Rubber Membrane Roofs

I have had my Elkridge trailer for 3 years and due to trees and the environment, my roof has turn an ugly black color. My concern is the life expectancy due to this. I purchased a cleaning agent from the RV store but it doesn't clean the roof very effectively. My question is, are there household products that will do the job without harming the membrane. I was told that I may ruin the roof if I use the incorrect products. Is there something to make life simpler than good old hand scrubbing.

Thanks

Hi Raftsman,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum. You heard correctly; products with petroleum distillates can ruin the roof. Regular cleaning with Dawn dish soap is what many of us do. But it sounds like you may need more than that. Here's a link to Dicor's page with cleaning and care instructions.

Others are likely to chime in with what's worked for them.

There is a good article on roof cleaning and maintenance in the current Trailer Life issue I just received in the mail. The main thing is to not use anything with petroleum spirits or citric acid and to not use anything that will cut or tear the roof. Also beware you will likely find a few places where the membrane is not longer glued down to the plywood underneath and take extra care in these areas that you don't stretch out the membrane and make the unglued spots a problem.

This company http://wetandforget.com/ claims their product is safe to use on RVs. I wish someone would chime in here that has tried it on their rubber roof and give us the down low. Since my 5er has full body paint I am hessitant to use anything other than car wash, but it doesn't do a very good job of keeping my roof bright white. On my last rig I used mixture of liquid Spic & Span with Clorox bleach and my roof was clean as a whistle (and I washed it 2-3 times a year for 10 years).