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oil, pollutants, bug guts and other par- ticulates that find their way onto the airframe. Accomplishing that in itself is worth the time and effort.
Another benefit is that hand clean- ing gives you the opportunity to do an extremely detailed inspection of the aircraft and all of its various compo- nents. Because you’re going to be on top, underneath, and all around the airplane, you’re going to see things on that airframe that you’ll never spot during your typical pre- or post-flight inspection. You do a thorough post- flight, don’t you?
“We have customers who clean their aircraft after every flight,” stated Billy Brown, paint shop su- pervisor, Stevens Aerospace. “That doesn’t mean they wash it, but they take the time to wipe it down to get all the bugs, dirt, exhaust soot and foreign materials off of the surface of the paint.”
“When you do wipe it off, don’t just use a dry cloth – the surface needs to be dampened with either an ap- proved hard-surface cleaner or a 50/50 mix of denatured alcohol and water,” explained Stevens Aerospace paint manager, Mike Royals. “And you re- ally don’t need to wipe down the en- tire airplane every time. Just doing all the exposed leading surfaces is a great start.”
“It's a good way to inspect the air- plane and is part of ongoing preventa- tive maintenance,” Brown added. “You get to see any new paint damage or wear that you won’t usually see during the preflight.”
“Flight controls are very susceptible to sudden damage and wear along the edges. The more you look, the more you will find,” Elmer said. “But you have to start. And again, it's the first line of defense against the on- set of corrosion on exposed surfaces. That can be a real issue in many en- vironments.”
“Coastal areas with a lot of heat, moisture and salt are highly corrosive environments to exposed metal. For example, we can tell when an aircraft has spent time in Florida,” he contin- ued. “Corrosion happens very fast, and owners in those environments need to be especially vigilant. A good way to do that is to wash or clean the aircraft more frequently. Corrosion damage is preventable if you spot it soon enough.”
Okay, so you’re sold on the value of cleaning/washing your airplane. Excellent. But, before you grab your mop, bucket and soap, take a minute to consider just what kind of soap and detergent you are using. There’s a chance that you may be doing more harm than good.
Bubble, Bubble, Toil, and Trouble
First off, much like cleaning a mo- torcycle or classic car, you should nev- er use any kind of power or pressure washer on your airplane. That will just force water and some contaminants deeper inside areas where you really don’t want them to be.
In fact, there is a growing number of professional aircraft cleaners who strongly recommend dry-washing
Hillaero
Dan Moore
July 2021 / TWIN & TURBINE • 19