Spring is here, and that means it’s time to pull the RV out of storage and get it cleaned up in anticipation of camping season. Floors will need a good scrubbing, mattresses need turning, and the outside of the rig is sure to need a good wash.

One other important task? Cleaning your RV windows.

While RV window cleaning might seem straightforward enough, there are a few things you should know in order to make your cleaning session as easy and effective as possible. Below are our favorite tips for doing just that.

Start with a Good Cleaning Product

For starters, you’re going to want to find a good cleaning product. There are a few awesome choices out there, and you will want to consider a few different factors in order to determine which is best for you.

Windex Outdoors

We love Windex Outdoors for cutting through dirt and grime and helping us clean those hard-to-reach places. The cleaner is actually sprayed onto the windows using a water hose, and is intended to be rinsed rather than wiped away, meaning you may not even need to break out a ladder!

That said, it does leave streaks down the sides of your RV and won’t remove stubborn spots.

Invisible Glass Cleaner

We also really love Invisible Glass Cleaner. This can be used on the interior or exterior of your windows and easily cuts through dirt, bugs, and grime. It consistently leaves a beautiful, streak-free shine, and works well on both motorhomes and travel trailers.

ProtectAll™

Those with pop-up campers will need to choose a different product from those with other types of campers. This is where ProtectAll vinyl cleaner comes into play. This stuff works well on all of the vinyl found on pop-up campers, including the windows.

Invest in the Proper Tools

Besides a good cleaning solution, you will also need the right set of tools to get the job done well. Sure, you could just whip out a roll of paper towels and make those work for you, but doing so will almost certainly make your job harder than it has to be (and it can be wasteful).

Instead, invest a bit of time and money into the following items to help you reach high places and leave a streak-free shine:

• Ladder (telescoping is best for storage purposes)
• Garden hose with spray attachment
• Long-handled squeegee

Choose The Time Wisely

It might seem logical to get outside and clean the windows while the sun is shining. Unfortunately, this isn’t necessarily true. Bright sunlight and hot, dry weather can cause cleaner to dry too quickly, meaning you won’t be able to wipe surfaces down properly, thus leaving you with streaks and dirty spots.

For this reason, choosing a nice day with warm—but not overly hot!—weather is best, and morning or early evening is better than mid-day.

Be Thorough

Sometimes it’s tempting to rush through cleaning the windows. However, a rushed job is rarely a good one, and zipping through this particular task might leave your RV looking a bit shabbier than you’d like. For this reason, it’s best to take your time and be thorough.

Here are some steps you’ll want to take to be sure you do the best job possible:

• Remove the screens. Screens get in the way of cleaning the interiors of your windows and can trap bugs and debris. Remove them to ensure you get every part of the window nice and clean.
• Clean the frame. RV window frames are notorious for catching dust, bugs, and other small things and holding them there. Therefore, it’s important that RV owners go over the inside lip of each frame with a damp cloth in order to remove unwanted dirt.
• Start with a spray. When cleaning the outside of your windows, start with a spray-down with the garden hose and that spray attachment we mentioned. This will remove the worst of the dirt and help loosen stubborn spots. That said, it will also leave streaks down the sides of your RV, so be prepared to wash the entire rig.

Finish It Off Right

After washing your windows, we highly recommend finishing off the job with a coat of Rain-X. This stuff will help keep the windows and windshield of your driveable RV nice and clear during a rainstorm. It will also help protect the windows, discouraging debris from sticking to them and making your job a little easier next time around.

Just make sure your RV windows are true glass before applying this in order to avoid damage!

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About the author: Chelsea Gonzales

Chelsea has the amazing opportunity to take part in full-time RV living and traveling with her tiny tribe. She homeschools her five-year-old son as they travel, and takes full advantage of their unique situation by using the entire world as her son’s classroom. A group of total Disney fanatics, Chelsea and her family often find themselves in the Orlando area in order to visit the Disney parks, but they have also visited over 25 of the 50 states with plans to see many more along the way. No matter where her travels take her, Chelsea enjoys riding bikes, gazing at beautiful sunsets, finding new coffee shops, Irish dancing, and sitting around a campfire with her family.

You can join her adventures through her blog, Wonder Wherever We Wander.

George N. ~ “Having this service through Coach-Net was AWESOME when our RV would not start even though it was still in storage. It’s the peace of mind that we have help when we really need it.”