Rubber Roof Repair

[Type-A]

I have a few tears in my roof and never had to repair one before so I'm looking for any tips.

I'll upload some photos in a bit.

Thanks!

[SkyBound]

Eternabond Tape will be a permanent and effective fix if you clean the area properly and apply as per the instructions. Many people have had great success with this product.

[Type-A]

[dennis b]

How did this happen?

[SkyBound]

WOW. Ok. You need a new rubber roof as well as new wood decking underneath. Eternabond will only be locking in the problem in this case.

[Type-A]

Big tree branch dropped across it. I checked the wood underneath and it all seems to be good (other than the edge is crushed), nothing caved in, nothing broken and no damage to the inside of the camper.

[skids]

Is the wood rotten on the roof? It does not appear that way. You must find where the water is getting in (roof vent or air conditioner?) and start the repair there. There are roofing topping products out there that stay pliable. I repaired the roof on my Apache pop-up with a product that is made for roofing on buildings. It is good stuff but it is over 100.00 for a 5 gallon container (at Lowes).

[skids]

PS I think it was a Henry's product and it is white.

[Type-A]

Originally Posted by skids

Is the wood rotten on the roof? It does not appear that way. You must find where the water is getting in (roof vent or air conditioner?) and start the repair there. There are roofing topping products out there that stay pliable. I repaired the roof on my Apache pop-up with a product that is made for roofing on buildings. It is good stuff but it is over 100.00 for a 5 gallon container (at Lowes).

No rot. There is no water getting into the camper. This damage happened over the past week. We were up there last weekend and it was good and we went back up a few days ago and there was a tree branch on the ground. Fortunately there wasn't any rain during that time so the exposed wood was/is dry!

[VicS1950]

Originally Posted by Type-A

No rot. There is no water getting into the camper. This damage happened over the past week. We were up there last weekend and it was good and we went back up a few days ago and there was a tree branch on the ground. Fortunately there wasn't any rain during that time so the exposed wood was/is dry!

No water is a very good thing.

It's tough to tell from pictures, but are you certain that is EDPM rubber? The tears don't look typical to EPDM membrane failure.

That's quite a bit of damage.

If you decide to go the repair route I would suggest that you need some sort of mechanical fastening before going with whatever sealing method you decide upon. It looks to me that the material will easily shift if not somehow stabilized.

I agree with Eternabond tape for most repairs. With this fairly extensive damage, assuming EPDM repair, I've had good results using Dicor self leveling or two part sealant with roofing mesh to help to add strength. I believe that Home Depot sells Henry brand roof repair mesh.

My opinion and worth everything you'll never pay for it.

vic

[Type-A]

Thanks Vic,
I did notice that the roofing material has some sort of adhesive on it so it is "stuck" to the roof, where the damage isn't located. That's good to know since I had to tow it 2 hours to get it home. LOL

[dennis b]

Insurance?

[Type-A]

Originally Posted by dennis b

Insurance?

It's fully insured but for what little damage is there, I didn't plan on going that route.

[Murff]

If insured, you might get an RV techs opinion on how exstensive the damage might be.

Good luck either way.

Murff

[Scoutr2]

In my opinion, you need a complete new rubber roof. Even though the wood looks good where the tears are, you can't know if water migrated somewhere else - and probably did. The roofing material looks too far gone to patch. You will be fighting it every year as the heat of summer and the cold of winter will compromise the patch every year and need to be repaired each season.

But that's just my opinion. If the $$$ are a problem, do the best patch job you can, but save up for a new roof - and keep a close eye on every place you repaired.

[spoon059]

Did anyone actually read his post? This happened last week and he says no water got in, no structural damage, no water damage. Sheesh...


OP, I would get a nice 6" wide roll of Eternabond tape and by done with it. If you clean the roof properly and install the Eternabond properly (roll it to activate the adhesive) it will be perfectly watertight for years and years to come.

[Scoutr2]

Originally Posted by spoon059

Did anyone actually read his post? This happened last week and he says no water got in, no structural damage, no water damage. Sheesh...


OP, I would get a nice 6" wide roll of Eternabond tape and by done with it. If you clean the roof properly and install the Eternabond properly (roll it to activate the adhesive) it will be perfectly watertight for years and years to come.

Well, Spoon, did you look at ALL of his photos? What I saw was the roof edging that crimps the roofing to the edge seam has been crushed, aluminum siding and trim crushed and bent, and some huge tears right at the edge, where it is nigh unto impossible to repair. It looks to me like there is more than rubber roof damage to be repaired, so if it were me . . . I would get everything repaired. Anything else and he will be chasing the problems for a long time and then, the insurance will say it's too late to file the claim and any subsequent damage from weather, etc, would be fallout from procrastination.

Again . . . this is my opinion, but what I would do . . . which I think he asked?

[Type-A]

Thanks spoon059!

I have the roll of Eternabond on the way. And the 7 day forecast is sunny with ZERO chances of rain.

[Scoutr2]

I fear the Eternabond will not help with sealing the leaks in the crushed aluminum in this pic you have: [/URL][/IMG]

You can perhaps seal these areas with silicone caulk, but you will need to keep a close eye on it.

And here's a link to Eternabond's Website with installation and repair instructions. They do mention it will not stick to silicone sealants, recommending removal of all silicone before application.

EternaBond Leak Repair Installation Instructions

Good luck!

[Type-A]

Thanks Mike!

I have a call into my insurance company too. Not sure what will happen next so I'm glad I have the EternaBond on the way...if nothing else, it'll patch it up until it gets repaired by a pro - if required.