Powder Coated Steel Roof Rack Rust?

[TantoTrailers]

Hey guys, first time posting here on this site, I just joined up and this place looks amazing. I have a feeling I will be spending a lot of time learning, reading, and exploring this site!! Thank you to the mods, operators, and contributors for keeping up such an awesome resource.

Now to my question: I have an after market - off brand - roof rack on my camper that I added an awning to. However, some parts of the rack are starting to show some rust stain marks from where water has run down after a rain or after washing down the rig. I'm not sure where the rust is originating, but I would like to know if there is some sort of WD-40 type of spray that I can apply every so often to prevent this from happening. I am not looking for a permanent paint or clear coat, just something that will prevent rust for a while until it needs to be re-applied again (I dont mind having to do that if it doesnt make a mess) A) I think the stains look like crap, and B) the rust must be coming from somewhere so it will eventually spread to where I can see the damage...so if I can stop that it would be great. I also have a bit of rust on my fenders where the bolts hold them to my rig. Everything is steel with black powdercoated paint on it. I need to be conscious of any chemical reactions the solution may have to caulk and seals around my trim and elsewhere.

Thanks in advance for any help and suggestions and hope to see some of you out on the road someday!

Paul
Tanto Trailers

 

[OverlandNA]

The rust will begin anywhere the powder coat isn't solid anymore. Cracks in the finish happen when bolts or u-bolts are are tightened, gear is tossed on the rack and the bars or mesh flex etc.
All hardware should be stainless steel (stainless rusts too, lemon oil cleans it).
WD-40 displaces water.
Fluid Film may work better for you https://www.fluid-film.com/automotive-applications/

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

We make it an annual almost religious observance to grab the wire brush and go over all our steel accessories to scrape off any visible rust, then we hit it with a Rust Converter and paint. The Rust Converter converts the iron oxide into a non-oxidizing sealed layer, which seems to do a pretty good job of preventing further rust.

For rust prevention, I swear by Fluid Film as recommended by OverlandNA. I believe it's Lanolin based but don't quote me on that; a lot of guys in Australia (Including folks like John Rooth, who is a prolific 4x4 enthusiast and writer) swear by spray-on lanolin as a rust prevention coating. Fluid Film and Lanolin works great and Fluid Film in particular comes with some hearty recommendations from a lot of different users in North America, including a bunch of guys who run commercial snow plows (Salt, cold, snow = strong need to rust protection).

Another option for you is to check your local RustCheck centre (if you have one). We treat our vehicles with Rust Check and they do a great job of getting into all the nooks and crannies, going so far as to drill holes in the vehicle so they can spray inside the body panels to prevent rust from starting behind the panels. You may be able to slip the technician an extra $20 and ask them to spray inside the roof rack rails and such, depending on the design of the rack.

 

[OverlandNA]

One thing I forgot to mention- any steel tubing (racks, bumpers, trailer hitches etc) with sealed ends will rust from the inside out due to condensation.

 

[snoranger]

I work as a mechanic for my local county government. We have a pretty good sized fleet of salt trucks (around 200+, 1200 if you count every piece of equipment in the county) and throw in the fact that we're an ocean front county. I basically spend my days fighting rusty metal and "green" wires. We've tried ever gimmick paint and rust-stop out there. The best we've come up with so far is CRC marine corrosion inhibitor. It doesn't really dry, it stays slightly waxy, but not tacky. It "drys" to a slight tan/ almost brown color. In our application... it stops stuff from rusting if we catch it early enough or stops it from getting worse when we're too late. We respray it ever year or so.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Linseed oil is another. It seeps into anything coats & cures to seal up joints and surfaces.
Its/was even FAA approved coating inside steel aircraft parts.
It wont surprise me if its major ingredient of the ”miracle rustproofer” sprays.

Fluid Film is what I've used for some years and I don't remember them ever calling it a miracle being that it's just mineral oil and lanolin. The trade secret is the ratio I suppose. Linseed oil is good, too, no doubt about that.

FWIW, for years on steel bicycle frames I've used LPS 3 on the insides of the tubes of a new or newly refinished frame. Tape the weep holes, spray enough and spin the frame all around to coat in the insides. It doesn't exactly dry but leaves a tacky wax surface. I suspect it's similar to the marine corrosion inhibitor linked above.



Ultimately it's not like they're performing rocket surgery. Rust never sleeps but we also know denying it oxygen is the key. So start with clean steel, prime, paint or powdercoat then use some combination of wax or oil for ongoing corrosion reduction. Eventually you will have to scrape, sand, clean and touch up the finish.

 

[TantoTrailers]

Thanks for the responses guys this is really helpful! I have some linseed oil from another issue I ran into with the trailer so I will give that a shot and see how it goes. I do like the sound of the Fluid Film, does anyone know if that "dries" clear or does it show a residue?

 

[DaveInDenver]

Thanks for the responses guys this is really helpful! I have some linseed oil from another issue I ran into with the trailer so I will give that a shot and see how it goes. I do like the sound of the Fluid Film, does anyone know if that "dries" clear or does it show a residue?

Fluid Film doesn't dry. It's best described I think as a oily wax in a carrier that flashes off. It leaves a semi-viscous layer that eventually collects a surface of dust and bugs. It can wash off over time but it's hydrophobic so water beads off it while it's in place.

I coat my underbody with it once or twice a year, just doing a car wash once in a while to get rid of gravel and debris and spraying over whatever dusty wax is left. Inside frame rails it's built up to a gooey mess but on the exposed surfaces it'll be mostly back to the surface paint. I use an undercoat gun, which sprays kind of a fine bedliner consistency. Not exactly lumpy but not like paint either.

This is what it looks like newly applied. It smooths a little for a day or so but mostly that's it.

 

[TantoTrailers]

DaveInDenver, thanks for the info man that is very very helpful, I would have sprayed that stuff all over my roof rack and ended up frustrated when dust and bugs caked it up. I will start with the linseed oil since it is probably the least "invasive" technique. Ultimately I will use stainless for my roof rack and hardware going forward but for my first rig I built it quick and cheap to get the design down. Thanks again!

 

[DaveInDenver]

For a surface that you handle or want visually nicer you're more limited for sure. The advantage IMO of anti-corrosion treatment like Fluid Film is that since it remains fluid it is self healing and continues to creep and flow but I wouldn't spray it on anything you routinely touch.

Linseed oil has some of the same issues, since it hardens into a gummy consistency. It was great for things like cast iron tractors.

You probably are best just spray painting the surface and rubbing the cured paint with car wax. You could spray linseed oil inside the tubes. This is essentially how you maintain steel bicycle frames and that's worked forever.