RV slide out spray lube

The question of what type of lube to use on our seals seems to come up fairly often because there are so many different types available. The problem is that many of us don’t know which type to actually use, so we look at the recommendations from some of the providers. The one thing that they will tell you is that you have to get a special lube with PTFE. So, what is PTFE? Many of us think that PTFE equates to spraying it, but it’s actually an acronym for polytetraflouroethylene. In laymans terms- teflon. Now if we’re talking about lubing our seals, there’s a couple things we need to know. 

Everything we put inside a can has to have some sort of propellant to enable release, and that propellant is usually a type of butane. Now, butane is oily so whenever we spray the lube we are introducing oil onto the surface. Anything we are going to spray lubricant on, whether a seal, leveling gear or landing gear, will be exposed to outside elements so we do not want to put that oil sheen on because it will attract dirt, which in turn will stick and be counter productive, especially on leveling gear. 

The main thing we need to understand when trying to decide between two types of lube is to get a dry lube, which means a lube without butane. In this case what we will use is an ether, and ether actually dissolves so whatever is left behind is what will be beneficial. This could also be dry silicone, but the concern we may have is that it attracts dust, but as it’s dry, nothing will stick.The recommendation from say, Lippert, is that they want you to use the PFTE, or teflon. So whether it’s your seals, slide outs or anything else we’ve discussed, you’re able to use a dry silicone base or dry propellant with the PFTE. 

And there’s your Tech Tip!

If you would like to be able to fix the majority of the problems on your RV, or let’s say you want to open a business and become a certified technician or inspector? Head over to our website at www.nrvta.com, select the programs tab and get started today!