Using rubbing alchol prior to tape roof

[cherv]

I have used it to clean area prior to applying toof tape with no issues. A little nervous about using recommended acetone or mineral spirits...comments please

[DocBrown]

Not acetone. Very "hot" and will melt most plastics and certainly roofing material.

Rubbing alcohol will work but it will take a lot more, well, rubbing! I gave up it many years ago for effectively cleaning and prepping surfaces.

Mineral spirits is what is recommend by Eternabond. Mineral spirits is not "hot" like acetone. Plus it flashes off fast, in other words it dries in seconds so as not to cause any damage. It's very important to follow up with washing using a cleaner like car wash as mineral spirits will leave a residue.

Granted I would not dump it on and then use the rag, but a bit of it soaked into a rag is a great cleaning agent and removes the impurities that prevents the glue in the tape from sticking. I've used it for many years on various surfaces to remove glue and other sticky stuff. I've never once had it damage a plastic, vinyl, or painted surface. And I have prepared the roof membrane of our old trailer for Eternabond using mineral spirits.

[gunafulltime]

If it's an Eternabond application, I use their kit (cleaner, primer, and tape). You can order the cleaner and primer separately as well. They work really well together.

[Siamese]

I used acetone on my brand new 26BH a couple years ago. It's what Eternabond recommends. The maker of your roof membrane most likely doesn't want you to use mineral spirits on it, as it's a petroleum product. Many forum members report using just a little mineral spirits with no apparent damage. I figure if they say don't use it....

Acetone is not a petroleum product. Chemically, it's more closely related to alcohol.

I recall that Eternabond recommends their primer for application in colder weather. I did mine in warm weather with no primer, and have had zero adherence issues.

[gunafulltime]

For sure, the stuff (tape adhesive) is serious. The primer is not totally necessary. The clean surface is the main thing.

[Siamese]

Cut and pasted directly from the Eternabond site for repair to RV rubber roof.

(EternaBond® tapes will usually aggressively bond to non-cleaned surfaces, however, we suggest using EternaClean, or acetone applied to a rag and wiping the area to be repaired, or briskly rubbing the area with a dry towel.)