Cat09 Posted June 12, 2014 Share Posted June 12, 2014 Hello Fellow Toyota RV Owners, I just bought a 1987 21' Dolphin. I got it cheap knowing it had a lot of restoration work to be done. Because my plan is to one day occupy it full time or at least half time, I am ok with replacing most everything since I plan on some heavy mods. My first plan is get the exterior right. I went up on the roof to have a look see. I know there are leaks. The last owner replaced a lot of the interior insulation and paneling already due to rot/mold. They also pulled the air conditioner off and installed a 4th vent. The roof sags between every support beam- so the roof has a rippled appearance. What looks like roofing tar, silicone, and strips of plastic covered rubber have been used to patch. There is a rubber roof installed. but it has been cut into in many places. The newly installed vent was not placed into the old A/C hole. Instead, they made a new hole directly in front of it. The old A/C hole was patched- and not very well. It sits lower than the rest of the roof and is an obvious leak source. In short, I think my best option would be tearing the entire roof off and replacing the luan and new rubber roof, and probably new extrusions around the sides as well. Has anyone here done a complete roof replacement? I've spoken with a local RV handyman who told me another local had a regular residential roofer do the work for her and it cost 1/5 of what a typical RV company would charge. I will do the recovering, sealing, and replacing vents myself, but I am not up to the task of replacing the entire roof. Any thoughts? Thanks, Cat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphinite no longer here Posted June 12, 2014 Share Posted June 12, 2014 Cat, Sounds like replacing the roof could be a good choice. My advice, (and this is just me), would be to not use rubber roofing. Full width aluminum, one piece, roofing is available for replacing your roof. It comes in any length, but isn't cheap. It does make a one piece roof, though with no seams. The "rafters" are just common lumber and the first thing to put down over them is a single layer of 3/8" plywood and then the aluminum sheet goes over that. If the roof is built this way, a 200# person can walk all over the roof anywhere. This way of building does add some weight, but not very much. Your Toyhome can easily handle it. Another thing, if you do rip off the old roof, remove the side moldings very carefully, particularly the curved pieces. The straight pieces are available, I think, but the curved pieces are not available. They were custom bent on a special machine. The moldings may look like junk but they clean up very nicely. Save them! John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat09 Posted June 12, 2014 Author Share Posted June 12, 2014 Wow, John thanks so much for the great advice. Especially about the moldings. They are old and ugly but I'm sure I can clean them up. So I just checked and can purchase aluminum roofing for a bit over $200. That's not too bad. I'm wondering though if I could use elastomeric or EPDM coating right on the plywood instead of the aluminum or a full rubber roof. Now I just have to find a reputable roofer Thanks, Cat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphinite no longer here Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 Cat, I'm pretty sure that you can use EPDM right on plywood but you might need to apply some kind of a binder goo before the EPDM goes down. Definitely check with a roofer who has experience with this stuff! Another item before you get started: make an accurate map of where everything is, both on top of the roof and inside on the ceiling. Before laying down plywood and whatever roofing you choose, framing has to be installed and its much easier to run wiring and re-attach overhead lights, vents and whatever if you provide solid wood as attachment points for all those goodies. Also, you can save a good chunk of money if you leave the interior unfinished and do it yourself. Good Luck, John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdfrost64 Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 doing a whole reskinning of a toy home right now new roof skin and rubber roofing. if need help leave phone #. if u live close to michigan or indiana i can let you know where to get supplies cheap. if u go to a rv store u will pay up the tail just for the rubber roof without glue or seam tape and sealent. top of the line rv grade rubber roofing cost me $75 for a 8.5' x18' any where else u are looking at around $200 just for the roofing rubber. it the best way to go is with a rubber roof. i should know i ,v have worked for coachman for 24 years and forest river for 6 . robert weed products gets u the right size luan. it will take 4 sheets of 5.2 mm $15 a sheet. bontreger rv surplus for the rubber roofing 21 foot about $80 . have to use the right glue (alpha 8011 or 8010 acrylic adhesive its water base made for rubber roofing the longer it,s on rv the sticker it gets $38 a gallon .may take u a 1 1/2.use the right lap sealent made for rubber roofing.the best is the eternabond tape. have to use there primer with it . it,s salty but works better than lap chalk and looks better.probly take about 4 to 6 rolls of putty tape at $6 a roll. better to use more than not enough. and MAKE sure you seal marker lights good thats were most of water damage comes from. i take lens off and use lap sealent to fill wire holes then put covers back on. there you have it a top of the line roof for your mini that will last 20 years if done right. biggest thing when laying roof keep wood clean when laying glue. it drys slow so u can take your time.no tack time needed will dry threw wood from underneith rubber. rubber should go under front cap skin in front and over rear cap skin in back. these two areas use contact cement on rubber to sheet metal only. need any help post it here its easy to do will last longer than any metal roof Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdfrost64 Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 u shouldn,t use any type of rubber roof glue on metal roofing unless u coat both side roof and wood and let tack up before laying then i wouldn,t trust it plus its a pain to do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdfrost64 Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 oh ya for the molding rv nation in elkhart $18 for 18 foot peice the cut in half to ship thou. it,s not custom bent we use a rubber hammer when u get to curves notch trim on both sides as you bend it thats how trailer rats custom bend rv molding around curves LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 In short, I think my best option would be tearing the entire roof off and replacing the luan and new rubber roof, and probably new extrusions around the sides as well. Has anyone here done a complete roof replacement? I've spoken with a local RV handyman who told me another local had a regular residential roofer do the work for her and it cost 1/5 of what a typical RV company would charge. I can't imagine hiring a roof company or a RV place to do something that small. Much of the job is grunt work - cleaning out all the rotted wood and old sealants. That and deciding where to stop when removing wood. Wood imbibes water - so when the middle rots - that water has traveled a long way up the wood grain where more rot is trying to get a foothold. Getting it dry is essential. I'd find the best wood available and not use what was there OEM. That goes for the 1' board supports (nominal size) and the plywood. Most I've yanked apart had pine boards and luan plywood. Pine has low strength and poor rot resistance. Luan has poor rot resistance and is an "interior" plyood. That means the glue loses integrity when it gets wet. If you want to prevent delamination - you need X-grade or marine plywood. The difference in cost when it comes to the small size of the roof is minimal and it pays to buy good materials. I'd use marine-grade 4 ply 3/8" Fir or Yellow Birch marine plywood. It is MUCH stronger and rot resistant then any 3/8" plywood you'll find at a local lumber seller like Lowes or Home Depot. Most sell 3-ply pine that is an awful choice. High strength rot-resistance boards include White Oak. Black Locust, Black Cherry, Honey Locust, Black Walnut, etc. Do NOT use pressure-treated lumber. Most sold had chemicals that are extremely corrosive to aluminum and I assume you're using an aluminum skin. EPDM works well as an alternative to aluminum but not over it. But - part of the "engineered roof system" in some of these RVs is foam, plywood and aluminum all glued together. It's a situation where 3 = 4 or 5. The sum of the components when put together is stronger then the sum of all three when separate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat09 Posted June 13, 2014 Author Share Posted June 13, 2014 Thanks everyone- good information. This Dolphin has a fiberglass body- not like I can't put aluminum on the roof, but I think I'll be using plywood (I'll definitely look for marine grade) and Eternabond plus liquid EPDM. Shouldn't be a problem finding marine grade anything here- I live in Tidewater, Virginia. Lots of boat supplies. Yeah, the more I think about it, I am leaning towards doing the work myself. Maybe enlist a friend or two to come help. I appreciate all the help with this - I have a much clearer picture of what I need to do and more confidence now about doing it. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 Thanks everyone- good information. This Dolphin has a fiberglass body- not like I can't put aluminum on the roof, but I think I'll be using plywood (I'll definitely look for marine grade) and Eternabond plus liquid EPDM. Shouldn't be a problem finding marine grade anything here- I live in Tidewater, Virginia. Lots of boat supplies. Yeah, the more I think about it, I am leaning towards doing the work myself. Maybe enlist a friend or two to come help. I appreciate all the help with this- I have a much clearer picture of what I need to do and more confidence now about doing it. Thanks! I know in some places down south - even chain-stores like Lowes sell marine-grade plywood. Here in central NY I have to special-order it and pay twice as much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphinite no longer here Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 Cat, one last thing to firmly hammer this subject into the ground...Put a slight crown in the roof beams (rafters, whatever you call them) - 1/2" is plenty - before you lay down the plywood. If you also cut the 1/2" crown on the underside of the roof beams, you'll gain a little headroom. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maineah Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 One of the members here has covered his repaired roof with truck bed liner material it was one slick job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat09 Posted June 14, 2014 Author Share Posted June 14, 2014 Thanks John - good suggestion. I did see some bed liner applications on other threads as well - does it have the insulating and sun refraction properties that a rubber coating would though? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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