What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

RV Washing

some info needed

Is it painted or not?

if painted is it waxed ?

If not waxed, just a nice wash or wash n wax from any solid auto store of your liking

If it is waxed just make sure you use wash that does not remove WAX most good brands
dont
some folks will use Dawn etc , they help with belly cleaning removing exhaust but will remove your wax..

I prefer a natural degreaser if exhaust is heavy

Use a soft wash mitt and keep the surface wet, rinse well

if you desire more info on Polish and Wax I would look to your paint manufacture..

I use a certain brand of cleaners/wax ( I rep) but there are some great brands out there that will get the job done..

I use regular towels to dry my birds and not chamois like some do, I like the towel method ..

any other help let me know
 
1) Don't touch the canopy windscreen. There are special considerations for washing plexiglass.

2) Figure out any place you really don't want water to get in. For my Champ, I spend 5 minutes with wide masking tape to seal off any leakage spots.

3) Go Fly! to dry her off.
 
If it has been waxed, all you need is a terry cloth and a bucket of about 3 gallons of clear water. Wipe area down with saturated cloth, rinse cloth, wring out and wipe dry. The belly, I wipe down with diluted GUNK on a rag and then wipe rinse. All done in the hangar. No hoses, no puddle, no going to the wash rack.

The canopy..... gently wipe down front to back with saturated terry cloth and clean water. Wipe dry same as paint. Buff with Plexus and a cotton T-shirt in the same direction.
 
A friend who built his AC Cobra replica car (and is even more anal about taking care of it than I am about my plane :) ) turned me on to Optimum No-Rinse Wash & Wax, using their clay towel, and then followed with Optimum Wax. Works *awesome*. And you don't have to wash the entire plane at once (or even large sections), as you spray on the Wash to a small area, clean with either microfiber or clay towel, then a spritz of Wax and dry with a microfiber towel. Very nice shine, and easy to use without any mess.

I use their Detailer and Gloss Enhancer between washings (which aren't often). Plain water works best prior to detailer to soften/remove hardened bug guts, though.

Granted, my plane is hangared, so it never really gets *dirty*, but I like to keep it as clean as possible.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the replies.
My plane is painted and I use wash and wax to get the bugs off every flight but not the whole plane. I have been flying for 7 years and have used Rejex once on the entire plane about 2 years ago so it's probably worn off. The plane is hangared but is filthy after many long cross countries. ( I can tell when the sun shines)
I guess I should not use my power washer like I do my truck?? Cover pitot openings etc and after the clean then re wax. I liked the idea of the 15 year old. My kids want no part of it. Lazy buggers.
I'm certainly game to go flying to dry it. Any excuse right, like flying 60 miles round trip to get cheap gas, or maybe I'm just a cheap skate?!!
 
Used mother nature to help wash mine. Washed with one of those car micro fiber mitts, a 5-gal bucket of car wash n wax while it was raining.

Made sure to go over whole airplane from top to bottom. Rain rinsed everything off. Then got on a creeper for working under cars, used more of the car wash to scrub the bottom clean of oil/exhaust mess. Had to be a little more specific with the rinse on the bottom, used clean water in a garden chemical sprayer to rinse. No water available at my tie-down spot.

Did not get any of the car wash soap/wax on the canopy, used dish soap on it.

The next day when the sun came out, started applying the liquid style wax.

Best regards,
Mike Bauer
 
Another idea

I?ve found this system works best for me on anything from rag and tube aircraft with leaky radials to RVs to light twins:

0) Buy a bulk box of large microfiber cloths from Amazon

1) Remove grease, oil, and fuel this way: with a squirt bottle of mineral spirits, spray a light mist on the dirty areas and wipe clean with a microfiber rag. Safe on paint, aluminum, fabric, plastic, etc. I?ve never found anything else that is as effective on oils while being gentle on the underlying surface.

2) Remove brake dust with a squirt of Krud Kutter (available at Lowe?s and Home Depot) and a microfiber rag. I avoid squirting this on bare aluminum and plexiglass. Rinse with water mist from a squirt bottle.

3) Remove bugs and dirt with a mist of water and a microfiber rag.

4) At this point, the airplane is clean and ready for wax or polish. Wax painted surfaces with a non-abrasive, non-silicone automotive wax. Apply and Remove with microfiber rags. Between wax applications, polish with Meguiars quick detail spray, or better still, Perfect Detail (available from Spruce) and a microfiber rag.

5) If the aircraft was cleaned using steps 1-4 and has accumulated some hangar dust from sitting a while, use a California duster to restore the shine. Use the California duster only for removing dust from an otherwise clean surface, and it?ll last 10-15 years.

When rags are contaminated with abrasive dirt or touch the ground, I throw them away or save them for dirty work around the shop. Also, I use a different rag with each cleaning medium.

The whole process is pretty fast (except for waxing) if you have the rags and squirt bottles handy.

Happy cleaning!

M
 
Back
Top