Quote:
Originally Posted by rumbleweed
Take a hair dryer on high speed, cool temp ( no heat) and blow it directly at the caulk at about a 45 degree angle to the roof. Watch the caulk carefully. If it is loose, it will flutter. When you probe it, if there is dirt under the caulk it is not sealed. Make sure if you remove it you go several inches into the properly sealed area on each end.
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I'd recommend replacing the caulking in the
entire seem (at the very minimum), if you find any part of that seem to be loose. If one part of the seem is loose, that means one of 2 things, it either was not prepared properly (dirt or chemicals on either surface) or they used the incorrect sealer (or both). Either way, one must assume that the entire seem may be faulty. If it isn't loose now, it may soon will be. I say, "Do the job once and be done with it".
Judging by the reports that we have seen on the Elkmont, I would re-caulk the entire roof, if it were my trailer.....but that's just me. I wouldn't let the dealer do it either, unless I stood there and supervised the entire job, to be sure that it was done right.
I just thought of a 3rd factor that could be an issue. If the sealer is disturbed at a certain stage of the curing process, it could lose adhesion. Like moving the trailer...... My point is, if you re-caulk any portion of your roof, it's best to leave the trailer sit for the total recommended adhesion curing time of the sealer. That could be 1 hour or 24-hours on some sealers and 7-days on others. The total curing could take much longer but it is the "adhesion stage" that is important.. There are several different stages of curing and different sealers have different times. There is the "Skinning" stage, "Adhesion" stage, "workable" stage and finish stage on some sealants. It's important to read and follow the instruction on the sealant that you use. If it doesn't list the "Adhesion stage" I would call the manufacturer and ask.