Removing yellowing from RV

[LongGone]

I just received my Fiberglass Restoration System kit, and started playing with the No 49 Oxidation Remover on several out of the way places. (The roof is fiberglass, so I can try all kind of things and you can't really see them unless you're on the roof).

I've tried by hand and with my PC; one coat, two coats, three coats; more product / less product; letting it get almost dry / removing excess when it's still wet...etc. In all cases it looks a lot better, but not quite what I was hoping for - it still looks yellow.

On the roof there's an area where the antenna blocks the sun when it's down. This area is still very white. The surrounding areas are yellow from the effects of the sun. I did my tests in areas adjacent to the white area - at best I've got about half of the yellow out.

Do I need to go to a more aggressive product? Or do I just need some improved technique?

[beeser]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

Looks like both of our situations are similar. If you wouldn't mind, could you tell us a little more about the type of fiberglass you have and the age? Is it a gelcoat? Do you have any oxidation or is it just yellowed?

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

one coat, two coats, three coats;

Just to double check because when you type coats, it reads like you're applying this like a finishing wax, that is spread it out over the surface and let it dry.

Used correctly, it should look kind of like this when you're applying it...





That is you apply about a tablespoon to your applicator pad and then work a section about a foot squared applying firm pressure with a fast hand movement.

Part of the cleaning or abrading power comes from the abrasives in the products. The other major part of the cleaning or abrading power comes from you and the perspiration and passion you put behind your applicator pad.


As for working with a DA Polisher, you would want to be on the 5.0 speed setting and in most cases you can use a foam cutting pad when working on oxidized gel-coat.

letting it get almost dry / removing excess when it's still wet...

The only Meguiar's paint care products that need to dry are our waxes, see this thread,

Which products need to dry before removing?

[Murr1525]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

I think he means coats of cleaner.

As in, 3 coats (applications) of cleaner isnt removing the yellowing.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

Gel-coats tend to be fairly porous, especially older technology. This enables liquids/rain/moisture/dirt to penetrate into them over time but this staining effect is topical.

Oxidation is also topical, so the way to remove the staining, yellowing and/or oxidation is to abrade the surface until you get past the problem and expose a new layer or base.

How much material you can remove, or how aggressive of a product you can use depends upon how thick the gel-coat is and that's kind of hard to measure. Usually gel-coat coatings and components are a lot thick than most automotive paints so removing too much material is usually not a problem but use common sense at the same time.


Check this thread out...

How much cut? #49 vs #67 vs #91





M49 Oxidation Remover is the least aggressive of these 3...

M67 One Step Compound is next in line and was designed more for hand application but can be used by machine for 2000 grit or finer

M91 Power Cut Compound is the most aggressive...It was designed to remove up to 1000 - 1200 grit on gel coat by rotary machine but can also be used by hand.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

I think he means coats of cleaner.

As in, 3 coats (applications) of cleaner isnt removing the yellowing.

I'm just wanting to know how he's applying it?

Some people apply an aggressive cleaner gently or like a finishing wax because they think the chemical is going to do all the work.

I've met plenty of people that have applied ScratchX like this and then been let down that they didn't remove any scratches. Sometimes the missing element is the passion behind the pad.

[Poki]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

I agree with beeser....more info. would be helpful. What is your RV brand/model/year? I have some experience with RVs having lived fulltime in one for 13 years now. Are your sidewalls yellowing too? Front and rear caps yellowing? Typically roofs and endcaps will oxidize MUCH worse than sidewalls. They are made by a different process. Roofs are seldom clearcoated. Depending on the age/model, the endcaps may not be clearcoated either. Give us a bit more info. and we'll see what we can come up with.....

[LongGone]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

I've got a 2003 Winnebago Adventurer. For the first 4 years of its life it was stored outdoors in the harsh sun of New Mexico, and while it was cleaned 2-3 times per year I used a basic wash/wax product made by a company specializing in RV products.

For the past 3 years it gets stored in the garage we built for it when not in use. But it's in use 4-6 months per year.

It started looking pretty bad last year, and I bought a PC DA polisher, and went over the entire "Bus" with a light oxidation remover, and then waxed. It looked quite a bit better, but not yet where I wanted it to be. Since then we've taken several trips, including spending the winter in Phoenix, where the drivers side got blasted by the sun every day.

So now I want to go after it again, but with a product that's more aggressive than what I previously used, which is why I went to the No 49 Oxidation Remover.

This thing's a pain to do - it's big, and there are a lot of decals/graphics that I need to work around and between. I don't want to go through the whole process only to find that I needed to use a different, more aggressive product.

[LongGone]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

The end caps, the drivers door, and the trim pieces around the slide-outs are all nice and white. According to Winnebago, they are painted white, and are therefore less likely to fade.
The rest of the sidewalls are all gelcoated, and have yellowed considerably, and the difference between the white painted areas and the yellowed areas is what I'm trying to fix. (hopefully it hasn't gone too far)

I was doing most of my test work on the roof, in case I made any mistakes. It's fiberglass, but has never had as nice a finish as the sidewalls.

[LongGone]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

As for technique, Mike...

I started by hand, since there are so many small areas between decals where I'll have to clean by hand. I'd work a 6" x 6" area, go over it a first time, using a circular motion with as much pressure as my 2 fingers could handle. After removing the excess, I'd repeat 1 or 2 more times on the same area.

It appears that my problem was in not using enough product - for that 6x6 area I was using a glop the size of a dime, and the product would dry up before I felt like I was finished working it. And at that point it would be difficult to remove with the microfiber cloth.

So I'm guessing that I was ok on the "passion" side of the equation, but short on the "product" side.

I'll try another area today, but with more product.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

It started looking pretty bad last year, and I bought a PC DA polisher, and went over the entire "Bus" with a light oxidation remover,

The PC dual action polisher has a clutch and if you push down too hard you will stop the pad from rotating. Dead, oxidized and stained gel-coat will be removed best when the pad is rotating against the gel-coat, not just vibrating against it.

Mark the back of your pad and even backing plate if you want like this so you can easily see if the pad is rotating or just vibrating.






Apply product to the face of your foam pad using one of these styles,


How to apply product to the face of your foam buffing pads

Below is how to apply fresh product to the face of you foam buffing pad when first starting out and your pads are dry. After you break you buffing pad in by working this initial amount of product over a section of paint, you can cut down on the amount of product you're using as the pad will be less likely to absorb as much product as it will become damp with product.





Remember don't turn the polisher on until the face of the foam pad is in contact with surface of your car's paint.


Technique
Quickly spread the product out of the surface you're going to work then slow your arm speed down and begin to use overlapping motions to work the product.


For this test, only work a section about 16" squarish, don't tackle too large of an area at one time. The tool is gentle in it's abrading action and can only effectively remove paint from small sections at a time when move the polisher slowly over the surface with the firm pressure.

In most cases, you want to apply as much pressure as you can while still maintaining a fairly fast rate of rotating speed. What you don't want to do is apply so much pressure that the pad rotates s-l-o-w-l-y.

Overlap your passes by 50% and do your best to keep the pad flat to the surface. If the pad is held at an angle so there's uneven pressure applied to the face of the pad this will keep the pad from rotating. (test this yourself and you'll see how important it is to hold the pad flat).


After working an application of product, wipe the leftover residue from the worked area and inspect, if the results look good move onto a new section overlapping a little into the previous section. Continue this procedure until you have finished a panel or the entire vehicle.

Also check out this thread, if you're removing oxidation your pad is going to load up with dead, oxidized gel-coat and also used-up or spent product.

In order to get the best performance out of the tool, the pad and your oxidation remove you're going to want to clean your pad often and always remove used product from the surface before applying fresh product.

Cleaning Your Pad On The Fly

The question often comes up,
How do I clean my buffing pads?

Or more specifically,

How do I clean my buffing pads after they become wet or saturated with the product I'm working with?


One way is to do what we call, Cleaning your pad on the fly. This means to take and hold a clean, soft, dry terry cloth towel, hopefully a towel with a thick nap, (the little cotton loops), against the face of the pad while it's still on your polisher and then with your hand that's holding the polisher, use your finger to turn the polisher on and then move the towel around and against the face of the foam pad. This will act to cause the excess product built-up in the foam pad to move out of the pad and saturate into the terry cloth towel. Then you can place the towel down and get back to working on your car.

This is called cleaning your pad on the fly because it's quick and simple and fairly effective for what you're trying to do.


Here's Cisco from one of our recent Saturday Detailing Classes learning how to clean a pad on the fly



Mike Stoops Cleaning a pad on the fly



As you clean your pad you'll see residue build-up on the towel.



Clean your pad often
Besides knowing how to clean your pad on the fly you also need to remember to clean your pad often, usually after every other application of product to the pad. That is, apply some product to your pad and work it to a section. Wipe off the spent residue and either re-clean the area or move onto a new area. After a second application of product to the pad and after you've worked it to a section, now clean your pad. This is cleaning your pad every other application of product to the pad. You can clean your pad after every application if you like too. Most people don't clean their pads often enough, so err on the side of caution. Cleaning your pad often maximizes your effectiveness and thus your speed and quality of end result.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

I'm checking on a product recommendation for use with a DA Polisher.

I'll be offline most of the day however but will try to update this thread when I can.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

Just double checked and if you want you can try either of these as they are okay to use with a PC Dual Action Polisher on gel-coats and they are both more aggressive than M49


M67 One Step Compound is next in line and was designed more for hand application but can be used by machine for 2000 grit or finer

M91 Power Cut Compound is the most aggressive...It was designed to remove up to 1000 - 1200 grit on gel coat by rotary machine but can also be used by hand.



You might also look into getting one of our W-7006 foam cutting pads. These are not recommended by Meguiar's to use with a dual action polisher on clear coat paints because they may haze the clear coat but they are okay to use with a PC/G110 when working on single stage paints and gel-coat finishes.

The smallest pad we make is a 6" pad but you might also look for a smaller pad as it will be easier for the PC to keep a smaller pad rotating when doing correction work.

If you haven't signed up for our newsletter, you might want to do that also, that's what I'm working on behind the scenes and it's going to be a good one.

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[LongGone]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

Thanks for the info, Mike.

I can now see some problems in my technique, especially with arm speed and pressure. Also with not cleaning pads often enough.

Like I said earlier, I'll try the No 49 again today with better technique.

[Poki]

Re: Removing yellowing from RV

Thanks for all the information. I like Mike's idea of using the maroon cutting pad on the sidewalls. Since the caps are painted, I think you'll get good results with the yellow polishing pad. Do you plan on treating the vinyl stripes with something?