Jan 17, 20233 min read

Love Bug removal and protection

Updated: Apr 18, 2023

It’s that time of the year again. Here in Florida, everyone knows about those annoying Love Bugs. In the middle of April and in May you will see those little black flying insects all over the place. Although they are harmless to you and me, they can damage your vehicle.

mobile detailing love bug removal — Auto detailing love bug removal with steam

It is virtually impossible to avoid them when driving. You hit them with your vehicle and they stick to your vehicle's bumpers, windshield, side mirrors, hood, grill, and other spots. More importantly, if you leave them on your vehicle they will damage your paint. The remains of the Lovebugs along with the sun's help will turn those remains acidic. The sun will then bake it into the vehicle’s clear coat finish. It will leave a pit or etching. This will be costly to repair and in some cases, require having it repainted.

How do I protect my vehicle?

The first thing you would do is avoid them. That means you cannot drive your vehicle and that’s no fun.

You need to protect your vehicle. Wash and clean your entire vehicle. You then want to apply wax to the entire vehicle. You can use wax or sealant. This will help to remove the Love Bugs when you get them. It will also protect your vehicle’s clear coat and make it super easy to clean those dead Love Bugs.

How to remove Love Bugs?

Here are 5 easy and simple steps to remove the Love Bugs.

1. With your garden hose, try to use the pressure to blast those bugs off. The goal is to remove the loose ones and cool the areas that you will be cleaning. This will not remove them all by it will help to remove the easy ones.

2. You can use a sponge with car soap and water to gently remove those Love Bugs. Do not scrub too hard but try to remove them as this will cause scratches in the paint.

3. I would recommend buying some bug and tar remover from the local auto parts store. The remover works great and helps to achieve the desired results quickly and easily. The next thing to use is dryer sheets or a towel. This is not ideal to use because it will leave scratches or marring. Along with the soap and water use the dryer sheets to remove the Love Bugs.

4. Once all the Love Bugs are removed you need to apply wax to protect them. I would recommend waxing your vehicle with a liquid wax with a high content of Carnauba or applying a sealant. The option is to have a ceramic coating installed. This will help you remove the Love Bugs the next time.

Auto detailing Orlando FL — Before and after love bug removal

What to do so the Love Bugs don’t damage the paint?

1. Make sure the vehicle is waxed or some sort of sealant is applied.

2. Do not allow the heat from the sun to bake those Love Bugs, thus turning them acidic.

3. As soon as possible remove the Love Bug residue with either, a garden hose, pressure washer, steam, detail spray, or a microfiber cloth with car soap and water.

4. Protect the areas that are prone to get Love Bug splatter. Every time you clean and remove those Love Bugs, you must follow up with a detail spray or wax. You can use spray wax for a quicker application. It will add the much-needed protection you need.

What to do if the Love Bugs already damaged the paint and can’t be removed?

If the bugs were not removed at all and now you can see a white mark in the paint, then you would have two options;

1. Have a professional detailer wet sand and polish the area.

2. Have another professional paint it.

Fresh Eco Steam Cleaning uses the power of steam and pressure to remove the Love Bugs. Our mobile detailing team will come to your home, office, or workplace to perform our detailing services. We are self-contained and never need to use water or power from our clients. We use steam to clean so there is no water runoff nor any cleanup after we are done. We do not use any harmful or toxic chemicals to detail. For the removal of Love Bugs, we simply blast them away. This method will not scratch your vehicle and makes our job so easy.

Here is a video of how we remove Love Bugs from the vehicle with Steam.