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Exterior
The Airstream exterior has been covered
by an acrylic lacquer finish providing years
of environmental protection. Washing the
exterior of your Airstream is similar to wash¬
ing an automobile. Both have high quality
finishes and certain precautions must be
taken to protect them. Oil, grease, dust, and
dirt may be removed by washing with any
mild nonabrasive soap or detergent. Auto¬
matic dishwasher detergents and acid etch
cleaners are too strong and should never
be used
Always clean your Airstream in
the shade or on a cloudy day when the
aluminum skin is cool.
Cleaning should be
followed by a thorough clean water rinse
Spots and streaks may be prevented by dry¬
ing the unit with a chamois or a soft cloth.
After cleaning and drying, a good grade of
nonabrasive automotive paste or liquid wax
will increase the life of the finish, especially
in coastal areas where the finish is exposed
to salt air or in polluted industrial areas. It
will also protect the shell from minor
scratches and make subsequent cleaning
easier. Wax should normally be applied
every three to six months. The first applica¬
tion should not be sooner than 90 days after
purchase to allow acrylic finish to cure.
It is important to remove sap, seeds, gum,
resin, asphalt, etc., as soon as possible
after they appear by washing and rewax¬
ing. Sunlight and time will bake-harden
these materials making them almost impos¬
sible to remove without heavy buffing. If
asphalt remains on the trailer after washing,
use a small amount of kerosene on a rag
and wipe the spots individually, being
careful not to scratch the aluminum.
For small areas of damage to the acrylic
protective coating, or where oxidation is
beginning to occur, remove all traces of the
acrylic coating with a good grade of lac¬
quer solvent and then thoroughly clean the
aluminum with an aluminum cleaner. Re¬
spray the area with clear acrylic lacquer,
All items needed for these minor repairs
to the exterior shell are available at Wally
Byam Stores.
For extensive refinishing we
recommend that you contact an Airstream
Service Center or the factory for instruc¬
tions. To keep your trailer looking new, paint
the "A" frame, L.P.G. tanks, and rear frame
periodically, by brushing on aluminum lac¬
quer or, if possible, by spraying.
Each time you connect the
7-way electrical
connector
check for dirt and-corrosion.
Keep the contacts clean with "Spra-Kleen."
It is important that the main door be com¬
pletely closed and locked during towing.
If
it is not locked the constant vibration of travel
may cause it to open with possible damage.
For your security the lock has been
designed as a dead bolt.
For this reason
never try to shut the door when ; t is locked.
The door is properly closed when the han¬
dle is firm. If the door is difficult to open,
push in to release the latch. When the door
swings open it will automatically latch
against the side of the trailer.
The
screen door
latches to the mam door
or operates independently using the same
Fig. 1 -Fold-Away Step
type latch that holds the main door open.
To operate the
fold-away step
(see Fig. 1)
just press down the latch on either side
and the step will automatically drop into
position. To stow the step simply lift the
front edge and then push it up under the
trailer to its stowed position.
The optional
extension step
(see Fig. 1) is
permanently attached to the main step and
when needed it is simply flipped out.
Never travel with step lowered.
The
exterior windows
in your trailer are of
heat strengthened safety plate glass. To
open' release the two lever locks at the bot¬
tom, pull the two side operator handles
toward the center and pull down until the
window is in the desired position (see Fig,
46
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