If you own a caravan, you are indeed, a blessed human on earth. However, when you purchase a caravan, you also have to worry about its preservation, looks, and maintenance. You would not want your prized vehicle to look ruddy, old, and sloppy. To sustain its shiny and attractive exterior, you must avail of adequate paint protection. Paint protection is usually associated with new cars. However, it is just as much important, if not more, for your caravan.
These days, manufacturers are becoming more inclined towards water-based paints to protect and preserve the environment. While it is an environmentally-conscious decision, these paints are prone to gradual fading and oxidisation. When you use such paints on your caravan’s exterior, it is bound to deteriorate due to the constant dust, dirt on the roads, smoke and fumes from traffic, harmful UV rays, tree sap, and much more.
These problematic elements contaminate the exterior’s paint by getting embedded into it. Removing these contaminants is a herculean task on its own. Hence, to ease your burden, paint protection is the best solution you have. Here are a few pointers to keep in mind while choosing the right protection option for your beloved caravan.
Choosing Between DIY and Professionals
The first step in choosing the right type of paint coating or protection is to decide whether you want to paint your caravan yourself or hire a professional. These protection kits vary depending on the cost and benefits that they provide. Paying the paint costs and availing of a professional shall be a costly affair for many.
However, for those of you who can afford professional painters, it is better to spend those extra bucks on reducing your workload and saving you the trouble of climbing on top of the caravan multiple times. Moreover, you will have the peace of mind knowing that the paint is being applied methodically rather than just splattering it on your van’s exterior.
Most paint protection kits available in the market are based on a sealant comprising poly fluoropolymer (Teflon being the predominant constituent), forming a protective layer on the paint’s surface layer. These fluoropolymers have the potential to protect against elements like acids, alkalis, grease, UV rays, oil, etc. The paint also fills in the troughs and pits on your caravan’s exterior, thus providing a smooth finishing.
Paint Protection Benefits Provided
As mentioned before, the cost of paint protection kits directly depends on the number of benefits they provide. Their value is also decided by the number of contaminants that they can resist. Ideally, you must choose a paint protection option that permanently sticks or adheres to your caravan’s exterior. Moreover, it must be resistant to any environmental fallout, tree sap, birds line, tar, and other naturally occurring elements.
The paint must also protect against harmful chemicals and UV rays while providing a glossy finish to your caravan. In rare cases, a high-end paint protection kit also offers resale value protection. Imagine if all these aspects are present in a single paint protection kit, your caravan shall be protected from all contaminants while appearing brand-new.
After-Paint Care for the Caravan
Along with purchasing paint protection kits, you must also follow specific steps to protect your caravan from damage or contamination. When not in use, you must keep your caravan in a garage. The garage shall provide extra protection along with the protection kit against various contaminants. Moreover, it also prevents your caravan’s paint from deteriorating due to consistent temperature changes. Extreme temperature variations have the potential of severely affecting the quality of your vehicle’s paint. In such cases, a garage comes in handy.
If you cannot avail of a garage, you can purchase caravan covers from any nearby store or outlet online. These caravan covers are available in a variety of different fabrics, including thin membranes, canvas, tarpaulin, etc. However, it is always better to opt for thick, multi-layered, and waterproof fabrics capable of protecting your caravan from hailstorms.
You can also choose caravan covers with cut-outs for doors, windows, etc. This added protection clubbed with protection paint can prevent your caravan from deteriorating and contaminating.
Paint protection is a lesser-known concept, especially concerning caravans. However, just like brand new cars, caravans also need paint protection from various atmospheric contaminants like tree sap, dust, fumes, UV rays, oil, grease, tar, and many more. To protect the paint of your caravan’s exterior, you must choose a protection kit that not only can resist contaminants but also provide a smooth, glossy layer to your caravan, making it look almost brand-new.