Black streak advice

[Tourershine]

I see the same topic time after time.... How do I remove the black streaks from my caravan?

I have mentioned the methods I use and it's always with products such as Autoglym wax for fresh streaks as this has a very fine cutting agent to remove such marks. Streaks that are more difficult to remove such as rust streaks I see quite often, are removed with a paint restorer. This has a far better cutting agent and takes a tiny layer of the surface off. This should be finished with a wax to protect.

Now.....my own caravan and customers caravan and motorhomes do not suffer from any streaks at all... Ever!

This is because I do the job correctly in the first place.

My free advice to anyone that want to stop these awful streaks is simple. Ensure firstly your roof is clean. Second, jetwash your gutters so they are mint. Third clean the tops of all window frames and most importantly, open all your roof lights and clean the area of the roof that is under the roof lights. This is where most the problems are from. I would always finish with a coat of wax in all these areas (other than the gutters) this will stop the grime building back up. This method takes a lot of time and patence, but it works. I have been back to customers months after I have worked on their vehicles and never seen any type of streaks. Plus my own caravan has never had a single streak down the sides.

I hope this helps many people with their fight against the dreaded black streaks.

Now if someone could tell me how to stop the dreaded weeds from overtaking my allotment.......

[Hopesy]

Weeds in the allotment.................concrete. :D

[Tourershine]

Good idea, though as the lady next to me kicked off after I put shail on my paths, I am not sure how she would react to a cement lorry backing up the allotment lane.

[maggyd]

Weeds! cover the ;lot with black polythene!! or do what the lad at G.W. did before going on hols he sowed green manure seeds which he then digs in when He comes back from his hols. ( wish I could remember names) Ah its come Joe Swift. :-D

 

As for the streaks isn't it bad to use a power washer on your van?? it removes all the filler from the seems. (excuse me being a women I use all the wrong terminology)

[Tourershine]

Powerwashers are fine if you use common sense. I use a low bar karsher washer to prevent any such issues. I have never had any problems on any customers vans old or new. If you adjust the nozzel to a slight fan and don't hold it against any sealer then you should not have any issues.

[Syd]

I have a 1999 caravan and I do not have any black streaks anywhere.

I use Finigans products, so easy to use and give top class results.

[Guest Tracker]

I find that '3M Marine Fibreglass Restorer and Wax' from our local chandlers does the cleaning and waxing job that goes a long way to curing streakiness as long as you do the sides and the roof.

 

In an unscientific comparative test last winter I polished the bonnet in 4 sectors with four different polishes in early November and the '3m' product held it's shine the longest and it took until March for the 'joins' to become invisible after a couple of washes and 6000 miles so it seems to work on steel too.