Things have been pretty slow around the site...

This thread was supposed to be about replacing the rear AC but I got sidetracked while removing the old unit....

One of the things I missed when we moved up from the 86 Regal to the 98 Monarch was the insulation. The Regal had fiberglass in walls, floor and ceiling. The Monarch has a single layer, 1/4 inch thick, of bubble wrap...

Once I installed the storm windows on the single pane Regal windows, that coach was comfortable down into the teens and was easy on the AC. Even with the good double pane windows, the Monarch cools down very quickly and in the 20's the furnace runs a lot. Gets hot in the sun really quickly, also.

Decided some time back to try to retro insulate as much as I can. The ceiling panel on the pass side comes down and allows access to the roof. Notice the "insulation" bubble wrap on top of the panel...





Found some rot where an AM/FM antenna leaked. Briefly side tracked, I removed the antenna, replaced some rotten plywood, doubled with more plywood, then patched the metal roof.




Stuffed the bays with fiberglass.







The other side will be more difficult, the ceiling will not drop as much and AC ducts are in the way. To be continued:

Darn it Steve I don't need another project.

If mine can open up that easy I will be doing if it doesn't have it already. I was looking at the info going back and forth between Gunner and Barth. He had them put in thermal tinted windows but I didn't see anything about insulation. There were exchanges about heating around the tanks. Good for cold weather was mentioned multiple times.

Nice thing to have friends that can document projects for a time when I have more time. I am glad you have a very similar Monarch. Lynn is waiting for you to do the slide shelf for the threshold in front of her seat.

Wooden roof panel? I didnt expect that in such a high end coach. My 77 is all aluminium.

quote:

Originally posted by Neil T.:
Wooden roof panel? I didnt expect that in such a high end coach. My 77 is all aluminium.

It appears the RSV coaches are built with different construction than earlier coaches.

One of the first things I noticed was the arched roof. It is easy to spot when looking in the skylights. No ponding water when leveled.

Similar construction to the older coaches, but the roof has "curved" trusses. (Actually polygonal) I think they used the 3/8 plywood to stiffen the roof and help form the curve.

Stronger than flat roof (maybe?) and drains much better.

My Breakaway does not have plywood directly under the roof skin, the skin is coated with a black tar kind of coating. The roof is flat. That awful bubble insulation (if you can call it that)is on the ceiling below the trusses just above the ceiling panels. The 1 1/2 inch air gap is about all the insulation there is in mine!

That is interesting. My 86 Regal has a flat roof, metal skin and full fiberglass insulation...

There are some plywood doublers inside for through hull fasteners on antennas, etc.

I bet because of no insulation in my glassnose is the reason a 15000 BTU A/C does not cool her down that well. I have luan plywood ceilings so taking that down is yuk, in order to do it right I would have to remove the cabinets and probably replace the luan..

quote:

Originally posted by Duane88:
in order to do it right I would have to remove the cabinets and probably replace the luan..

I have the same issue, I looked into a blow in type of insulation but the idea of having fiberglass floating around afterwards didn't sound good. Other types of blow in stuff was water absorbent, leaky walls/roof would result in a real mess.

I do have one ceiling panel that have to redo and if I do that one I will replace the Luan plywood with 6mm Okoume plywood. it is a marine grade plywood meets British Standard 1088-1.

Because of other issues, this project is very low on my priority list.

I am in the process of renovating our Glasnose and have removed the ceiling to find the same components others have: luan with 1/4 to 3/8 open cell foam covered by vinyl and bubble wrap. The metal roof has sprayed in asphalt. This is the same as in our Regency (also getting new ceilings). When removed the foam was saturated with water and the luan was completely rotted. The leaks were confined to the center areas and the overhead cabinets in the front had no luan. The vinyl was just stretched against the cabinet tops. I have purchased a closed honeycomb called carbon core that is 3/8" with a fiberglass veil on both sides. I will glue 1/8" closed cell foam (headliner) to one side and add new vinyl over it. 1" insulation board is being cut and glued to the roof with silicone and then bubble sheets glued to that. I also invested in a new structural Velcro that will be glued to the aluminum rafters and the carbon core and then attached by simply pushing up the completed panels. Yacht builders use a similar procedure so the ceiling cannot hold water, there is no wood and the panels are removable. I am adding crown molding around the perimeter attached to the cabinets and walls for extra security. I think we will get about R-20 in the roof, maybe better. Luan is the number one enemy of our coaches as it holds water or condensation and then rots causing corrosion of aluminum (see the blistering of compartment doors) and all the screws and rivets disintegrate over time. As you can see I am determined to end leaks and any materials that rot.

I thought about blowing in some insulation. It would be far easier to get all the nooks filled. Like Ed, I hesitated for the same reasons. Dust, settling and water retention would be problems.

I was thinking about blowing in small styrofoam pellets or peanuts. I could vacuum out with shop vac and reuse if I needed later access...

As long as I can get reasonable access I will continue with the fiberglass batts. I can finish the bedroom and the front and rear end caps are also accessible. The forward half of the living area should be OK too but in the galley area the cabinets and AC ducts will make things tight. The bathroom has vents, skylights and AC ducts too.

We have unseasonably warm weather.
Last year we had one day in the 90's, September 29th! So far we had 2 days in May, 4 or 5 in June and today and tomorrow as well! The coach projects are on hold, time for fireworks!

quote:

Luan is the number one enemy of our coaches as it holds water or condensation and then rots causing corrosion of aluminum (see the blistering of compartment doors) and all the screws and rivets disintegrate over time. As you can see I am determined to end leaks and any materials that rot.

Sure Tom scare the heck outa me!! My ceiling has several places where the Luan has splintered due to water invasion, I covered the entire ceiling with vinyl wall paper, to try and regain some strength in the luan, I believe I have all the roof leaks repaired, but for how long is the question. I see doing the same job you are into right now in the future. I can tell the Luan goes from wall to wall, the tops in the cabinets are open and the ceiling tops them.
Glad you are documenting it for me,,Thanks!

I have the same issues. The ceiling panels go wall to wall and I would have to remove all the upper cabinets to pull the ceiling panels. Further I still have a few leak areas that I would have to fix before going to work on the inside.

quote:

I would have to fix before going to work on the inside.

Ed, We have similar roof leaks also, I temporarily repaired mine with Flex Seal, been in some pretty heavy rain and it is right now leak free. Before I tear the inside apart I will strip and recoat the entire roof. The two jobs run in series, I wonder if I will ever get the energy or desire.

SteveVW and Tom have no business showing off like this!!!