trail-manor with roof damage

[blue_vett]

Hello, we own a 2007 trailmanor. we are currently looking at either letting the insurance company total it and take it away or keeping it and using it as is for the next 5+ years. the rear shell has a crease from the front to the rear for hitting a 4x4 on the road while traveling on a highway. the trailer hit the board hard and i think the spring action of the shell sitting on the torsion bar lift caused it to slam causing the crease. it doesnt have a crack or a hole and the crease is only on the top of the shell the inside (ceiling) is flat and loos fine.

does anyone have any pictures of what the shells look like without the skins on them?

my question is this does anyone have any experience with roof damage? do we need to worry about the crease allowing the shell to fold out or collapse on us. is there any other option than to have the shell replaced that we could do? we love the unit, and would love to keep it.

[[email protected]]

When I got my TM it had been totaled by an insurance company because of hail damage and a salvage parts yard had bought it. I bought it from them. It did have some slight hail on the roof and one pesky hail stone had hit right on the seam where the two sheets of aluminum are joined together which caused a leak. If you want to read about what I did to fix everything on the roof, go to my website at:

http://www.trickmytrailmano.com

page 9 "The Roof"....maybe that will help

Tom

[Bill]

Nice work, Tom. And you know, the aluminum strip down the center doesn't look bad. And unless you are taller than I am, you can't really see the roof anyway.

Bill

[LoveToCamp]

blue_vette, do you have a picture? From your description, I can't think of a reason to be concerned. I had hail damage on my 1st TM, and there were no problems.

Another TM owner had damage, and got rid of the TM. A dealer sold it, as it was too expensive to replace the shells. Since the shells (and walls) are vacuum-sealed, you can't take it apart to pound-out the crease.

If you can't see any damage inside the TM, I don't see why it may cause any problem opening or closing the shell.

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Originally Posted by Bill

Nice work, Tom. And you know, the aluminum strip down the center doesn't look bad. And unless you are taller than I am, you can't really see the roof anyway.

Bill

Thanks Bill...that makes me feel good!...So Bill, I just wanted to do this ONE time and not have to worry about the roof ever again. I could care about the cosmetics anyway...after all this ain't no beauty contest, it's about function!.....besides, I HATE HAVING TO RE-DO THINGS

I think the trailer will wear out before the roof does! ... Why they put that puny little stick on plastic strip down the middle to cover up the seam (in the hopes of stopping water from leaking in) is beyond my comprehension!
Tom

[Padgett]

Agree, if just creased and not cracked then it will just add some strength to the roof. Given the current state of things you might have a hard time replacing it with anything as good.

Just if you decide to keep, DO NOT ever give the title to the Ins. co., you might get back a salvage title (in FL a good title is $70, salvage $2).

[blue_vett]

the insurance company is already calling it a total loss, so it will be a salvaged title. I don't think that there is anything out there that has the room and function that we want. the only thing(s) we don't like about our trailer is the toilet and the freshwater capacity(s). we run out of water in three days ( I have two girls and my wife) even with us taking short navy style showers. I have looked into installing a larger tank but I think I will need to do an axle upgrade to do this. Thanks on all of you opinions on the subject. I will post some pictures of the damage when I get a second.

[BrucePerens]

I am another "salvage title" owner. The dents that hit seams along the edge of the roof and in the center have to be sealed in some way. The ones in the portion of the rear shell that is covered by the front shell can store some water if not filled in, if you close the TM in the rain, but the seal on the rear shell keeps it out of the trailer.

There is a lightweight body filler which contains air-filled spheres. See this. I haven't gotten to try it yet.

Hi,
I have used, with great success, EternaBond Tape to seal the seams on the leaking roof of my Elkmont. The local TrailManor dealer said they use it also and think it is great. You can get a lot of information at EternaBond.com and you can email them with questions and get informative replies. Preparation is key and remember, once it sticks its is not easy to reposition. Roll it down with a 2" steel roller with handle.
Dave E