Caravan clinic

Our expert answers your technical questions & gives camping advice

CARAVAN CLEAN UP

Being an avid caravanner/camper, as well as enjoying detailing my cars, I decided to try out my skills on my 17-year-old Gypsey Rapier – and was very impressed with the results.

Car detailing is a painstaking process which involves the thorough cleaning, polishing, and buffing of all the external and internal surfaces, as well engine externals with the aim of making it look better than new. The benefit of this is the protection of your investment from decay and degradation.

Basically, I used good old Handy Andy, Meguiars shampoo, and Meguiars ceramic polish. I also used an assortment of microfibre towels, a microfibre mitten, soft brush, and a bucket of clean warm water. A good spray nozzle for a garden hose is sufficient for cleaning. A high-pressure sprayer is not recommended as it could damage the soft exterior.

The process involved a thorough rinse to remove all loose dirt and grime. Thereafter, an initial wash with the car shampoo was undertaken. The textured finish of the sides makes it difficult to remove surface oxidation and dirt. The paint finish needs care as an abrasive cleaner would scratch or remove the paint.

This is where good old Handy Andy outshines the rest. Using a soft brush, microfibre towel, and a bit of elbow grease, the surface oxidation was easily removed bringing the paint colour back to original, without any damage.

A good cleaning with Handy Andy also helped to expose areas where the caulking/sealant had come away and would eventually lead to the ingress of water and dirt, and, worst of all, wood rot.