Restoring Faded Plastic

[Jeff Gaines]

I want to carry out some maintenance to my rainwater goods when the sun comes out. It is all brown plastic, seems in good condition but badly faded. It also has what seems like a bottle cleaning brush (twisted wire with bristles) in the gutter which has proved a good base for moss to grow and clog the outlets, I plan to remove and scrap that.

Is there a known method to bring this faded plastic back to life? Google produces lots of results that seem to involve anything from vinegar to hydrogen peroxide pus lots of elbow grease. I am happy to put some effort in but I wouldn't mind a steer to what might work rather than magic potions :-)

Many thanks.

[charles]

That stuff is used to prevent the gutter clogging with leaves.

[alan_m]

Gloss solvent based paint, first clean off with soapy water and then just a single coat of paint. In my experience the surface will be touch dry as stated on the tin but underneath will remain soft for days/weeks so just leave it alone without touching it.

Possibly,

[Andy Burns]

aka hedgehog brush ... intended to keep leaves etc out of gutter

sounds like retr0briting, usually dont to lighten platic that's yellowed, can't see it darkening plastic that's faded ... brown paint?

[Andy Burns]

definitely use a solvent rated respirator with that stuff

[Thomas Prufer]

Try "Armor All".

Magic potion on rubber, less so but still good on plastic. Works well on UV fading, lasts (up to years), is easy to apply (wipe/spray/brush on, don't bother with wiping off) ...

I like the stuff.

Thomas Prufer

[Tim Lamb]

In message [e-mail], Thomas Prufer [e-mail]> writes

Er. Should someone mention new brown squareline gutter is about £4.0/m?

[The Natural Philosopher]

There are various car products that may do what you want. Check Halfords etc.

[Brian Gaff]

I've never found anything that will work myself, as often the plastic goes brittle so too much attempt at abrasion to reveal a new surface can crack the plastic. Have you thought of painting it with something? Brian

[Brian Gaff]

Would it not be oK out of doors though?. I remember almost passing out once when I built model aircraft, that clear dope was lethal. Made me go all squiffy. Brian

[Brian Gaff]

Those brushes can be replaced by a slightly trimmed loo brush of the round type, but make sure you hook a bit of wire to it so you can suspend it and have something to pull it out with every so often. I had one on my garage when I had one and it used to get crud in it surprisingly quickly. Brian

[Andy Burns]

Not really, I remember feeling quite woozy while wiping down the garage PVC fascia with a rag soaked in the stuff, wouldn't want to be up a ladder using it ...

[Jeff Gaines]

Many thanks for all the replies, much appreciated :-)

I will have to think about the cost/effort of cleaning (which may not be enormously successful) against the cost of replacement.

[Thomas Prufer]

... which will get you a 300 ml bottle of ArmorAll, which should be good for several tens of meters. Plus it's a lot less work to wipe on than to install the new guttering!

Thomas Prufer

[RJH]

Oil-based paint - I used black gloss on faded black gutters and downpipes. Took some days to dry. Still looks good after several years.