Roof Coating/Painting - Page 3

daveinfl · 03-08-2015, 12:27 PM

Summer greetings. Yep I said summer. Beautiful day in Lake Mary, Florida.

For those of you that have followed my roof saga ... I wanted to post a couple of pictures. My main problem was leaking around the vents. We bought previously owned ... so how the previous owner kept things up is unknown. We just know it was stored outside. Now it is stored inside.

I had originally tried using Eternabond to resolve the problem. It made things worse. But I will say Eternabond is great for seams.

I had to get up the Eternabond. Nearly impossible. I have worked hours and hours on it. I used everything on it. Even Acetone. The only think I didn't try was gasoline. But I cleaned it the best I could.

Next I used DICOR Self leveling lap sealant on the flat edges around the vents. That is really good stuff. If it works it will be my "go to" sealant in the future. I used the regular DICOR lap sealant around the base of the vent risers. I also like it. Both tend to lay down very smoothly.

Finally, just for peace of mind, I thought I would try the Rustoleum rubber sealant over the works. I masked and covered every thing and sprayed two coats. It went on nicely and gave a nice finished look. You could see it seep into little holes and fill them in. It is supposed to adhere to the metal roof. I sure hope so. This has been a lot work.

So now you can see the end product. I will be keeping the trailer in the garage a couple more weeks. So it will have the chance to really cure.

I will post again to let you know if I have solved my leak problem.

Dave

TrailManorMan · 03-08-2015, 03:01 PM

Looks good, hope it helps

**Bill** · 03-08-2015, 03:30 PM

Wow, what a job. Looks you you were very thorough, and then some. I really hope it solves the problems, and I look forward to your further posts, one way or the other. We will all benefit.

Bill

03-08-2015, 08:02 PM

Well it sounds like it gave u something to do and kept u out of mischief over the long hard winter. This spring/summer when the rains come you'll be thankful for all your labor!

**TLMerriman** · 05-18-2015, 06:47 PM

Hey daveinfl - just wanted to know if your fix for the leaky vents worked. I have leaks around all three vents, even after the guys at TrailManor recaulked everything using Geocel 2350 MHRV. I'm very tempted to try your solution with the Dicor and Rustoleum, which looks great by the way, assuming it worked!

07-22-2015, 12:48 PM

I am also interested in your outcome Daveinfl. we used the Eternabond and still have our leaks also. Kate

daveinfl · 07-22-2015, 01:59 PM

I probably should have posted results earlier. But had lots going on learning about retirement. I still don't know how I had time to work!

Anyway, so far so good. With our very high heat in Florida I wondered how it would hold up. I have had no problems with blistering or pealing. We have been out in a couple of really good rain storms and it didn't leak.

The thing I like best is that it creates a very smooth finish on top of the PVC and gets down in to the small holes. Providing it holds up the rest of the year, I plan to wash it well and recoat it again next year. I wish I could buy it in a gallon container and brush/roll it on the entire roof.

I also liked the way the Dicor went on. But be sure you read the can. One is for flat surfaces and the other is for sides and around windows. The self leveling does just that. I was very impressed with it. It is a bit more expensive ... but worth it.

07-24-2015, 08:32 AM

Has anyone had a problem where rain entering the open top of the AC unit got into the camper? I'm beginning to wonder if the leak at my roof vent could be coming from the AC unit. I've caulked both the AC and roof vent and still had a problem with leaks. Wondering if I'll have to remove the AC unit and replace the seal under it. Has anyone had to do that ?, and if so how did you go about doing it? I've since removed all the old caulk and recaulked, but haven't had the TM out in the rain since, so I don't know if I've fixed the problem or not.
As for the posts about something to coat the entire roof, I'd look at the Henry rubber roof coating available at Home depot. It can be applied with a brush and stays flexable. It has really worked well on regular camper roofs.

**Kwantau** · 07-24-2015, 09:30 AM

Had condensation water coming into the trailer last year. Could not torque up the three bolts that hold the AC onto the roof to the required 55 inch lbs. Especially the two front bolts. Removed the inner mounting assy and found that the roofs' two aluminum skins where being squeezed together due to just having foam in between and collapsing when you tried to torque up to 55 inch lbs. Because of that, ended up making wooden blocks the full length of the front and back of the roof hole and the thickness of the space between the aluminum skins, glueing them in place. Installed the inside AC assy and three bolts and torqued them together to 55 inch lbs.

Ran the AC for three days and "TA DA" no more water inside the TM. It is something to take into consideration that there is not enough pressure between the two halves of the AC unit to squeeze the foam seal tight against the roof. Hope this will help to fix your problem.

07-24-2015, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kwantau

Had condensation water coming into the trailer last year. Could not torque up the three bolts that hold the AC onto the roof to the required 55 inch lbs. Especially the two front bolts. Removed the inner mounting assy and found that the roofs' two aluminum skins where being squeezed together due to just having foam in between and collapsing when you tried to torque up to 55 inch lbs. Because of that, ended up making wooden blocks the full length of the front and back of the roof hole and the thickness of the space between the aluminum skins, glueing them in place. Installed the inside AC assy and three bolts and torqued them together to 55 inch lbs.

Ran the AC for three days and "TA DA" no more water inside the TM. It is something to take into consideration that there is not enough pressure between the two halves of the AC unit to squeeze the foam seal tight against the roof. Hope this will help to fix your problem.

Did you get water inside your trailer when the AC was running? I don't get any leakage with the AC running. It is just when it rains. I don't know if there is a way for rain water to seep into the Aluminum/foam sandwich thru the AC opening in the top of the unit or not. That is what I need to find out. I don't want to pull the AC unit if I don't have to. Also I'm still waiting to see if my latest attempt to seal around the vent and AC keeps the rain out.