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Old 04-10-2003, 08:11 AM   #1
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Just saw two winnebagos with roofs flapping in the wind. Can you say weak design?

The fiberglass roof material (thin) is warranted by its manufacturer for 10 years not winnebago.
Winnebago will not even warranty their application of the material for more than a year!!
It may be glued in the middle but the sides and ends are just bent and tucked in with the pressure and the mighty thin line of caulk holding it in place!! A good cross wind will send your roof a flappin if you are not careful. Talk about design issues. The whole process seems to be designed to fail in 3 to 4 years!

I would look at other RV manufacturers, as de-lamination is also only covered by winnebago for 1 year!

RUSTIC is good.
Kudos to those who make Local, State & Federal Parks & Campgrounds possible and to those picking up the slack by Providing Private Campgrounds.
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Old 04-10-2003, 08:11 AM   #2
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Just saw two winnebagos with roofs flapping in the wind. Can you say weak design?

The fiberglass roof material (thin) is warranted by its manufacturer for 10 years not winnebago.
Winnebago will not even warranty their application of the material for more than a year!!
It may be glued in the middle but the sides and ends are just bent and tucked in with the pressure and the mighty thin line of caulk holding it in place!! A good cross wind will send your roof a flappin if you are not careful. Talk about design issues. The whole process seems to be designed to fail in 3 to 4 years!

I would look at other RV manufacturers, as de-lamination is also only covered by winnebago for 1 year!

RUSTIC is good.
Kudos to those who make Local, State & Federal Parks & Campgrounds possible and to those picking up the slack by Providing Private Campgrounds.
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Old 04-10-2003, 09:22 AM   #3
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Our 2000 Adv. leaked when we got it, had it to the dealer several times, he used the machine and even put a new window in. It leaks some where in that caulk line. The factory recaulked it, we started home, 250 miles away it was leaking again. Factory fixed it a second time. Now 1 1/2 yr later it is leaking again. Of course new cauking hasn't stopped it yet. It does no damage just runs along the side rail and comes in the window but is aggrivating as all get out. We love our Bago but may try Newmar next for their 3 yr warranty. They did put a note in our history that if delam ever occurs they will cover it so I don't suspect that will be a problem since it doesn't actually get into the sidewall.
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Old 04-16-2003, 05:39 AM   #4
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Diesel-Lover,

Just curious. Do you remember the years of these two Winnebagos? Were they new units or very old units?

I have a 2001 and inspect the roof each time I clean it, about every 3 months, and still haven't noticed any caulking deterioration around anything.

Thanks.

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Old 04-16-2003, 03:28 PM   #5
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John, I also have an 01, and had an older 29 Brave before that. I check the caulking as well as a number of other things, whenever I have a few minutes. My roof seams all are good, and show no signs of sealant separation from the panel or J channel. If you call Winnebago customer assistance they will take you through the inspection process and answer any questions that might come up.

Their roof installation and sealing process has been the same "forever", and if this not a good system, there would have been write-ups in MH magazines, and other news sources as well as the Wall Street Journal, (they are a publicly held company). If it were a bad design, they would have changed it long ago. Widespread problems of this or any other nature, would bring pressure on the company, from it's stockholders, even IF the CEO and the design team didn't think that change was necessary.

Many many Winnebago owners are repeat buyers because they are a high quality unit. Not because they cost less than competetive models. They often cost a little more at any given price point.

In case you haven't noticed, diesel-lover has been bashing Winnebago on several forums, starting "new topics" containing the same redirect.

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Indian River, Delaware
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[This message was edited by Capt.Bill on Thu April 17 2003 at 08:48 AM.]
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Old 04-17-2003, 03:33 AM   #6
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I own a 2001 Winnebago Adventurer and perform preventive maintenance on it from time to time, inspecting the roof is just one of the things I do. I usually wash the complete coach every 3 months and inspect the roof at that time. I have not noticed any deterioration of the caulking on any seams. I had a Coachmen before this with a rubber roof and did the same preventive maintenance and had to recaulk after 9 months.

You perform PM on the motor, generator, heater, tires, and various other components of the motor home, why not all the seams also, to include the roof seams? To me this is a no-brainier. And yes, stuff happens to cause problems and you must deal with them as they come up. Prime example, had a house that I owned for two years, got a little wind storm and some of the roof material came off, did I require the builder to replace them at no cost? I don't think so, same thing with anything you buy, nothing last forever.

Just my thoughts on the matter. I am sure Diesel-Lover has a unit that he loves and provides preventive maintenance too, just as I am sure that he is just trying to inform others of potential problems but I sure would like some specifics. But like I suggested, problems could be avoided with proper preventive maintenance on anything you own, to include the coffee pot which must be cleaned out from time to time to prevent calcium deposits.

"The road goes on forever and the party never ends"

John, Sandy
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Old 04-17-2003, 09:28 AM   #7
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Not sure if I understand how a roof "flaps in the wind". Fellow with a similar name on another forum is constantly slamming Winnebago products. Wonder is this the same guy?

If not, my apologies in advance.
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Old 04-17-2003, 02:03 PM   #8
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I have seen rubber roofs a flappin down the road.
I have never heard of a Winnie's roof come loose or flap in the wind.
All aluminum and fiberglass roofing panels are thin on every brand. This is of a skin design not for structural entegrity.

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Old 04-17-2003, 04:24 PM   #9
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Somethin's flappin allright, but it ain't a roof!!!

Fred B.
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Old 04-19-2003, 07:44 PM   #10
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IMHO I think that if you were talking to Diesel Lover face to face the only thing flapping would be his lips.
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Old 04-20-2003, 04:54 AM   #11
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That roof seam can be deceiving. I was cleaning my roof and as I got close to the edge I put my hand on the curve of the roof. I was surprised to feel the roof panel give in a little, as the sealant looked perfect. I then figured I better check a little closer. I found the roof was bonded well to the channel for about 3 feet back from the front then there was a stretch of about 12 feet where I could push the roof panel inward from the outer edge of the channel. It was then ok for another 10 feet, then a small amount at the rear was separated. This was the driver's side. The awning side was perfect. My inspections now include running my hand along the seam to be sure the roof panel is bonded securely to the channel.

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Old 04-20-2003, 06:51 AM   #12
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It is sounding like this post is more fiction than fact. This comes as a bit of a relief, as I was starting to be concerned about the roof assembly on my new 2003 Itasca. It is still a good idea to regularly inpect the seams, but we shouldn't have to live in fear of a poorly constructed roof. I do have more faith in Winnebago than that.

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Old 04-20-2003, 08:26 AM   #13
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I checked our roof, ( it's easy to do, just push on the roof material above the J trim and see if the sealant is doing it's job ),and found about a 4" long area along the J trim that needed re sealed. I cleaned about four foot of the old sealant off and noticed that there was about one inch of the roof material that was short and would not stay in the J trim. This was early in the morning and the motor home was in the shade.
After I returned from the RV dealer with the new
sealant, the MH roof was in the sun and had warmed up, the roof material was no longer short.
I re sealed the edge and it looks good. No big deal.
But the one that gets me is the 1.5 year old Sea Breeze that had delam under a window and the owner was told by the factory, that he was supposed to remove and reseal the windows once a year.
I read that on a post about a year ago.
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Old 04-20-2003, 01:05 PM   #14
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I tested the roof/gutter seam on mine last fall and found a few places where I could press on the roof and it would show a gap at the gutter. I bought a roll of Eternabond tape, cut it into 1" strips and applied it over the seam overlapping the gutter about 3/16". It was a fairly simple procedure and I don't expect to ever have to replace it as Eternabond has a very aggressive adhesive. It will also stretch when the roof expands and contracts.
Best place to buy the tape is:
http://www.rooferstoolsonline.com/etrosewh.html
By the way, it is white and matches the roof color perfectly.

Don Harris
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Old 04-20-2003, 01:55 PM   #15
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Pictures Please

Doesn't anyone own a digital camera. I would be very interested in seeing what you folks are talking about. A picture is worth a thousand words.

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Old 04-20-2003, 02:50 PM   #16
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Say, Driver. I can't help with pictures of the eternabond installation, but you brought up a good point. I took some pictures of my quick and easy home made positive awning lock, which keeps the awning from unfurling in high winds, etc. I was going to post pics here for others to see, but find out that we can't post attachments. Could you elaborate on how it can be done?



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Old 04-30-2003, 07:50 AM   #17
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Three of us have 99 Winnebago RVs bought within months of each other. Mine happens to be the latest build date my friends have early 99s. They are all Class As. Mine is a winnie brave diesel.

The skin is bonded down the center but the edges on both sides are loose no bonding, the reps told us that they are bent and tucked behind the metal channel on the edge and then there is a thin bead applied to this to hold it in place.

If you press on the rounded corner of your roof you will see that it is pliable, hollow underneath. As we all know if a flat sheet is bent after a time it acquires this shape and the back pressure it would have exerted against this channel would reduce thereby weakening the construction concept.

The Winnebago company transfered burden by stating in its manual that all seams must be inspected and maintained by the owner every 6 months. (No instructions as to how and why)

Common assumption would be to watch out for leaks and visually look, to see that the bead has not come off and blown away. Well no its about a bead holding the long strip of unattached material in place (can you imagine the turbulence that the edge of the RV faces specially when passed or passing a truck).

Fred, Tom etc no need to get personal if you don't agree that is ok don't let your ego feel threatened. Reminds me of the way some kids counter when at the end of their wits Your.... army boots!! [in this new era many moms are indeed wearing army boots!]

If you want to see the roof flapping just release the thin bead down the length of the RV and drive down the road for a day! You will find pieces of styrofoam stuffed under the loose edge the shape of a quarter round like on a floor when the carpet has been replaces or hardwood floor added. The styrofoam is just laying there un attached.

We will be using eternabond the adhesive which works for 10 years that the Winnebago engineers or as I like to refer to them RV assemblers have yet to discover. Will set up scaffolding and do 3 coaches at once. I learned of this adhesive from folks here and other forums.

But then the engineers designed in the maintenance intensive seams to have RV owners inspect all the seams every six months may be sooner for preventive maintenance.

Amazingly it also provides a logical out from major damage claims including those for de-lamination as well.

RUSTIC is good.
Kudos to those who make Local, State & Federal Parks & Campgrounds possible and to those picking up the slack by Providing Private Campgrounds.
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Old 04-30-2003, 08:06 AM   #18
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I have two friends who have Winnie products,,whose roofs came loose along the edges while traveling and the fiberglass broke up. Winnebago repaired both units under their warranty...one unit was 3 years old and one was 5 years old...they used a strip on each side and cut out the damaged areas and bonded the roofs together to form a new slope to the j strip...worked great....but the damage was covered by their warranty to the owners...
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Old 04-30-2003, 03:24 PM   #19
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I received a 2003copyrighted document today showing a detail drawing of the roof to sidewall/J channel seam, and with specifics on how and what to use to seal it. One particular item that I would like to pass along is their spec on the sealant itself. I've read and heard a lot of reference to a silicone sealant being used there. This info from Winnebago Industries gives two different sealant part numbers; one for a "painted roof material", and one for an unpainted roof.

The painted roof is sealed with a silicone based sealant after the painting process is completed. The unpainted roofs (most Winnebago's out there) requires a primer on the awning rail (J channel) followed by 10 minutes of drying time followed with a urethane adhesive sealant.

There is even a detail on the thickness of the bead, and the aestetic "troweling process", and how much sealant should be left after troweling. According to this document, this revision went into effect on 07/09/02. Hope this info is useful.

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Old 04-30-2003, 06:04 PM   #20
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Okie,

Would it be possible to get the years of the Winnies that were covered and how long ago this happened. As for the 99 units Winnebago flat out says no.

Capt.Bill, this is great is there a doc number, I would like to get this doc before we attempt our preventive maintenance and fix. Thanks for the info.

Eternabond also has a primer that they recommend, we got this but I have not seen the pkg as it was a group order.

RUSTIC is good.
Kudos to those who make Local, State & Federal Parks & Campgrounds possible and to those picking up the slack by Providing Private Campgrounds.
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