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I'm going to refurbish or replace all of my roof vents pretty soon. Done that before, so it should be no problem. Upon completion, I intend to "paint" the roof with "Grizzly Grip" (brand name) in white. This is a bed liner diy product that I've used before.

The roof a/c will not be re-installed. Don't use it so I don't want the extra weight.

The area of the roof that I am unfamiliar with is the edges where it goes from horizontal sheet aluminum, to the vertical exterior wall. This is an aluminum skin camper, not fiberglass.

What is the best way to ensure that this joint is water-tight?

Anyone know how this would be constructed?

It seems (no pun intended) like I should be able to disassemble and clean and then re-seal, without making a bigger problem... rather than applying goop "over" the seam.

Fred3

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I'm going to refurbish or replace all of my roof vents pretty soon. Done that before, so it should be no problem. Upon completion, I intend to "paint" the roof with "Grizzly Grip" (brand name) in white. This is a bed liner diy product that I've used before.

The roof a/c will not be re-installed. Don't use it so I don't want the extra weight.

The area of the roof that I am unfamiliar with is the edges where it goes from horizontal sheet aluminum, to the vertical exterior wall. This is an aluminum skin camper, not fiberglass.

What is the best way to ensure that this joint is water-tight?

Anyone know how this would be constructed?

It seems (no pun intended) like I should be able to disassemble and clean and then re-seal, without making a bigger problem... rather than applying goop "over" the seam.

Fred3

Fred3,

I have a 1985 Dolphin and am going to do the same thing that you are with your roof, including getting rid of the air conditioner. Since I'm in NW Montana, I'll have to wait until the weather warms up a bit but I've also thought about how to make the roof-to-side joint waterproof. The aluminum factory trim is poorly-designed junk in my opinion. I've been thinking about using a sticky (as in permanent) tape called "Eternabond" that most RV shops sell. It comes in rolls 4" wide by 25 feet and can be cut narrower if necessary. Once the tape is stuck down to the roof and over the corner onto the siding, most of it can be hidden by re-installing the factory aluminum molding or something else similiar. Whatever sticks out beyond the molding can be trimmed off with a sharp knife.

The workmanship on my Dolphin was occasionally poor and in some places the roof-to-siding joint was too wide for the factory moulding to cover so they just put lots of goop under the moulding and called 'er good. I think this tape thing will work. I'll keep you posted but not for a month or so as Winter's firmly here and its cold!

John

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John-

You've got me thinking.

Sounds like Eternabond would work. I purchased a 4" wide and a 6" wide 25' roll at about the time I left for a month long trip. When I removed the A/C, I placed a piece of thin plywood over the square hole, and covered it with the Eternabond. Have you ever used the product before? It is fairly thick and heavy weight, which for the intended application of flat surfaces is probably a good thing, making it durable. This will be converted to a 14" roof vent. Yeah, I'll get to see how "removable" the sticky stuff is. Scraping? Acetone?

At the roof edge I'm thinking it might be nice to try a thinner product that works the same way.

So happens that my roof escape hatch blew off during a storm while parked in an RV park in Smyrna TN. Snapped right off while it was in the tight-closed position... Anyway, we found it 100 yards away at another RV site and brought it home. I used a thinner and much less costly tape to make the emergency repair (never put it on a non-dry surface... won't adhere) that I got at Home Depot in the roof repair dept. It is 4" or 6" wide, shiny like metallic, and has the same sticky compound. Works the same but is thinner and "bends into corners" sort of like aluminum foil.

When I do my roof job, i think I'll try out the tape idea and see if it will fit under the trim, and look good as well as make a good watertight bond.

I'm on the Northern CA coast near Fortuna CA. I have a tarp on the roof until maybe April of May if it ever stops raining for a few days. I expect to do the roof then. I'll post whatever I do.

BTW... born in Superior Montana at the Mineral County Hospital, as a kid I lived in Columbia Falls. Long time ago... My dad was a sprinkler fitter working in various sawmills. Got paid in silver dollars. Those were the days. My dad pulled a family sized mobile home with a 1952 Ford wagon. 2-speed automatic and a V8. The fitters would work with a land owner, dig a pit and bury a steel drum that was perforated, and use it as a sewer/septic connection. He says they paid 8 dollars per week to park the trailer. Something like that. I have fond Montana memories of watching the Dads put firecrackers in beer cans and blowing them up on July 4th. They would let us kids catch grasshoppers for fish bait... I think the fish they caught were 2 or 3 feet long... but then these are a little kids impressions from a long time ago. The trailer was a "Superior" or something like that. The door had a round window and the living room had mahogany paneling, and square tile on the floor. Our family ended up buying a 3BR house new with a full basement in Spokane for under $8 grand. Did kindergarden there.

Fred3

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John-

You've got me thinking.

Sounds like Eternabond would work. I purchased a 4" wide and a 6" wide 25' roll at about the time I left for a month long trip. When I removed the A/C, I placed a piece of thin plywood over the square hole, and covered it with the Eternabond. Have you ever used the product before? It is fairly thick and heavy weight, which for the intended application of flat surfaces is probably a good thing, making it durable. This will be converted to a 14" roof vent. Yeah, I'll get to see how "removable" the sticky stuff is. Scraping? Acetone?

At the roof edge I'm thinking it might be nice to try a thinner product that works the same way.

So happens that my roof escape hatch blew off during a storm while parked in an RV park in Smyrna TN. Snapped right off while it was in the tight-closed position... Anyway, we found it 100 yards away at another RV site and brought it home. I used a thinner and much less costly tape to make the emergency repair (never put it on a non-dry surface... won't adhere) that I got at Home Depot in the roof repair dept. It is 4" or 6" wide, shiny like metallic, and has the same sticky compound. Works the same but is thinner and "bends into corners" sort of like aluminum foil.

When I do my roof job, i think I'll try out the tape idea and see if it will fit under the trim, and look good as well as make a good watertight bond.

I'm on the Northern CA coast near Fortuna CA. I have a tarp on the roof until maybe April of May if it ever stops raining for a few days. I expect to do the roof then. I'll post whatever I do.

BTW... born in Superior Montana at the Mineral County Hospital, as a kid I lived in Columbia Falls. Long time ago... My dad was a sprinkler fitter working in various sawmills. Got paid in silver dollars. Those were the days. My dad pulled a family sized mobile home with a 1952 Ford wagon. 2-speed automatic and a V8. The fitters would work with a land owner, dig a pit and bury a steel drum that was perforated, and use it as a sewer/septic connection. He says they paid 8 dollars per week to park the trailer. Something like that. I have fond Montana memories of watching the Dads put firecrackers in beer cans and blowing them up on July 4th. They would let us kids catch grasshoppers for fish bait... I think the fish they caught were 2 or 3 feet long... but then these are a little kids impressions from a long time ago. The trailer was a "Superior" or something like that. The door had a round window and the living room had mahogany paneling, and square tile on the floor. Our family ended up buying a 3BR house new with a full basement in Spokane for under $8 grand. Did kindergarden there.

Fred3

Fred3,

Thanks for the info on the cheaper, thinner, foil-backed tape from Home Depot. I've seen the stuff before being used to seal joints in duct work for heating and AC. I'm going to take a better look at it next time I'm in town. I'd like to know what you decide for the roof-to-side joint once the rain stops.

Your memories of Montana were fun to read. Wish I'd been here then. We're about 15 miles west of Kalispell near Rogers Lake at about 4,000 feet in a log cabin. I retired from the Merchant Marine a few years ago and we finally got to spend more time in this place instead of having to leave every Spring for the coast and work. Winters are tough here but I spent almost 30 years in Alaska getting ready for the weather, so life is doable.

Good Luck,

John

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