While most dents on an aluminum hood won't directly impact your car's operation, it's understandable that you'd want to fix an eyesore. When removing a dent, it's important that you know both what kind of equipment to use and what kind of mistakes to avoid. To ensure that no unexpected problems develop while you're removing a dent on your car's aluminum hood, keep these four potential pitfalls in mind.

Trying To Use A Toilet Plunger To Remove A Small Dent

A toilet plunger is sometimes all that you need to remove a large dent. However, if your dent is about the size of your forefinger or smaller, you won't be able to lift it with a plunger without overcompensating and bending the aluminum.

Even if you think you could get away with using a toilet plunger on your dent, try to find a specialized dent puller so that you don't have to take any risks with your hood. Although dent pulling kits can cost a significant amount of money, using them instead of something else is easier and more straightforward.

Applying Dent Puller Adhesive In Damp Weather

Any good dent pulling kit will contain a small amount of liquid adhesive for binding the dent puller itself to your hood. For best results, you'll need to give the adhesive time to dry before you start pulling on your dent.

Dent pulling adhesive doesn't dry very well when it's exposed to damp weather. To prevent latent moisture in the air from weakening a dent puller's bond with your hood, either wait until the weather's dry or drive your car into an enclosed garage.

Pressing A Dent Puller Too Hard Against Your Hood

If you put too much pressure on your dent puller as you use it, you risk cracking the paint around your dent. Since your dent puller adhesive should keep the dent puller in place, there's no reason to apply any more pressure on your hood than what's necessary to operate the suction cups. 

Not Applying Polish After The Dent Is Fixed

After your aluminum hood is smooth again, you'll need to address any holes in your car's polish that you've caused. While you shouldn't apply so much hood polish that your car takes on a glossy sheen, holes in your car's polish will worsen over time if you don't address them.

Even if you think that removing a dent from an aluminum hood is a simple task, you should take all the precautions you can. Otherwise, you risk causing more problems than you solve. If you want the work professionally done, work with a provider like Exoticar Paintworks Inc.

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