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Old 07-03-2021, 05:56 AM   #1
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Roof and Slide Topper Cleaning

Well I just got to my place in Michigan (from Florida) with our new Gulf Stream Class C and pulled into the yard early this week. Now, my "yard" is really just an opening in the woods. Very heavy oak and pine area with no shelter, other than the trees. The trees are apparently in the midst of some very heavy dropping of very small seeds/pellets and they are everywhere. I can't recall this issue in previous years and I have had other RVs in my yard that didn't get anywhere near this messy but when I climbed up on the roof this morning I was stunned at the mess these seeds have made.


I swept the roof off but the staining is horrible and the slide topper is even worse as the water build up, from some rain, has made a mud type mixture that will not sweep off. I have never has this type of mess on a roof and my experience with rubber roofs is extremely limited so I am stuck on the best way to clean, both the roof and the topper. Obviously one of my concerns is that I don't want to damage either surface by scrubbing but I can't see how to get these stains off without using some elbow grease.


Thoughts?
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Old 07-03-2021, 06:40 AM   #2
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I use soap, water & white vinegar with a soft brush. I also use a 1700 psi pressure washer with a wide angle tip. You can use bleach, but you need to rinse all your awnings thoroughly because bleach will degrade the threads. You also need to rewax, because bleach removes that as well.
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Old 07-03-2021, 12:36 PM   #3
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....you need to rinse all your awnings thoroughly because bleach will degrade the threads. You also need to rewax, because bleach removes that as well.
New guy with a toy hauler. Never had a trailer with an awning, and don't want to have to replace this one prematurely. What's the "ritual" for keeping your awning nice/new-ish, especially when the trailer is sitting unused/uncovered for a period of a month or more? Up till now, I simply roll it out and dry it after each rain, but haven't washed it or treated it with anything.
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Old 07-03-2021, 03:16 PM   #4
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I use an old worn-out RV brush and a screw-in handle so I can stand and scrub the roof and slide toppers.
My mixture is auto soap, a few oz bleach in a 5G pail of water. I wash N rinse 1/3 of the roof at a time, doing toppers as I move toward the other end.
My MH has the original toppers and main awning, there is no spots on anything from dirt or mold.
I'm either doing something right or very very lucky.
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Old 07-03-2021, 03:41 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mikemc53 View Post
Well I just got to my place in Michigan (from Florida) with our new Gulf Stream Class C and pulled into the yard early this week. Now, my "yard" is really just an opening in the woods. Very heavy oak and pine area with no shelter, other than the trees. The trees are apparently in the midst of some very heavy dropping of very small seeds/pellets and they are everywhere. I can't recall this issue in previous years and I have had other RVs in my yard that didn't get anywhere near this messy but when I climbed up on the roof this morning I was stunned at the mess these seeds have made.


I swept the roof off but the staining is horrible and the slide topper is even worse as the water build up, from some rain, has made a mud type mixture that will not sweep off. I have never has this type of mess on a roof and my experience with rubber roofs is extremely limited so I am stuck on the best way to clean, both the roof and the topper. Obviously one of my concerns is that I don't want to damage either surface by scrubbing but I can't see how to get these stains off without using some elbow grease.


Thoughts?
Once a year I use Sunnyside TSP 1 4# bag in about 3 gallons of water. It kills mold and mildew and loosens stains. Then I use the 3200 psi pressure washer. It needs to be rinsed thoroughly and if it is a hot windy day I have a helper on the ground rinsing the sides so none of it dries on the paint. I have a fiberglass roof but it works well on rubber roofs too. It does rinse off if it dries on the sides but it is much easier to just make sure it doesn’t dry.

I bought my current DP last year and asked the PO who had it since 2011 when he had last been on the roof. Never. So yes, I spent 6 hours on the roof with the pressure washer. Make sure you get it rinsed well. Neighbor did his and said it was clean and rinsed. I bet him it was not as he had only spent an hour on it. Rained lightly that night and he had streaks down the sides from residue. They washed right off and he got up and spent another 2 hours rinsing. No more streaks.

The roof and top side of awnings, slides and slide covers are the most ignored part of a RV because you don’t see them, but most water damage to an RV is due to poor roof maintenance.

I spend winters in the rig in Mazatlán Mexico and we get a lot of junk,bird poo and iguana poo on the roof and fabrics. I have guys come buy and wash it on a regular basis including the roof.
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Old 07-03-2021, 03:45 PM   #6
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My TPO roof went neglected for years, and had a lot of black stuff on it from fires that have happened over the past few years. I thought I was going to have to use some heavy-duty cleaner, but I just carefully used a 1700 PSI pressure washer with no soap or anything. While I was up there I used a soft brush to clean the slideout topper with some awning cleaner. For my main awning I just use a long arm brush from the ground, with the awning sloped down, with awning cleaner. Then rinse and let dry before rolling up.

A couple pics of the roof when I was halfway done and then finished. Because of not using soap I didn't end up with any streaks down the side of the motorhome.

However if you have tree sap and stuff like that, I'm not sure how well this will work.
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Old 07-04-2021, 06:11 AM   #7
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303 Fabric Guard will help keep the topper from staining.
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Old 07-04-2021, 04:54 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tap4154 View Post
My TPO roof went neglected for years, and had a lot of black stuff on it from fires that have happened over the past few years. I thought I was going to have to use some heavy-duty cleaner, but I just carefully used a 1700 PSI pressure washer with no soap or anything. While I was up there I used a soft brush to clean the slideout topper with some awning cleaner. For my main awning I just use a long arm brush from the ground, with the awning sloped down, with awning cleaner. Then rinse and let dry before rolling up.

A couple pics of the roof when I was halfway done and then finished. Because of not using soap I didn't end up with any streaks down the side of the motorhome.

However if you have tree sap and stuff like that, I'm not sure how well this will work.
Yup, that’s about what my fiberglass roof looked like as the PO never went up there. Clean as a whistle now..
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