What happend to this bay door?

Barn Owl · March 06, 2007, 09:29:05 PM

Now here is a real mess, what caused this? It is confined to one bay door and it was there when I bought the bus. Is it some type of acid etching? Can this be removed or repaired?

Thanks

Laryn

John E. Smith · March 06, 2007, 09:31:49 PM

Looks to me like someone drove through magnesium chloride (the new "ice melt") with it... but I can't really say for sure.

Barn Owl · March 06, 2007, 10:23:44 PM

I forgot to add that soap and water will not remove it. Whatever it was, it seems like some sort of chemical etching took place.

grantgoold · March 06, 2007, 10:31:39 PM

You may want to consider battery acid spill. I had an 8 d blow up one day and the results look very similar.

Good luck!

Grant

JackConrad · March 07, 2007, 04:33:55 AM

The splatter pattern looks like whatever it was dripped from above. I have a few similar stains on the aluminum rub rail on one of our baggage doors. Mine is from some aircraft stripper I used on an aluminum panel above the door. I have not found a way to remove it. I have also seen smilar stain on aluminum from concentrated "Purple Cleaner". Hope this helps, Jack

Dallas · March 07, 2007, 04:39:01 AM

Now THAT looks like the anodization is gone.
If so, there really isn't any satisfactory way to repair it.

You could use some rubbing compound on it, but it's just going to remove more anodization that will need to be cleaned and polished.

Good Luck.

Dallas

Nick Badame Refrig/ACC · March 07, 2007, 06:11:25 AM

Hi Lary,

I have also seen soda and beer do the same thing to the coatings on alum and ss.

It doesn't take much....

You would have to strip the whole door and re polish it to make it uniform.

Nick-

John Z · March 07, 2007, 06:31:04 AM

How durable is this anodization? I was thinking about taking a green scrubbie pad and some window cleaner to my bus to try and clean it up a bit. Will the anodization stand up to that? I guess i don't want to remove it, but i do want it to look better than it does after driving through last weeks blizzard to get home.

Eagle · March 07, 2007, 06:46:35 AM

Try an SOS soap pad I have used them on my Eagle with out any problems. Just keep it wet.

Dallas · March 07, 2007, 07:01:46 AM

Quote from: John Z on March 07, 2007, 06:31:04 AM
How durable is this anodization? I was thinking about taking a green scrubbie pad and some window cleaner to my bus to try and clean it up a bit. Will the anodization stand up to that? I guess i don't want to remove it, but i do want it to look better than it does after driving through last weeks blizzard to get home.

John,
Anodizing is an electrical process whereby the aluminum surface is turned into aluminum oxide and then turned into aluminum hydrate.
The surface is VERY hard, but also very thin, (between .0005" and .001" usually) However it is very possible to remove the anodization by using abrasives, acids and caustics. Even Orange juice, beer, vodka or urine will remove anodizing.
With your painted surfaces, there is no anodizing on them because paint won't stick to it. It has to be acid etched to accept paint.
The bay door may clean up a little bit, but you will always e able to see the etching that has taken place.

Eagle,
I thought The Eagles had Stainless siding? If you use an SOS pad on anodized aluminum you will remove the anodizing.

IHTH
Dallas