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On The Road……..

This is not a good post…….

So I left the Campground in North/West Montana Last Thursday, I’ve been traveling about 280-340 miles a day averaging between 60 and 68mph.
before I got on the road every morning I would do a walk around inspection of the RV and every other morning I would get up on the roof to inspect for issues.
Fast forward to Monday I performed my walk around and got up on the roof and everything was good. I traveled Monday then Tuesday I did my walk around and decided to check the roof again, all good I only drove 240 miles on Tuesday.
Before going to bed I ended up talking to another camper at the RV Stop and he asked me “what happened to the roof?”
In one day……….

View attachment 65876View attachment 65877View attachment 65878View attachment 65879
Yup one day of driving…….
Following a close inspection it looked like the front edge of the roof rubber membrane pulled out from under the edge of the RV’s front cap allowing air to get under the membrane.
I couldn’t do anything at that time since the sun was going down so I had to lie in bed directly under this section of the roof and listen to the torn sections flap in the wind. ☹️
The next day I was up early and did some research on local businesses that I needed for supplies, I had to stay another day/night at the RV Stop so I could work on my RV.
First I used Duct tape to hold down the ripped sections and then I covered all that with 4inch wide Eterna Bond which is an extremely sticky tape made for RV roof repair. I then stapled the EB tape using 3/8 staples on every edge and followed up that with 2 caulking tubes of Dicor which is a self leveling sealant which is used to fix minor roof leaks. I used the Dicor on every tape edge and covered every staple head. 3.5 hours later…….
View attachment 65886
This picture is before adding the Dicor caulking. You can see how the Dicor looks after it dries by looking closely at the brackets on the edge of the solar panel.
I was told by an RV dealership service tech that the staples were unnecessary but I knew that I needed to use them to keep the roof membrane from lifting up during travel.
I drove 260 miles today at roughly
60-65mph and when I stopped for the night I inspected the roof and all is good.
I contacted Jayco on Wednesday about a warranty repair which would be a complete roof membrane replacement and have not heard back from them as of yet.
Wow. Hope you can get it fixed before fall storms
 
I guess when you park at night you could put a tarp over it if it rains and secure with bungee cords.
I’m extremely confident that at this point and the extent that I went to I’ve sealed everything up and don’t believe it will leak, there is one other thing I can do which I’m contemplating is to coat this entire section with a rubber roof coating product that can be brushed on or rolled on, it can be done in two coats and basically completely seals everything.
 
Funny timing. I don't know if any of you remember me recounting my trip to and back from Donna Texas a few years ago ? On the way back I was hauling a 32' x 13' tall enclosed trailer. Anyway, I was up on the roof of that trailer yesterday replacing the plastic vents, which had all been blasted to bits by falling tree limbs and had been covered with tarps for some time. So while I was up there, being very careful not to step in the wrong place, it occurred to me that it's pretty stupid for the roof not to be made out of steel. So why isn't the roof of all these trailers and RVs made out of steel ? Seems to me you're just asking for continual maintenance and problems making them out of rubber and whatever the hell they make them out of.
 
Funny timing. I don't know if any of you remember me recounting my trip to and back from Donna Texas a few years ago ? On the way back I was hauling a 32' x 13' tall enclosed trailer. Anyway, I was up on the roof of that trailer yesterday replacing the plastic vents, which had all been blasted to bits by falling tree limbs and had been covered with tarps for some time. So while I was up there, being very careful not to step in the wrong place, it occurred to me that it's pretty stupid for the roof not to be made out of steel. So why isn't the roof of all these trailers and RVs made out of steel ? Seems to me you're just asking for continual maintenance and problems making them out of rubber and whatever the hell they make them out of.
In one word…… weight.
That being said I do agree that the material that is used requires constant attention and maintenance which is why I was constantly looking at it.
I will also say the thickness of the roof membrane is to thin and easily damaged, the other issue is how well the membrane was secured to the plywood.
I did notice that both the wood and rubber membrane were sticky but no where near sticky enough to keep the membrane from separating from the wood and shredding itself in the wind as the RV travels down the road.
 
In one word…… weight.
That being said I do agree that the material that is used requires constant attention and maintenance which is why I was constantly looking at it.
I will also say the thickness of the roof membrane is to thin and easily damaged, the other issue is how well the membrane was secured to the plywood.
I did notice that both the wood and rubber membrane were sticky but no where near sticky enough to keep the membrane from separating from the wood and shredding itself in the wind as the RV travels down the road.
Sorry you're going through this brother. Thank god it was a new RV and under warranty.

You'd think in this day and age there would be a better solution for these roofs.
 
Sorry you're going through this brother. Thank god it was a new RV and under warranty.

You'd think in this day and age there would be a better solution for these roofs.
Yeah you would think……..

On a positive note when I was hosting the campground up north I met an older couple that was traveling through the area and we ended up talking, I told them my plan was to winter in Texas, they live in Texas east of San Antonio and they invited me to stay on their property upon my return. They own a large ranch and when I talked to them about my roof issues I was told they are going to set me up with an open sided but covered camp area with full hookups.
Great people.
And yes being Texas they are avid gun people and shoot often on the ranch at an outdoor range.
 
Yeah you would think……..

On a positive note when I was hosting the campground up north I met an older couple that was traveling through the area and we ended up talking, I told them my plan was to winter in Texas, they live in Texas east of San Antonio and they invited me to stay on their property upon my return. They own a large ranch and when I talked to them about my roof issues I was told they are going to set me up with an open sided but covered camp area with full hookups.
Great people.
And yes being Texas they are avid gun people and shoot often on the ranch at an outdoor range.
My favorite part of Texas! So glad to hear that Jayco is going to make it right. 🙂
Enjoy your stay, and enjoy the range!
 
Way before even thinking about my current adventure I toured on motorcycles for close to 4 decades however I never thought about this……..

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That is a serious rig.
 
Man sorry to hear about your roof. I do know there is one company I’ve seen that advertises “lifetime” roofs for RV’s. If Jayco’d cough up the $$to replace the roof, you might be able to add some to it and get enough cheese to get a permanent solution. I’ve had rubber roofs on three RV’s and inevitably they’re a pain to maintain. One piece fiberglass seems a lot better solution
 
Man sorry to hear about your roof. I do know there is one company I’ve seen that advertises “lifetime” roofs for RV’s. If Jayco’d cough up the $$to replace the roof, you might be able to add some to it and get enough cheese to get a permanent solution. I’ve had rubber roofs on three RV’s and inevitably they’re a pain to maintain. One piece fiberglass seems a lot better solution
Ck out RV Armor. I’ve read good things about it and the guarantees is excellent.it’s what I’ll use if I ever need another.
I looked into RV Armor before Jayco authorized the warranty repair and I agree they offer a great warranty and outstanding product however $20,000 was an outrageous price.
 
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