Ever since we bought "Ugly Betty" last September, I have been planning on redoing the roof. Originally I had planned on just putting a new coat of Kool Seal on it and calling it done. Then I started to read about the Anvil 400 products here on the site.

Well events have occurred that now make the project a do it now job. The powered TV antenna went out this weekend and it looks pretty terminal and since it is 15 years old I have just decided to replace it.

I started removing it today and the more I worked on it the madder at somebody I got. I scrapped, cut, used a razor, a gasket scraper, my pocketknife, a screwdriver, and half of the other flat or sharp objects in my tool box to remove about 2 inches of different sealing compounds that had been added over the years.

When I look around on the roof I noticed every light, vent, skylight, air horn, mounting bracket, and every other potential opening in the roof is the same way.

I would like to strip the roof down to the bare aluminum and put a nice coat of sealer on the roof and silicone caulk around the potential leak areas.

Has anybody got any ideas on the best way to accomplish this small task? I have a heat gun and was wondering if it might soften some of the goop that has got to be removed. I'm afraid to use any kind of chemical that might run down on the new paint job.

Help
Nick

There's and old saying that goes something like, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."; alternatively, "If it ain't broke, fix it until it is..."

The roofs of any motorhome will have ugly clumps and mounds of sealer around all the openings, and that includes new, "upscale" ones.

The untold pleasures you endured messing with the antenna are nothing compared to the removal of the entire roof coating.

My suggestion is to install that new antenna, glop its mounting hardware with self-levelling goop (make sure to get the formula compatible with the rubber overcoat), and enjoy the reception. Silicone caulk is far inferior to the compounds formulated for the job. (I did however, when mounting my satellite dome, use silicone to bed the mounting brackets, then added - after cure - self-levelling compound.)

I intended to recoat my roof with Kool-Seal or something like it, but after cleaning, it's bright white, has no fissures or cracks, so I'm not going to mess with it.

I, too, am no fan of silicone sealants. My preference is urethane compounds, specifically 3M 5200. El Segundo Bill also likes 3M products, but he likes another number for a different reason.

In my experience silicones tend to let go where you want them to stick, & stick where you want them to let go after they have let go where you wanted them to stick. And forget about painting over them.

There are some flowable sealants you can buy from your local RV supply store that are good, too, but perhaps a little too liquid to work well as bedding compounds.

quote:

Originally posted by olroy:
I, too, am no fan of silicone sealants. My preference is urethane compounds, specifically 3M 5200. El Segundo Bill also likes 3M products, but he likes another number for a different reason.

I like 5200 for permanent forever and ever, amen. For something that might be removed later, 3M 4200 is my preference.

quote:

In my experience silicones tend to let go where you want them to stick, & stick where you want them to let go after they have let go where you wanted them to stick. And forget about painting over them.

Same here. Silicone is perverse. Some sticks forever, some less.

quote:

There are some flowable sealants you can buy from your local RV supply store that are good, too, but perhaps a little too liquid to work well as bedding compounds.

I keep Dicor lap sealant around because it doesn't set up in the tube like 3M, hence is always ready for a quickie. This served me well on a recent trip where my roof to side rivets let go and rain was imminent. They make both a self-leveling and a non-leveling sealant, depending on how much stiffness you want.

I also like Liquid Rubber or Liquid Roof (same product), but it is a little runny for some applications. It doesn't build up well, but flows into voids quite well, effecting a better seal than a thicker build up might. It brushes on well as a roof coating, remains resilient, and stopped the dreaded Fleetwood front cap leak for years. At least one other Barther has reported good results with it here.

Nick, I used a fiber wheel on a drill to hasten the removal ( not a wire wheel) Doe's not mar the alluminum as bad as a wire brush. What it doe's is loosen the compounds and then use a knife to help cut away and then the fiber wheel again.

Either way you have your work cut out for you.

To seal it I used self levelling Plas T coat.
Works great and even thick enough to brush on the rounded edges of the Barth.

I've got a question sort of based on the 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' idea. My 85 Regal has a roof that has no leaks. It's ugly, dirty, but works. Is there a yearly or whatever time schedule, I should use to keep it that way? And what areas should I maintain and with what? As you can tell, I can drive it but that's about all.
Jim

I use Purple Power (available at Advance Auto) and apply it full strength with a tank sprayer after wetting the roof. Brush it in, let it set, then wash it off with a garden hose nozzle. Wash the runoff off the sides, as the stuff growing on the roof can eave a slight stain.

I then brush the roof with a mixture of 1/3 bleach, 2/3 water with a coupe of teaspoons od dish detergent mixed in. I let that set and dry.

Rusty, do you recoat the areas around the roof openins with something like cool seal?
Thanks
Jim

The only roof openings I would address are those showing deterioration. So far on the Barth, I've seen none, but on the SOB, I used self-leveling sealer after cleaning as above, then wiping with acetone...there was a leaky roof seam.

I checked around on roof coatings and found this stuff http://www.hytechsales.com/prod2150.html

It supposedly provides good insulating properties with the ceramic additives in it which was important to me here in Florida. I also put a couple of coats of their clear coatings so it should be real easy to maintain / clean in the future.
It certainly made a difference on interior temperature but not sure if or how much better than the standard white roof coatings... bottom line is nothin is too good for the Barth

quote:

Originally posted by Rusty:
There's and old saying that goes something like, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."; alternatively, "If it ain't broke, fix it until it is..."

But it is broke, so I'm trying to fix it!! And BTW no rain in this part of the country since I don't know when. Remove an antenna, leave a couple of nice large holes in the roof and magically 2 1/2 inches before you can get it covered up. Now anybody had any luck cleaning those ugly stains on the ceiling.

Rusty, I keep asking people around here about self leveling sealants and all I get are strange looks. Where do you get it. Who makes it?

Nick

Nick, I'm currently on the road and won't be home until 7/9...and my cartridges of sealant are home also, so I can't be any help at the moment.

The only place that would be famiiar with them would be an RV store.

The Dicor lap sealant El Segundo Bill mentions in an earlier post is the product whose name I couldn't think of in my earlier post. It is a standard RV store item, & I used it successfully to stop a leak I couldn't find, by gooping up all the usual suspects, i.e. every small item that penetrated the roof - running light screws, antenna fasteners, etc.

Try upholstery/carpet cleaner on the stains. If you have a lot, and/or your upholstery could stand a cleaning too, try your local upholstery cleaner who uses a steamer.

I should add here that my fave RV tech, Chuck Grotke, the owner of Valley Palms in Blythe, uses only Dicor sealant. I have known him as a personal friend since forever, and his word is golden. He is a former rocket scientist.

On the stains, have you tried Oxi Clean? It has worked for us in difficult situations. I also like Castrol Super Clean, but try it in an inconspicuous place first, as it is really pow'ful stuff.

Rusty, after you brush on the mixture of bleach, water and a little detergent, you said you let it dry. Do you then hose it off with clear water before repairing any problem areas? If not, what is the purpose of letting it dry? To whiten the color? Also, Tere says that in addition to obvious problems around the openings, that there are some areas in the rubber overcoating that are pealing, leaving patches of bare aluminum. Is there something that we could use that is compatible to the existing rubber coating that has a sort of gritty feel to it after it dries? I really don't want to strip the entire roof, just repair the patches that are bare and the cracks around the openings.