Fading gel coat

[b41wright]

We took delivery of our 2012 36 FB in Mar 2013, from Tiara RV in Indiana. It is still under the 2 year warranty. We took it to Lazy Days in Tampa Fl for the annual inspection, as well as the paint work. It would have only required one week, however I originally only noticed the front cap which was approved and scheduled. I then noticed the rear cap was starting to fade and notified them when I dropped it off. They then had to recontact Redwood for authorization. The whole process then required three weeks
Bioll

[BradPAjax]

I called our rep and took pictures. Got pre-approved right after the annual inspection in May and had to wait until Sep to get it painted due to other orders ahead of us at the 3rd party repair shop... unit was gone 2 weeks.
We live in Ontario...not anywhere near as hot as Texas or Arizona but the fading was very obvious. Got new paint and new decals for the factory Tan paint scheme. Have a 1978 Tanzer 26 sailboat with less fade... just don't make gelcoat like they used to I guess.

[lincolnhester]

What a lovely site this is! We took our 36fl in with 6 months left on our 2 year warranty due to the front cap fading. My dealer told me that the cap was not covered under the warranty and owner negligence was to blame for the premature fading, that it was my responsibility and I would have to pay to have it fixed. I assumed they knew what they were talking about and have just been waxing it once a month since. The 2 year warranty was up in September. I wonder if it is covered under the five year and if not if I have any recourse?

[Dave&Ginny]

Originally Posted by lincolnhester

What a lovely site this is! We took our 36fl in with 6 months left on our 2 year warranty due to the front cap fading. My dealer told me that the cap was not covered under the warranty and owner negligence was to blame for the premature fading, that it was my responsibility and I would have to pay to have it fixed. I assumed they knew what they were talking about and have just been waxing it once a month since. The 2 year warranty was up in September. I wonder if it is covered under the five year and if not if I have any recourse?

First off welcome to the forum.....

Try calling the factory and see what they say. The entire trailer was covered for 2 years and then the structure for 5. Talk nice to them and see what happens. This has been an issue in the past and because of this, they might cover it.

[Titan Guy]

Not covered under 5 yr. only 2 yr. If you have any documentation of the dealers statement you probably have a case. Push the issue with Redwood. I just had my front cap painted. $1300

[markw]

[QUOTE=lincolnhester;41512]What a lovely site this is! We took our 36fl in with 6 months left on our 2 year warranty due to the front cap fading. My dealer told me that the cap was not covered under the warranty and owner negligence was to blame for the premature fading, that it was my responsibility and I would have to pay to have it fixed. I assumed they knew what they were talking about and have just been waxing it once a month since. The 2 year warranty was up in September. I wonder if it is covered under the five year and if not if I have any recourse?[/QUOTE

They might have you on the two year part because it's not a structural issue. That said, we picked our trailer up the Monday before thanksgiving, both caps were painted. We are still within the two year full warranty though.

It IS NOT however because of neglect. My front cap was waxed 3 times in the first 15 months, including being power buffed because of fading.

Redwood approved ours within 30 minutes of being contacted, and receiving pictures. This was thru America Choice RV in Ocala FL.



I missed where you said it was looked at earlier. That dealer was wrong. Like has been said, call Redwood yourself. On my trip to Florida with the trailer we talked with 2 other owners. One was waiting to get his painted and the other was already done.

Mark

[Happy Camper]

Our front and rear caps were repainted last fall while at the factory service center.

[mhs4771]

Wonder why some caps fade and others don't. We haven't done anything special to ours and they look the same as they did when new and we've put approx 35K miles and been in use for almost 3 years now.

[travelin' texans]

M&A, it's only the standard paint scheme not the full painted ones.

[mhs4771]

OK, didn't get that part, my Bad

[ezgo-n]

Our 36rl is in the dealer right now being painted. Redwood is paying for both front and rear to be painted. Our two year warranty runs out in Feb. Last year they told me to buff out the front end. I did buff it out and within three weeks it was faded again. I was happy to get it painted.

[hoosierguy]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

M&A, it's only the standard paint scheme not the full painted ones.

Danny............Ours is the standard finish and I haven't noticed any fading. The first two years, I stored the trailer inside during the winter months (5 months each winter), but, it was outside during the summer months. Since June of 2013, it has only been inside for about three months total. So far, I haven't noticed any fading. But, maybe I am not sure what to look for.

Guy

[GA1817]

I believe the first areas to fade would be on the very top where UV exposure would be the greatest. The few non full body paint units I have looked at all exhibited some fading on the very top but none that was observable on the ground.

[0nTheRoad]

Originally Posted by hoosierguy

Danny............Ours is the standard finish and I haven't noticed any fading. The first two years, I stored the trailer inside during the winter months (5 months each winter), but, it was outside during the summer months. Since June of 2013, it has only been inside for about three months total. So far, I haven't noticed any fading. But, maybe I am not sure what to look for.

Guy

You should be able to notice the fading, compare the color of the upper portion of the front cap to the lower portion, the color should be the same.

For some reason, some of the non-paint rigs fade while others don't? Maybe you're one of the lucky ones!!

[markw]

By the time mine was painted, you could easily see it from the ground. The rear was only on the very top.

Mark

[Campers]

We had our 36FL painted last fall, it was 6 months out of the 2 year warranty. Redwood knows the problem on these units and that is why all new Redwoods are full body paint. If you have a problem with the gel coat, call your dealer and if they say no coverage from Redwood, Call Redwood directly and look for a new dealer!

[travelin' texans]

Guy, The ones I saw personally (3 different ones) you could see from the ground as the top edges were almost white.

[hoosierguy]

Originally Posted by 0nTheRoad

You should be able to notice the fading, compare the color of the upper portion of the front cap to the lower portion, the color should be the same.

For some reason, some of the non-paint rigs fade while others don't? Maybe you're one of the lucky ones!!

I definitely will be keeping an eye on this issue. I was on the roof in July when I washed the roof and did not notice any variation in color.

[Titan Guy]

Before Repaint

[hoosierguy]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

Guy, The ones I saw personally (3 different ones) you could see from the ground as the top edges were almost white.

Danny, I think maybe I have been fortunate that I have been able to store the coach inside much of the time when not in use. We took ownership in mid-September 2011 (fresh from the factory), used it for 6 weeks and then it was stored inside for 6 months. Then it was outside for 5 months and back inside for 7 months. Since my wife and I have both retired, the coach has only been stored inside for about 4 months each of the past two years. I don't know anything about the curing process for gelcoat. Maybe it helped that I was able to store it inside more than it was outside during those first 2 years.

Guy