DIY ways to take out some dents

Nothing ruins warm and fuzzy feelings about your daily driver more than a dent. Most shudder at the thought of filing an insurance claim and risking premium increases.

It’s no wonder many body repairs are paid out of pocket, but is there anything the average DIY-ER can do to take care of the problem? It depends on the extent of the damage, the surface and where it’s located.

If the dent involves metal, is large and smooth — say, anything over a foot in diameter — has no sharp edges and doesn’t involve a body line or crease, you might be able to remove it yourself with something as simple as an old-school toilet plunger with the large, rubber cup. There are countless videos online showing this process.

There’s some debate on using boiling water to warm up the metal first. Doing this is helpful to ensure the best possible seal between the metal surface and the plunger’s cup, but it should be avoided in extremely cold weather because it can weaken or crack the top layer of paint.

Another word of caution: while plungers are almost always at hand, the force inward on the dented surface can actually increase the size of the dent. You’re much better off with a purpose-built suction-cup puller, available from most auto parts stores for as little as $10. These tools work well because you don’t have to use any inward force, and the smaller cup diameter makes for a better seal.

Smaller dents on smooth metal — about six inches or less in diameter — can sometimes pop out without any suction force. All you need are alternating applications of boiling water and cold-air spray from an electronic dust-cleaning aerosol.

Some will suggest using a heat gun for the warmth application, but in inexperienced hands this can easily damage paint.

Dents in non-metal panels such as bumper covers won’t be relieved by just suctioning things out. When an impact dents these materials, it creates enough heat to permanently deform them and heat will be required to pop the dent out.

Boiling water won’t necessarily do the trick, so a heat gun is usually the answer. While these units look a lot like a blow dryer for your hair, they develop much higher temperatures and as we noted earlier, can easily damage paint.

The trick with using a heat gun is to keep the tip at least six inches away from the surface and to continually move the gun around to properly distribute the heat.

When the surface is warm to the touch, try pushing the dent outward from in behind the panel and keeping some pressure on it until the material cools enough to hold its shape.