Roof treatment

[Jim]

Jim, have you been up on your roof (my wife has put sever constraints on stuff I used to do, like this)?

lol, yeah, those days are over.

But no, I haven't been up there, and my coach is under cover, so very seldom is it exposed to the elements. But it's a nice coach, and it's a paid for coach, and I was just thinking of protecting it from as much future maintenance as possible. And another $4,500-$5,000 isn't much in the grand scheme of things in the RV world.

Thank you for your input!

 

[Highpockets]

I owned a Class C motorhome. Front portion was fiberglass the remainder was aluminum with two seams running the length of the roof. Started to see water damage on ceiling around the ac unit. After investigating options I purchased a piece of 90mil rubber roofing got $60 and glued it to the entire roof area.
I also coated it with a white rubber roof coating to reduce heat gain inside. I finally sold it 12 years later never had and issues with leaks. I took great care while reinstalling the ac unit, vents and skylights.

 

[Kevin D Pem]

I owned a Class C motorhome. Front portion was fiberglass the remainder was aluminum with two seams running the length of the roof. Started to see water damage on ceiling around the ac unit. After investigating options I purchased a piece of 90mil rubber roofing got $60 and glued it to the entire roof area.
I also coated it with a white rubber roof coating to reduce heat gain inside. I finally sold it 12 years later never had and issues with leaks. I took great care while reinstalling the ac unit, vents and skylights.

So Highpockets, you reroofed your RV. Nice!!! Those that I know that have done what you described, failed to put appropriate flange in the front of the rigs roof and had the headwind remove it, so good job!!!

In my 44 years experience with "trailer life", yes your worst enemy, "trailer trash ", my best roof experiences are with aluminum roofing(the number one thing I look for in a purchase). I don't care if it has leaks as long as I can check for rot. I can easily fix most aluminum roofing by finding where unqualified people have tried patching them.

Biggest problem is the A/C as RV roofs don't handle the weight or vibration well. As a fix I shim the weight induced sag out of the roof. I silicone seal a patch of aluminum over the hole, as the roof at that location is compromised (did I say I love inverter mini splits right?).

Cleaning out all the patch, previously coated over all seams, will likely stop leaks as it only serves to dam the water so it pools. As long as water now runs off the roof, a simple double coat of flexible roof paint will keep the water out. I know I told you after Henry's started producing 100% silicone roof paint, I recommend nothing else.

 

[Highpockets]

Yep! Covered the entire roof area with one piece running it down the sides to the drip rail. You are correct one must properly install an additional band over front leading edge or wind will eventually lift the edge. I installed a 4” wide band of the same rubber material across the leading edge and purchased what is called seam-sealer from Carlisle ( the manufacturer of the rubber roofing ) and applied to both edges. I cut the openings for any penetrations smaller than required so there was a water tight seal
We used that rig year around driving from Gulf of Mexico to northern Ontario from the Mississippi river through the Rocky mountains. Stayed high and dry no matter the temperature/weather.