Polishing the trailer

[Loren]

I need to shine up both the Avion and the Holiday Rambler (HR) trailers this spring. The Avion belongs to a friend and she intends to sell it, and the HR (mine) was bought used and needs a polish.



Does anyone have any suggestions on how to go about this? Are there any products that make this tedious job easy? Okay, how about just easier, then?



My plan was to buy one of the whizz-bang Cyclo polisher kits from Top of the Line. They are the auto detailing supplier that was mentioned in these forums some time back. You can find the polisher at http://www.topoftheline.com/cycorpol.html . They also sell polishes and pads/supplies for the polisher.



I am hoping to find a polish that will shine up the fiberglass sides (and top on the HR) without too much effort. I don't want something too abrasive either, of course. The Avion has a rubber roof that is stained (from fungus, I think), and I haven't found anything that will really clean that up well.



I'm not looking forward to the job, since I expect it will take days, even with a power polisher, but the Avion will sell better if it looks good, and the HR needs to shine if it's going to be attached to my truck.



Maybe this will get a little off-season discussion going on this under-utilized forum for a while. I'll be out of town for a few days starting soon, so it will be a while before I can reply. I'll check on as soon as I get home. (No laptop yet; it's on my wish list. )



Loren

 

[Barry]

FORGET WAXING YOUR RV. That went out with fender skirts. The product we are using is called NYALIC. Wash the unit. It must be clean and free from any soap or wax residue. Then take and shoot the Nyalic on the coach and see the transformation. Nyalic is a space age clear coat sealer that penetrates and seals. Colors bounce back. The units glisten like they were new and it lasts for years. We order it in 5 gallon pales. The job you are doing will only take a gallon. Cost should be around $175 with shipping. We average using 1 to 1 1/2 qts. per coach. Look up www.nyalic.com or it's competitor Vivilon: www.vivilon.com PS: That is the money makingist deal I have ever seen. 1 guy with 2 helpers can gross $1200 to $1500 a day! On Vivilon's website there is a before and after pix of a Holiday Rambler Monitor Trailer. That was mine. It sat in some old folks yard for years. It was so oxidized you could not tell what color is was. I allowed them $4500 for it on trade. I had it cleaned and shot and sold it for $8500. Read my lips! This stuff works!! Also they have a new paint that is the stuff they use on the space shuttle. Coat the top of your RV with this stuff and it drops the temp 25 to 30 degrees. One guy got carried away and painted his entire moble home with it. Cut his utility bills 50%. Neat stuff. Cost is about $695 for a 5 gallon pale and covers about 500 sq. ft. Guaranteed for 10 years.

 

[paccool]

Barry,



If I saw this I wouldn't believe it and would say B. S. - had to be touched up pictures. But, since it was you, I think I need some of this. Do they use it on cars and pickups as well? Is it applied like paint or with something like a garden sprayer?

 

[Loren]

Barry,



I am also amazed! If you hadn't said it was true, I wouldn't have believed it from the web sites.



I have a million questions.



Is one of these products better than the other, or are they basically the same thing under different names? Will it work on the rubber roof on the Avion as well? Can you apply it with a paintbrush or does have to be sprayed? Does it require a special sprayer or will a regular automotive spray unit work? Can you use a garden sprayer or is it more critical than that?



Obviously, this stuff will take care of the oxidized fiberglass sides, but I am still trying to find something that will clean the stains off the rubber roof. Any suggestions for this too?



Thanks a bunch, Barry. You have probably saved me a whole lot of work.



Loren

 

[Dkevdog]

Loren- I purchased the cyclo polisher from Top of the Line about 6 months ago and I can only HIGHLY reccommend the polisher and Top of th Line. First of all, the people at Top of the Line are top notch- and really know their sh*t. That cyclo polisher was hard to justify even to me ($300!!!!) but has proven itself to be well worth it. I bought it for myself and did the wife's van first (practice makes perfect) and then the ram. It looks better than the day I got it and the it was effortless. We have a couple of highly oxidized aluminum cargo trailers at work I played around with and had similar results. Need sunglasses just to look at em!!! Their polishes are pretty good too and very reasonably priced.



Kev

 

[Barry]

Let me see if I can answer ALL your questions. 1st. I like Nyalic best. It is very easy to shoot and you almost have to be deaf, dumb and stupid to screw it up. Vivilon is a little finiky. 2nd. You can apply it to rubber roofs. However, it is a clear coat sealer. If you do not clean and prep well, it merely seals what you left. 3rd. Spray it with a regular paint gun or an HVLP. (in the event you miss a small spot, you can put a small amount on a clean rag and wipe the missed spot. It is that easy to work with) 4th. My suggestion on the rubber roof is to buy about 3 gallons of the insulating paint. Clean your roof well. Roll the roof with the paint. Let it cure. Shoot with Nyalic. Guaranteed for 10 years and will cut the temps on the roof 30 degrees. The guy that is "Mr. Nyalic" is Skip Hawkins. 770 368 2323. Tell Skip I asked you to call. The uses for this product are unlimited. Something like dump or concrete trucks. Clean 'em, shoot 'em and then from time to time, just rinse them off with a garden hose. Nothing sticks. FLASH! Wait 'till you pull your fifth wheel thru bugs with this stuff. You can take your dry hand and brush off the dead ones!! No more scrubbing!!! I tell you, this stuff is the best thing since zipppers on britches... ... ... ... ... ... . Paccool: I would not spray it with a garden sprayer. Use a paint gun. The only car I have used it on is an old Ford Tempo that had sat in a field for 2 years. It was a faded out charcoal grey. I allowed the people $300 on trade. Cleaned it up... ... ..... shot with Nyalic and sold it for @2995

 

[Charley]

I love this place! I don't even have to ask the question I'm wanting answered, someone else does and all I have to do is read. The Holiday Rambler will get a coat of Nyalic as soon as the weather permits.



Thanks guys,



Charley

 

[Fireman]

Borax

That is what I use to clean the rubber roof. It takes about a whole box to clean the roof on a 35 footer. Just wet the roof, sprinkle on a little borax, scrub with a carwash brush, and rinse.



Fireman

 

[Barry]

Charles: Give me a call and swing thru Granbury on your way home and we'll shoot your coach with Nyalic.

 

[Charley]

Guys I'll take Barry up on his offer and go through there sometime after the first of the year to have my trailer coated. I'll get before and after pictures and post them. My trailer really doesn't look all that bad but the fiberglass front cap is really dull. It would be worth it just for that.



I figure it couldn't hurt to have a professional do it anyway. I'd rather pay a little more for a good job than do it half fast myself.



Charley

 

[Barry]

Charley, I did'nt say we were prephesonal. Why, we'll get that Wagner Power roller out and have that stuff drippin off of all 4 sides of your trailer for you can shake a stick!! PS: I have an RV hook up on the lot.

 

[Loren]

Kev - Thanks for the input on the Cyclo Polisher. I may not use it on the RV's, but I probably will buy one to make shining the trucks easier. The ‘95 hasn't been getting the attention it deserves since I bought the Y2K, and this will be a good excuse to get the polisher. I'm glad to hear your recommendation about the guys at Top of the Line. It's always nice to find out in advance when dealing through the Internet or mail order.



Barry - Thanks for the answers. I'll call Skip and see about buying some Nyalic from him. If this stuff is half as good as it sounds, why am I just now learning about it? It sounds like every farmer with an old tractor would know about it, and I know several farmers with old tractors. I'm looking forward to trying it on the RV's, but it will probably have to wait for better weather.



Fireman - Thanks for the info on using borax to clean the roof. I'll give it a try when it gets warmer. I have already tried bleach and that didn't do as good a job as I wanted. I was hoping that there was some magic chemical to take off the fungus stains, but I guess it still involves elbow grease. I'll look into the roof paint at the same time, although I probably won't us it on the Avion because the owner intends to sell it. The Holiday Rambler may get it, though. We intend to keep that trailer quite a while.



Loren

 

[Shelby Griggs]

Questions for Barry and Dkevdog

Dkevdog,



I have an aluminum diamond plate bed on my Ram. Have you tried the polisher on diamond plate, and if so did you use the special pads they sell for that? What polish did you use the Rolite aircraft polishes?



Barry,



I have read the NYALIC web site before. How does this stuff work on non treated aluminum, like my flat bed? Do you need to acid wash first or otherwise get a shine? It would some that you must polish first, prior to sealing???



Thanks guys,



Shelby

 

[Briar Hopper]

Check out www.griotsgarage.com they have the best random orbital polisher and waxes... The catalog I get from them has pictures of Richard Griot polishing his old and very rare Ferrari with it, while applying his weight to it... They advertise that it doesn't build up heat and burn the paint, or cause swirl marks.

But naturally, that's better for cars. I'm much more inclined to go with what Barry recommends for RV's, in fact I ought to try it (Nyalic) on my trailer... not looking forward to cleaning the black streaks off the old fashioned way !!!

 

[Barry]

Shelby: The guy that turned me on to Nyalic had one of those high dollar horse trailer dealerships. He would get these brand new aluminum trailers in, sell them and in 6 months they looked old. He tried Nyalic and from then on, everyy trailer that came in (new or used) got shot. No more dullness or black streaks. Now, sometimes, you will get black streaks from the run off of your roof. After the unit has been treated with Nyalic, you can take your dry had and rub the black streak off onto your hand!!! (we still have not figured out how to get the black off of hands... ... ... ) For some reason, the product actually lasts on metal finish better than fiberglass. We generally expect 2 to 3 years on fibergalss and 3 to 5 on metal. If you have a place that gets a little dull, no problems with touch up.