Roof maintenance

jfkmk wrote:
I received the original manufacturers manual with my trailer, and they specifically state no maintenance is required except for occasional cleaning.

Just curious, what brand/model camper do you have and what material is the roof made of?

I have never seen a camper roof that has, a no maintenance requirement. Might learn something new here and hope to.

Did they actually state what the roof warranty is?

samhain7 wrote:
This is from my dealer site:
All Manufactures require this service annually, many require it every 6 months! Insurance companies will require proof to accompany a claim.

Service includes:

(Remove nests, bugs, webs,etc.)

Clean and scrub the entire rubber roof with factory approved materials.
Apply factory approved UV.
Blocking product treatment to protect rubber membrane from future damage.
Re-seal as required.


Here is my question.
What do you think this product is:

Apply factory approved UV.

and does anyone else do this?

I myself do what you listed. I have an EPDM rubber roof made by Dicor. I actually do it 4 times a year. Just coming out of winter, 2 times throughout the summer and just going into winter. I myself would not trust the caulking sealants any less then that especially after the camper is 3 to 4 years old. You want to be a hawk eye on sealant cracks and take care of them when they are in the hair line crack stage when they are benign. Get used to Dicro lap sealant if you have a EPDM roof or other sealant if you have a TPO roof. Know how to use it and be on the look out every time you are up there.

I use 303 UV Protectant on the roof and it helps. I also use it on all the plastic that is up there. If not, the sun will cook most all the plastic brittle and after about 5 years depending if camper is stored outside and what state your in.

303 Product Sheet

303 Web site

Dicor also lists their own UV product for their roof systems. Dicro Roof Gard

And Dicor has a handbook of How to care for your roof. Dicor Roof Handbook

Your dealer words used the words "scrub" the roof. Yes, I clean the roof, I would not use the word scrub, more like brush with a long pole car wash brush. I use Tide laundry soap as the washing detergent to get the dirt off.

My rubber roof is now going on 14 years and is still in excellent condition.

I have not heard of this insurance company deal. That's a new one. Call you insurance carrier and ask them if it is a requirement. And look in your policy. Now that said, if you put in a water damage claim and you have not done the routine roof sealant checks, and applied new sealants when needed, regardless of who did them, any inspector who knows what that we doing can see with their own eyes if the sealant is bad and not cared for. In this case, odds are high they will reuse the claim due to lack of routine maintenance. It is amazing how many folks do absolutely nothing with their roof until a leak shows up inside. And by then, the damage has been done at least a year before.

If you contact your insurance company, please let us know what the outcome is.

Hope this helps

John

I received the original manufacturers manual with my trailer, and they specifically state no maintenance is required except for occasional cleaning.

That sounds reasonable. IF, you're the one selling the product/service.

That is what your dealer says...the ones ripping bills outa your pocket.

What does the mfg say?

I do agree with inspection and maint every 6 months...but never been told by mfg that it had to be paid for and documented.

I believe your dealer is trying to sell you something. It's been a while since I checked, but I'm certain that my epdm roof specifically does NOT require any additional UV treatment, and it's only suggested to clean it as necessary. Cleaning and scrubbing would probably wear it out much sooner than no treatment at all.

I don't know what the UV product is, but to the best of my understanding, they would have to tell you what it is so you can buy it and put it on yourself, or offer to apply it free of charge. Manufacturers can't require you to pay a dealer for service in order to maintain warranty coverage.

https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0138-auto-warranties-routine-maintenance

This of course is US regulation, but everything seems to trickle down to Canada. Also, the parent companies are generally US-based.