Black streaks?

MichaelMaduske · 03-24-2022, 03:39 PM

Whenever it rains, I get these black streaks on my 2022 Chateau. What’s causing them and is there any way to prevent them? Thanks.

Chateau_Nomad · 03-24-2022, 05:55 PM

Everyone has that issue... those streaks are from "dirty water runoff" from your roof. The cleaner you keep your roof, the less black streaks you'll see on the sides of your RV.

There are specific washing instructions depending on your roof type. You likely have a TPO roof - which can be cleaned with a soft bristle brush and mild detergent (RV wash). The roof naturally "sheds" over it's lifespan... you have to keep that shedding and dirt washed away.

https://youtu.be/XGLSiG88S5c

Next, give your entire RV a good wash and wax. After that, provided you keep your roof fairly clean, any black streaks will be very faint... and the wax will allow a simple wash job to easily remove them. But... I can't stress enough how important it is to keep your roof clean as prevention!

MichaelMaduske · 03-24-2022, 06:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chateau_Nomad

Everyone has that issue... those streaks are from "dirty water runoff" from your roof. The cleaner you keep your roof, the less black streaks you'll see on the sides of your RV.

There are specific washing instructions depending on your roof type. You likely have a TPO roof - which can be cleaned with a soft bristle brush and mild detergent (RV wash). The roof naturally "sheds" over it's lifespan... you have to keep that shedding and dirt washed away.

https://youtu.be/XGLSiG88S5c

Next, give your entire RV a good wash and wax. After that, provided you keep your roof fairly clean, any black streaks will be very faint... and the wax will allow a simple wash job to easily remove them. But... I can't stress enough how important it is to keep your roof clean as prevention!

Awesome! Thank you so much for the great information!

Lt Keefer · 03-24-2022, 06:20 PM

Were I live, we get two pollen blooms, one in the spring and one in the fall. I wash the roof after each bloom and don't really have to deal with black streaks.

Pete'sMH · 03-24-2022, 10:40 PM

This stuff is absolutely magic on black streaks. Wash your roof often.

DutchmenSport · 03-24-2022, 11:07 PM

There are those who say you really do not ever need to wash the roof of an RV. After all, who can see up there.

Well, now you know why we, who are a bit anal about it, wash our roofs 2 or 3 times a year.

FYI, WD40 will also remove the streaks and melt away road tar without hurting the finish a little bit. After you are done with the WD40 .... which by the way will put on a spectacular shine, wash with soap if you feel uncomfortable leaving the WD40 on there... which, by the way, will probably run off the first time it rains.

**EA37TS** · 03-24-2022, 11:18 PM

Same streaks that appear on the gutters or roofs of house. Cause is the same and the solution is the same.

MichaelMaduske · 03-25-2022, 02:08 AM

Thanks for all the comments. I will clean the roof ASAP. Brand new 2022 unit, owned since Oct. Guess I will have to wash the roof monthly and get to waxing too. Lol

**16ACE27** · 03-25-2022, 02:25 AM

MichaelMaduske · 03-25-2022, 03:28 PM

So I climbed up there today. Is this the “dirt” you guys are referring too?
?

Chateau_Nomad · 03-25-2022, 03:50 PM

I think that's the culprit... what do you think?

P.S. You can scrub a little harder on the lap sealant areas than the actual roof membrane - you'll figure that out after washing the roof a few times. I occasionally use one of those dish sponges - the green "scrungie" side on the lap sealant, especially around vents where dirt tends to collect. I avoid using overly aggressive things like Scotch-Brite pads and such - but that's just me.

As you're up there washing, it's a great opportunity to look for cracks and voids in the sealant which may turn into a leak. It's a good idea to keep a tube of Dicor (or similar) self-leveling lap sealant in your RV tools arsenal to seal anything that looks suspicious.

txc2936@yahoo.com · 04-06-2022, 11:46 PM

Here is what i did, i got so tired of washing the sides after each rain. I finally purchased a few rolls of 5/16 Dia weather stripping and laid a strip fwd and aft along the RV top edge. I came in about 3-4 inches. I then made a sealant bead along the seam with a high quality sealant. Now. the water is forced to drain fwd and aft and run down the fwd side windows and/or aft edge of RV. If its really going to rain hard like tonight, i will actually raise the aft a little and all the water is forced fwd. Not a streak now down the sides, a little black streak remover in the front is all it takes now...

The RV would really stain bad along that strip over the awning strip and window awnings, now its clean,

I can send a picture next time i am on top of RV.

Its probably not widely advertised, but it worked for me and no more scrubbing. I used Mikes picture of his roof to illustrate.

MichaelMaduske · 04-06-2022, 11:48 PM

Brilliant!

txc2936@yahoo.com · 04-07-2022, 03:08 PM

We had a pretty hard rain here last night in SC. I went and inspected the RV for water stain marks this morning.

The FWD and AFT ends have the streaking only. The side with the awning is clean. I show a picture of the drivers side window and the area just aft of the awning. I am limited on photo loading here, so no picture of the aft end of RV.

I have included a few pictures of thee strip install. The water will run aft in this picture and drain off the roof top at this point with arrow. This certainly reduces the amount of work cleaning the sides, and if be, I can easily remove the weather stripping with a putty knife.

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