Cleaning the Exterior - RV-Dreams Community Forum

Grant · RV-Dreams Family Member

Cleaning the Exterior

Jim01 · RV-Dreams Family Member

That's a tough one.

Is there a Do-it-yourself car wash near by that has a bay that you can get your trailer into? I have seen them in some parts of the country.
Also, some Truck Stops have wash facilities. Maybe there confused

If all else fails, is there a CG in your area that allows washing of the rig? It might be worth it to spend a night there.

Good luck, Jim

RVDude · RV-Dreams Family Member

One way to wash a rig...
Get a remanufactured Karcher Model 2.16 at Big Lots for $60

PLUS

PLUS

PLUS

I bought a $60 factory remanufactured, extremely small (like toaster sized) pressure washer at Big Lots (Karcher model 2.16), and using a micro fiber pad on a stick (Target Rubbermaid for $8) can wash a 45 footer using the inverter to power the pressure washer and only 15 gallons of water from the RV water tank and viola, one sparkling clean rig.... The idea of the pressure washer is to minimize water use during rinse and these baby models are so low pressure they can't hurt anything.
I briefly wet an area using the pressure washer, dip the pad in a bucket of soapy water, scrub the area, and then rinse with the pressure washer. Usually only 15 gallons total and about 30 minutes time.

-- Edited by RVDude at 22:04, 2007-08-20

-- Edited by RVDude at 18:37, 2008-12-25

jdensie · RV-Dreams Family Member

We just started to clean our MH, which we do like to keep it clean. People talk about black streaks, but our whole roof was a black surface as we have been parked under trees for 4 months. Even our skylight was severely covered and would hardly pass sunlight through. We use "Black Streak Remover" ( formerly called "Reliable").
Just spray it on and with a damp sponge or rag, wipe it off. We have been using this product for many years and found it to be the best and easiest. It is best to keep wax on your wheel home. Good luck smile smile smile

Grant · RV-Dreams Family Member

Jim01 wrote:

That's a tough one.

Is there a Do-it-yourself car wash near by that has a bay that you can get your trailer into? I have seen them in some parts of the country.
Also, some Truck Stops have wash facilities. Maybe there

If all else fails, is there a CG in your area that allows washing of the rig? It might be worth it to spend a night there.

Good luck, Jim

I checked the Internet and the closest RV wash is about 30 miles away at a Truck Stop. However, the RV Park we are staying at this weekend allows washing the RV in your site as long as you don't squirt the neighbors RV. So, I drove to Campingworld to get an 8 foot brush and washed my wheel for the first time. I must say it looks much better but, it is a huge job.

I still don't know which of them many cleaning, waxing and preserving products at Campingwold I need but, for now the rig looks good.

Jim01 · RV-Dreams Family Member

Glad you were able to get your 5th wheel washed. Where there's a will, there's a way! smile

I know some people are going to disagree with this, but this is what I use.

I use Blue Coral car wash soap. If I see any mold, I put a little bleach in the water with the soap.

I use a bucket, dip the brush in the bucket of soapy water, wash a small section, rinse that section off, and move on to the next section. If the roof needs cleaning, (I only clean the roof about twice a year), I do it first and then the sides of the MH. If you are parked under trees a lot, you may have to do the roof more often. Also, if I have black streaks, I use Black Streak Remover on that section before I wash it.

Then if I feel real ambitious, (about once a year), I wax it with a good quality car wax.

I do not use the protectants that Camping World sells. I know some people swear by them, but I've had good results without them.

Hope this helps.

Jim

-- Edited by Jim01 at 18:56, 2007-08-19

Luvglass · RV-Dreams Family Member

Hi,
We've been full timing 18 months now and have washed the trailer maybe 5 or 6 times now. We had it through a truck wash once in Ohio last year, they did a really nice job for about $45, but we don't seem to see them when we're on the road that often. We've done the rest ourselves, it takes about 30-40 minutes. We got a long extendable brush and a wash concentrate at Camping World. We do the front cap a little more often as it gathers bugs.

We've not waxed it yet and the gelcoat surface still looks fine. Also, we've only had to wash the roof once, after a bad sand storm when we were camped on the ocean, the whole rig had about 1/8" of sand on it.

All in all, it hasn't been as bad a maintenance problem as I was led to believe reading some of the forums before we went out.

Frd

mikeway · RV-Dreams Family Member

I typically use a good wash and wax combination like Turtle Wax or ZipWax from Costco.

For waxing and polishing I use 303 Protectant and Protectall wax/polish. A good wash takes about 45 minutes to an hour, but a good polish can take all day. The wash/wax products usually remove grime well even a coating of ATF. Long handles and a good nozzle really help.

Mike