Hi FolksI’m a newbie. Hope you can help. I’m the new owner of a 1991 30’ Dutchmen Travel Trailer. It does not travel, located in a seasonal campground in Massachusetts. The roof has major problems and during rains it poured in, especially in hall area. I need advice please. Showed it to one repair person, he said my roof was “ toast” and that the ripples in roof meant that no sealant would do the job. He suggested building a standing RV carport type thing but they are not permitted , and it’s expensive. Or a little pitched roof on top but I don’t think the walls could support that. Another repair person suggested removing a section of ceiling and replacing trusses. And then sealing roof. I have roof repair research fatigue. I’d so appreciate any guidance from you folks. I’m hoping to find a relatively inexpensive way to assess this. Has anyone ever built a light weight peak roof on top of old travel trailer. Perhaps using canvas and pvc? All ideas welcome. Thank you.

Most likely you have dry rot in the roof, floor and perhaps walls due to the water. ie More extensive than just roof trusses. Do a complete inspection for soft wood areas, a ice pick or screwdriver can help. ie A future sound roof won't resolve dry rot.Based on what you posted I'll speculate that considering cost and effort replacing the trailer is the best option.

Walk the roof. If it is spongy, you need to replace the plywood under the roof membrane. The only way to avoid that is to install an aluminum roof. If you find your plywood is still good, the least expensive fix is a truck-bed spray in liner kit (about $1.00 square foot).

Your camper is basically worth $0, and anything you spend on it will not improve its value, so consider that. As far as repairing it, you mention a carport which is not allowed, so you’re willing to spend at least a couple few thousand $ ? Put the money towards another camper. Without any knowledge or diy abilities, you will only spend a lot of $ having some schmuk patch up your camper. Your neglect of the camper will cost money to get rectified. Don’t spend the money on that camper. Sorry to sound blunt, but if what you say is true, the camper is junk now. And even if it wasn’t, it’s still worth virtually nothing. Maybe a couple grand, but sitting on a seasonal and what you describe , it would prolly cost more to just make roadworthy than it’s worth.

And if you’re even considering making it into a homeless camp ( the tarp thing), glad I’m not in that campground. Or maybe they allow that???

If your trailer is located in the New England states, a "canvas and PVC" roof is not going to hold up to the snow loads you get and will fail catastrophically and spectacular way at the worst time. For a very "temp" fix you could tarp the roof just to keep anymore water from coming in but that is a very short term fix for a few weeks to a month at best.Conventional roofing with shingles would be pretty heavy but it is possible that a pitched steel roof will be light weight enough to directly placed on the walls. Depending on your area's building codes, steel roofs typically will use 4ft centers and purlins spaced at 2ft. Which will be far lighter weight than conventional shingled roofing and should not require any framing to the ground.No matter what you do, you will be spending far more money on this trailer than what it is worth and you might want to look at the idea of finding a newer and in better shape trailer. You have a 30yr old RV, basically worth not much more than the sum of all the scrap prices of the parts..

VERY BAD ROOF/ Please help | Good Sam Community

GrandpaKip
Explorer II
Jun 26, 2021
If you just want to stop the water from coming in, I would look into the companies selling old billboard tarps.
BobsYourUncle
Nomad
Jun 26, 2021
2 many 2 wrote:
BobsYourUncle wrote:
I can easily detail ....snip

This guy should be considered the definitive authority on re-building anything. I have seen his work and read hundreds of pages of detailed description's of procedures and outcomes from his work.

If Bob says, in all probability, it is not feasible, you can believe it.

Thank you. I appreciate your vote of confidence in my work. :)
dodge_guy
Explorer II
Jun 26, 2021
Unless you have the $$$$$$ to sink into it, which will be around $3k (maybe more after it’s torn into, your better off dumping it and buying something newer that has no leaks.
2_many_2
Explorer III
Jun 26, 2021
BobsYourUncle wrote:
I can easily detail how to replace the entire roof. I am building a website on a total TT rebuild of an 81 Citation, but the site isn't up yet. Still have about 20% more to go.

However, as one who has rebuilt a totally rotten trailer, I can tell you that from a monetary standpoint, it is not worth doing unless you have a sentimental attachment to it. As others above have stated, replace the trailer, it by far the easiest solution. You can pick up nice older ones for a lot less than the cost of fixing this one.

And here is a total guarantee. For every bit of rot you can see, there will be 10 times that in hidden damage. If the roof is leaking, you will also have wall and floor damage too.

Too bad my rebuild site isn't finished....

This guy should be considered the definitive authority on re-building anything. I have seen his work and read hundreds of pages of detailed description's of procedures and outcomes from his work.

If Bob says, in all probability, it is not feasible, you can believe it.
rlw999
Explorer
Jun 26, 2021
Boon Docker wrote:
I thought Cape Cod got very little snow.

I think that is true, but I'd be more concerned about the snow where the RV is parked :-)

SheilaEJ wrote:

I’m the new owner of a 1991 30’ Dutchmen Travel Trailer.
It does not travel, located in a seasonal campground in Massachusetts.
Boon_Docker
Explorer III
Jun 26, 2021
I thought Cape Cod got very little snow.
rlw999
Explorer
Jun 26, 2021
Boon Docker wrote:
Seeing as you don't need to worry too much about snow, I would just tarp the roof. All other fixes would not be worth the effort and expense.

I'm not sure where in Massachusetts it's parked, but Boston, for example, gets a fair amount of snow. In the past 10 years they've had several 20+ inch snowfalls.

I'd be concerned with his rotting roof supporting that snow load even if he tarps it over and prevents further water damage.
colliehauler
Explorer III
Jun 25, 2021
2 many 2 wrote:
CarnationSailor wrote:
CA Traveler wrote:
... Based on what you posted I'll speculate that considering cost and effort replacing the trailer is the best option.

X2

X3

X4
BobsYourUncle
Nomad
Jun 25, 2021
I can easily detail how to replace the entire roof. I am building a website on a total TT rebuild of an 81 Citation, but the site isn't up yet. Still have about 20% more to go.

However, as one who has rebuilt a totally rotten trailer, I can tell you that from a monetary standpoint, it is not worth doing unless you have a sentimental attachment to it. As others above have stated, replace the trailer, it by far the easiest solution. You can pick up nice older ones for a lot less than the cost of fixing this one.

And here is a total guarantee. For every bit of rot you can see, there will be 10 times that in hidden damage. If the roof is leaking, you will also have wall and floor damage too.

Too bad my rebuild site isn't finished....
Boon_Docker
Explorer III
Jun 25, 2021
Seeing as you don't need to worry too much about snow, I would just tarp the roof. All other fixes would not be worth the effort and expense.

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