Whitening yellowed plastic - an easy solution

[blueglide]

Saw some previous posts here about yellowed outside plastic fan/vent covers etc and various solutions to make them white again. Most solutions involved painting or replacing. This past week I noticed the shower pan in my TC was noticeably yellowed and clearly showed where a manufacturers sticker had been on the plastic at one time as it was much whiter than the rest of the plastic. There were several yellowed areas that appeared to have been exposed to more light than other areas at one time also. It bugged me so I looked for a solution since the yellowing couldn't be cleaned or scrubbed away. A quick google search brought up the topic of 'retro bright' but that seemed difficult to obtain all the ingredients to make the stuff. Then I stumbled on a Youtube video of a guy using this stuff https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/31JjAWcFgIL.jpg (don't know how to make link hot or if its allowed) and a UV bulb. The results were dramatic. So I ordered a bottle of this stuff and a 5 watt LED UV bulb and put the Salon Care 40 on half of my yellowed shower pan. Hung the bulb over it overnight and looked at it this morning. The difference was incredible. The treated half looked brand new. I now have the other half going as I type this but I thought I would share here. I have found numerous videos and internet posts about this method since I started. There are some detailed posts explaining the chemistry going on here and the yellowing is caused by bromine in the plastic manufacturing process etc...but all I know is it works. People are using this to restore old computer cases, game system consoles and expensive tennis shoe soles?? Might be helpful to others here.

[TxGearhead]

Krylon Fusion for exterior trim. Probably not for the shower pan.
http://www.krylon.com/products/fusion-for-plastic/

[blueglide]

mkirsch wrote:

blueglide wrote:
It's not actually bleaching the plastic. There's a detailed explanation on one of the sites I was on that explained the scientific process taking place. It's not a bleaching process but something about bromine stabilization....somebody with a chemical engineering degree would probably be able to interpret and explain! :@:B

Or, the scientific mumbo-jumbo is just a long way of saying that it is bleaching the plastic to make it sound like you're not bleaching the plastic.

Or, it could be another load of unproveable BS.

We're a cynical bunch aren't we!! ;);) All I know is my shower pan was yellowed despite never having been used. It was not removeable or replaceable so those options were off the table. I was unable to whiten the plastic using Greased Lightening, Soft Scrub, household laundry bleach, or store bought hydrogen peroxide. This method worked great and my shower now looks brand new. Finished the second half last night. Wish I had thought to take before and after pics. I don't do much without researching it first....I would suggest anyone considering this research it and make an informed decision based on what you find out. I'm a happy believer now.

[mkirsch]

blueglide wrote:
It's not actually bleaching the plastic. There's a detailed explanation on one of the sites I was on that explained the scientific process taking place. It's not a bleaching process but something about bromine stabilization....somebody with a chemical engineering degree would probably be able to interpret and explain! :@:B

Or, the scientific mumbo-jumbo is just a long way of saying that it is bleaching the plastic to make it sound like you're not bleaching the plastic.

Or, it could be another load of unproveable BS.

[sbryan]

Another option that has worked well for us on our RV is this stuff: https://www.crownspraypower.com/

It has whitened up the yellowed plastic on our stove vent and around the door windows. It also is the best stuff I have found so far to get rid of the black streaks on the RV. I'll plan on using it on our TC once we have one.:B

[fla-gypsy]

The Awesome worked well for me and is only a $1.

[CAJW]

I too was going this route to try and clean up my yellowed 3 year old range vent that looked like it was 20. Instead I replaced it with a quality range vent that works better, looks better and is "guaranteed" not to yellow. Oh, in case your rig can go that fast, it is wind tested to withstand 190 mph!

Endura vent

[blueglide]

jimh425 wrote:
I can't say bleaching with hydrogen peroxide sounds like a good idea for long term durability. The parts aren't that expensive.

It's not actually bleaching the plastic. There's a detailed explanation on one of the sites I was on that explained the scientific process taking place. It's not a bleaching process but something about bromine stabilization....somebody with a chemical engineering degree would probably be able to interpret and explain! :@:B

[jimh406]

I can't say bleaching with hydrogen peroxide sounds like a good idea for long term durability. The parts aren't that expensive.

[bob213]

That looks like it works well. Before I tried that I think I would try spending $1.00 at Dollar Tree or the 99 cent store for some L.A. Totally Awesome. It usually gets rid of the yellow. If that didn't work then I would try the above. Thanks for the tip.

[southernsky]

interesting

[K_Mac]

blueglide wrote:

Snowman9000 wrote:
Neat!

This appears to be the video

This is the product

Thats the one..Thanks!

. Thanks for the tip and link. Next trip to my daughters, I'm going to try this on her "hazy" headlights. Worth a try.

[IAMICHABOD]

Amazon has everything!

[gbopp]

Thanks! :C

[blueglide]

Snowman9000 wrote:
Neat!

This appears to be the video

This is the product

Thats the one..Thanks!