Cleaning a wing

[Bundy]

Hi All, what is the best way to clean the wing on a trike? The trike I am training on looks terrible but the owner refuses to clean it, he says that the dust currently on the wing will then get even deeper into the stiching and cause more wear and tear... Is this so?

Also what sort of engine cleaner do you guys use? If the school wont clean the damn thing then I will.
The plane in question is an Aquilla Blue top 582

[wiskeyfoxtrot]

Hey Bundy,
I use a very diluted mix of dishwashing liquid & water, a soft broom and lots of elbow grease.
Just remember to wash off the washing solvents well!
Hope you have a clean wing soon!

Later

[Alkemac]

What I do, is take the front wheel of the trike and put it on a drum, thereby tilting the whole trike upwards, as it also assists with draining water/soap.

Putting a ladder up behind the wing, I then spray one half of the wing with Prepsol in a spray bottle, and by the time I have reached the tip, I take my KArcher and, starting at the top, wash off, downwards.

I repeat the process for the otherside.

Do not focus too much spray on the stitching.

[KFA]

Here is a link with some tips http://www.ultralightnews.com/pilotslou ... dacron.htm

[Tailspin]

I use clean green in a very Diluted form and a Broom, then spray the fabrick clean with a garden hose till no more foam appears.
This seems to do the trick.

[Bundy]

Thanks for the tips guys, what about the stiching? will washing the wing cause the dust to penetrate deeper and therefore cause more wear and tear?

[wiskeyfoxtrot]

Hey Bundy,
I think thats an old wives tale.... thats the whole point of cleaning the wing. ( no muck to sit between the seams ! ) ive washed the seams and always inspect a section just to make sure that nothing comming apart. If there are seams comming apart you souldnt be flying the aerie anyway!

Later

[kloot piloot]

Call me conservative, but I am sceptical of any soap or detergent on a wing. They all have some sort of chemical and the long term effects are unknown.

Why not just start with a good wash with clean water from top to bottom does it. I like Alkemac's idea of raising the nose wheel. And a step ladder is priceless. Once done with the upper surface, open the centre zip or velcro and rinse the inside of the double surface. Lots of dirty water to be washed from there. Then a good spray of water along the trailing edge to get rid of standing dirty water. And lastly a good spray along all stitching because they tend to capture dirt more than the sail material.

Remember to cover seats, instruments, exhaust and air filters.

Maybe small isolated patches could be tackled with Kleen Green or similar.

[Big-D]

I once asked Jenya what to use on a very dirty wing - His advice was the green sunlight soap "bar" - I would imagine that it has no detergent etc.

My wing has never been that dirty and I find that just plain water does the trick. (Not that I wash my trike that often )

D

[DarkHelmet]

(Not that I wash my trike that often )

D

Jou trike is maar 'n vuil uil

[bobthebuilder]

Some of us aren't that lucky.

We have shade cloth covered hanger doors ....... and an Alouette 2 helicopter in the hanger nexrt door!

Dust ..... she is a problem!