Hi I'm Helen, this is Rebecca, we're from Caravan Guard insurance.
We're over here at Lowdhams in Huddersfield and we've just cleaned this caravan.
If you want to follow our handy tips, watch this video.
So this is the caravan we're going to be cleaning today.
It's a Bailey Senator, and as you can see
it's been left under the trees for quite some time.
There's quite a lot of sediment laying on the bodywork,
there's green buildup around the trim of the windows,
and there's black streaks down the bodywork as well.
But don't worry, we'll soon have this caravan spick and span,
and looking as good as new.
So let's have a look at some of the equipment we're going to be using
to clean this caravan back to its former self.
To clean the caravan we're going to be using
a variety of products from a selection of manufacturers.
We'll be going through each product in isolation,
and we'll show you how the results fare once we've used it.
In terms of equipment, well there's nothing very special here at all.
We're using some microfibre cloths, an alloy wheel cleaner,
a bubble mitt, a couple of buckets,
and we're also using a clean 1 1/2" paintbrush,
to get into the nooks and crannies.
Now we are using some specialist cleaning equipment for when we're cleaning the roof.
This includes a sturdy stepladder
which is suitable for working at the height of the caravan,
and a telescopic long-reach brush.
So, let's make a start with the roof.
To do this, we're using the Fenwick's Caravan Cleaner,
diluted into a bucket of water.
Take extra care when using a stepladder,
and make sure you have someone to hand to help you whilst cleaning the roof.
Now we want to remove as much muck as we possibly can from the roof,
so that includes the skylight, around any vents, and of course the roof itself,
so regularly dunk the brush back into the cleaning solution.
Now as you can see we're cleaning quite far forward, over the front of the caravan.
This helps us ensure we're getting no black streaks,
when we continue to clean the rest of the caravan.
So once we've loosened all the dirt off the caravan roof,
it's important to give the caravan a good rinse down.
So rinse the entire roof down with your hose,
and then also, wet the sides down as well,
to remove any grit or any residue which is still clinging to the caravan sides.
Now if your caravan is in storage, or you don't have access to a hosepipe,
don't worry: You can use a garden pump sprayer like this one
to rinse down the side of your caravan.
Don't be tempted to use a pressure wash.
A pressure washer can be really harmful to the sides and the seals of your caravan.
No matter which method you use to rinse the caravan,
make sure that all the sides are nice and wet.
The next step is to remove those pesky black streaks
that all caravanners seem to suffer from.
Now to do this we're using the Mellerud Black Streak Remover,
and the instructions are pretty clear. Simply dab onto the black streaks,
leave it to work for a few minutes, and then rinse off.
So we're gonna carry on, and work our way round all the windows,
and around the areas where there's black streaks on the bodywork.
Whilst we're dealing with black streaks, it's also a great time to start looking at
the green buildups around the window frames and the trim.
So we're gonna be using Silky. It's a cream cleaner,
and we're using the paintbrush to get into those nooks and crannies.
So using the paintbrush, we're gonna take a small amount of the product,
and dab it around the window frame, getting in between the window and the frame itself.
This method also works well on door frames and corrugated bodywork.
For lockers and external fixing points, such as a barbeque point, don't be too aggressive
because you can remove some of the sealant around the outside,
so be gentle, and take your time.
If you've got a large gap between your window and your trim,
like you can see here, it's a good idea to wrap the paintbrush in tape,
to ensure you don't scratch or snag any bodywork or window edges.
For panel join lines like these, you can continue to use the paintbrush method,
or like what we're doing,
we're using a microfibre cloth and the Silky cream cleaner,
to remove any green buildup from inside the join.
As the team finish wiping down the caravan,
to remove the last of the black streaks, and the green mildew,
it's now time to wash the caravan down.
It's a good idea to keep a microfibre cloth and a paintbrush handy
to agitate the product just as you're washing it down.
This will help remove the last few bits of buildup,
and give a nice clean finish once complete.
I think you'll agree it's already looking a lot cleaner,
and remember, we haven't actually cleaned the side of the caravan yet.
That happens right now.
So to clean the caravan down, we're actually using Care-avan's Shampoo.
It's been specifically formulated for use on a caravan's shell.
We're diluting this into a bucket of warm water...
and as you can see, it's doing a great job of removing the last bits of debris
and the last bits of muck from the side of the caravan.
Now we're dividing the caravan up into sections
to ensure we don't miss any spots,
and we're also using the 2 bucket method.
Let me show you what we mean by that.
So, we have two buckets.
One with clean, cold water, the other with our cleaning product and warm water.
When we clean the side of the caravan, we dip straight into the cleaning product,
and straight onto the side of the caravan.
But instead of returning the mitt back to that bucket when it's time to rinse,
we rinse the mitt off in the cold, clean water.
Then we dab our mitt into the warm, soapy water
and then onto the side of the caravan.
Now, doing it this way means we don't put any muck or any grit
back onto the surface of the caravan.
Instead we take the mitt and we clean it in the cold water
before applying it back into the soap, and back onto the side of the caravan.
Up until now, you would have seen very little of us
actually cleaning any windows, and that's with good reason.
Caravan windows scratch incredibly easily,
so using your bare hands, dip your hand into the cleaning product
and wipe over the window generously.
Doing it this way means if you feel any grit under your fingertips,
you'll reduce the risk of causing any scratches.
With the sides all cleaned down, it's now time to
focus onto the more grubby sections of the caravan.
This includes the wheels.
So if you've got alloy wheels, use an alloy wheel brush,
and make sure you clean all the brake dust and any residue off the alloys
to make them nice and clean.
If you've got hubcaps, don't use an alloy wheel brush.
Instead take the hubcaps off, and use a microfire cloth or a sponge
to give them a good clean.
And now it's time for the final washdown. So as you can see here,
we're starting at the top and forcing the water to run off the side of the caravan,
and we're also working in small sections.
So we're operating from the back of the caravan, all the way up to the front.
Now a point to notice here:
You may notice that the electric cable is plugged into the side of the caravan,
but don't worry: The caravan is actually disconnected from the electrics.
When you're washing the side of the caravan down, we do highly recommend
that your caravan is not actually plugged in to the electrics at this point.
With the caravan now washed down, it's time to wipe down the surface,
so using clean, dry microfibre cloths, wipe down from the top to the bottom,
and make sure that the entire surface of the caravan is nice and clean,
ready for the next stage.
So the caravan is now clean and dry,
and I think you'll agree the caravan looks 1,000 times better.
But we've still got more work to do.
Using Auto-Glym's Fast Glass,
we're going to spray the product directly onto the windows,
buff it off, to give each window a deep shine.
The final step is to give the surface of the caravan
some protection and a deep shine.
So to do that, we're gonna use a light wax,
and today we're going to be using Meguiar's Quik Wax.
It's very easy to use: Simply spray on to the surface,
wipe it in, allow it to cloud over,
then buff it off to a deep shine.
And there you go. I think you'll agree that the caravan now looks
a million times better.
It's nice and clean on the outside,
and ready for another season of family fun in the year ahead.
That's it from us today guys. Thank you for watching.
For more hints and tips, please head over to the Caravan Guard website.