Mildew on the exterior, what to use?

[Ricefarmer]

Hi everyone, our 2021 Montanna that is located on the Ocean's West coast has developed algae or mildew from the very wet Winter we had. Was told to use Jomax Housecleaner & Mildew Killer, made by Zinsser, I want to make sure it will not harm the exterior finish. Called keystone, weren't much help. Tried Zinsser Corp. Waiting for a reply. Its made for house siding, but is it safe for our trailer?
It was supposed to the have a coating applied at the time of purchase to help preserve the finish, Can't remember the name, Paid extra for it at Camping World. Went back the next day and they said they applied it. The Rig still had the coating of dust on it that it had when we purchased it. Told Keystone about it. They didn't seem to care.
We would appreciate any advice.

[DutchmenSport]

Soft RV brush and Dawn Dishwashing liquid. If the camper was treated with Resist-all, it will withstand the Dawn just fine. If it's just waxed, the Dawn will strip off the wax, but won't hurt the finish.

On my house at home (vinyl siding), I use a pressure hose. It cleans off the green algae and moss on the North side of my house and the North side of my garage just wonderful. But that's vinyl siding. I do use the pressure hose on my Montana, but I use it mostly on the awning, down the toilet, and for the wheels and tires. I don't use it on the sides or the roof. It's too aggressive. And I never use any kind of abrasive scratch pads or anything like what you'd use for kitchen dishes, pots, and pans on the side of the camper. It will scratch it up in a heart beat.

Use a soft RV brush, Dishwashing soap, and you'll probably do OK.

[mlh]

If it was ceramic coating they “applied” dish wash detergent will remove it. A car wash won’t remove it so I would use car wash on it.
Lynwood

[Ricefarmer]

I don't believe they applied anything. It was just a rip-off gimmick. Really turned sour to Camping World in our Area.

[Kyle and Lisa]

Same issue here in Florida, east side. Once every six months we use Simple Green with an insecticide sprayer hooked up to a water hose we bought at Tractor Supply, you can adjust the water to soap ratio as desired. We used 3-quart bottles to wash our 40' rig and had plenty left over, worked great, still have to do the same with Rainex wash and wax to bring back the shine.

[Foldbak]

Originally Posted by Ricefarmer

Hi everyone, our 2021 Montanna that is located on the Ocean's West coast has developed algae or mildew from the very wet Winter we had. Was told to use Jomax Housecleaner & Mildew Killer, made by Zinsser, I want to make sure it will not harm the exterior finish. Called keystone, weren't much help. Tried Zinsser Corp. Waiting for a reply. Its made for house siding, but is it safe for our trailer?
It was supposed to the have a coating applied at the time of purchase to help preserve the finish, Can't remember the name, Paid extra for it at Camping World. Went back the next day and they said they applied it. The Rig still had the coating of dust on it that it had when we purchased it. Told Keystone about it. They didn't seem to care.
We would appreciate any advice.

I paid for the exterior protectant on my last 2 Keystone trailers. Dealer applied. I'm not sure what product they used but it sure keeps the finish looking great. I believe the coating is different depending on your finish. Paint verse's Gel-coat. I've never had to deal with algae on the exterior. I would think that a good wash using any dish soap would do the trick. As far as whether or not Camping World applied the coating? Who knows.



I think your comment about Keystone "they don't seem to care" is a bit harsh. Maybe you could post a picture of the algae and tell us what finish you have?

[RMcNeal]

Originally Posted by Ricefarmer

I don't believe they applied anything. It was just a rip-off gimmick. Really turned sour to Camping World in our Area.

I paid extra for a coating when we purchased from Camping World too. I'm certain nothing was applied as there was a brown stain on the rear door side of our rig when we did our walk through, and it was still there after they "claim" they applied the coating. The only wash they do is with a pressure washer, so I don't want them doing that either.

[Ricefarmer]

Originally Posted by RMcNeal

I paid extra for a coating when we purchased from Camping World too. I'm certain nothing was applied as there was a brown stain on the rear door side of our rig when we did our walk through, and it was still there after they "claim" they applied the coating. The only wash they do is with a pressure washer, so I don't want them doing that either.

Thanks Gang, went ahead and used the dawn solution yesterday, cleaned up pretty good.
except around the seems where sealer was applied. will try a bleach solution on those areas,

[Ricefarmer]

Originally Posted by Foldbak

I paid for the exterior protectant on my last 2 Keystone trailers. Dealer applied. I'm not sure what product they used but it sure keeps the finish looking great. I believe the coating is different depending on your finish. Paint verse's Gel-coat. I've never had to deal with algae on the exterior. I would think that a good wash using any dish soap would do the trick. As far as whether or not Camping World applied the coating? Who knows.



I think your comment about Keystone "they don't seem to care" is a bit harsh. Maybe you could post a picture of the algae and tell us what finish you have?

I'm pretty sure ours is a a gelcoat finish. About my comment about keystone:
This is our second Keystone rig. Still have our 2015 Outback that we use for travel trips.
Had better luck with it from time of purchase.
The Montanna we keep in a permanent location on the Coast. It was built during the pandemic. One of the AC units didn't work, they replaced, the first week we had it. had to drive 140 miles to get it done. Then the Norcold Fridge wouldn't work, Had to cancel our planned trip, said they would put us the repair schedule, but it could be up to two months, ended up having a local repair outfit fix it. (kept blowing fusses, defect in one of the 5 fans.) cost us $600, Keystone did reimburse us $400. The kitchen sink would not drain, Kink in drain hose. The linoleum flooring bubbles up while running the heater, this should have been fixed at the factory. so you can see why I'm a little down on Keystone and Camping World.

[John and Barbara]

Ricefarmer is correct about Keystone not caring. We love our 3121 but I have to figure things out myself because dealers are incompetent and Keystone protects them.

[Foldbak]

Originally Posted by John and Barbara

Ricefarmer is correct about Keystone not caring. We love our 3121 but I have to figure things out myself because dealers are incompetent and Keystone protects them.

Keystone protects Keystone. Not all dealers are created equal. Mine is great and has fought for me on several occasions.

[R Bran]

I certainly agree with Keystone protecting Keystone. They sure aren’t for their customers anymore. Thank goodness we have an incredible dealer who takes care of their customers. Keystone has left them hanging on several problems with our ‘22. I would love to have the quality we had in our ‘13.

[Barman54]

I use Simple Green with a Towel to remove any Mildew/Black streaks.

I used Black Streak remover on my past Aluminum sided Jayco, it eats the finish/Decals.
All it was Bleach, not good to use.

Simple Green then wash off is the way to go.

Barman54
OUt