2014 27.1 Thor Ace Drivers side exterior siding is becoming translucent.

property@wvi.com · 10-02-2021, 10:42 PM

Subject 2014 27.1 Thor Ace has the exterior siding fading and becoming semi translucent showing internal stud lines. We had some hot days this summer over 105 degrees don't know if the hot sun is responsible?

Anyone else seeing this fading of the original shiny fiberglass siding on their 2014 Thor Motor Home?

steveL332 · 10-06-2021, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by property@wvi.com

Subject 2014 27.1 Thor Ace has the exterior siding fading and becoming semi translucent showing internal stud lines. We had some hot days this summer over 105 degrees don't know if the hot sun is responsible?

Anyone else seeing this fading of the original shiny fiberglass siding on their 2014 Thor Motor Home?

Yep. I have a 2017 Chateau 31W. My driver's side was fading more than my passenger side and was starting to look bad. My front cap was also fading pretty bad. You can watch some YouTube videos on how to polish the RV and that will bring back some of the shine. I had a local detailer do it a week ago, and I have to say, the passenger side looks just like it did when it was new. The heavily faded side looked close to new, and the front cap looked almost new. It took him two days to complete the job.

property@wvi.com · 10-06-2021, 06:37 PM

Did you see all the rectangle shaped darker lines where the interior studs contact the exterior walls like the siding became semi translucent and faded?

What did it cost for the detailing?

Did they polish and wax?

taylorbob1 · 10-06-2021, 07:04 PM

If it’s that bad with cracked & faded decals…
- probably best to remove decals & then attempt to polish

Some have even stripped completely, then…
- paint
Or
- wrap with a color or design

steveL332 · 10-06-2021, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by property@wvi.com

Did you see all the rectangle shaped darker lines where the interior studs contact the exterior walls like the siding became semi translucent and faded?

What did it cost for the detailing?

Did they polish and wax?

$800, and I know this was on the high end. I did not have any studs showing through. The detailing also cleaned up the decals considerably. I'm very happy with how it turned out.

property@wvi.com · 10-06-2021, 11:03 PM

If the tan color has been depleated accept where the studs contact the interior wall I dont see how polishing is going to put the darker tan color back on to where the studs profile from the inside dissapears?

Baam5774 · 10-07-2021, 02:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steveL332

$800, and I know this was on the high end. I did not have any studs showing through. The detailing also cleaned up the decals considerably. I'm very happy with how it turned out.

$800 is what I paid to have my 29.3 detailed a month ago. Seems to be about right. Looks way better than what I could have done.

dkoldman · 10-07-2021, 03:19 AM

I clean and wax myself, the $800 being floated sounds about right to me. It would be the least I would charge if I was gonna do someone's else rig. I wax mine twice a year (Spring after pollen finishes & Fall before the leaves start to drop); so that is $1,600 savings for me.

It takes me 5 hours to wax the entire rig, but I normally never wax more than a hour. I keep the RV home so it may be 4 or 5 days before I finish the entire rig.

I am still waiting to see how long my decals lasts. I use the 303 Aerospace on decals every 2 months (no wax or buffing of polish on my decals)

Chateau_Nomad · 10-07-2021, 05:06 AM

Yep... oxidation is biting you. I have the frame showing on mine too... but it's only on the side which faces south - getting blasted by sun.

I had a chat with a Meguiar's product rep. first of the week. I have a 2020 tan Chateau 24F with a decent amount of sun induced gelcoat oxidation/chalking. In early morning when there's dew on the RV, the frame ribs are visible on the "problem" side.

Our discussion also covered the issue of the vinyl decals. My decals are not showing any signs of fading or peeling... they appear like new. About a month ago I treated the entire RV with a Turtle Wax brand of ceramic coating. However, it DID NOT seem to add any significant UV protection to the gelcoat, as it has continued to oxidize.

Since I'm doing this project myself, I decided on the Meguiar's "Fiberglass Restoration" kit. It contains one of each:
#49 Oxidation Remover
#45 High Gloss Polish
#56 Pure Wax

I just received the kit today (Wednesday). In the morning is a trip to Harbor Freight to get an affordable variable speed buffer/polisher.

The plan is to avoid the vinyl graphics with the oxidation remover and polish. According to Meguiar's, the wax can be applied on vinyl IF IT'S GLOSSY. I haven't decided if I'm going to wax those vinyl graphics, or opt on using the 303 Aerospace Protectant as dk does. 303 has served me well on all the rubber window seals... I even use it on the cars.

As this progresses I will post pics of the results.

property@wvi.com · 10-07-2021, 07:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chateau_Nomad

Yep... oxidation is biting you. I have the frame showing on mine too... but it's only on the side which faces south - getting blasted by sun.

I had a chat with a Meguiar's product rep. first of the week. I have a 2020 tan Chateau 24F with a decent amount of sun induced gelcoat oxidation/chalking. In early morning when there's dew on the RV, the frame ribs are visible on the "problem" side.

Our discussion also covered the issue of the vinyl decals. My decals are not showing any signs of fading or peeling... they appear like new. About a month ago I treated the entire RV with a Turtle Wax brand of ceramic coating. However, it DID NOT seem to add any significant UV protection to the gelcoat, as it has continued to oxidize.

Since I'm doing this project myself, I decided on the Meguiar's "Fiberglass Restoration" kit. It contains one of each:
#49 Oxidation Remover
#45 High Gloss Polish
#56 Pure Wax

I just received the kit today (Wednesday). In the morning is a trip to Harbor Freight to get an affordable variable speed buffer/polisher.

The plan is to avoid the vinyl graphics with the oxidation remover and polish. According to Meguiar's, the wax can be applied on vinyl IF IT'S GLOSSY. I haven't decided if I'm going to wax those vinyl graphics, or opt on using the 303 Aerospace Protectant as dk does. 303 has served me well on all the rubber window seals... I even use it on the cars.

As this progresses I will post pics of the results.

Thank you very much. I am relieved to find out it is the sun.
When I look at it very closely it dies appear to be oxidation.
I don't understand why the wall studded areas are a different color, maybe a different temperature.
I noticed that the wall color difference appear even on the decals especially the dark ones but not as pronounced as the rest.
Are you positive the surface is gelcoat and not paint?
Please keep me informed as you proceed and I will do the same.
Mice chewed a dozen holes in my RV cover so I purchased a new one.

dkoldman · 10-07-2021, 08:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chateau_Nomad

Yep... oxidation is biting you. I have the frame showing on mine too... but it's only on the side which faces south - getting blasted by sun.

I had a chat with a Meguiar's product rep. first of the week. I have a 2020 tan Chateau 24F with a decent amount of sun induced gelcoat oxidation/chalking. In early morning when there's dew on the RV, the frame ribs are visible on the "problem" side.

Our discussion also covered the issue of the vinyl decals. My decals are not showing any signs of fading or peeling... they appear like new. About a month ago I treated the entire RV with a Turtle Wax brand of ceramic coating. However, it DID NOT seem to add any significant UV protection to the gelcoat, as it has continued to oxidize.

Since I'm doing this project myself, I decided on the Meguiar's "Fiberglass Restoration" kit. It contains one of each:
#49 Oxidation Remover
#45 High Gloss Polish
#56 Pure Wax

I just received the kit today (Wednesday). In the morning is a trip to Harbor Freight to get an affordable variable speed buffer/polisher.

The plan is to avoid the vinyl graphics with the oxidation remover and polish. According to Meguiar's, the wax can be applied on vinyl IF IT'S GLOSSY. I haven't decided if I'm going to wax those vinyl graphics, or opt on using the 303 Aerospace Protectant as dk does. 303 has served me well on all the rubber window seals... I even use it on the cars.

As this progresses I will post pics of the results.

I just realized your RV is 2020? That sounds like some like a lot oxidation in very short period of time. OP may have got 7 years; not sure how long he has had his oxidation though? You certainly need to get rid of the oxidation, but normally you wish to go with the least aggressive cleaners / removers or possible. I think of that Meguiars kit for a 10 year old boat / car or something. But I guess oxidation free is oxidation free once removed and cleaned. Would love to see the pictures.

It is threads like this one that motivates me go out and wax

I too get a lot of sun, but I do park facing North and South about 50% of the time. Not by design but by luck on how I sometimes use the RV to face the pool; we call it the Sunstar Patio configuration, and the other time it allows maximum space to the garage for the cars; I call it the Store mode as it is kind of out of the way. Ours is 2019 but is does have something called "an automotive like finish" . One other factor for us was the Dealer we bought from in Florida had our RV in a very large Indoor Showroom (maybe I got lucky)

At home we have a large Cedar Elm Tree on the West side, and a fence that helps block some Sun; but we get all of the leaves this time of the year. I experimented with Turtle Wax Ceramic Spray 2 months ago, and I can tell it is losing it coating protection as I can see more and more decayed leaf stains. When I get back from my current trip I will try to use the rest of the spray bottle to see if it will actually clean up the stains? If not, I will chunk the Ceramic Spray and use my old reliable Meguiars #83 to clean up all of the spots and put the #56 back on top of my roof and get my shine back (fiberglass roof)

Also: I use the 303 Aerospace because I have seen where wax actually cause damage to decals. Normally around the edges. When we were looking at new/used RV's, ugly looking decals turned me off to a lot coaches at very 1st sight. I have no proof yet that the 303 Protectant will be better; but I have been using it since Day 1, about to start Year 3; so I will learn soon enough. I respray my decals every 2 months and they still look vibrate with no wax build up on the edges where the cracking normally starts and spreads. Takes me 10 minutes to do, easy peasy.

But make no mistake, using wax on decals is a lot better than doing nothing which is the problem that most have.

I know you are doing your research, but this is something I had found on decals, vinyl warps etc. about putting wax on vinyl

https://tkographix.com/faq-should-i-wax-my-car-wrap/

Chateau_Nomad · 10-07-2021, 01:53 PM

As a teaser, I went out and snapped a quick pic of the pattern that shows on the RV side walls. We had some sprinkles of rain early this morning, and it's overcast. This pattern shows nearly every morning when there's dew present.

As I recall, even BEFORE the oxidation issue became pronounced, this phenomenon was visible. For some reason the oxidation is less where the frame members are behind the wall. Which leads me to think that a COMBINATION of the sun's UV rays AND HEAT are contributing factors??

It has been just a little over a month since I washed/waxed the entire RV, including a thorough wash of the EPDM roof. Although I have seen many videos/posts/blogs, etc. about treating EPDM/TPO roofs, documentation I received with my new purchase specifically states NOT use any type of "sealer" or wax type products on the roof - just wash it with mild detergent. It is designed to shed as a natural part of it's life cycle - about 12 years. Note the black streaking running down from the roof just this side of the awning arm bracket. This is from the roof shedding - the only way to prevent those black streaks is FREQUENT washing of the roof. If the roof is CLEAN, nothing really shows. Mine obviously needs washing AGAIN... after barely a month! Don't you just LOVE RV maintenance??

The streaks on mine easily wipe off (at this point) likely due to the ceramic wax I applied about a month ago.

Notice my "Traveling Robert" sticker on the window? I love his videos, and support his efforts... we started watching his vids several years before getting into RVing!

Chateau_Nomad · 10-07-2021, 02:09 PM

dk - Has it been TWO months?

I'm losing my mind... anyway - that article about the wraps is very informative. I'm leaning toward NOT waxing the vinyl graphics, mainly because of buildup over time. I agree that the 303 may be the best option for UV protection... I use that stuff on my Jeep TJ's soft top and rubber window seals on the "daily drivers".

So... when you wax your side walls, how do you avoid getting wax on the graphics?? I'm using a buffer for the larger areas, but I guess just "finesse" around the vinyl with a microfiber? I'm not even getting close to those with the oxidation removal/polish steps!

dkoldman · 10-07-2021, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chateau_Nomad

As a teaser, I went out and snapped a quick pic of the pattern that shows on the RV side walls. We had some sprinkles of rain early this morning, and it's overcast. This pattern shows nearly every morning when there's dew present.

As I recall, even BEFORE the oxidation issue became pronounced, this phenomenon was visible. For some reason the oxidation is less where the frame members are behind the wall. Which leads me to think that a COMBINATION of the sun's UV rays AND HEAT are contributing factors??

It has been just a little over a month since I washed/waxed the entire RV, including a thorough wash of the EPDM roof. Although I have seen many videos/posts/blogs, etc. about treating EPDM/TPO roofs, documentation I received with my new purchase specifically states NOT use any type of "sealer" or wax type products on the roof - just wash it with mild detergent. It is designed to shed as a natural part of it's life cycle - about 12 years. Note the black streaking running down from the roof just this side of the awning arm bracket. This is from the roof shedding - the only way to prevent those black streaks is FREQUENT washing of the roof. If the roof is CLEAN, nothing really shows. Mine obviously needs washing AGAIN... after barely a month! Don't you just LOVE RV maintenance??

The streaks on mine easily wipe off (at this point) likely due to the ceramic wax I applied about a month ago.

Notice my "Traveling Robert" sticker on the window? I love his videos, and support his efforts... we started watching his vids several years before getting into RVing!

Agree on every point, good info on the membrane so no sealant 303, Ceramic Spray or anything is needed. Make sense to me. The wax I [put on my fiberglass roof is to prevent oxidation.

Your RV finish looks a lot of better than you had me to believe. You are doing great and will be well above par when it comes your RV and finish.

BE CAREFUL WITH YOU POLISHER. It is is very easy to get rpm too high when / if you angle the polisher; keep it flat or not at all meaning do that section with a radius by hand.

dkoldman · 10-07-2021, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chateau_Nomad

dk - Has it been TWO months?

I'm losing my mind... anyway - that article about the wraps is very informative. I'm leaning toward NOT waxing the vinyl graphics, mainly because of buildup over time. I agree that the 303 may be the best option for UV protection... I use that stuff on my Jeep TJ's soft top and rubber window seals on the "daily drivers".

So... when you wax your side walls, how do you avoid getting wax on the graphics?? I'm using a buffer for the larger areas, but I guess just "finesse" around the vinyl with a microfiber? I'm not even getting close to those with the oxidation removal/polish steps!

I had wax around the stickers. I don't mask the stickers so I may get a little but it very light. I usually do the 303 first so it help the was from adhering.

I am traveling now and likely may not get back on line for a while. I am going to boondock the night on an inactive volcano in New Mexico where there will be absolutely nothing else to see or do. Ah the thrill and excitement of owning an RV

. Tell the Duck that is how I roll.

property@wvi.com · 10-07-2021, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chateau_Nomad

As a teaser, I went out and snapped a quick pic of the pattern that shows on the RV side walls. We had some sprinkles of rain early this morning, and it's overcast. This pattern shows nearly every morning when there's dew present.

As I recall, even BEFORE the oxidation issue became pronounced, this phenomenon was visible. For some reason the oxidation is less where the frame members are behind the wall. Which leads me to think that a COMBINATION of the sun's UV rays AND HEAT are contributing factors??

It has been just a little over a month since I washed/waxed the entire RV, including a thorough wash of the EPDM roof. Although I have seen many videos/posts/blogs, etc. about treating EPDM/TPO roofs, documentation I received with my new purchase specifically states NOT use any type of "sealer" or wax type products on the roof - just wash it with mild detergent. It is designed to shed as a natural part of it's life cycle - about 12 years. Note the black streaking running down from the roof just this side of the awning arm bracket. This is from the roof shedding - the only way to prevent those black streaks is FREQUENT washing of the roof. If the roof is CLEAN, nothing really shows. Mine obviously needs washing AGAIN... after barely a month! Don't you just LOVE RV maintenance??

The streaks on mine easily wipe off (at this point) likely due to the ceramic wax I applied about a month ago.

Notice my "Traveling Robert" sticker on the window? I love his videos, and support his efforts... we started watching his vids several years before getting into RVing!

Thank you for posting the picture of the studwalls colors difference. It looks just like mine exactly.
How do you post pictures so I can send a photo of mine. I just ordered that marine rv restoration kit for 31$ from A.

Chateau_Nomad · 10-07-2021, 05:20 PM

Posting pics: There are VERY complete guides on this on the forum... do a search.

Here's my basic method:

All my photos are immediately backed up from my mobile to "Google Photos", which opens in a web browser on my computer.

I browse Google Photos on the computer to find the pic I want, select it, then download it to a certain folder.

Then in the forum interface, there is a button labeled "Go Advanced" directly below the "Quick Reply" window... which takes you to a larger "Reply to Thread" window.

Directly below the "Reply to Thread" window is a "Additional Options" window. Click the "Manage Attachments" in the "Attach Files" section.

A separate window will open... In it there is a section "Upload File from your Computer" containing four "Choose File" buttons. This allows you to upload four pics in one operation without having to jump back through the hoops.

When you click the first "Choose File" button, a file selection dialog window will open. Navigate to the file you downloaded on your computer and select it. If you have (up to three more) pics, do the same with the remaining three "Choose File" buttons. You can always add MORE than four pics, but you have to jump back through those steps again.

Now - remember to click the "Upload" button just to the right of those "Choose File" buttons. Give it a few seconds, and you will see the name of the files you uploaded displayed beside the buttons. Then, you can close that window.

Now - back in the forum interface, at the bottom of the "Reply to Thread" window, there is a "Preview Post" button beside the "Submit Reply" button. Clicking that button will show you how your current post appears with the pics you uploaded (before submitting). When done, simply click the "Submit Reply" button.

cgeace29.3 · 10-09-2021, 06:17 PM

Cheating-nomad
I am also compounding and waxing my 2016 ace 29.3.
I bought the same kit.
The oxidation remover did not work very well on mine so I switched to meguires ultimate compound and meguires premium marine wax the same wax I use on my boat.
I am also using a harbor freight dual action polisher.
I have to compound each area twice and then wax once.
The finish results is very shiny and looks like new.
Take your time, don’t be in a hurry especially with the compounding and you should be very pleased with the results.

cgeace29.3 · 10-09-2021, 06:19 PM

Don’t be afraid of compounding and waxing decals it really cleans them up and they also look like new.

cgeace29.3 · 10-09-2021, 06:29 PM

Before this unit I had a 2008 coachman freelander. It had heavy oxidation and the decals were shot from the sun. I got the oxidation off with a lot of work. I also removed what was left of the decals with a heat gun. Goof off and a plastic scraper, took some time but got it done.
I then went to fast signs and had new decals made, they plotted out the exact same decals on the same materials, some were 10’ long, and applied the new decals. The 10 year old unit looked like new, when I traded it in for the ace the dealer could not believe the condition of the fiberglass and decals.

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