Corrugated or smooth outer finish?

mosseater wrote:
I've seen Filon trailers I like, but I still like the look of aluminum a little better. Looks more classic to me. One of the drawbacks to aluminum is it dents if you even look at it wrong. 'Course, the up side is repair is pretty easy. I haven't spent a whole bunch of time with maintenance to the exterior. Wash it twice a season and keep gutter extensions on to minimize black streaks. Hasn't been a problem, but I see this year the paint is starting to fade and chalk a little. I've been using Zip Wax, but I might have to hand wax it this year to bring the shine back. Highly subjective decision, IMO.

Before you get into a big waxing job, try this: Go to a paint store or Home Depot and grab a gallon of Jasco prepaint cleaner. Using a garden sprayer with diluted 50% Jasco and water, spray the siding and let sit. After an hour respray with the Jasco solution and rinse. You can use a carwash brush in the first step if you have stubborn stains. What Jasco does is to remove the oxidation from the top surface of the paint.

I've seen Filon trailers I like, but I still like the look of aluminum a little better. Looks more classic to me. One of the drawbacks to aluminum is it dents if you even look at it wrong. 'Course, the up side is repair is pretty easy. I haven't spent a whole bunch of time with maintenance to the exterior. Wash it twice a season and keep gutter extensions on to minimize black streaks. Hasn't been a problem, but I see this year the paint is starting to fade and chalk a little. I've been using Zip Wax, but I might have to hand wax it this year to bring the shine back. Highly subjective decision, IMO.

Both our HTT (ROO 23SS) and TT (Rockwood 2604) are the smooth siding. Our preference. My dear cousin and hubby in Houston will be looking at a replacement for their KZ, recently sold, and he strongly believes that the corrugated holds up better in the extreme heat. True or not...don't know. Our trailers have all been stored under cover 24/7 and other than the rear decal on our HTT, perfect condition. We replaced the decal just as we decided to make the change to the TT. Theirs was stored outside and when they replaced their decals a few years ago, he said......., well, he said a lot, but the main idea was that it was a PITA job. Our rear decal came off with a few minutes with a hair dryer and a bit of Goo-Gone.

I like stick and tin and plywood floors. I cringe thinking about laminated floors, and water damage. Sure my HTT is smooth, laminated, caged in aluminum with a sandwiched floor.

Lowsuv wrote:
Corrugated Aluminum Siding :
A 23 ' TT is about 400 + pounds lighter with aluminum instead of fiberglass .
The paint process on the aluminum siding is baked on with a more efficient process .
For those with an f150 an aluminum sided trailer is a better choice , due to weight .

No paint on my fibreglass RV. The paint is infused in the fibreglass. In that respect the fibreglass is superior. Good thing I don't have an F150 so the siding is not an issue. ;)

Just kidding with you, eh. :)

We've had 2 TT with aluminum siding and 1 fiberglass that we own now.

As far as which one looks better...that's entirely an "in the eye of the beholder" argument.

I will say that cleaning the smooth sided fiberglass is a lot easier...no question IMHO.

Corrugated Aluminum Siding :
A 23 ' TT is about 400 + pounds lighter with aluminum instead of fiberglass .
The paint process on the aluminum siding is baked on with a more efficient process .
For those with an f150 an aluminum sided trailer is a better choice , due to weight .

BigDaddyHfx wrote:
I say find the trailer with the size, weight, layout, length and price you want first. If you have to choose between two trailers with different exteriors THEN decide which you want. I wouldn't limit myself to one or the other and have to pass up on a trailer that met all my wants except what was on the outside.

Its whats on the inside that counts :)

I haven't been on-line much since I posted this. Thanks for all the replies and opinions. I think we're going with the idea of.. purchase the floor plan and amenities and not worry about the outside finish. We'll probably buy a smooth sided unit. I do plan on purchasing a metal car port to keep it stored in so that should help prolong it's life.

One major issue to contend with with fiberglass is delimitation. If water gets inside, it will separate. Stick and tin is susceptible to leaking as well, but it is easier to fix. The tin can be removed, whereas local shops cannot fix fiberglass unless they replace the entire wall. No shops here in the South have the ability to rebuild fiberglass walls. I'm on my third unit, and the second was fiberglass. We had a delamination issue and the entire front cap had to be changed. Thankfully it wasn't a side wall, because that would have been a much bigger issue.