Thoughts on Slide Out Awnings

[AKRUEBBE]

I applaud all you guys who "enjoy" getting on the roof of your RV. I see guys 10 years older than me (I'm 74) get on their roof and can't believe it. I usually grab my cell phone and get ready to dial 911 when I see it. I refuse to get on my roof for anything! I'd rather pay a couple hundred dollars to have someone else risk their health.........a hell of a lot cheaper than a trip to the ER

[Andrewf]

A friend of mine tried to save money by not adding the slide awning to his new travel trailer. It sits outside all the time. He is now looking at a $10,000 repair to replace his rotten floor because the slide didn't seal tight enough when closed during storage outside.
I added my own Solera to my Jayco. Love it.

Andrew

[PaulB12]

Originally Posted by Andrewf

A friend of mine tried to save money by not adding the slide awning to his new travel trailer. It sits outside all the time. He is now looking at a $10,000 repair to replace his rotten floor because the slide didn't seal tight enough when closed during storage outside.
I added my own Solera to my Jayco. Love it.

Andrew

Your friend wasn't paying attention to his slide.
Every time I pull mine in I check to see if it's tight, easy to determine with the walk-around. All my tt's have lived outside and never a problem.
JMHO
PaulB12

[EA37TS]

Hundreds of RVs out there without slide toppers.

Out of 3 slides I have 2 toppers. I haven't noticed anything different between the slides with and the slide without.

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by EA37TS

Hundreds of RVs out there without slide toppers.

Out of 3 slides I have 2 toppers. I haven't noticed anything different between the slides with and the slide without.

What about heat load?

That's one major benefit I'd be looking for if I were to install them. You having some with and one without might be able to make a direct comparison?

All of that being said, we had a pretty major storm pop up this weekend while we were out, and I would hate to have had to get up and pull the dang slides in. We had some HEAVY wind gusts in addition to some decent rain. Kind of made me second-guess my desire to put toppers on...

[Flashdman11]

We have been out twice this year and both time had storms come through that would have required me to pull in slides. I read on a response from LCI about the Solera awnings being water proof: "The awning fabric is not waterproof but is water resistant. We recommend not leaving the awning fully extended in heavy rainfall. Also, we recommend that if your awning gets wet, let it air out so any moisture can dry out before retracting." This really makes me not want one now.

[garywilson]

Originally Posted by 02camp

Our toppers collect quite a bit of water too. I'm thinking about turning the bars on the slide 1/6 of a turn to give some slope. Has anybody having this issue tried this? Also on our 27RS the kitchen slide interferes with the awning so the dealer had to slide the topper as far to the rear of the slide as possible allowing for only 1 set screw on the rear mount. Other than these two issues, I like mine.

Some folks put short pool noodles between slide and topper to take care of the slack and prevent pooling.
Never noticed it on mine.

[TCNashville]

I have Solera fabric on both my slide toppers. The bedroom slide topper doesn't hold water but the 12' living room slide does but I have not noticed any leakage whatsoever on the slide roof itself.

[Flashdman11]

If I have to get up there every time to install pool noodles, I may as well not get them. We had 40mph sustaining wind yesterday with gust recorded up to 55. Everyone in our campsite area was complaining about there toppers. They all had to roll there slides in to avoid damage. Guess I'm going to wait to see how the summer months do without them and then decide. I priced mine out with delivery and tax at $1500, not sure if I see enough value in that kind of investment.

[gunafulltime]

I am torn (no pun intended) on this one, too.
Our Feather had one; it was 7'. At first I thought it was an essential upgrade. But now I'm not so sure.

I had to stand on a ladder to inspect and clean under it. I used a long ceiling fan brush. It was difficult to get solid contact with the seals to clean them and apply protectant. I used a towel on the end of a pole to dry it and the roof and seals under it. It was very difficult to inspect the seals. At one point, I needed to clean off and replace some sealant that had deteriorated. I could get the outer thirds of the seam resealed with no problem, but the inner third was nearly impossible to reach.

Then the wind encounters came. We had several cramped, unenjoyable nights and days with heavy winds and rain. We could not access or use half of our coach. If we didn't have a topper to worry about, there were periods of time in those storms where we could have opened the slide. The rain would subside, but the winds continued. If it did not have the topper, I would have opened the slide. We also had the pooling. I used beach balls, 5" poly-foam tubes, and pvc. Eventually, after cleaning it and applying 303 regularly, the fabric seams unraveled, and the topper pretty much disintegrated. I was always gentle and careful in my handling of the fabric. That was year 5. I'd say we got three solid years out of it, but the labor to keep things cleaned, sealed, and protected (303) was a negative factor. It also gave me yet another surface to clean and apply protectant to. You can say it's no big deal, but for me the labor on an RV quickly becomes exponential while I am also working full-time, maintaining vehicles, maintaining a home, and maintaining a yard.

Our last slideout was 7'. Our new slideout is 13' plus. I cannot imagine the time and effort I will have to put into it, and I will definitely never be able to reach all of the seals and seam sealant to clean and maintain them properly. I think the upkeep of the patio awning will be more than enough time, work, and expense. I will save my energy for its mold and deterioration. If you see my post asking about which awning to buy, please ignore it. I think I have just talked myself out of adding one to our new Jay Flight. I think I am going to invest in a good cordless blower and keep using my light Gorilla ladder and towel on a pole system. When the seals and seams need care, I will use the scaffolding to access them or work from the main roof. At least, I will be able to access all of it for thorough inspection and maintenance. We'll see. If it turns out to be a bad idea, I will let y'all know.

Thank you for helping me work this out!

[craigav]

If someone was to make a strong bracket for slideout awnings that worked similar in manner to the clips in some window sills to hold down the venetian blinds. That way you could use the slideout awning when you wanted to (bright sunlight on a hot day), and not use them when you didn't want to (high winds and rain perhaps). I suspect a bracket like that would be a big seller. ~CA

[TCNashville]

You guys sure like talking yourselves out of one of the best things you can do for your camper, and comfort.

[Grumpy]

Originally Posted by Flashdman11

I read on a response from LCI about the Solera awnings being water proof: "The awning fabric is not waterproof but is water resistant. We recommend not leaving the awning fully extended in heavy rainfall. Also, we recommend that if your awning gets wet, let it air out so any moisture can dry out before retracting." This really makes me not want one now.

That is for their regular awnings.

Originally Posted by TCNashville

I have Solera fabric on both my slide toppers. The bedroom slide topper doesn't hold water but the 12' living room slide does but I have not noticed any leakage whatsoever on the slide roof itself.

Because they are Vinyl. Right from LCI's specs for the toppers.

Heavy-duty, durable protection for your slide-out
Compatible with most slide-outs on the market today
Provides full coverage over the slide-out roof and the RV sidewall slide-out opening
Fits slides ranging from 66" to 192" long and extending up to 48"
Comes complete with awning rail and all mounting brackets
Choose from white or black vinyl fabric colors
Cost-effective alternative to other slide-out awnings
Permanently attached to the slide rooms; retracts/extends with slide-out
Made from cold crack tested, 13.5 oz. vinyl

[RAurand]

I don't have a slide topper and really don't want one. I like being able to leave my slide out when it gets windy or have to retract the slide every time we leave the trailer in case it does get windy.

I saw a guy with some PVC pipe that went straight up, about 6-7 feet, then he had a 90 degree bend in it and a straight pipe about 2 feet and another 90 degree bend and it would hold a towel. He would use this to wipe off his slide from the ground before retracting his slide.

Me, I just send my 15 year old son up on the roof to broom off the slide before retracting it.

[Flashdman11]

We had a camper beside us a few weeks back and it was windy all weekend. I could hear their topper flapping inside my camper. They are an option I don't want. Too many negatives vs positives for me.

[AKRUEBBE]

Originally Posted by Flashdman11

We had a camper beside us a few weeks back and it was windy all weekend. I could hear their topper flapping inside my camper. They are an option I don't want. Too many negatives vs positives for me.

Most people don't realize the springs can be tightened to take out the slack which causes the annoying flapping. Mine are over two years old and are still taut. If they get stretched out a little I will tighten the springs.

[Cincinnati Kid]

We're lucky. Trains, other campers, highway traffic, lights, rain/thunder, things flapping in the wind, etc don't bother us. In fact, I remember one time in Amarillo KOA, we opened the vent at night so we could listen to the mournful sound of the distant trains. Really gave us that "Out West" feeling.
(I do go a little crazy chasing flies with a swatter, though)

Slide toppers work for us. They do pool water, and I do get dumped on sometimes when unhooking utilities while Irene is closing slide. lol. They do occasionally flap in the wind, but it's not like it's going to cause damage like an awning would.
We don't close the slides for anything until we're ready to roll.
And the best benefit is that they create shade for those sliding ovens.

[RedHorse1]

Originally Posted by TCNashville

X2. All of my campers have had slide toppers, wouldn't be without them. If ordering a camper, have the factory do the install, it's cheaper.

Another “YES”.
After figuring I’d gotten the $ of our 5th as low as I could I crawfished a bit telling our sales guy I thought our deal was good but I wanted a 5th with toppers and Mor-Ryde pin box. He asked if he threw those in would that close the deal. I figured that was worth $3-5k and cost him half or less. Win-Win.

[jetlag]

Originally Posted by AKRUEBBE

Most people don't realize the springs can be tightened to take out the slack which causes the annoying flapping. Mine are over two years old and are still taut. If they get stretched out a little I will tighten the springs.

Where do you tighten the springs at? Trying to learn. Ours are fine best I can tell. Have heard no flapping

[AKRUEBBE]

Originally Posted by jetlag

Where do you tighten the springs at? Trying to learn. Ours are fine best I can tell. Have heard no flapping

Usually on the right hand side. You need to remove the end cap to see the mechanism. I've never had to do it yet but I think there's instructions in the manual.