Roof ripped away from front cap of 5th wheel

[ejs01]

Well this happened on the trip home yesterday. We had bad bubbling in our roof near the front cap back during the first 6 months of owning our Heartland Sundance 3600qb and the dealer fixed it under warranty. We have been pretty good about dealing any cracks or holes we saw in the caulk since then but clearly somehow air was getting in and the glue (if there was any) did not hold it down.

Has anyone dealt with this and repaired it yourselves? We will Call a local repair shop on Monday to get an estimate, but really don’t want to take it back to the dealership and wait 2 months for them to screw it up again. Open to any advice on best way to deal with this. My husband is a home builder and pretty skilled at repairing things. he has fixed several other issues on the RV himself before successfully.

 

[jbeletti]

Assuming the dealer repair was the best possible repair in terms of how the rubber membrane was refastened, while rare, it could be possible that air entering the pinbox area is getting up there causing air pressure to push the membrane up.

Again - this is really rare, but I had it happen on one of my eight Landmarks.

I suggest that on this next repair. when it's all done, you consider adding a piece of 1" wide flat aluminum strap stock on top of the membrane, just back of the lip of the front cap. Screw it down and Dicor Lap Sealant over the whole thing, including the screws.

 

[jnbhobe]

Do what Jim says and then put a 6 inch wide Eternabond tape over the whole seem

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[danemayer]

While I don't know about your trailer, I have many times seen how Heartland drapes the rubber roof material down a few feet along the front before putting the cap in place. Yours appears to have a cut along the seam. That is what's typically done when the roof material is replaced. So I'm guessing that your dealer, in order to fix the earlier bubbling, cut the rubber material for you, contributing to this failure.

Our roof was replaced over 9 years ago, so I'm familiar with the new seam. I've had ours sealed with Eternabond at the front and rear cap for over 9 years with no problems. And of course you need some glue in the area where the rubber material is loose. Make sure the wood is dry and not rotted.

 

[wdk450]

Eternabond is DEFINITELY better than any caulk. The caulk manufacturers and RV assemblers say that you have to get up on the roof and inspect the caulk every 90 days to keep the roof warranty in force. Eternabond is warrantied for like 11 years, yet can be easily removed with a heat gun.

 

[TravelTiger]

When we had hail damage, I claimed it as an insurance claim, and had a spray-on roof done instead. This company uses Flex Armor, which is sprayed on in a controlled environment at their shop. Read for yourself the benefits of this product. www.RVRoof.com

You might see if the deductible on an insurance claim might be worth a better roof, guaranteed for life.


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[ejs01]

When we had hail damage, I claimed it as an insurance claim, and had a spray-on roof done instead. This company uses Flex Armor, which is sprayed on in a controlled environment at their shop. Read for yourself the benefits of this product. www.RVRoof.com

You might see if the deductible on an insurance claim might be worth a better roof, guaranteed for life.


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Thanks Erika for the recommendation. Our deductible is very low, something like $125, but not thinking our insurance will cover this since it wasn't an act of God like a storm or an accident on the road...but will look into it. This spray on roof looks awesome though for sure! Do you know if it increases the weight of the trailer at all vs. the rubber roof? We are always conscious of weight to tow vehicle ratio.

Thanks!

 

[mlpeloquin]

If you decide to glue it and use Eternabond tape, make sure that the glue is approved for the rubber roof material.

 

[TravelTiger]

Thanks Erika for the recommendation. Our deductible is very low, something like $125, but not thinking our insurance will cover this since it wasn't an act of God like a storm or an accident on the road...but will look into it. This spray on roof looks awesome though for sure! Do you know if it increases the weight of the trailer at all vs. the rubber roof? We are always conscious of weight to tow vehicle ratio.

Thanks!

Yes they told us the weight was about 150 lbs added to our roof, on a 42’ fiver.


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[garyroee]

The Dicor 501LSW Self-Leveling Lap Sealant is probably good for you. [FONT=&quot]This stuff is great for sealing your RV's roof seams and penetrations. It sticks like crazy and flows into all the nooks and crannies. Beware: If you get it on yourself you have to mechanically remove it, if you get it on your clothes, you'll never get it off. Get plenty: I used 1-2 tubes per roof vent and 2-3 per full-width seam, so a full dozen was just the right amount for a 31' RV's three roof vents, two sanitary vents, two seams, and other various roof penetrations. Don't bother with silicone or any other sealant - they won't stick to your roof and they will leak in a couple of months.[/FONT]