage the paint. Once you have the metal good and hot, use a can of compressed air to rapidly cool the surface. The immediate change from hot to cold should cause the dent to pop out on its own.
Plunger
Using a cup plunger has also been effective in removing large dents from cars. Just wet the surface of the car and the plunger, stick it to the dent and pull with all of your might. This might just do the trick.
Vacuum and Pot
Find a thick plastic flower pot with no more than one hole in the bottom. Get a strip of weather stripping used for doors and windows and apply it to the top of the pot. This weather stripping is what will protect your car's paint from getting scratched and it will help to create a more air-tight seal.
Now, drag out your shop vacuum and stick the nozzle to the hole in bottom of the pot. Press the pot up against the dent and turn on the vacuum. The suction should create enough force to pull the dent out of your car.
If you are unable to get the dent out on your own, your local auto body technician will be happy to help. Contact a business, such as A.O.K Auto Body & Glass, for more information.