Skylight heat florida

Jayco2015JayFLIGHT · 04-14-2021, 08:02 AM

Hello all I have a question about the skylight. It letting so much heat. The bathroom is like a sauna. Wondering what my options are? Anyone have any ideas? Should I paint it white to block out and reflect the light? How has everyone else dealt with this issue? Thanks in advance

rkymntsno · 04-14-2021, 08:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayco2015JayFLIGHT

Hello all I have a question about the skylight. It letting so much heat. The bathroom is like a sauna. Wondering what my options are? Anyone have any ideas? Should I paint it white to block out and reflect the light? How has everyone else dealt with this issue? Thanks in advance

We're in Texas. This has helped. I bought some corrugated poster board at Walmart that has a thin gap. Cut it to fit, them put it up with 3m velcro. When it's cooler I can take it down to get light.

craigav · 04-14-2021, 08:22 AM

I used Henry Tropi-Cool White Roof coating from Home Depot, two coats and now it is thick enough where I can still tell if it is daylight by looking at the skylight but no heat seems to come through it anymore. I used this as I don't think paint will last, this stuff should last forever. ~CA

Jayco2015JayFLIGHT · 04-14-2021, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by craigav

I used Henry Tropi-Cool White Roof coating from Home Depot, two coats and now it is thick enough where I can still tell if it is daylight by looking at the skylight but no heat seems to come through it anymore. I used this as I don't think paint will last, this stuff should last forever. ~CA

Thanks. Do you think it strengthens it as well? I've heard these things get brittle. Its 6 year old trailer. Should I be worried about it cracking. Its looks all yellow.

damaltor · 04-14-2021, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by craigav

I used Henry Tropi-Cool White Roof coating from Home Depot, two coats and now it is thick enough where I can still tell if it is daylight by looking at the skylight but no heat seems to come through it anymore. I used this as I don't think paint will last, this stuff should last forever. ~CA

This looks like it would be perfect! Did it react at all with the plastic skylight?
Thanks

craigav · 04-14-2021, 08:57 AM

In fact, one reason I chose this is because mine being ~11 years old was starting to have some spider web looking cracks in it, this coating is very think and covered them all very well allowing me to keep the existing skylight in place. The coating did not react negatively to the plastic at all in fact it appears to have adhered very well. I did use a bit of denatured alcohol and an old towel to clean the skylight first which likely helped. So far, about 3~4 years now, the skylight and the coating on it still looks like the day I painted it. The Tropi-Cool is designed to stop heat and is a very thick coating. I made one coating then went inside and check and could still see some daylight through the skylight and decided to put on a second coating as I purchased a gallon, and with the second coating I could still tell if it was night or day, but not well as the second coating blocked out almost all of the light. In addition to the blocking of light, it was very apparent that the heat I had felt from the skylight was no longer felt and in fact I think the entire RV stays a bit cooler now, certainly it does in the Shower bathroom area. ~CA

BTW, I have never been a fan of the skylight, not only the heat but too much light would come through it when I didn't care for any light. I get up early enough, but usually not a the break of day. Not too mention the shower has a light in it anyway.

Jayco2015JayFLIGHT · 04-14-2021, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by craigav

In fact, one reason I chose this is because mine being ~11 years old was starting to have some spider web looking cracks in it, this coating is very think and covered them all very well allowing me to keep the existing skylight in place. The coating did not react negatively to the plastic at all in fact it appears to have adhered very well. I did use a bit of denatured alcohol and an old towel to clean the skylight first which likely helped. So far, about 3~4 years now, the skylight and the coating on it still looks like the day I painted it. The Tropi-Cool is designed to stop heat and is a very thick coating. I made one coating then went inside and check and could still see some daylight through the skylight and decided to put on a second coating as I purchased a gallon, and with the second coating I could still tell if it was night or day, but not well as the second coating blocked out almost all of the light. In addition to the blocking of light, it was very apparent that the heat I had felt from the skylight was no longer felt and in fact I think the entire RV stays a bit cooler now, certainly it does in the Shower bathroom area. ~CA

BTW, I have never been a fan of the skylight, not only the heat but too much light would come through it when I didn't care for any light. I get up early enough, but usually not a the break of day. Not too mention the shower has a light in it anyway.

Excellent thanks!

Jayco2015JayFLIGHT · 04-14-2021, 09:10 AM

Geeze 75$ a gallon!? Got any left i can use!? Lol not trying to spend that much. Wonder if a gallon is enough to do the whole roof?

damaltor · 04-14-2021, 09:13 AM

Thanks Craigav, think I’ll give it a go, pricey stuff.
I’m not a fan of skylights neither, too much heat when warm, too much heat lost when cold. Guess if I was 6’ 2”+, I would like it? LOL

Jayco2015JayFLIGHT · 04-14-2021, 09:14 AM

I found it for 35 with shipping on walmart.com. same stuff?

https://www.walmart.com/ip/HENRY-HE2...ll&athena=true

Also found rustoleum roof coating for cheaper 22

https://www.walmart.com/ip/White-Rus...B&gclsrc=aw.ds

craigav · 04-14-2021, 09:16 AM

One other tip, if you use this and go for a second coat like I did, don't let the first coat completely dry before putting the second coat on it, I waited probably an hour or two between coats while the first coat was still a little tacky feeling. I also coated the entire area going over where the skylight and roof meet to about an inch of roof all around the skylight. I have not encountered any issues over many years now with having done this. ~CA

craigav · 04-14-2021, 09:22 AM

This is what I purchased, I am sure that there are other similar products, however this one is made in particular to stop the heat and it shows ~$60 for me. I agree it is expensive, however I think it will last forever (lifetime warranty... is the claim) which makes it worth it for me as I wouldn't want to get some other product which isn't designed in particular to stop the heat or doesn't adhere well and may need to be re-coated later on.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Henry-88...S142/206029976

Jayco2015JayFLIGHT · 04-14-2021, 09:24 AM

Thanks what do u think about doing the whole roof?

craigav · 04-14-2021, 09:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayco2015JayFLIGHT

Thanks what do u think about doing the whole roof?

In fact, I purposely went around the skylight onto the roof itself about an inch just to test if it would be suitable and stay adhered to the roof material which it has done very well. After I did mine with this product I read even on this website where some others have done their entire roof with this product and had excellent results. (you can search for Henry's Tropicool or maybe tropi-cool in the search tool). My roof material is still good, but the white is wearing thin in areas and I am considering doing my entire roof with this seeing how well it worked on the skylight. One gallon was the smallest container my local HD had and it was more than enough for two coats of the skylight, however it wouldn't have been enough for the entire roof. I have read up on other roof coatings, none of which stated though that they were particularly designed to stop (reflect) the heat and UV rays (although there probably are some similar products).

FYI, I have some flex solar panels that I want to put on my roof, but my current plans are to do so after coating the entire roof and even though this cost more, I think it is worth the extra $$$ seeing how well it has performed for me. Maybe within the next day or two I will get on my roof again and check and take a picture to share with you, this will be the 4th year I believe since I have coated it and I was on the roof before last winter and it still looked like the day I coated it. ~CA

craigav · 04-14-2021, 10:06 AM

I was just now reading the instructions and usage for this, it states to wait 2~6 hours between coats, that is likely what I did instead of what I wrote earlier about waiting 1~2 hours. I remember coating the skylight two coats in the same afternoon. You can read more about the product and how to use it here. https://images.thdstatic.com/catalog...7031687ae1.pdf

RogerR · 04-14-2021, 11:21 AM

I use foil bubble wrap made for duct insulation. Cut a piece and used a bowed piece of wood to hold it in place. Works well to keep out heat and at night if you park under a street light. Can be removed in cooler weather or for extra light.

Camper_bob · 04-14-2021, 12:28 PM

I put reflectix up there when we first brought it home a little over 3 years ago. I don't think I've even pulled back the shade since then. And the reflectix is only marginally effective IMO. To be fair, it's just kind of laid up there though...

I think I'm going to use that stuff craigav mentioned and just paint over it.

While I'm at it, I'm considering painting the AC shrouds? I replaced the front AC with a 13.5K high efficiency unit, and it came with a white shroud. But the OEM one in the rear is black. I've been meaning to "rattlecan" it, but just haven't gotten around to it. If I'm going to buy a gallon of that expensive stuff for the skylight, I'm going to be looking for an excuse to use it!!

craigav · 04-14-2021, 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

I put reflectix up there when we first brought it home a little over 3 years ago. I don't think I've even pulled back the shade since then. And the reflectix is only marginally effective IMO. To be fair, it's just kind of laid up there though...

I think I'm going to use that stuff craigav mentioned and just paint over it.

While I'm at it, I'm considering painting the AC shrouds? I replaced the front AC with a 13.5K high efficiency unit, and it came with a white shroud. But the OEM one in the rear is black. I've been meaning to "rattlecan" it, but just haven't gotten around to it. If I'm going to buy a gallon of that expensive stuff for the skylight, I'm going to be looking for an excuse to use it!!

Sounds like a great idea, I double coated my skylight not only for the extra thickness but otherwise I would have wasted more than half of what I purchased (1 gal), there was certainly enough left to do an A/C shroud. I ended up leaving the can open to dry out completely so I could safely and legally dispose of it in the trash which wasted about a quart or slightly less. I was looking for something else to coat though, I should have coated something\anything instead of wasting what I did. I suspect any plastic vents or similar items on the roof would last a lot longer with a coating on it.

FYI, it is bright white and looks great, at least from the ground, up close I can still see my brush marks though as I just used a cheap 3 pack brush set so that I could dispose of the brushes after I coated the skylight. My previous RV and after many years, the A/C shroud got very brittle and a little hail storm took it out, I bet that wouldn't have happened had it been coated with this stuff seeing how no other damage occurred, the hail was only grape size but did a number on the A/C shroud for sure. ~CA

Revy · 04-14-2021, 04:48 PM

We have the opposite issue, where we can get very cold nights. But the issue is the same, you don't want heat transfer through the roof openings. I made a template of the skylight opening, and cut a piece of 1.5" rigid foam to fit perfectly in the hole. I think it insulates better than our RV roof. In addition to our skylight, I also made plugs for our roof vents. I painted them white to make them look nice when installed. They are small enough to store when not in use, and go up quick and easy when we want to keep the heat on the right side.

Camper_bob · 04-15-2021, 07:32 AM

I was in my rig last night (brought it home from storage for an impending trip). I had completely forgotten about the skylight over the shower. Will probably paint that one too! I don't think we've showered during daylight hours ... ever. But the headspace in there is important, so I don't want to block it off from inside.

I bet I get close to using up the whole gallon... challenge accepted!

AND I'm now wondering if I might apply it to the tops of the slides... Might be a good alternative to slide toppers? And offer a little more protection for the rubber membrane roof on the slides...

Heat reduction is a CONSTANT battle I face in my rig. Camping in S. TX, it has to be. Every little bit helps when it's 100+ degrees in August with high humidity...

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