New trailer salt corrosion.

[CampingN_C_]

I've purchased a 2018 Jayco that was brought down from Indiana while the entire east coast was under heavy snow. It clearly took on heavy salt build up along the way. Although it was been washed several times. I have lots of scews/bolts that have already broke. Most are still white with salt damage. I've already replaced the fuel station nozzle and switch due to the salt locking it up. Yes it was under warranty but only cost me $30 and was cheaper than taking it back. All this before making the first payment.

I've been around the block enough I know my dealer won't/can't do much about it but is there anything I can spray down there to slow down the damage ? The camper is great but the underside looks worse than the 4 year old Jayco I just sold.

Lesson learned, I'll never buy new in the winter again.

[SidecarFlip]

Grit dog wrote:

SidecarFlip wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
Ok, so Fluid Film is good stuff, use it myself, but it’s not a substitute for painting. It does provide a decent , sacrificial barrier to corrosion, but if paint sticks to the metal it’s better. Fluid film is akin to oil spraying an undercarriage.

Fair statement but.. Most builder apply the minimal amount of paint and in some cases, no paint at all. It's like spray paint in Indiana is a rare commodity....;)

That’s because all the RV builders are huffing it instead of spraying it!That’s because all the RV builders are huffing it instead of spraying it! Lol

Yes fluid film in crevasses. THey actually make a spray coating with a hose with radial nozzle outlets that you can fish into tubing and other voids and supposedly get a 360deg spray pattern.
Fluid film on exterior surfaces won’t last as long as paint, por 15 etc. it’s more bang for the buck to paint areas that are accessible. Every few years I burn up a few cans under the truck and trailers. It helps.

Now I know why Hoosiers don't talk much.. Their lips are stuck together... (just kidding).....:E

[Lynnmor]

greydog wrote:
I really wish the man who came up with the idea of dumping salt on our highways had been given a fifty gallon brine enema followed by a salt block suppository. Not only is it corrosive to vehicles but it often leads to snow accumulations on highways where the snow would otherwise have blown off. It turns a layer of snow into a layer of greasy slush. Wildlife is attracted to the road and, as a consequence, wildlife impacts increase. I would much rather drive on snow and ice where my truck MIGHT get wrecked than drive it through a salty brine where damage is guaranteed. GD

I too hate salt with a passion, but we are by far in the minority. People just beg for the stuff if they see a tiny bit of pavement covered with snow. Since most seem to destroy their cars in short order or lease them, longevity is the last thing on their minds.

Bridges are failing all over the salt belt, but never a mention that the failures are self-inflicted.

[Grit_dog]

greydog wrote:
I really wish the man who came up with the idea of dumping salt on our highways had been given a fifty gallon brine enema followed by a salt block suppository. Not only is it corrosive to vehicles but it often leads to snow accumulations on highways where the snow would otherwise have blown off. It turns a layer of snow into a layer of greasy slush. Wildlife is attracted to the road and, as a consequence, wildlife impacts increase. I would much rather drive on snow and ice where my truck MIGHT get wrecked than drive it through a salty brine where damage is guaranteed. GD

Agree, nothing better when everything is froze solid and you can wash the car and have it stay clean for a while in the winter.
BUT the DOTs and municipalities have to care for roads to the least common denominator....the people who drive around with bald tires in 1982 chevies and don’t know how to drive in snow. Also traffic volumes play a huge role. Urban freeway with snow = traffic mess no matter who or where you are. Same road with salty water = better traffic flow and less accidents.

[Grit_dog]

SidecarFlip wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
Ok, so Fluid Film is good stuff, use it myself, but it’s not a substitute for painting. It does provide a decent , sacrificial barrier to corrosion, but if paint sticks to the metal it’s better. Fluid film is akin to oil spraying an undercarriage.

Fair statement but.. Most builder apply the minimal amount of paint and in some cases, no paint at all. It's like spray paint in Indiana is a rare commodity....;)

That’s because all the RV builders are huffing it instead of spraying it! Lol

Yes fluid film in crevasses. THey actually make a spray coating with a hose with radial nozzle outlets that you can fish into tubing and other voids and supposedly get a 360deg spray pattern.
Fluid film on exterior surfaces won’t last as long as paint, por 15 etc. it’s more bang for the buck to paint areas that are accessible. Every few years I burn up a few cans under the truck and trailers. It helps.

[greydog]

I really wish the man who came up with the idea of dumping salt on our highways had been given a fifty gallon brine enema followed by a salt block suppository. Not only is it corrosive to vehicles but it often leads to snow accumulations on highways where the snow would otherwise have blown off. It turns a layer of snow into a layer of greasy slush. Wildlife is attracted to the road and, as a consequence, wildlife impacts increase. I would much rather drive on snow and ice where my truck MIGHT get wrecked than drive it through a salty brine where damage is guaranteed. GD

[SidecarFlip]

Problem with used motor oil underneath is, it drips off and it can attack and degrade some plastic and synthetic rubber components plus it's messy. I have a couple friends who douse their vehicles with used motor oil and when they get done, they have as much on themselves as they got on the vehicle plus when they first drive it, it stinks and smokes.

[SidecarFlip]

Veebyes wrote:
Fasteners used on RVs are nothing special at all. One good dose of salt without washing it off immediately is a death sentence. Easy for the dealer to give the unit a quick wash off with a pressure washer. Everything looks lovely. Who crawls underneath to have a look. I do. Even the new ones at a show. First place to look is underneath behind the wheels.

For rust prevention I use a product I used on my boats. Boeshield T3. A product developed for aviation that dries to sort of a wax & does not wash off.

Very similar to Fluid Film actually.

[Veebyes]

Slopping used motor oil on the underside of vehicles is very old school from before there were undercoat products. My dad had his car on the road, daily driver, from 1946 till mid 1980s this way in a very salty climate no more than 700' from the ocean.

[westend]

docsouce wrote:
You guys are going to think I'm crazy. When I first get a vehicle I spread a plastic tarp under it. Then fill a pump sprayer with used crankcase oil and spray the oil covering all the frame and associated parts,except the brakes,engine and tranny, with a good coat and let it sit overnight till the excess drips off on the tarp. Used to watch my Dad do this and he, nor I, have had frame rust trouble. I do the wheel wells and inside the bumpers too.

Oh if it is boxed I spray in the holes along the chasssis..

I like it. The BIL that worked at the Ford plant filled his new Galaxie 500 doors and front panels with oil as it came down the line. That car, unlike all its brothers, never rusted in those areas.

[Veebyes]

Fasteners used on RVs are nothing special at all. One good dose of salt without washing it off immediately is a death sentence. Easy for the dealer to give the unit a quick wash off with a pressure washer. Everything looks lovely. Who crawls underneath to have a look. I do. Even the new ones at a show. First place to look is underneath behind the wheels.

For rust prevention I use a product I used on my boats. Boeshield T3. A product developed for aviation that dries to sort of a wax & does not wash off.

[doxiemom11]

Was this unit from a flood area down south? Salt water flooded? Shouldn't be, but grew up in MI and drove on salty road most of my life. Never had bolts breaking from rust and corrosion unless they were 25 years old maybe. I currently have a 95 Jeep from Michigan that is finally starting frame rust. That was after spending 5 years on the gulf coast during the winter.

[SidecarFlip]

Grit dog wrote:
Ok, so Fluid Film is good stuff, use it myself, but it’s not a substitute for painting. It does provide a decent , sacrificial barrier to corrosion, but if paint sticks to the metal it’s better. Fluid film is akin to oil spraying an undercarriage.

Fair statement but.. Most builder apply the minimal amount of paint and in some cases, no paint at all. It's like spray paint in Indiana is a rare commodity....;)

[CampingN_C_]

I think the first thing to do is give it a good light pressure washing when the weather turns.

[JaxDad]

Lynnmor wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
Ok, so Fluid Film is good stuff, use it myself, but it’s not a substitute for painting. It does provide a decent , sacrificial barrier to corrosion, but if paint sticks to the metal it’s better. Fluid film is akin to oil spraying an undercarriage.

I agree with what you say, but the problem is that RV’s are built in a way that has frame, siding, etc. having crevices where one component meets the other. Salt spray gets into those areas and the never ending corrosion process starts. Fluid Film can be squirted into those crevices and is less likely to harm the various materials. Whatever you use, Fluid Film, motor oil, paint or anything else, you will never completely cover all the hidden problem areas and stop all the corrosion.

Make every effort to stay off the road with any vehicle while the roads are made unfit for use by salt and chemicals.

Something doesn’t make sense in all of this.

I live in salty road country, my old C, a 1995 Itasca, lived next to the Gulf of Mexico near Tampa for the first 15 years of its life, it’s made a trip a month or so every winter since it moved to Canada.

Still no rust issues.

I see lots of trucks and equipment around here that is on the road all winter long, year after year with no issues. Yet a very new trailer has bolts snapped from corrosion?