Opinions on Rubber Roof Condition - Pictures Included

Thanks for all the replies. I also posted the same pictures on irv2.com and got the exact opposite opinion from those members. They all said it should be recoated immediately. I was hoping for a general consensus one way or the other (hoping for a positive result) but willing to accept either way. I think I will keep an eye on it and see how it does for our first couple of short trips this summer. I'm sure I will eventually recoat it, but would like to prolong the expense for awhile.

Thanks again for all the comments.

I have a rubber roof on mine, It looked like total #2. I tried everything under the sun to clean it but nothing touched it. I finally tried Oxy-Clean. I put it on as hot as I could, and moved it around with a deck brush. I got a phone call and got back to the roof about 15 minutes later and it was really white. None of the previous products even came close to these results. One thing for sure is the roof is really slippery with this stuff on it, and it will strip the wax off the sides.

Diplomat Don wrote:
"Fire Up's" roof repair really looked nice. The question I have is which rubber roof did he have. The OP has the 1st generation rubber roof that is like a bicycle tube. You could literally grab between your thumb and finger and pull it up. These roofs did not do well when you coated them because they were just too flexible. The later generation rubber roofs almost felt like a hard plastic and were not flexible.

I would never coat the old flexible rubber roof (don't ask me how I know).

DD,
The coach was/is a '99 Fleetwood Bounder. To the best of my knowledge, it's an EDPM Rubber roof. Yep, they are thin, that's for sure. I don't like ANY RUBBER ROOF. Even the latter versions and the ones they're still putting out today. Yes, they last a fair amount of time, if, IF, they're not damaged in any way, shape or form. But, I have seen "bubbles" on rubber roofs as RVs have traveled down the road, I've seen many tears from tree branches etc.

My roof, (at the time) had no damage anywhere. It was simply worn due to exposure. It tiny wrinkles here and there but, nothing I was concerned about. I inspected it quite often. And in doing so, kept noticing that it was getting blacker and blacker due to the white disappearing from the surface. And talk about heat, I mean, that's why they use Black for solar for pools, 'cause it rakes in the heat.

Well, since that motorhome was no pool, it needed to have a white roof, not a black one. That coating I put on there is one tough coating.

Now, if I ever had it to do over again, and, I really liked the coach but it had a rubber roof, I'd shi..can the rubber roof and have RV Solutions Of San Diego shoot on a "Bed liner" style roof. Seriously stronger than just about any previous type and present style roof and, talk about durable. You could have party up there with all women and all of them wearing pin point 6" high heels, and not even scratch it.

Again, this is a preference thing. Some are very happy with their rubber roof, no matter what generation it is and, some, like me, don't like them at all. To each his own.
Scott

"Fire Up's" roof repair really looked nice. The question I have is which rubber roof did he have. The OP has the 1st generation rubber roof that is like a bicycle tube. You could literally grab between your thumb and finger and pull it up. These roofs did not do well when you coated them because they were just too flexible. The later generation rubber roofs almost felt like a hard plastic and were not flexible.

I would never coat the old flexible rubber roof (don't ask me how I know).

from Fire Up "So, it saw the sun, 24/7, 365 for the total time we owned it".
Where do you live with 24 hr. sun? That would be Alaska in Summer but not winter.

Hard to say for sure but I think my roof looked simular to yours. I contacted Dicor because of the 12 year warranty, they sent a represenative of the EPDM maker to look at it. He said something was wrong but could not determine what caused the problem. They furnished all the material to replace the roof and I had to furnish the labor. My roof might have had more "splotches" in the appearance than yours. I had washed the roof 2 times a year using Dawn detergent. My roof was 6 years old.
I have to wonder what the roof would be like if I had not washed at all.

Thor advised me to wash the roof once or twice a year with a soft brush using Spic and Span. No conditioners, No coatings, Nothing. So that's what I do. Mine is 13 years old and looks a lot like the OP's.

I have found that by not washing the rubber roof I get almost no black streaking. My recommendation is to not wash it, condition it or do anything other than keep your roof sealed at the edges and around openings in the roof.

I think the pictures show that your roof is GOOD TO GO.

ScottG wrote:
The best thing you can do for it is leave it alone. Cleaning only shortens its life and the white protective layer of your roof looks to be in excellent condition. I see absolutely no need to re-coat it with anything and it looks to have many years in it before needing to do so.

X2

ThorResidencyNewby,
Rubber roofs are always a subject of semi-controversy. Some like them, some don't. Some wash them, some don't. Some protect them with all kinds and types of products and, SOME DON'T. It is a matter of preference and, opinion on just what you as an individual think is important or not. Our previous coach, a '99 Fleetwood Bounder 34V was a few years old when we got it. The roof was about 95% white at the time. We too live in So CAL and, it never was under any cover. So, it saw the sun, 24/7, 365 for the total time we owned it.

Well, over the time frame we owned it, the roof continually depleted it's "white" coating. We'd wash it around 3-4 times a year to get all the dust, dirt, acid rain etc. off as best we could. But, eventually it became about, 85% black due to the White coating simply not adhearing any more.

So, the decision to "Re-coat" was made. I did more research then I care to admit but, I came up with the decision to use the Dicor two part product. It's a simple primer/prep and a coating. Now, based on the instructions, we did it all in ONE DAY! It was a typical summer day in So CAL, (Ramona to be exact) and, around 85-90 degrees. We washed it with soap and water. It dried in about 20 minutes.

We then washed it with the prep/primer and, according to the instructions, we had to "pressure wash" that part of the system off. Well, that part dried in another 20-30 minutes.

Now came the first coat. That stuff is fairly thick. It took it about an hour and a half to dry. Then came the second coat. It was all done around 4:00 in the afternoon. That roof is now seriously better protected than it was even when we bought the thing. And, it was done around 6+ year ago and it looks exactly as good today as it did the day my son and I did it, that long ago. Yep, it's work, and a lot of it. But, it was all done in ONE DAY.

Outstanding protection. Absolutely no white or black streaks from that point on. Your decision.,Below is a picture of the "after". I sure wish I'd have taken some of the "before". Serious difference. And, one more bonus, the coach was fairly cooler due to the added insulation and reflectivity of the new white coating.
Scott