Painting Trailer Frame?

[longislandcampe]

We take the campers to a local beach campground very often. When you count up all the weeks, they probably sit there for a total of about 3 months getting bombarded with salt air and perhaps blowing sand. We always hose the exteriors off when we get home.

So I was wondering about painting the frame to help ward off rust. There's already some surface rust in some places.

Any tips for this project? We'll be washing, winterizing and putting the campers in hibernation in the next week or two.

[beemerphile1]

skipnchar wrote:
...stopping at a car or truck wash after leaving the beach and washing the underside....

Anyone considering this should be aware that many car washes recycle their water. You may be washing with salt water.

[Duck]

My neighbor, at the storage lot where we keep our trailer, had a frame rust problem. He had a company come out with a small sand blaster and sand blasted the frame and then repainted the frame. He seem to be happy with the job.
Don

[gasguzler]

http://www.por15.com/

The best way is to brush off rust and re paint it with POR 15. It's a rust encapsulation paint. It will stop and prevent any more rusting. I just did the entire underside of my 34 foot RV with this stuff and spray undercoating.

[2012Coleman]

If my TT were to sit at a beach for 3 months, I'd be squirting it down with water at least weekly. I don't see how touching up the frame paint could hurt.

[Grit_dog]

Just like my truck frame and suspension, wait until after driving through a good rain ( or spray it down) and hit it with some black rattle can paint. Sticks just fine. No need to grind/sand down all that frame. What a pita.
If you really are exposing it to salt and have a tube frame there's an outfit that makes rust inhibitor spray cans with a long tube and multiple spray orifices. Insert the tune into your frame and pull it out slowly while spraying.

[noe-place]

I don't have a FW or travel trailer but I do have a large utility trailer that rusts easily. Every couple of years I use a wire wheel and cut off all the old paint/rust then prime and repaint. It looks like new and doesn't cost much. I've had it for almost 15 yrs and my neighbors think I buy a new one every couple of years. :B

[campigloo]

ol Bombero-JC wrote:

DUNEBUGGYDOUG wrote:
put one of the lawn sprinklers that spray up and travel from left to right under it in the middle turn it on and voila the underside is clean

Are there any lawn sprinklers that spray - down?

Seriously - great idea!.:C

For lots of years I've had the DW lay down on the pavement, a garden hose in each hand - pointing left and right - and slowly drive over.

Problem is - a couple of times I drove over the hose, cut off the water supply - and had to repeat the process.

I think I'll pass this past the DW next weekend. Can I have you're full address so I can prove where this came from? She may want to pay you a visit.
.

[Goostoff]

DUNEBUGGYDOUG wrote:
put one of the lawn sprinklers that spray up and travel from left to right under it in the middle turn it on and voila the underside is clean

This is an old off roading trick after a day of playing in the mud.

[ol_Bombero-JC]

DUNEBUGGYDOUG wrote:
put one of the lawn sprinklers that spray up and travel from left to right under it in the middle turn it on and voila the underside is clean

Are there any lawn sprinklers that spray - down?

Seriously - great idea!.:C

For lots of years I've had the DW lay down on the pavement, a garden hose in each hand - pointing left and right - and slowly drive over.

Problem is - a couple of times I drove over the hose, cut off the water supply - and had to repeat the process.

.

[DUNEBUGGYDOUG]

put one of the lawn sprinklers that spray up and travel from left to right under it in the middle turn it on and voila the underside is clean

[skipnchar]

Painting will certainly help but will not replace stopping at a car or truck wash after leaving the beach and washing the underside. That's the best secondary defense against corrosion from beach camping with paint being the primary one.

[DutchmenSport]

Clean off the rust any way you can then re-paint. Exterior (oil based) Rustolium. However, that will not protect INSIDE the frame if you have any tube style framing.

[4aSong]

Zinc Chromate

[Dick_B]

or a rust reformer.