News 9 Puts 'Do-It-Yourself' Hail Damage Repair To The Test

Recent severe weather caused widespread damage across the metro. Roof damage and busted car windows can cost thousands to repair, but what about those hail dents in the body of your car?

Some people say skip the body shop all together. But is that a good idea?

If you're like thousands of other Oklahomans who suffered hail damage from the recent storm, you might have thought to yourself. Can you save a few bucks on repairs? Well we decided to find out if there are really any cheap and effective do it yourself repair methods.

5/29/2012 Related Story: Hail-Packing Storm Causes Injuries, Damage In OKC Metro

A simple Google search for hail damage returns dozens of result for "do it yourself" repairs. Some reviews say they work, others say no way.

So we grabbed the dry ice, compressed air, a hair dryer, the "Pops-a-dent" kit, and, of course, the damaged car to test them on.

First up is the "Pops-a-dent." The directions say apply a generous amount of hot glue, attach the pad to the car and wait.

In the meantime, we moved on some other suggestions. The guy in an instruction video says to heat up the area around the dent with a hair dryer until it's hot to the touch, and then put the dry ice over the dent. It's supposed to force the metal to contract and dent pops out, or not.

It turns out the dent is still there.

With that, we tried the compressed air after heating up the dented area, which is supposed to have the same effect, but no luck.

Eight-minutes later and the "Pops-a-dent" is ready. It popped, but the dent is still there.

We couldn't get any of these methods to work, but several of our viewers told us on Facebook it can work.

Some of these techniques might work better on bigger dents, so feel free to try them. But judging by the amount of dents this recent hail storm left behind, it might just be worth it to take it to the body shop.

So if you do take your car to a repair shop, there are a few things you want to keep in mind. Ask people you know to recommend a good place, never pay up front and check the company's Better Business Bureau grade.