Can Stains like this be removed from the ceiling and walls

[Mike Tomas]

Ok. Collective mind trust: I have not posted a question before, so this is the best time to start. Thanks in advance for your responses!

ASSUMING NO MOLD OR SOFTNESS when pressed AND leak has been fixed, also- fiberglass roof is in great shape.

A) Can these stains be cleaned out? If yes, by what process?

B) Or should the liners be replaced? And if so- whats your best guess for factory replacement headliner With or without labor?

These stains apparently happened after the factory bat-wing antenna was sheered off while driving.

2004 Beaver Patriot (I an concidering purchasing).


Thanks!

-Mike

[pbucha]

I've heard a lot about this product, Instagone, but have never tried.

https://instagone.com/products/instagone

[CountryB]

There is a fabric/upholstery cleaner that was recommended on this forum, that my wife bought and used, and she said it really worked great. We cleaned the ceiling and couch fabric with it. As soon as she responds to my text I'll reply back with the name. I think it was something like Folex. Maybe someone else knows the name.

A bigger concern - is what caused those stains. Does the coach have a water leak? With water leaks, by the time you notice the damage on the surface, it can be extensive behind the wall.

UPDATE: Confirmed, it is called Folex (as others have also confirmed now). Good luck.

[tcg]

Originally Posted by CountryB

There is a fabric/upholstery cleaner that was recommended on this forum, that my wife bought and used, and she said it really worked great. We cleaned the ceiling and couch fabric with it. As soon as she responds to my text I'll reply back with the name. I think it was something like Folex. Maybe someone else knows the name.

A bigger concern - is what caused those stains. Does the coach have a water leak? With water leaks, by the time you notice the damage on the surface, it can be extensive behind the wall.

Folex is magic. I buy it by the gallon for my cleaning business.

It can be found at most home stores like Home Depot and Lowes.

[1doodadd]

As CountryB has stated I too am wondering with that much water damage to the ceiling AND walls of the coach what is the Damage Not Seen. That is water staining Damage over time not new. My Dad had damage to his 5er on the ceiling as the pics show here and it was a Major repair job for the roof and ceiling structure. You may want to reconsider that purchase

[edmck101]

I had this problem in my coach - unsightly water stains over the driver and passenger seats caused years ago by a roof leak near the antenna. After reading several posts offering different solutions, I purchased a spray bottle of Woolite Pet & Stain Remover. Follow the instructions and you will be well satisfied with the results. The stains will just disappear. Hope this helps.

[Mike Tomas]

I just had a Level-2 NRVIA inspector do a shake down on the coach. Overall, the coach inspected well. The owner saya that he knocked off the tv antenna and didn't notice it a couple of days. But I would have expected the stains to form around the crank handle first. I suspect the replaced AC unit has a bad roof seal and water may have gotten in there and it traveled the front side of the air vent. Replacing that seal isn't too scary.

But the coach is 4 states away and we should hear back about the three fluids condition today. If thoes come back with issues, then it's back on the sales block as we walk away.

[tcg]

I've successfully cleaned water stains from fabric material with a bleach based solution.

It's not for the faint of heart and I also have a 3 million dollar insurance policy just in case but I've never had to use it and I've restored headliner that was destined for removal.

Try Folex first by spraying the area and letting it sit for a minute or two and then use an extractor (think bissell little green portable) to rinse. If you don't have one or want to rent one you can use a spray bottle with water and a shop vac.

Use as little water as possible, sometimes the headliner can separate from the backing.

Many times the stain will come back and you have to repeat the process.

Hopefully you get lucky and the Folex works. It's some magic stuff.

[kwanwon]

As pbucha mentioned, Instagone works great. I was told about Instagone by an rv dealer and used it on my previous coach and it was great, it took two treatments and the stain which was much worse then yours was gone.

[Outbound]

My Safari Zannzibar had a fabric ceiling with a few water spots, I filled a spray/mist bottle with bleach, held a piece of cardboard under area to be spayed, took a couple of applications but when done you could not find a trace of water stains, not never tried it on walls? I would also think Bleach would also be good for mold.

[Mike Tomas]

Originally Posted by tcg

I've successfully cleaned water stains from fabric material with a bleach based solution.

It's not for the faint of heart and I also have a 3 million dollar insurance policy just in case but I've never had to use it and I've restored headliner that was destined for removal.

Try Folex first by spraying the area and letting it sit for a minute or two and then use an extractor (think bissell little green portable) to rinse. If you don't have one or want to rent one you can use a spray bottle with water and a shop vac.

Use as little water as possible, sometimes the headliner can separate from the backing.

Many times the stain will come back and you have to repeat the process.

Hopefully you get lucky and the Folex works. It's some magic stuff.

This is exactly what I was thinking of doing. Except with a wet/dry vac.

[Mike Tomas]

You all are telling me of your positive results with your own experience cleaning the stains away. Thank you.

Now, I'm getting concerned of just how much water got into the coach. The stains around the vents seem to stretch almost 2 feet from the vent. That may equate to a lot of water at some point.

I called Monaco and talked to a service person who has told me that if the ceiling is vinyl then that much staining would indicate a lot of water. But if the ceiling is made of a felt like carpet it mauy not be that bad due to the carpet absorpton rate...

I'm kind of teetering on this. The engine oil came back Very good. But soot levels were less than .1% which makes me think the oil was recently changed.... humm more thought needend.

[Electra 225]

Krud Kutter is a good product also. Use full strength or diluted. It is environmentally safe, no toxic fumes etc.

[Bob&AnnaMari]

As others have stated there are products out there that do some amazing things with the stains you see on this coach. I have had wonderful results with Oxy-Clean with issues like this.

We had a serious water leak occur when out bedroom slide out cover split away from the coach body. You would not think a slide out cover would make a difference, but when it tore away from the body, and we were in the middle of a serious rain storm, it allowed water to get down on the top of the slide out and we discovered a manufacturing defect that had gone unnoticed for several years. There was actually a hole in the top of our slide out that allowed rain to get into the slide out walls, flood the cabinets over the bed and go down the wall causing stains similar to what you see here.

I only mention this because your first picture is of the driver's side front-room slide out (not part of the coach body where the antenna is attached). I cannot imagine how any water from a "torn antenna" would migrate into the top of the slide-out. I think you have more issues here than just a broken antenna problem

I am also curious as to why the original owner just left the stains there. We knew immediately when our coach started to leak that we had a serous problem and did everything we could think of to get the water soaked up in towels and out of the coach even while it was raining (which included bringing in the slide out so no more water would get in). We also did everything we could to get the area dried and cleaned as soon as possible. Stains seem to be harder to remove the longer they sit. The stains I see here make it look like things were not dried quickly. But, if there was a structural problem with whatever water got into the coach, I would think the inspector you hired would have pointed that out. Sometimes looks can be deceiving.

The one really great thing about the 2004 Beaver is that all the framing is aluminum (versus steel on later models) and that cannot rust. So, as long as you don't seem to have a mold problem and the luan seems to still be solid, you may just be OK.