The roof definitely needs cleaning regularly. Nothing looks worse than a 'van pulling onto a site with a green roof and dirty sides. One of my regular stops has a storage area full of newish 'vans that look awful. It's a matter of personl pride as far as I am concerned. I get many compliments about my gleaming old white Buccaneer with shiny chrome wheel trims and along with my gleaming white Shogun looks fantastic!
Algae and moss, if allowed to grow excessively, gets into poorly maintained joints then in the winter feezes expanding the joints and letting in moisture.
------------- "To be born Welsh is not with a silver spoon in your mouth but with a song in your heart and poetry in your soul"
we too clean our german caravan by walking on roof it obviously is easier than conventional methods,before geting german van used to hire scaffold tower for weekend and found it safe as houses.if you can go halves with a friend it works out cheap and safe and gives you a good time to wax it and check seems etc
Quote: Originally posted by Missizippi on 28/3/2011
I'm not actually suggesting this as an option but I wonder if anyone has tried to take one through a car wash??
I think height will be a problem, unless of course, you have a pop-up!
Esther1 ,i have them little black dots on the sky lihgt at the front and the front roof ,i have tried all cleaning products ,nothing works ,it looks like the van has got ,somthing from tree droppings ,,and you have too be close to it too see it ,,if you find a solution to this ,could you please let me know ,what removes it ,
------------- May the roof of your camper
never fall in ,and the couple inside ,never fall out,
Philcaz, the little black dots might just be soot particles emanating from a fire or sooty boiler located in a nearby house or from exhaust stacks from large HGV's etc I used to get them on my old 'van and when my neighbours changed their central heating system the black dots did not appear again. The problem is they can be quite hot and I think that is why they are difficult to remove. On the other hand I might be totally wrong and it is simply sap.
------------- 'A sure cure for sea-sickness is to sit under a tree'
Quote: Originally posted by philcaz on 31/3/2011
Esther1 ,i have them little black dots on the sky lihgt at the front and the front roof ,i have tried all cleaning products ,nothing works ,it looks like the van has got ,somthing from tree droppings ,,and you have too be close to it too see it ,,if you find a solution to this ,could you please let me know ,what removes it ,
Get some tar remover from a car accessory shop, works a treat.
We just had our caravan cleaned by a mobile cleaning company and for £40 it was well worth it - it had not had its roof cleaned for a while and the lady who came to do the cleaning took two hours giving it all a really good clean - well worth the money and saved me from making my arthritic hands worse!
To restore a really bad green roof don't waste money on expensive treatments.
'Cillit Bang Powercleaner Degreaser' does the trick - only do a small section at a time and rinse as you go - takes time but well worth it. I cleaned the roof of a friends caravan - he was amazed! Don't forget to wax afterwards!
Geoff.
"Politicians and nappies need changing often. . . and for the same reasons!
------------- "To be born Welsh is not with a silver spoon in your mouth but with a song in your heart and poetry in your soul"
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Should a caravan roof be cleaned?
