# What stuff to polish GRP roof?



## jogguk (Aug 19, 2009)

I want to polish or clean up the GRP roof of my campervan. It is a white gelcoat finish not painted and parts of it are a little discoloured.

Tried Tcut and Mer not really satisfactory. I was told of a product used to clean GRP boats but can't recall the name Will I need a power polisher or will lots of elbow grease work OK?

There are some vinyl graphics on the roof and don't want to polish them off Anyone recommend products they've used?

John


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## Boxerman (Aug 19, 2009)

Funny you should ask that 'cos a member of "my" club sent me the following for inclusion in the newsletter:

My fibreglass roof absolutely dead,it was stained and looked awful,it
really needed a respray.when I took it to the sprayer he said he could
do it, but I found Farecia G3 regular grade paste,it is a really fine
cutting compound,obviously not as good as a respray,but for those of us
on a tight budget it is the next best thing.My roof is now smooth and
all one colour with a nice shine on it.

HTH
Frank


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## jogguk (Aug 20, 2009)

Boxerman said:


> Funny you should ask that 'cos a member of "my" club sent me the following for inclusion in the newsletter:
> 
> My fibreglass roof absolutely dead,it was stained and looked awful,it
> really needed a respray.when I took it to the sprayer he said he could
> ...



Thanks for that I just googled it. seems to come in different grades G3 to G10. Not the boatyard stuff I was expecting though.

john


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## 888dee (Aug 20, 2009)

G3 would be the grade you want but remember this strips everything from the surface so a protective layer needs to be applied or you will end up back where you started in no time....

also G3 is relatively harsh so take care and I would suggest the use of a finishing material, 3M "finesse-it" is very good but not cheap at around £20/litre.

Auto Glym Super resin polish works well and has a long lasting finish...


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## Boxerman (Aug 20, 2009)

The guy who sent in the tip about the Farecia use MER on his van - it's an Eriba and it is very smart.

Frank


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## carlsenior (Aug 20, 2009)

The Burgundy GRP Side Mouldings on my van were very badly oxidised so I used Farecla G3 to get rid of it then used normal car polish to restore the shine and protect them, they come up great but stay away from the stickers as it will damage them


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## Wolfsburg Willy (Aug 20, 2009)

Try this stuff:

http://http://www.boatpaint.co.uk/acatalog/Polytrol.html


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## wynthesurfer (Aug 20, 2009)

Hi try this ,it has very good reviews  Poliglow - a proven concept in boat polish

Wyn.


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## stevek (Aug 26, 2009)

This months practical motorhome has a letter from a motorhome owner with a similar problem.He has found a polish which boat owners use by Farecla.He has used gel coat restorer 3M wax and a wax conserver.


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## Baconsdozen (Aug 28, 2009)

By mistake some while ago I bought some (Car-Plan) T-Cut upvc restorer.I tried this on the white fibreglass roof of my Mk1 CI transit motorhome and in places it had a shine for the first time since I bought it.


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## t&s (Sep 18, 2009)

jogguk said:


> I want to polish or clean up the GRP roof of my campervan. It is a white gelcoat finish not painted and parts of it are a little discoloured.
> 
> Tried Tcut and Mer not really satisfactory. I was told of a product used to clean GRP boats but can't recall the name Will I need a power polisher or will lots of elbow grease work OK?
> 
> ...


why bother to polish it if the gelcoat has gone flat i would get it sprayed and laqured with an isosionate base paint i have used this on trucks for years and no polishing is required


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## zeezee16 (Sep 20, 2009)

jogguk said:


> I want to polish or clean up the GRP roof of my campervan. It is a white gelcoat finish not painted and parts of it are a little discoloured.
> 
> Tried Tcut and Mer not really satisfactory. I was told of a product used to clean GRP boats but can't recall the name Will I need a power polisher or will lots of elbow grease work OK?
> 
> ...


Hi John, 
I just used Stardrops and a soft brush.
Try not to damage your Wildcamping Sticker.
Cheers, Pete


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## jogguk (Sep 21, 2009)

zeezee16 said:


> Hi John,
> I just used Stardrops and a soft brush.
> Try not to damage your Wildcamping Sticker.
> Cheers, Pete



How do you know I put my sticker on the hi-top 



> why bother to polish it if the gelcoat has gone flat i would get it sprayed and laqured with an isosionate base paint i have used this on trucks for years and no polishing is required



I had thought of that. It would require removing the manufacturers graphics (decals) which are hard to replicate and maybe difficult to get from the converters.

john


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## Brandyman (Sep 21, 2009)

*brandyman*

Try G3 GRP then any boat polish for GRP works well plenty elbow grease needed


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## doronron (Sep 21, 2009)

wd40.. theres more things you can do with wd40 than what you think ,its great stuff.


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## zeezee16 (Sep 21, 2009)

jogguk said:


> How do you know I put my sticker on the hi-top
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I know lots of things, but its mostly crap.
Cheers, Pete


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## italiano (Sep 22, 2009)

*cleaner*

PLEASE PLEASE do not laugh, but it WORRRRRRKKKKSSSSS   smooth peanut butter, try an see the difference it will make, try it on the black bumpers (faded) and see the results. Well if it does not,you can always make a sandwhich with it


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## lescombes (Sep 23, 2009)

I used Mer first on my Mazda Bongo, the roof was covered in dried on cr*p and was  very "gritty", so a build up over years.

I used Mer as it can be used wet, so I wet the roof, allowed the excess to run off then applied the Mer, it lifted the muck off well, after the elbow grease and Mer had removed the years of dirt, I followed it up with a couple of coats of Meguiars Carnuba Wax and some RainX on the roof window.....when it rains the rain water collects in globules and runs off......

To keep it free from a build up of grime again I polish it every couple of months when doing the rest of the 'Van

So Mer does work.......but make sure the surface is wet before you apply it...


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