Roof inspection and repair 2018 Minnie Winnie

[Joe & Sabine]

We are into our second season with the 2018 Minnie Winnie we purchased last year. Its been great so far and we are very happy with our purchase. Last year we took some shorter, closer to home trips to get to learn the ropes. We winterised (Ohio) and where able to park the Unit in a side yard, we covered it, brougth batteries in the house, treated gas etc. Everything was great, started up on the first turn back in March, we sanitized water, cleaned, did basic inspection and maintenance and came back last week from our first long distance trip to South Carolina.
Our next learning module is roof maintenance. We've done some minor visual inspections, everything is looking good. We gave the roof a really good scrubbing before our trip and it's still nice and clean. We did notice a gap where the front cap connects to the roof, the part that is visible from the windshield. So, we purchased the sealant according to the Winnebago spec sheet and are waiting for warmer weather to install it. In that process we decided to watch several YouTube's about roof inspections, applying new sealent etc. Some of the minor things we are comfortable doing. For more involved inspection we are considering if we have the means and physical ability to to them or need to find a professional if they become necessary.
So, the questions is really, do you do everything yourselves? What kind of ladders or, preferable scaffolding do you have to work on the roof perimiter for example. Alternatively, how do you find the right place to do this kind of work for you if you choose that route? We bought the Unit at a small RV and Boat Place in PA, so not convenient for work. When I look at Winnibago, the recomended service location is Camping Word, however, I've read lots of bad reviews about them. So, any suggestions are appreciated. Oh, and we are in NE Ohio, Akron/Cleveland are.

 

[Morich]

I can throw in some points that I find but the truth is we each need to adjust things to better suit each of us!
Climbing on a roof is one big idea to consider if it is good for you or not!
I tend to climb but getting less and less prone to that. I've stopped going on my house roof!
If the RV has a ladder, it is likely good enough for walking on top, so much easier to do the roof edge there if going the full RV length? But for inspection, I go for the ladder and look at what I can find on whatever sealer was used last. Are there cracks showing or is there sings the edge is coming loose and lifting, even a bit?
If I see those, I'm inclined to replace the whole length , rather than do the fight with water damage if I press my luck too long. But that is one that varies a whole bunch, depending on weather and where and how stored. The sunny South can be good for no snow but it sucks the life out of sealers and caulk!
Point on what to use, may depend on what the last guy used in used RV. Big point if silicone was used, it is hard to get the remains of it off after scraping as it may require scrubbing with something like alcohol to get the part you can hardly see totally scrubbed off and new will not stick to old! Ever resealed an aquarium? Same process but more of it!
When redo comes around and I need to remove old caulk/sealer, I am super impressed with small electric multi-tools for getting the old off without killing my arms or digging gouges!

But from a practical view, I suspect more RV are damaged by water getting in the sides, front, and rear, than the roof. Anything that has a hole through the exterior has to be watched and sealed often. That means all the windows and doors but the ones most often missed are lights! All those little clearance, stop, and tail lights are pathes to let water get in and rot the wood behind them! Water dripping on the dash? Check the clearance lights out front!
If you notice small bumps in the wall covering, you may be late on sealing something outside in that area. Those tiny little bumps are often the wood panel underneath the wall covering beginning to swell up. Prevention is a pain but nothing like replacing the wall that will rot if left long!

Who to do it? I trust myself as I KNOW I care, while I'm not sure if I hire it done! I have had some terrible work done on different things when hiring it out!

 

[bigbAZ]

A Winnebago with a one piece fiberglass roof is different than other RVs and needs special attention to the radius on each side where the filon (thin fiberglass) is tucked into a groove and held in place with the sealant. I know when I got my Winnebago I did not fully understand this at first and was only looking at the seals around the caps and protrusions. I finally watched some videos and understood how the system works and that while sealing around the protrusions and caps is important, it is the least of your roof concerns as a Winnebago owner.

You need to carefully inspect all along the roof edges on both sides and use your thumb to press on the filon at the edge where it disappears into the aluminum channel to verify that it is still adhered to the sealant both on the filon side and the aluminum edge of the channel it sits in. If this comes loose you won't get a water leak, it is much worse than that. Entire sections of the roof can detach on the highway. If the sealant is detaching the correct remedy is to remove it all, clean thoroughly and re-apply. In other words, the sealant isn't there to prevent water leaks, it's there to hold the roof in place.

Watch some You Tubes by AZ Expert (James) on Winnebago roofs.

 

[Joe & Sabine]

A Winnebago with a one piece fiberglass roof is different than other RVs and needs special attention to the radius on each side where the filon (thin fiberglass) is tucked into a groove and held in place with the sealant. I know when I got my Winnebago I did not fully understand this at first and was only looking at the seals around the caps and protrusions. I finally watched some videos and understood how the system works and that while sealing around the protrusions and caps is important, it is the least of your roof concerns as a Winnebago owner.

You need to carefully inspect all along the roof edges on both sides and use your thumb to press on the filon at the edge where it disappears into the aluminum channel to verify that it is still adhered to the sealant both on the filon side and the aluminum edge of the channel it sits in. If this comes loose you won't get a water leak, it is much worse than that. Entire sections of the roof can detach on the highway. If the sealant is detaching the correct remedy is to remove it all, clean thoroughly and re-apply. In other words, the sealant isn't there to prevent water leaks, it's there to hold the roof in place.

Watch some You Tubes by AZ Expert (James) on Winnebago roofs.

Yes! That is exactly what I am talking about. Being new and with everything in good shape we enjoyed the first year and eased into learning systems. Starting to think more about ongoing maintenance and seeing that little gap where the roof cap is attached made us do exactly that, learn about the Winnebago roof. We found ourselves watching that exact video by AZ Expert, a really good instructional for replacing that edge sealant. That is what made us wonder how, if we would attempt to do this ourselves or want to turn it in. I don't think we are in imminent danger of failure, but have a plan of doing a thourough inspection the next good weather oppertunity we get. If access was easier I think we could definatly work on this ourselves, but I don't think it's something you can work on from the top of the roof. We have an 8' stepladder, but that is not the easiest way to work on that 11' roof while on one of the top rungs of a ladder either. I've looked at the cost of a scaffold/platform, but to get a safe work surface for that height it's quite expensive. We are both early 60' and reasonably fit, but my husband has neuropathy and I'm a little queezy with the height of being on top of the unit, so I'm concerned with safety. Evaluating if that is something we need to pay for a shop to do, wondering what others do and how to even find a shop or tech that you trust to do it right.

 

[Joe & Sabine]

I can throw in some points that I find but the truth is we each need to adjust things to better suit each of us!
Climbing on a roof is one big idea to consider if it is good for you or not!
I tend to climb but getting less and less prone to that. I've stopped going on my house roof!
If the RV has a ladder, it is likely good enough for walking on top, so much easier to do the roof edge there if going the full RV length? But for inspection, I go for the ladder and look at what I can find on whatever sealer was used last. Are there cracks showing or is there sings the edge is coming loose and lifting, even a bit?
If I see those, I'm inclined to replace the whole length , rather than do the fight with water damage if I press my luck too long. But that is one that varies a whole bunch, depending on weather and where and how stored. The sunny South can be good for no snow but it sucks the life out of sealers and caulk!
Point on what to use, may depend on what the last guy used in used RV. Big point if silicone was used, it is hard to get the remains of it off after scraping as it may require scrubbing with something like alcohol to get the part you can hardly see totally scrubbed off and new will not stick to old! Ever resealed an aquarium? Same process but more of it!
When redo comes around and I need to remove old caulk/sealer, I am super impressed with small electric multi-tools for getting the old off without killing my arms or digging gouges!

But from a practical view, I suspect more RV are damaged by water getting in the sides, front, and rear, than the roof. Anything that has a hole through the exterior has to be watched and sealed often. That means all the windows and doors but the ones most often missed are lights! All those little clearance, stop, and tail lights are pathes to let water get in and rot the wood behind them! Water dripping on the dash? Check the clearance lights out front!
If you notice small bumps in the wall covering, you may be late on sealing something outside in that area. Those tiny little bumps are often the wood panel underneath the wall covering beginning to swell up. Prevention is a pain but nothing like replacing the wall that will rot if left long!

Who to do it? I trust myself as I KNOW I care, while I'm not sure if I hire it done! I have had some terrible work done on different things when hiring it out!

Thank you, yes, I know what you mean. I think the older I get the less I trust anyone else to do something the right way

 

[Joe & Sabine]

Here is a link to the video we watched (among others), but it is a very thorough instruction for Winnibago roofs.

 

[Morich]

Weird idea time?
When dealing with wanting to inspect or work along some long edge on the roof, maybe it is time to do some looking at alternates to using the ladder or even a scaffold!
Moving the ladder is terrible and having a scaffold that long is expensive.
Any chance of changing the situation, so that a ladder can do the job as tall ladders are not that bad if we only need to climb a few times, instead of almost constantly to move the ladder.
What about finding an open area, place the ladder and then have a helper move the RV along the ladder as needed? Think of the way utility workers move the truck along a poleline instead of moving the poles along the truck! Instead of coming down each time something is needed, a simple rope system can let the groundman send up what is needed! A simple bucket on a rope can move a lot of tools, etc. !
The backyard may not work but find an open, level lot that is not used on weekends and talk to them about using it for a few hours while nobody is there? In RV we may already have the portable power for tools and a bit of planning might change the picture enough to let us continue to be in control of how well the job is done?
Back and front? Yes, we still have a problem but just not as long!

 

[bigbAZ]

I did mine but I have the luxury of parking indoors at home, as well as multiple tall ladders including a 10 and 12 foot. I completely stripped it all out and since my clear coat was peeling I also sanded it all down and re-painted both radius edges. I used clear Proflex for the sealant, (check the dates if you use this as it has a shelf life of less than a year if I recall). It was quite time consuming and I'm glad it's done and hope to never have to do it again. This was a few years ago in my mid sixties but I've lived by the "If you want it done right, do it yourself" mantra all my adult life. It also helps that my shop is well equipped and over the years I've had lots of automotive experience, both mechanical and paint/body.

Good luck with whatever you decide, you're already ahead of the game by doing the research so you are now informed and unlikely to get a sudden disastrous surprise as some have experienced.

 

[bigbAZ]

With my multiple ladders I was able to walk along the length by climbing up one side of the ladder then stepping over and down a bit while crossing over to the next ladder. Also one of my ladders is double sided which helps. You can also use planks across two ladders to make scaffolding which is what I did when I re-painted the front roof cap. Since when I did the roof radius' I was also priming and painting with an automotive 2 stage system where timing is important, I didn't want to have to stop and move things in the middle of a timed application.

There are also those aluminum telescoping planks you can buy for making a scaffold out of 2 ladders but I just used a couple long 2x4s with a piece of plywood screwed to them (when I re-painted my front roof cap).

 

[Joe & Sabine]

Great ideas, thank you. I've been looking at Marketplace for additional ladders and/or scaffolding. We'll also have to see how interested our son-in-laws are at borrowing the RV at times Rental fees may have to come in the form of labor commitments.