One of the things that has annoyed me since bringing my Familia home three weeks ago and looking longingly from the bedroom window is the rather dull and dirty roof which is in contrast the the rest of the van which has clearly been well cared for. Indeed the owner of the campsite I used last weekend thought it a brand new van when I said it was my first weekend away! Anyhow, time and weather were right today to rectify this, and following a wash, polish x2 and wax the roof now passes muster. Forgot to take a before picture but have during and after.

Could you let me know what you used to wash and polish. I am keen to do the same but as a newbie I am a bit nervous of using the wrong thing!

to clean the roof on mine I bought a plastic long handled mop from Aldi £3.00 that has a Micro cloth over a foam block and it makes it so easy to reach for washing.

I used a sheepskin wash mitt and Autoglym shampoo followed by Autoglym super resin polish and finished with Autoglym extra gloss protection. Halfords currently have 3 for 2. A wash mop for up keep is a great idea, but if it's not had much loving lately, up close and personal is the way to start.

There's been a lot of discussion here (see "Silicone and fibreglass") about the use of products containing silicone for cleaning and protecting pop-tops. I believe the consensus was that they aren't a good idea. Well done for getting your pop-top into immaculate condition, but I'd be wary about using Autoglym on it again.

Quote: Aaron Calder wrote in post #6

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It's recommended for use on glassfibre car bodywork so what's the problem?

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Zitat von Pop540

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was recently asked why not to use silicone on fibreglass, although its always been a warning have worked with, thought should oogle to find out, here are the results so far,


text below from this link
From Charles P. Cohen on the Morgan mailing list:

My fiberglass expert has very nasty words about any wax that contains silicones. They work really well -- but when it's time to re-do the gelcoat, or repair the underlying glass, they are very difficult to completely remove. Silicone residue causes paint to "fish-eye".

From John Dunsmoor:

Do not use any product that contains either Teflon or silicone; most of these [non-traditional] products do. If you get either of these compounds on the topside, paint will not stick, neither will gelcoat.

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That seems like a reasonable ground to be wary.

Pop540 claims not to be an expert in this field. Neither am I. But we both have been sufficiently concerned to remark on the possibility that silicone and Eriba pop-tops don't go well together. Where's the problem with that?

Pete the Skunk is right when he says that the silicone in Autoglym products makes them easier to use. I've used them on my cars for years. But I chose to use Agger's recommended Harly's on my 430's roof. It was damned hard work, but I don't have that niggling "just-in-case" doubt about silicone.

My question - which might merit a separate thread: what is gelcoat? I've heard boat people talk about it, and I've seen it referred to now and again here. My uneducated assumption is that it's some kind of protection against UV damage, presumably something that fibreglass is subject to. I don't have the faintest idea how long gelcoat lasts, or if indeed its expected life is longer than that of an Eriba lid. So, nobody is talking about repairing a pop-top now in this thread; but it might be an idea to hedge your bets.

In any case, I'm neither denigrating nor advocating silicone products. I'm defending my choice to express an opinion based on reasonable doubt without it being shot down without discussion.

Zitat

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last edited 2 minutes ago

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you snuck that last bit in under my radar, you so'n'so!

Quote: Pepé Le Pew wrote in post #12

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It's the first thing into the mould before the glass matting is laid in.

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I think Eriba owners should be looking more at boat polishing/restoration techniques for the roof rather than normal caravan wash/polishing etiquette. When you watch some of the videos they look like hard work to get the oxidation (chalky) out and bring the shine back.

My van is only three years old so I am trying to slow down the effects of the Sun and the elements, I have a roof cover on mine during the touring season and a full cover in winter, so in theory the roof will only be exposed to the elements for approximately 40 days of the year.
I personally just keep it clean then spray with Bobby Dazzler

http://www.cfsnet.co.uk/acatalog/Gelcoat_Polishing.html

I think part of the problem is time! I don't believe you can fully protect the roof (which is particularly prone to discolouring, staining, etc). If you store your van inside, often you'll experience bird droppings, dust, wet marks (where the storage building roof has sweated). If you use a cover there are other concerns, many can be eradicated but none the less a cover brings it's own issues (according to thread history on here).

Time, being retired I'm in a position where I can dedicate time to what is possibly the 3rd largest in monetary terms purchase I will ever make! So imho I should look after it (I know from previous threads not all of you agree, thats fine it's your money, I just cherish what I've worked hard for!). Lots of others on here are retired, but they have differring priorities (a nap in the afternoon) I only ever sleep at night as I'm not old yet!.

Regular cleaning makes it less of a chore, you'd be surprised how much "dirt" is contained in your rain and awning gutters! I have seen photo's on here of others ("newly washed, cleaned Eriba") which to be honest I'd be cleaning again! It comes down to what you expect and how you want to look after your Eriba. You just can't expect it to stay clean with the occasional wash with dirty water and some household cleaner.

Again from previous threads "i only washed it last year" well that could be 18 months ago! In that you first washed it in March 2013 (prior to it's intended summer usage) and did'nt wash it again (which is when they "noticed" the roof was dirty!) until August 2014 (18 months, cosmic sums).

It is difficult for any of us (well you actually, as currently we are Eribaless!) to find time but I just bet you find it to watch the latest Big Brother, Love island or Corrie! all I did was forego the pleasure of watching these highly educational and informative programmes to clean our Eriba

Just in case some of you are unsure, most BUT not all of the above is meant tic (tongue in cheek)