I have read each of your archived RV Doctor columns (and picked up some info along the way), looked up do-it-yourself auto painting, etc., but have not found anything specific on painting the fiberglass of a motorhome. Nor have I found what I feel is an acceptable way to remove 80 feet of decals without possibly damaging the fiberglass. What is the best way to remove the decals? Is there a specific clear coat or paint I should use over the fiberglass?
Tom Phillips, Whittier, California
You mentioned “clear coat” and not “gel coat,” and it’s important to know the difference. Motorhomes built in the early 1990s may have an applied clear coat on the exterior walls or may be covered with gel-coated fiberglass. I’m guessing that your motorhome probably received a dealer-applied coating sold and installed at the time of the original purchase. These coatings were popular back then, and costly, but only lasted five years or so under normal use.
As you’ve noticed, the coating tends to deteriorate and become unsightly over time. Removal is difficult, but it can be accomplished with the proper knowledge and a little patience. To remove the remaining coating, you can use any cleaning product that contains ammonia, including Formula 409, or any glass cleaner that contains ammonia D. It will be necessary to allow the cleaner to “soak” into the clear coat before wiping clean.
Removing the cracked decals also can be accomplished with the right tools and a good deal of time and patience. You will need a heat gun “” not a simple hair dryer, but a commercial-type heat gun. You also will need a plastic scraper. Be sure the scraper is made of yellow or white plastic, as they are less prone to damaging the exterior surface. Scrapers and heat guns are available at many home improvement stores.
Remember, heat guns can get very hot, so be careful that you don’t burn or blister the fiberglass while heating the decals. Gently heat the surface of the decal and push the scraper under a loosened edge. Keep warming the surface and continue to scrape the decal. The operative words here are slow and steady.
Once the decals are totally scraped away, apply an adhesive removal product to clear away any residue. Adhesive removers can either be oil-based products, such as mineral spirits, or a d-Limonene-based cleaner, such as Goo Gone. You can try both to see which works best. After the residue has been removed, I recommend an application of Protect All Fiberglass Oxidation Remover & Color Restorer over the entire fiberglass surface. Depending on how oxidized your finish is, it may take two applications. Once all the oxidation has been removed, the motorhome can be prepped for painting.
Since paint types are so subjective, I’ll leave it to you to do your homework to determine what is best for your situation. My suggestion would be to check with a local RV collision repair facility or a paint and auto body supply center in your area for the specifics. In any case, the facility must have a paint booth large enough to accommodate your coach. That will be one determining factor. But at least you can perform most of the prep work yourself.
To find out more information about how to care for fiberglass, visit www.protectall.com/artfiber.aspx.
A Propane Possibility
Dear RV Doctor:
Should I turn off the propane to my refrigerator when driving down the road? Should I turn off the propane at the tank at all times while driving? What about the food in the freezer? Can you tell me what is right for safety?
Gerri and Oscar Justice, Hershey, Pennsylvania
You must really want me to get a bucket load of e-mail in my inbox! Okay, I’m a glutton for punishment, so I’ll bite.
There are two schools of thought concerning traveling with the LP-gas container open and the refrigerator on. One is that it is safe and permissible IF you are absolutely sure the entire LP-gas system is set up properly and completely leak-free. Understanding, of course, the propane system does contain built-in safeguards in the event of a collision. However, there are certain LP restrictions concerning some tunnels, turnpikes, ferries, bridges, etc. In some areas it may be illegal to travel with appliances operating, so you check your route and determine whether there are any restrictions in the places you will be driving. There even may be some state-imposed regulations. But according to the proponents in this camp, as long as the RV has been maintained properly “” all components cleaned and serviced regularly, the LP system inspected and adjusted properly, the entire system checked regularly for leaks, etc. “” and as long as there are no local restrictions, go for it. After all, it IS a self-contained motorhome, right?
The second school of thought is, why leave the refrigerator on? There really is no need to operate the refrigerator on LP gas while physically driving down the road. As long as the refrigerator is already cooled and the contents in the freezer frozen, with properly sealed door gaskets, nothing will spoil or melt during a normal day of driving. Even if you occasionally open the door to grab a soda, the interior of the refrigerator will stay cool enough over the course of a one-day’s drive. When you stop that night, open the LP-gas container (or plug into shore power) and start the refrigerator. Of course, some RV absorption refrigerators are equipped with a DC heating element, so keeping the refrigerator cooled by battery power is totally acceptable while driving.
The problem is, many RVers are not aware of the many facets of RV preventive maintenance as it relates to propane safety. So if I’m driving my RV down the road, I just may have my LP container open and the refrigerator fired up, but as I pass other RVers, I’m hoping they do not!
Playing Hard To Get
Dear RV Doctor:
I need to locate a wall thermostat for the heating/air-conditioning unit in my Winnebago motorhome. The thermostat has eight wires on it, and the switch to turn on the heat is not functioning. The only replacement thermostats I can find through six different dealers have fewer wires. My chapter has an electrician in the group, and we have traced the problem to the switch on the circuit board. If I hold a contact between the hot wire and the power out of the switch until the time-delay fuse activates, then the heater works fine until it reaches the temperature level that the thermostat is set at and turns off. Then I have to do the process all over to activate the heater again.
Camping World’s two locations near me say they can wire a four-wire thermostat or a six-wire thermostat to it, but that will affect the Hi/Lo fan speeds. This doesn’t make sense to me. I want the original replacement. The circuit board is printed “Watsco” with all eight wires soldered into slots marked for the eight colors of wire. Can you tell me where to find this thermostat?
Denny Wade, Healdton, Oklahoma
It sounds as though you have an RVP heat pump system. The part number for the single-zone thermostat is 8530-3451. If your unit is for multiple zones “” that is, if you have separate heating and/or cooling areas in the coach controlled from a single wall thermostat “” the part number is 8330-3351. I’m surprised the dealers you contacted had trouble finding this information. Just about any RV service center, and especially a Winnebago dealer, should be able to order this unit for you.
In terms of Camping World, you would have to contact your two local outlets and inquire whether they carry or can order these items by part number. But just to let you know, I could not find any reference to these parts on the Camping World Web site.
Don’t be thrown off by the eight wires. Chances are, only six of them are actually being used. By the way, the high- and low-speed wires are colored green and gray, respectively; so going to a six-wire thermostat should not affect the speed options. Many RVers have switched to electronic Hunter thermostats, among others, but I’ve always been an OEM kind of guy myself, so like you, I’d go for the appropriate RVP thermostat.
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