The Best Ways to Repair Small Dents From Hail & Dry Ice

A hair dryer is a useful tool when repairing small dents.

A hailstorm can quickly lead to a massive repair bill. Vehicles left out in the open are pelted with chunks of ice, each chunk leaving a dent in the bodywork. Extremely large hail will require a trip to the body shop to repair your car, but these storms are mercifully rare. Most hail is small, causing small dents that are repairable. The same techniques work for small dents caused by dry ice blasting.

Using the Sun

The heat of the sun beating down on your car will cause the metal of the bodywork to expand, popping out many small dents. Simply leaving a car in the sun all day when the skies are clear is enough to do this. With repeated treatments, you do risk fading the interior finishes; covering the windshields and windows with sunshields will help protect them from the sun. You can also apply fabric and leather conditioning sprays to the interior of the car to give your finishes a layer of protection.

The Hair Dryer Method

Using a hair dryer is a quick way to get the same heat effect you would from the sun. Hold the end of a hair dryer 2 to 4 inches away from the dent and turn the dryer on. Apply the heat for two minutes at a time, repeating until the material in the dent pops out. Avoid touching the car with the end of the dryer; it is quite hot, and may damage the paint around the dent. This method is only likely to work on small dents that are relatively shallow.

Dry Ice

Using dry ice increases the effectiveness of the hair dryer method by making the temperature differential greater, thus increasing the force of expansion in the metal. To use dry ice, you will need to put on thick gloves or use tongs, then press a small piece of dry ice against the dent. Keep the dry ice there until frost shows up around the dent, then apply heat from a hair dryer until the dent pops out.

Drilling Out Dents

As a last resort, you can drill a small hole through the center of the dent, then insert a small hook and pull the dent out until it is again flush with the body of the car. Once this is done, you will need to fill the drilled hole with repair compound, then re-paint and re-wax the bodywork. This is expensive and time-consuming work, so you may instead want to go to an auto body shop that offers dent repair.

References

• Cars Direct: How to Repair Car Hail Damage