Restoring gel coat shine on Trillium - Fiberglass RV
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Old 09-13-2016, 08:13 PM   #1
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Name: Duane
Trailer: 1976 Trillium 1300
New Brunswick
Posts: 180
Restoring gel coat shine on Trillium

I was trying to find a product to put on my Trillium to bring back the shine. I didn't like the cost of one product that was nearly $200 for a quart. I checked with a couple of cleaners who did floors in the stores and malls. They recommended I use ZEP acrylic floor shine. I picked up 4 liter jug at Home Depot for about $24.00 or so. I cleaned the entire outside and used SOS pads to scrub it. Once dry I padded on 3 coats of finish. I used a cloth covered foam pad used for car wax. (lint free) All you need to do is catch any runs or drips before they start to dry. The stuff dries in 20 minutes or so, faster in the mid day sun. I am very happy with the results and got a great shine too. It can be buffed if needed and the best part is a stripper by ZEP will completely remove it. (ammonia based). I didn't wear gloves but I ended up with very shinny nails and finger tips. You can wash out the pad with water and use it over and over again for successive coats. I did this a month ago and there is no change in shine at all. I'm not sure how it will last exposed to sun all the time.(UV protection) I feel that I can just add more if needed.
If anyone has discovered a new way of doing something by all means post so others can be informed. That is why I like this site so much you can learn so much from those who dared to try a new way to "Git 'er done".
Cheers, Duane
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Old 09-13-2016, 08:24 PM   #2
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Name: Mike
Trailer: Boler13/trillium4500/buro13
Ontario
Posts: 1,138
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Originally Posted by getaway1 View Post
I was trying to find a product to put on my Trillium to bring back the shine. I didn't like the cost of one product that was nearly $200 for a quart. I checked with a couple of cleaners who did floors in the stores and malls. They recommended I use ZEP acrylic floor shine. I picked up 4 liter jug at Home Depot for about $24.00 or so. I cleaned the entire outside and used SOS pads to scrub it. Once dry I padded on 3 coats of finish. I used a cloth covered foam pad used for car wax. (lint free) All you need to do is catch any runs or drips before they start to dry. The stuff dries in 20 minutes or so, faster in the mid day sun. I am very happy with the results and got a great shine too. It can be buffed if needed and the best part is a stripper by ZEP will completely remove it. (ammonia based). I didn't wear gloves but I ended up with very shinny nails and finger tips. You can wash out the pad with water and use it over and over again for successive coats. I did this a month ago and there is no change in shine at all. I'm not sure how it will last exposed to sun all the time.(UV protection) I feel that I can just add more if needed.
If anyone has discovered a new way of doing something by all means post so others can be informed. That is why I like this site so much you can learn so much from those who dared to try a new way to "Git 'er done".
Cheers, Duane
Duane you might want to check out the not polyglow time will tell thread were there is 59 pages and six years of comments on exactly of which you speak,maybe even move this to the polyglow thread.
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Old 09-14-2016, 10:00 AM   #3
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Trailer: Boler 1975 13 ft
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hello I have used poli glow gel coat restoration on my 17 boler looks great Welcome to Poliglow Products Canada!
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Old 09-14-2016, 03:33 PM   #4
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Name: Gene
Trailer: 2022 Spirit Deluxe
Florida
Posts: 52
Zep works !

This summer I used Zep wet look floor finish on a fiberglass motor home. I also cleaned with bar keepers friend, washed with tsp then rinsed. You need to apply it with a clean microfiber cloth that is rung out nearly dry. I used a small paint tray. Then wipe it on in smooth strokes. You should apply five coats for the best finish. It dries quickly so you can finish then start over. Yes do catch drips. I didn't have many because thin coats work best. The first coat looks ok but as you add coats it really starts to shine. You can google "Zep Rv" and a step by step instruction is listed in a forum post. The hard and most time consuming part is cleaning. The waxing goes quickly. The 1996 motor home looks brand new !
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Old 09-14-2016, 07:12 PM   #5
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Name: Wayne
Trailer: Trillium
Ontario
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Yup our old Trillium was hurting pretty bad in the spring as we had not used her in 10 years. Had to power wash the moss off the roof etc. The scrub with a white scrubby and Bar Keepers Friend. Did about 6 coats of the Zep Wet Look Floor Finish and she looks great.. Plan on adding a coat every couple of years.. Used a microfiber cloth and wrung it out then basically just dampened the surface as we went.. Like already said it took way longer and more effort to get it clean..
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Old 09-15-2016, 12:19 AM   #6
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Name: Dave
Trailer: Casita SD17 2006 "Missing Link"
California
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Originally Posted by Wizard765 View Post
Yup our old Trillium was hurting pretty bad in the spring as we had not used her in 10 years. Had to power wash the moss off the roof etc. The scrub with a white scrubby and Bar Keepers Friend. Did about 6 coats of the Zep Wet Look Floor Finish and she looks great.. Plan on adding a coat every couple of years.. Used a microfiber cloth and wrung it out then basically just dampened the surface as we went.. Like already said it took way longer and more effort to get it clean..
Nice to hear it worked out well for you Wayne. Glad you mentioned the cleanup/stripping time taking longer than the multiple wax coats. Yup, a well wrung out cloth doesn't leave drips either. How about a few pics ?
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Old 09-15-2016, 07:35 PM   #7
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Name: Wayne
Trailer: Trillium
Ontario
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OK a few pics.. These are today and we did the job in the spring so it has had the summer. This particular summer has been the hottest and driest I have ever seen for our area..
Attached Thumbnails
IMG_2075 (Medium).JPG   IMG_2076 (Medium).JPG  

IMG_2077 (Medium).JPG   IMG_2078 (Medium).JPG  

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Old 09-15-2016, 11:03 PM   #8
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Sweet, nice job.
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Old 09-16-2016, 08:16 AM   #9
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Name: Wayne
Trailer: Trillium
Ontario
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Thanks: Yes we think it turned out AMAZING!! You would get a better feel of the accomplishment if you seen what it looked like before we started.. I really wish now we had taken before pictures.. When you ran your hand over it you had white residue like off a chalk board on your hand. Rust stains (bad ones) under every window and a lot of spots around the belly band. Moss growing on the roof (literally).. it was actually very sad.. Now in our opinion looks great. Would love to figure out a way to repair a few holes in the gel coat..
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Old 09-29-2016, 12:31 PM   #10
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Name: Wenda
Trailer: 1981 Trillium 5500
Ontario
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Trillium Zep Wet look floor finish

Just did two coats on my Trillium 5500 and plan on doing two more, already love the look. I had polished gelcoat with Maguire's Marine finish and it looked nice but so much better now.
Time will tell how well this holds up.
Wenda
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Old 09-29-2016, 12:56 PM   #11
Raz
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Trailer: Trillium 2010
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Originally Posted by Mikmay View Post
Duane you might want to check out the not polyglow time will tell thread were there is 59 pages and six years of comments on exactly of which you speak,maybe even move this to the polyglow thread.
A link to the thread Mike mentioned.http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...ell-43004.html
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Old 09-29-2016, 02:15 PM   #12
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We decided to spring for Poliglow. It is shining up our Bigfoot Silver Cloud nicely. It will end up taking 2 kits, due to the size of our Egg Carton. However, it promises to make our camper look new, after we get the gross moss out of the lights and new stickers. I cleaned a couple of lights. Amazing the difference between before and after.
I loved watching the raindrops bead up on the Poliglow. I just wish we could finish it up. Hubby did the roof with Poliglow while I scrubbed the side with Barkeepers Friend. We simply ran out of time though, so it has a shiny roof, clean passenger side, and dirty driver's side.

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