New Owner/Old 16ft Aerolite - Repair Project
I'm a new owner to the RV world, though have been on several trips with the inlaws these past few years in their 21' motorhome. I just bought this little TT, one which needs a lot of TLC for a song...
Forum Discussion
westend: Yes it's caulk, no it's not on the OUTSIDE or exposed. used it to glue down the replacement plywood sheeting and plastex.
oughtsix: Yes I'm using Butyl tape, 4" by 25' rolls. After I had the entire roof resheeted, using the caulking to glue it down on a 12x12 grid to the aluminum rails and 1.5" sytrofoam insulation, I sheeted it with 3 plastex sheets, with 6" overlap, and two lines of caulk in that overlap. Next I cut out all vent and AC holes in the roof. Put 3/4" foam gasket under the MaxAir covers and AC gasket. And then put the Butyl tape around the air vents, started with the back, then side and then front, so I have overlaps from front to back, direction of travel. (for wind driven rain when moving.)
Plastex: I know some have tried it on tear-drops and had issues. One side is essentially non-stick. For me it's the most rugged material I could find that can take rocks, dings and other debris without being damaged. The Butyl tape actually sticks to it so using that for exterior seals, then the caulking as backup, if it were to wick in. (caulk had a week to harden before being sealed up). (it's an experiment, I know it has risks...worst case, have to redo covering later.)
Had an issue of the TV harness not providing enough power to light the DOZEN exterior marker lights. So plan to make this little mod, which protects all the outputs from the trailer harness using relays. (very small load on the light/signal switches in the TV).
oughtsix: Yes I'm using Butyl tape, 4" by 25' rolls. After I had the entire roof resheeted, using the caulking to glue it down on a 12x12 grid to the aluminum rails and 1.5" sytrofoam insulation, I sheeted it with 3 plastex sheets, with 6" overlap, and two lines of caulk in that overlap. Next I cut out all vent and AC holes in the roof. Put 3/4" foam gasket under the MaxAir covers and AC gasket. And then put the Butyl tape around the air vents, started with the back, then side and then front, so I have overlaps from front to back, direction of travel. (for wind driven rain when moving.)
Plastex: I know some have tried it on tear-drops and had issues. One side is essentially non-stick. For me it's the most rugged material I could find that can take rocks, dings and other debris without being damaged. The Butyl tape actually sticks to it so using that for exterior seals, then the caulking as backup, if it were to wick in. (caulk had a week to harden before being sealed up). (it's an experiment, I know it has risks...worst case, have to redo covering later.)
Had an issue of the TV harness not providing enough power to light the DOZEN exterior marker lights. So plan to make this little mod, which protects all the outputs from the trailer harness using relays. (very small load on the light/signal switches in the TV).
