I usually clean my roof once or twice a year. That consists of me going up with a bucket of soap and scrub brush and doing what I can. It stays indoors over winter and most of the year while not camping.This year, the roof was really filthy and hard to clean. The darkest spots were where the steel spanned from one side of the camper to the other. Roof truss? Not sure what it's called. I scrubbed best I could with the notion of hitting it with a slightly stiffer brush and elbow grease before winter storage.My storage place called me and said they were running a special on roof conditioning. I mentioned I had a hard time getting it clean this time and he said the would clean it up, condition it and make any repairs necessary. He told me the price would be about $300 which I thought was fair. They did the work, only charged me $250. I checked it out afterwards (I can see from my closet window when at my house) and it didn't look any different in terms of being clean. Still had some dark spots where the trusses were. I did see some spots were new Dicor was applied. When it stops raining I will jump on the roof and look closer.Am I expecting too much? If someone charges me to condition and clean the roof I would expect it to be like new.... or at least the dark spots be removed. I really try and maintain the camper and spend a little extra for indoor storage to keep things nice. Thoughts? Am I expecting too much?

IMO, the only way to make it look like new, is a recoat, rather than clean/condition. If you had already cleaned it, you probably could have done the caulking yourself. For $250, if they cleaned, caulked, and conditioned, that sounds fair to me.Another IMO, if it stays indoors, when not in use, the conditioner should not be necessary, just a once/twice a year cleaning/caulk check.Jerry

The more you clean it, the shorter its life. Dirt has no detrimental impact on life span.

Some stains just wont come out without damaging the material. The reason to clean is really to remove the chalking that happens from aging, UV exposure, etc, and have a clean dry surface to put conditioner on so it sticks. That reminds me, need to get up and wash and condition mine before it gets too cold.

ScottG wrote:The more you clean it, the shorter its life. Dirt has no detrimental impact on life span.I agree. It is good to clean it once and awhile but, there is no reason to do it all the time. You are just scrubbing off the protective layer that you really want to keep. That is just my opinion though.

RoyBell wrote:They did the work, only charged me $250. I checked it out afterwards (I can see from my closet window when at my house) and it didn't look any different in terms of being clean. Still had some dark spots where the trusses were. I did see some spots were new Dicor was applied. When it stops raining I will jump on the roof and look closer.Am I expecting too much? If someone charges me to condition and clean the roof I would expect it to be like new.... or at least the dark spots be removed. I really try and maintain the camper and spend a little extra for indoor storage to keep things nice. Thoughts? Am I expecting too much?My thoughts are that you are wasting your money. Your roof needs no "conditioning". It only needs inspection 2-4 times a year for the caulk joints.

Roof conditioning | Good Sam Community

MFL
Nomad II
Oct 23, 2017
IMO, the only way to make it look like new, is a recoat, rather than clean/condition. If you had already cleaned it, you probably could have done the caulking yourself. For $250, if they cleaned, caulked, and conditioned, that sounds fair to me.

Another IMO, if it stays indoors, when not in use, the conditioner should not be necessary, just a once/twice a year cleaning/caulk check.

Jerry
ScottG
Nomad
Oct 23, 2017
The more you clean it, the shorter its life. Dirt has no detrimental impact on life span.
Acdii
Explorer
Oct 24, 2017
Some stains just wont come out without damaging the material. The reason to clean is really to remove the chalking that happens from aging, UV exposure, etc, and have a clean dry surface to put conditioner on so it sticks.

That reminds me, need to get up and wash and condition mine before it gets too cold.
CavemanCharlie
Explorer III
Oct 25, 2017
ScottG wrote:
The more you clean it, the shorter its life. Dirt has no detrimental impact on life span.

I agree.

It is good to clean it once and awhile but, there is no reason to do it all the time. You are just scrubbing off the protective layer that you really want to keep.

That is just my opinion though.
spoon059
Explorer II
Oct 25, 2017
RoyBell wrote:
They did the work, only charged me $250. I checked it out afterwards (I can see from my closet window when at my house) and it didn't look any different in terms of being clean. Still had some dark spots where the trusses were. I did see some spots were new Dicor was applied. When it stops raining I will jump on the roof and look closer.

Am I expecting too much? If someone charges me to condition and clean the roof I would expect it to be like new.... or at least the dark spots be removed. I really try and maintain the camper and spend a little extra for indoor storage to keep things nice. Thoughts? Am I expecting too much?

My thoughts are that you are wasting your money. Your roof needs no "conditioning". It only needs inspection 2-4 times a year for the caulk joints.
RoyBell
Explorer
Oct 25, 2017
While dirt itself may not effect the life the roof, you can't imply it helps it any either. Maybe I am wrong, but below are my theories

1) A dirty roof is more susceptible to the growth of **** like mildew.
2) Water won't run off easily like a fresh waxed car, causing puddling and the above mildew. Dirt will hold water like a sponge vs running off.
3) A dirty roof will eventually make the sides of your camper dirty when it rains and the dirty water pours over the side. I also wax the sides of the camper once or twice a year as well. Nothing like having the side of your camper smooth as a babies bottom.

I am not up there with a power washer and stiff bristle brush. A simple soft brush and roof cleaner goes a long way to keeping your camper happy imo.
NanciL
Explorer II
Oct 25, 2017
I clean mine once or twice a year using liquid Spic and Span, and a soft brush, (notice I said soft)
Then I condition it using a liquid conditioner that I get at the RV shop. There are several different brands, and all you do is spread it on with a sponge or mop.
The whole process is very easy.
Don't worry about black spots if they don't come off. The only ones who will see them are the birds.

Never use a stiff bristle brush!

I am 81 years old and on my third trailer and never have had a leaky roof, so I must be doing something right.

Jack L
Double_Haul
Explorer
Oct 25, 2017
I cleaned and conditioned my roof every year for seven years. It looked great (even though I couldn't see it) for a few months then was back to the normal chalkiness. All it did was shorten the life of the roof. After that 7 years black spots were showing through. Now I coat with Hengs rubber roof coating. Looks good and no chalkiness. Only had to recoat once in five years. If I knew back then what I know now I would have only one a mild cleaning once a year and not bother with the conditioner.
spike99
Explorer
Oct 27, 2017
I conditioned my RV's roof every 6 months. And, manually wax its sides with NuFinish product as well. Did the work myself to ensure if was done right - and I quality inspected with my own eyes. I also manually wax my Tow Vehicle as well. Was all this a waste of time and/or dollars? I don't think so. Had that RV for 15 years without roof problems. And, it had very few black streaks down its sides as well. My neighbour would often lecture me about wasting dollars. Yet, his RV had roof problems in 10 years. Then, total re-skin in 16 years. And, the sides of his RV has permanent black stains. Yet, he still lectures me about was of time and money (for materials only) today. Ya. He's a funny guy... In my family, we treat / take care of things like we want them to last forever....
westend
Explorer
Oct 27, 2017
I'd suggest: Spray the roof or apply with a rag/brush, Jasco Prepaint Conditioner. Let sit for an hour or two. Spray again and brush off any soil. Rinse and make sure that you rinse the trailer walls (in fact, you can apply the Conditioner to everything, it will remove all the oxidation and grime). Apply a top coating to the roof that is compliant with the roof material (typically, EPDM but you want to know, for sure). Wax and polish the walls with a quality marine or aviation wax.

Light dirt, mildew, or tree debris typically doesn't affect the life of an EPDM roof. It can sometimes shield the material from UV, the major aging component of rubber roofs.