RV Paint Protection

[ABMax24]

We are in the process of buying a new fifth wheel, (lost ours in a fire at the dealer), and of course they want to sell the paint protection, mouse shield and extended warranty for hundreds to thousands of dollars each.

Is there a product a person can apply on their own to keep the paint in good shape? Supposedly the dealer installed paint protection does help to reduce fading and peeling, but I don't mind putting in some elbow grease to apply something myself and save a couple grand.

Any thoughts? New unit is a 2020 Jayco Eagle HT if it makes a difference.

 

[SHREK1]

You get a much better job doing it yourself if you want to out in the labour, lots of products out there, just do some research to find the best products. Just ready to start doing ours. Will post what we do, so far a roll underneath and plug any holes or gaps with steel wool.

 

[arff]

Daveb on the site told me of a product. i did buy it and it works good. Cant remember the name. I can look tomorrow when I get home from work

 

[zal]

Lost in the McGoverns Fire?
We purchased it from them in 2009. Didn’t notice any difference. We sold the trailer in 2015.

 

[thump]

Check the website https://www.autoobsessed.com/ in Edmonton. I use there 'Pete's 53' carnauba wax then put on the 'Black Light' as a sealer. When I run out of this I am going to try the 'Chemical Guys Ultimate Glaze' for the polish and top it with 'Chemical Guys Jet Seal' as both contain UV protection. I use the stuff on all my vehicles and RV. Their stuff is reasonably priced and good quality. For my vehicles i usually use a clay bar or nanoskin and Meguires Ultimate Detailer as a lubricant(once a year) to remove any contaminants from the paint before I do the polish, it does make a difference. It can be a lengthy process but worth it in the end.

 

[ABMax24]

Lost in the McGoverns Fire?
We purchased it from them in 2009. Didn’t notice any difference. We sold the trailer in 2015.

Yeah it was in the shop at the time of the fire, nothing left of it. We bought it on our unit in 2018, didn't own it long enough to know if it did anything.

 

[sirkdev]

I polish RV's/boats/cars on the side, if it is painted gelcoat use a ceramic coat to protect. Top tier consumer level stuff right now is
https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/...eed-4-beed-spray-wax-680-ml-0391018p.html#srp
If it is unpainted and raw gelcoat apply Meguiars flagship marine available at Canadian Tire also.
https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/meguiar-s-flagship-premium-marine-wax-0790168p.html#srp

Synthetic always beats carnauba waxes for longevity. Carnuba looks great but doesn't last. Remember these are final protectant's if there is compounding to cleanup oxidization or fading that is another process.

 

[sirkdev]

Also don't forget the 303 aerospace for awnings and roof

 

[gedakbx]

Canadian Tire also sells Mothers TMX ceramic coating which I used on my boat after I had it polished last weekend.

 

[ABMax24]

I polish RV's/boats/cars on the side, if it is painted gelcoat use a ceramic coat to protect. Top tier consumer level stuff right now is
https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/...eed-4-beed-spray-wax-680-ml-0391018p.html#srp
If it is unpainted and raw gelcoat apply Meguiars flagship marine available at Canadian Tire also.
https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/meguiar-s-flagship-premium-marine-wax-0790168p.html#srp

Synthetic always beats carnauba waxes for longevity. Carnuba looks great but doesn't last. Remember these are final protectant's if there is compounding to cleanup oxidization or fading that is another process.

Thanks.

How does a guy tell if it's gelcoat or paint on the surface? Here's what I can get from the specs on the website.

[FONT=&quot]StrongholdVBL™ aluminum framed and vacuum bond laminated gel-coated fiberglass exterior walls (including rear wall and slide room end walls)
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Painted fiberglass front cap with built-in specialty LED lighting[/FONT]

 

[sirkdev]

This is where it gets a bit tricky..if its painted it reacts exactly like paint.. can strip it, scratch it etc it sits on top of the gel coat. Gel coat is very tough and the color is embedded right through the the material you can sand it and it won't change color. Gelcoat think like a boat hull with painted on stripe. Similar type concept for RV's. Accents may be vinyl or painted on. Very likely the base or main color is the gelcoat 75% of the RV. I hope this helps.. its hard to explain if you are in doubt the marine sealant can be used on both but it is yet to be proven that ceramic works on gelcoat due to the porosity. Although I think you will see it soon.

Thanks.

How does a guy tell if it's gelcoat or paint on the surface? Here's what I can get from the specs on the website.

StrongholdVBL™ aluminum framed and vacuum bond laminated gel-coated fiberglass exterior walls (including rear wall and slide room end walls)
Painted fiberglass front cap with built-in specialty LED lighting

 

[ABMax24]

This is where it gets a bit tricky..if its painted it reacts exactly like paint.. can strip it, scratch it etc it sits on top of the gel coat. Gel coat is very tough and the color is embedded right through the the material you can sand it and it won't change color. Gelcoat think like a boat hull with painted on stripe. Similar type concept for RV's. Accents may be vinyl or painted on. Very likely the base or main color is the gelcoat 75% of the RV. I hope this helps.. its hard to explain if you are in doubt the marine sealant can be used on both but it is yet to be proven that ceramic works on gelcoat due to the porosity. Although I think you will see it soon.

That makes sense. I'll take a look at it when we pick it up, but now that you describe it I think my old trailer was all gel coat except for the cap, as the cap would scratch and show a different color underneath like any other painted surface. The rest of the trailer didn't show scratches.

 

[johnny cash]

If not sure ask your sales rep or the service manager at shop. Most hard walls on trailers are not what I call gel coat like boats are.

 

[ZRrrr]

What's the recommendation for removing mild oxidation/fading on gelcoat? I have tried Mequiares Ultimate Polish as it was recommended, and it seems to work alright. Think I need something with slightly more cutting power.

 

[sirkdev]

Automotive paint and gelcoat are totally different and require different compounds you can go 4-5 times more aggressive on gelcoat which is difficult for average joe to obtain due to demand and liabilities. Link below is where you want to start.

https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/3m-marine-fibreglass-restorer-wax-0790208p.html?rrec=true#spc

Wool cutting pad on rotary low rpm. Pay close attention to what you are using, a "polish" removes very mild oxidization and leaves a high shine. Compound is more aggressive cuts deeper but leaves a duller finish for the polish to shine up. Then your top coat of protectant. I am not going to lie to you it is a big undertaking to do a heavily oxidized RV. I did a 36' toy hauler that took close to 40 hrs but it was new looking when it was done.

What's the recommendation for removing mild oxidation/fading on gelcoat? I have tried Mequiares Ultimate Polish as it was recommended, and it seems to work alright. Think I need something with slightly more cutting power.

 

[arff]

What's the recommendation for removing mild oxidation/fading on gelcoat? I have tried Mequiares Ultimate Polish as it was recommended, and it seems to work alright. Think I need something with slightly more cutting power.

Have you got it clean?

I used magic erasers. And about 7 hours to clean the black crap and chit off the walls. Worked really good.

Surprised how black and dirty the trailer was.

 

[Zrock]

When i used to work at a rv dealer we used to sell a 3 step process that worked great and basically required no effort at all to do.. Their was a cleaning I think it was a wash, cleaning compound, and sealant. I could do the biggest unit in a day easy.. Unfortunately i cant remember the name all i remember is it was a white bottle with red lettering.. I used it on my car at the time and it came out better than any automotive polish and stayed looking good for years

 

[Rene G]

When i used to work at a rv dealer we used to sell a 3 step process that worked great and basically required no effort at all to do.. Their was a cleaning I think it was a wash, cleaning compound, and sealant. I could do the biggest unit in a day easy.. Unfortunately i cant remember the name all i remember is it was a white bottle with red lettering.. I used it on my car at the time and it came out better than any automotive polish and stayed looking good for years

I’d love to hear what you used...

 

[DaveB]

Daveb on the site told me of a product. i did buy it and it works good. Cant remember the name. I can look tomorrow when I get home from work

Rejex wax is what I used on my moho since new....still looked brand new when I sold it in May at 10 yrs old. It was full body paint, so I'm not sure how it would work on gelcoat. Rejex is airplane wax....I use it on everything now. Makes the bugs wash off the front of my car real nice.

 

[Caper11]

I use nu finish. Believe it or not its the easiest product I have found to use in the heat. I did my travel trailer last summer and water still beads on it.