bedro Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 My 2001 Autosleeper Executive is getting more difficult to clean by the year. Fibreglass in particular. Not helped this winter by water dripping from overhanging oak trees apparently bringing resin with it. Ok, maybe not that, but it's certainly very difficulty to remove with my usual Turtle Wax Zipwax. One oldtimer says Jif is best - wash off promptly. He then adds that an application of softwax will help make the job easier in future.. OK,I can try a small test with the JIF (not the bleach variety),and maybe I can try the wax on a small patch but I'd welcome input on waxing and any recommended product, and any pros and cons re Jif before I start. I have at least a week before it's warm enough to start any washing! Thanks bedro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJay Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 bedro - 2015-02-05 12:07 PM My 2001 Autosleeper Executive is getting more difficult to clean by the year. Fibreglass in particular. Not helped this winter by water dripping from overhanging oak trees apparently bringing resin with it. Ok, maybe not that, but it's certainly very difficulty to remove with my usual Turtle Wax Zipwax. One oldtimer says Jif is best - wash off promptly. He then adds that an application of softwax will help make the job easier in future.. OK,I can try a small test with the JIF (not the bleach variety),and maybe I can try the wax on a small patch but I'd welcome input on waxing and any recommended product, and any pros and cons re Jif before I start. I have at least a week before it's warm enough to start any washing! Thanks bedro We find it difficult to clean/polish van. So have decided to have it done professionally by www.motorhomevalet.co.uk He is coming to us to do it. I found this reference on this forum. I felt it was worth having it done PJay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leake Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Fibre glass needs to be looked after properly. Unfortunately you now have some very hard work ahead of you to put matters to rights. Fortunately it is possible to get it back gleaming like new. Go to a boat chandelers and have a chat with them. What you are going to need is a marine fibre glass restorer. This will get rid of problem bloom but will demand a lot of hard work. Once you have done this apply some good quality marine grade fibre glass polish and it will be back gleaming like new. We use Starbright which is generally held to be the best. To maintain the fibre glass you should polish it each Spring and Autumn. Alternatively get the restoration done professionally using the correct power tools. Most boat yards will be used to doing this kind of work or,you may find others who can do the work. I would make,the point that this is specialised work so you do need to go,to a company that has the experience to do the work properly. Once done polish twice a year with good marine quality polish. Many people make the mistake of thinking that fibre glass is maintenance free and by the time they discover otherwise the damage has been done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Why waste money on so called marine polish. Auto Glym is the best I've found for the money. Brilliant polish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Peter - For the task of removing oxidation Autoglym Single Resin Polish is not entirely suitable especially if the oxidation is bad. I use a marine grade polish that is specially formulated to remove oxidation on all my rejuvenation valets as through experience I have found it gives the best results. I have just revamped my website, but will get some photos up soon illustrating my point. Bedro - Please don't use Jif your van will probably end up looking worse than when you started and don't try to remove tree sap unless its softened first as it can take your paint off if removed incorrectly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyg3nwl Posted February 5, 2015 Share Posted February 5, 2015 Hi, I am jusr recovering from a nasty fall when attempting the cleaning task. 5 broken ribs, collarbone, shoulderblade and punctured lung for my troubles. I strongly recommend you get a valeter firm to do the job..I have found a place in Ringwood local to me who has the setup for mobile cleaning and valeting (cold water), or at his premises a steam cleaning process.. I will be using him in future. He is located at rear of Wells garage, on Salisbury road from Ringwood. Tonyg3nwl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fred22 Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 Hi, In my owners manual Autosleeper recommend Farecia Boatpride Materials as follows Cleaning Fibreglass bodies & roofs Farecia Boatpride Hull Cleaner. Discolouration Farecia Boatpride Rubbing Compound Removing Scratches from Bodywork Farecia Boatpride Rubbing Compound or Farecia Boatpride Acrylic Window Polish Removing Scratches from Acrylic Windows Farecia Boatpride Acrylic Window Polish. These should all be obtainable from Boat Chandlers or Autosleeper outlets. These details are taken from my 1996 owners manual the may not be obtainable now but I expect a similar product has taken their place Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJay Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 Our local car wash (hand wash) will do Motor homes. They do a good job. Yes it is only wash, but at least it helps to keep all the muck of . PJay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darcywick Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 I have had my van cleaned by motorhomevalet , he did a brilliant job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 bedro - 2015-02-05 12:07 PM My 2001 Autosleeper Executive is getting more difficult to clean by the year. Fibreglass in particular. Not helped this winter by water dripping from overhanging oak trees apparently bringing resin with it. Ok, maybe not that, but it's certainly very difficulty to remove with my usual Turtle Wax Zipwax. One oldtimer says Jif is best - wash off promptly. He then adds that an application of softwax will help make the job easier in future.. OK,I can try a small test with the JIF (not the bleach variety),and maybe I can try the wax on a small patch but I'd welcome input on waxing and any recommended product, and any pros and cons re Jif before I start. I have at least a week before it's warm enough to start any washing! Thanks bedro Autosleeper themselves recommend Farecla, it removes the 'haze' and gives a deep shine to the Gel-coat on Monocoque Autosleepers. And it does. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/301410932581?limghlpsr=true&hlpv=2&ops=true&viphx=1&hlpht=true&lpid=108&chn=ps&device=c&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0-L&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=108&ff19=0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Had Enough Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 I recently sold a motorhome that I'd had for four and a half years. I never put a lick of polish on it or on the previous one either, and it looked superb when it went. I just wash it using a soft brush and normal car wash fluid. Nasty drip stains are easily removed by a gentle rub with the afore-mentioned Farecla. Mine's a very fine grade given to me by my body shop. I think mine's G10 grade. I still climb a folding ladder with a platform to wash the roof, but make sure that my wife is holding it steady as a fall can have very nasty consequences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 Thanks for the recomendation Darcywick. In my opinion using Farecla on a regular basis could result in rubbing through the gel coat. Please remember when using any abrasive, Farecla included always use a good quality wax afterwards. Otherwise you will make matters far worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leake Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 fjmike - 2015-02-05 7:44 PM Peter - For the task of removing oxidation Autoglym Single Resin Polish is not entirely suitable especially if the oxidation is bad. I use a marine grade polish that is specially formulated to remove oxidation on all my rejuvenation valets as through experience I have found it gives the best results. I have just revamped my website, but will get some photos up soon illustrating my point. Bedro - Please don't use Jif your van will probably end up looking worse than when you started and don't try to remove tree sap unless its softened first as it can take your paint off if removed incorrectly. A man who obviously knows what he's talking about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 Years ago when it was considerably less expensive and we had an A/S Talisman I bought a combination of these on the recommendations of a boatyard well used to polishing and preserving tired and oxidised GRP. The advice not to over use it is sound as the gel coat is thin, especially the non white colours, but once cleaned and waxed it should last well. http://solutions.3m.co.uk/wps/portal/3M/en_GB/MarineSolutions/MarineSupplies/ApplicationProcesses/CleaningAndRestoration/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bedro Posted February 7, 2015 Author Share Posted February 7, 2015 Many thanks for all your inputs, good people. What I was looking for was a wash better than the carwash liquid quoted, and a name or two for soft wax to be applied following the wash. All the other information has been an eye opener...Warnings about tumbles have been taken to heart - that slippery top will be washed from a ladder propped against the sides, using a long-handled brush. I'll try that Autoglym polish on a small patch and see how it looks one year hence. Feb weather heatwave of 6.35 Celsius today, so went out and completed the wash. The hosepipe was frozen in places - that's a new one. Not bad for 81 years. No, not the hosepipe! Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leake Posted February 7, 2015 Share Posted February 7, 2015 Tracker - 2015-02-06 7:12 PM Years ago when it was considerably less expensive and we had an A/S Talisman I bought a combination of these on the recommendations of a boatyard well used to polishing and preserving tired and oxidised GRP. The advice not to over use it is sound as the gel coat is thin, especially the non white colours, but once cleaned and waxed it should last well. http://solutions.3m.co.uk/wps/portal/3M/en_GB/MarineSolutions/MarineSupplies/ApplicationProcesses/CleaningAndRestoration/ Quite. The restorers, which are the hard bit sould only need to be used once to get the finish back. After that if the correct polish is used on a regular basis. They will not need to be used again. I used to use Starbright polishes before we changed to a PVC but I do,seem to recall that one company make a combined cleaner and polish which could be used of the damage is not too bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leake Posted February 7, 2015 Share Posted February 7, 2015 bedro - 2015-02-07 3:40 PM Many thanks for all your inputs, good people. What I was looking for was a wash better than the carwash liquid quoted, and a name or two for soft wax to be applied following the wash. All the other information has been an eye opener...Warnings about tumbles have been taken to heart - that slippery top will be washed from a ladder propped against the sides, using a long-handled brush. I'll try that Autoglym polish on a small patch and see how it looks one year hence. Feb weather heatwave of 6.35 Celsius today, so went out and completed the wash. The hosepipe was frozen in places - that's a new one. Not bad for 81 years. No, not the hosepipe! Thanks again Starbright do make a marine boat wash and wax designed to be used on fibreglass which we used to use. It will help maintain your polish but will not restore fibreglass that has gone dull and or discoloured. Do please make sure the ladder is secured so that it cannot slip sideways. Believe me it can happen I am able to confirm that for certain though luckily I suffered no serious injury. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Joe90 Posted February 7, 2015 Share Posted February 7, 2015 The gel coat on our Rapido is starting to look a little tired, and taking on board some of the products and remedies offered in this and other threads the one thing that I have yet to read is the effects on the copious amounts of Decals that cover our van, do these need to be avoided ( nigh on impossible I would have thought ) when using some of these products, or can one safely get stuck in by hand or with a machine ? ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spadge Posted February 7, 2015 Share Posted February 7, 2015 I have also fallen off my motorhome roof while cleaning same but luckily I bounced off the wifes MX5 on the way down breaking my fall and nothing else. ( I did dent the MX bootlid slightly though ) :$ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted February 7, 2015 Share Posted February 7, 2015 Joe90 - 2015-02-07 5:04 PM The gel coat on our Rapido is starting to look a little tired, and taking on board some of the products and remedies offered in this and other threads the one thing that I have yet to read is the effects on the copious amounts of Decals that cover our van, do these need to be avoided ( nigh on impossible I would have thought ) when using some of these products, or can one safely get stuck in by hand or with a machine ? ;-) Great care has to be taken with decals (this is also relevant when cleaning) too much abrasion and you will end up with white decals. Please don't even think about machine polishing unless you know what your doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Joe90 Posted February 7, 2015 Share Posted February 7, 2015 Thanks for that, and I wouldn't know what I was doing, pity you are in Wiltshire and I'm in West Wales, you could have the job. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter James Posted February 7, 2015 Share Posted February 7, 2015 I tied the steps, but was shocked how slippery the van roof becomes when its covered in soapy water and I had waterproof plastic trousers on. If the roof had been sloping at all I would have slid off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted February 14, 2015 Share Posted February 14, 2015 I bumped this thread to report my expereinces of a roadside car wash, where I took our really filty MH this morning becuse the visiting valeter I have used in the past has given up. There was a bit of negotiation but they agreed to do it for twice the price of a car - which consideing the acreage of surface, was quite a good deal. It was a gang of Eastern Europeans, tidy-looking and energetic young men with a gang boss, who spoke some English. They were hampered by only having a low step to climb on but they did have brushes on sticks and sprayed bodywork and wheel several times between several rounds of pressure washing and hand washing with sponges. Lacking any high steps they didn't attempt the roof but I suspect they would have done. They dried off and did the windows again with some special stuff and blacked the tyres. The transformation was remarkable. The MH hadn't actually been washed since last September, when it came back from France up the M6, got pretty dirty and was simply put into the garage. Then there was the trip last month to Reading, coming home on the M40/M6 with lots of salt on the roads. It was dark dull silver and quickly became light, shiny silver again as they cleaned it. I can now face, perhaps even enjoy, the detailing work which is still required and in due course I'll give it a polish too. I will use these guys again if they are still around, and next time I'll take my high steps with me and get them to do the roof. Their big pressure washers and their spray tanks of chemicals (two different ones?) see to make easy work of things. £20 they charged - and worth every penny it was too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bertieburstner Posted February 14, 2015 Share Posted February 14, 2015 once you have it clean I recommend giving it a coat of Supagard. This is the stuff car dealers try to flog you for £200 when you buy a car. Get it from ebay at about £10 or less had it on my Bailey for just less than a year now and it really makes washing so much easier :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted February 14, 2015 Share Posted February 14, 2015 I too got a 'gift' from Brownhills Swindon, when I bought my last Motorhome from them. A 'Gardex' care kit, never used any of it, until this winter, washed it with their 'special wash', then rinsed their 'Special protector' over it. Give them their due, It is still keeping shiny, AND more importantly the roof is staying clear of 'Green Algae' . No way would i pay £200 for a 'Gardex Treatment though ! On 'My' Autosleeper Talisman, i always used 'Farecla' as recommended by Autosleeper themselves. And it was very good, and the shine lasted a whole year before it needed doing again. BUT it was was hard work, even with an electric polisher ! Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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