Waxing your RV

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Stevej3658

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Waxing your RV, yep it’s a mammoth task. What do you guys use ? I have a 26’ Class C that needs a good detailing. Yep I’m to cheap to pay to have it done. I’m a big fan of Meguiars everything I just don’t know if it’s best for my RV. Suggestions please !!
 
Here is my best tip for what to use to wax your RV. I did not like working from a ladder.

Harbor Freight, sometimes on sale.
 

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I used McGuires Marine/RV products for years. Always did a good job for me. I usually take a section at a time. Spend a few hours and then rest up a day.
 
I used McGuires Marine/RV products for years. Always did a good job for me. I usually take a section at a time. Spend a few hours and then rest up a day.
I’m apparently in the wrong business cause I looked on line just for kicks. A detailing for a 26’ rv would cost well over 500 clams 😳
 
I've been using Turtle Wax Ice for many years. Spray it on, spread it around, wipe it off.

It comes in three forms: spray, liquid, and paste. I prefer the liquid because it lasts the longest but it's hard to find. I've never seen the paste anywhere but Amazon.
 
I have been using Protect All. Just purchased a gallon online from Amzon ($45) to refill my spray bottle.
 
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I wish I had found this link sooner. First day online here today. I purchased the Harbor Freight Scaffold and it works well for this. Also used spray on wax to finish 40 foot RV in one long day.
 
I've been using Turtle Wax Ice for many years. Spray it on, spread it around, wipe it off.

It comes in three forms: spray, liquid, and paste. I prefer the liquid because it lasts the longest but it's hard to find. I've never seen the paste anywhere but Amazon.
Turtle wax has made a good solid product for a long time, definitely look into this
 
I'll start with a question: Does the RV just need light cleaning and some shiny protection, or is there oxidation or "black streaks" to remove? If the former, you can use any of several excellent "wax" products, but the latter requires an abrasive polish and elbow grease (human or machine).

In this day & age, there is no need for labor intensive rubbing unless there is oxidation or deep-stain dirt to remove. Synthetic "wax" products like Protect-All or Turtle Ice are essentially wipe-on, wipe-off, and remove surface grime and leave a nice shine that is good for several months. If the surface is slightly dull, you can use a light duty polish-wax such as Nu-Finish or one of the many Meguiar's products. Those require some rubbing effort but nothing too terrible. It's not until you need to remove oxidized surface or faded paint that you need a heavy duty polish and lots of rubbing. Or maybe even a "rubbing compound" followed by a separate wax for protection & shine. There is no benefit in using a heavy duty product unless really needed.

An actual paste wax, e.g. carnauba, involves a lot of effort to rub on and buff off, but it is the longest lasting (a year) and most resistant to nasty environments (salt-water, acid rain, etc). However, most popular products labeled with the word "carnauba" are liquids or creams that contain only enough dissolved carnauba wax to make the claim legal. You are kidding yourself if you think there is any additional benefit there. Ditto for buzz words like "ceramic".

If your RV has full-body paint or is clear-coated fiberglass or metal, waxing/polishing is really no different than what you would do for your painted & clear-coated car. Any good automotive product should work fine. However there is still the consideration of light cleaning vs medium or heavy duty polishing. Many, perhaps most, RVs are at least clear-coated these days.
 
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Modern paint and treatments don't need the work required back in the 1960's. I'm not wasting time when it isn't needed.

I've used nothing but $4/gallon Blue Coral wash & wax on my wife's 2001 Chevy since it was new. It has sat outside in full sun for 21 years and the paint is still as shiny as when new. My 1997 RV has gel coat and has sat outside since I bought it in 2014. I wash it twice a year and it is also as shiny as new.
 
Our coach has full body paint, and we wash it once or twice a year (or if it gets very dirty) with ZipWax. It always looks great, and folks don't believe it's a 2003 coach. Full body paint does not need wax.

OTOH we've owned a number of boats with gel coat, and they took a lot of work to remove oxidization and keep them looking good. I've long been a fan of carnuba paste wax, but it takes a LOT of work (and time).
 
Detailing prices vary wildly, and it depends on how much prep the surface needs before wax application.

We spent a month in Palm Springs this winter at an RV resort. Local detail guys would come around and offer their services, pretty reasonable really. They did the rig next door to us, wash and machine wax and I think it was <$200. They did a good job and the owners kicked back in their lawn chairs while it happened. Worth the price IMO. I do ours by hand, but will probably pay someone when we go down this winter.

Truck washes also usually offer some kind of wax option fairly cheaply, if it's just a coat of wax you're looking for.
 
I'll start with a question: Does the RV just need light cleaning and some shiny protection, or is there oxidation or "black streaks" to remove? If the former, you can use any of several excellent "wax" products, but the latter requires an abrasive polish and elbow grease (human or machine).

In this day & age, there is no need for labor intensive rubbing unless there is oxidation or deep-stain dirt to remove. Synthetic "wax" products like Protect-All or Turtle Ice are essentially wipe-on, wipe-off, and remove surface grime and leave a nice shine that is good for several months. If the surface is slightly dull, you can use a light duty polish-wax such as Nu-Finish or one of the many Meguiar's products. Those require some rubbing effort but nothing too terrible. It's not until you need to remove oxidized surface or faded paint that you need a heavy duty polish and lots of rubbing. Or maybe even a "rubbing compound" followed by a separate wax for protection & shine. There is no benefit in using a heavy duty product unless really needed.

An actual paste wax, e.g. carnauba, involves a lot of effort to rub on and buff off, but it is the longest lasting (a year) and most resistant to nasty environments (salt-water, acid rain, etc). However, most popular products labeled with the word "carnauba" are liquids or creams that contain only enough dissolved carnauba wax to make the claim legal. You are kidding yourself if you think there is any additional benefit there. Ditto for buzz words like "ceramic".

If your RV has full-body paint or is clear-coated fiberglass or metal, waxing/polishing is really no different than what you would do for your painted & clear-coated car. Any good automotive product should work fine. However there is still the consideration of light cleaning vs medium or heavy duty polishing. Many, perhaps most, RVs are at least clear-coated these days.
I definitely have oxidation to take care of
 

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