Why Should You Clean Your Caravan Roof?
Although not the most enjoyable task, cleaning the roof of your caravan is necessary to keep the black streaks off the side of your caravan. Your roof needs to regular check-ups. This is truer when you have a solar panel because the more it is cleaned, the more charge goes into the battery. In this article, we will look at how to clean your caravan roof, and how to clean a caravan rooflight.
You Will Need
To clean a caravan, you will need:
- A long caravan handled brush
- A squeegee
- Microfibre cloths and a sponge
- A water source
- A bucket
- Shampoo or caravan cleaner and polish
- A ladder
A few things to remember when using ladders include:
- The ladder must be the correct height for the job
- You must inspect the ladder before use and read the instructions on the label;
- The ladder must be set on stable level ground
- Always make sure there are three points of contact. That is either two feet and one hand or two hands and one foot.
- Always have somebody to pass equipment to you and help steady the ladder
Also, you must make sure that you never stand on the top step of the ladder because it is not a real step and just part of the hinge mechanism. Another thing to do before cleaning your caravan is to lower or raise the jockey wheel of the caravan, which will allow the water to run off quickly.
Cleaning Your Caravan
The first thing to do when you clean the roof of the caravan is to wash down any debris. If you are using a hosepipe, make sure you do not spray the vents or the rooflights. If you are using a pump spray, all you need to do is moisten the roof as best you can.
Next, dip the long-handled brush into the solution, divide the roof into sections (e.g. front left, the left side and the left back) and focus on each section before moving on to the next. The first thing to clean is on the rooflight and around the rooflight. The lip of the rooflight might be particularly dirty. If that is the case, make sure to go into the caravan, raise the rooflight, then use the microfiber cloth to wipe down the edges. Keep dipping the brush into the shampoo and gently clean any fixings and vents. You might not be able to get too close to those items, so use a microfiber cloth or sponge to clean those areas.
After half the caravan roof is clean, wash down any dirt and debris with your water source. Repeat this whole process from the very beginning until the entire roof is clean. After that, use the squeegee to soak up as much water as possible and wring it out, then repeat until the entire caravan roof is clean.
If you are cleaning before storing up the caravan for the winter, you might want to consider getting an overwintering product or polish to minimise moss build up. After cleaning the roof, make sure to clean the sides of your caravan because debris will have fallen on the sides.
We hope that you have found this article on ‘How to Clean Your Caravan Roof informative and that it will make your life as a caravan user a lot easier.
If you are after some more maintenance articles have a look at our guide to delamination.