how to clean and polish fiberglass

[NORA EARHART]

I will be a new camper. Retired nurse. I bought a Burro, 24 yrs. old, it is dull looking. Should I wax it? What about leaving it out in the snow. any information will be helpful
thank you,
Nora

[Roger C H]

I will be a new camper. Retired nurse. I bought a Burro, 24 yrs. old, it is dull looking. Should I wax it? What about leaving it out in the snow. any information will be helpful
thank you,
Nora

Try this thread:

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/in...howtopic=32081

[Alf S.]

Hi: Norra...and My name is Alf S. and I am a "Fiberglass Addict". "Our Escape Hatch" has been in storage for 6 days now and I'm suffering from "Withdrawl"...
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Kevin K]

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/index.ph...mp;hl=poli+glow
This is the best stuff I have ever used.

[Harry Young]

www.JamestownDistributors.com carries good products for polishing and cleaning, also some stain removing products that have worked well for me when needed. The poli product that is highly rated via the grapevine here I have tried and worked well too... cleaning the surface first made it work even better. Plastic gel coating has a set decay rate and that is non negotiable, however good care can pay off, My fiberglass rig is 39 years old and I am just going to redo the gel coat because of some micro fractures in the outer coat. Welcome to a really great site and enjoy your trailer.

I will be a new camper. Retired nurse. I bought a Burro, 24 yrs. old, it is dull looking. Should I wax it? What about leaving it out in the snow. any information will be helpful
thank you,
Nora

[Vi Turner]

www.JamestownDistributors.com carries good products for polishing and cleaning, also some stain removing products that have worked well for me when needed. The poli product that is highly rated via the grapevine here I have tried and worked well too... cleaning the surface first made it work even better. Plastic gel coating has a set decay rate and that is non negotiable, however good care can pay off, My fiberglass rig is 39 years old and I am just going to redo the gel coat because of some micro fractures in the outer coat. Welcome to a really great site and enjoy your trailer.

As one nurse to another, I really think PolyGlow is worth the $$! We used the cleaner that they make, before applying several coats of PolyGlow. Although our Trillium is nearly 30 years old, it shines like new. I had tried Mequire's products, but that did not last 3 months and was a lot more work! Good luck on whatever you decide. Maybe I will see you around some day! Vi

[Pete Dumbleton]

Be careful with polishes -- Technically polish removes some of the surface to smooth it -- Polishes usually contain varying degrees of abrasive materials, so read the labels and apply gently.

A note on power tools -- I have noticed a direct correlation between friends who use power buffers and early failure of finishes on vehicles and fiberglass boats -- If one must use power to polish (brrrr!) or buff, use the orbital kind.

[Deb & Chuck]

Be careful with polishes -- Technically polish removes some of the surface to smooth it -- Polishes usually contain varying degrees of abrasive materials, so read the labels and apply gently.

A note on power tools -- I have noticed a direct correlation between friends who use power buffers and early failure of finishes on vehicles and fiberglass boats -- If one must use power to polish (brrrr!) or buff, use the orbital kind.

I saw Vi and John's Trill at Bandon,Or this summer. We thought they had it painted. Poly-Glow did a beautiful job.
Chuck

[Dave Baston]

Hi Nora,
Congrads on your Burro!!!!!!!!! I live in Howell, Michigan and have camped a lot in northern Michigan. Where are you located? I own a 1978 Trillium 4500 Deluxe I found 6 years ago in Williamston, MI. Where did you find yours? I also find, fix, restore and sell these little gems. I have a serveral step process I use depending on the condition of the fiberglass trailer I am working on. We can exchange messages or you are welcome to contact me direct to discuss the condition of your Burro and the steps I recommend for your little jewel!

Dave
"The Trillium King"

[Jake Jacobson]

Try scrubbing it with a damp sponge with Borax powder sprinkled on the sponge. This removes the oxidation quite well. Then you can follow with good old Turtle Wax like you would a car. I restored a Scamp finish this way before and it looked great.

[Pete Dumbleton]

I should have mentioned that PolyGlow is one of the non-abrasive finishes -- Rather than 'sanding' the surface down to smooth, it fills the surface up to smooth and then some. I was impressed with the yardstick results that I saw on the PolyGlow site a while back.

[Jake Jacobson]

The thing I don't like about Polyglow and Vertglas is that they are like putting a "shellac" coating on your trailer. Those type of coatings need to be redone every year, and can flake and chip off easily. They do look nice, though.

[NORA EARHART]

Hi Nora,
Congrads on your Burro!!!!!!!!! I live in Howell, Michigan and have camped a lot in northern Michigan. Where are you located? I own a 1978 Trillium 4500 Deluxe I found 6 years ago in Williamston, MI. Where did you find yours? I also find, fix, restore and sell these little gems. I have a serveral step process I use depending on the condition of the fiberglass trailer I am working on. We can exchange messages or you are welcome to contact me direct to discuss the condition of your Burro and the steps I recommend for your little jewel!

Dave
"The Trillium King"

Hello....... I am not sure if this site gets the message back to you. I did not find a space that states, reply. I live in Carp Lake, MI. about 6 miles south of Mackinaw City. I am a semi retired nurse. my brother Larry, went to a fly wheelers affair in Waloon Lake, and I joined his group. I slept in my Suburu. knock out...... I got hooked on camping a little. I found this Burro, a 1984. The outside looks dull, possibly never been polished. I notice micro cracks in it on the corners. I just want to do the best I can for it.

I know where Howell is, I just came back from Pinckney, and went thru Howell. Please write back.

Nora Earhart

[NORA EARHART]

First time I used this site.......... I sent you a message on the site you wrote to me........ See if it went thru. I will be back from jail this afternoon to check on your reply.

Occasional visitor to Pinckney. Nora

[Barry Konkin]

First time I used this site.......... I sent you a message on the site you wrote to me........ See if it went thru. I will be back from jail this afternoon to check on your reply.

Occasional visitor to Pinckney. Nora

I did the Borax and sponge routine yesterday (all except the roof - next time) and it worked great - the green of our 74 trillum came back to life very nicely - not exactly shiny, but the oxidization and most of the black spots are gone! I need some touch-ups for some stubborn spots - I might look at a specific spot remover for those, but overall the Borax worked really well.

I ordered poliglow this morning, and we'll use that come spring to get it ready for summer (shiny) fun.

Barry

[Booker B.]

I have the Poli-glow pack at home but haven't had time to apply it. However, I did try the poli-wash prep that comes with it and it was very effective for cleaning.

[Carolyn Patterson]

Nora,
Welcome to the Forum! I was born and raised in Saginaw, my husband and I were married in 1992 on Mackinac Island - I go 'home' often to see family, and visit my sister's cottage just west of Tawas on the AuSable River!


I still swear by using the "Awesome" cleaner which can be found at The Dollar Store in a spray, or at Dollar General in quart containers for $3.00. My neighbor told me she thinks it's made out trailer whiter. I use the spray full power - let it set for just a minute or two - take the car brush to it and hose it off. For the roof, I pour some into a bucket with a little water and use the car brush.

After seeing was Vert-glass can do, I'll either be doing that or Poli-Glow when the trailer comes out of hibernation this spring. The Casita trailer I saw with Vert-glass at the Ohio Fall Gathering was amazing after 4 coats - and I understand they put 2 more coats on! The owner told me his Casita was just as dull as my Uhaul. I can't wait to see my trailer all shiny and like new this spring!!

[Loren G. Hedahl]

The gel coat on our Scamp was too far gone to just polish it. Some places on top were so thin you could see through the resin. Other places below steel screws had rust stains that went clear through the gel coat. The options were to replace the gel coat or paint with an automotive type paint.

I have the experience and equipment to paint, so that was done summer before last. Can't say it went without a hitch, but there is a nice smooth glossy 2-part polyurethane plus clear coat finish, where before it was a dull grey splotchy white.

If you can get a good finish with Poly-Glo, I would suggest doing so. A repaint job is a lot of work if you do it yourself, or pretty expensive if you pay someone to do it right.

[Jake Jacobson]

I repainted my 13' and it is looks fantastic. Mine had too many spider cracks in the gelcoat to simply polish out, so filling, sanding, and painting was the best solution. I wax it every six months to keep it looking like new - it gets tons of compliments.

Incidentally, I was just in a boat yard today (Marina del Rey, CA), and talking to the manager about having my 16' polished. He showed me a boat that was currently being stripped of the Polyglo material, it wasn't a pretty sight at all. The polyglo had turned yellow and cracked all over like an eggshell. He said he loves it when boat owners apply the stuff because they end up paying him a bunch of money to strip it, and then to polish the gelcoat the right way. After seeing that boat today, I would never put Polygo or Vertglas on my Egg!