Forum Discussion

tev123's avatar
tev123
Explorer
Sep 28, 2015

Will the fiberglass roof support my weight if I walk on it?

New RV'er with recently acquired class-B 1990 Ford Falcon.
In the fun process of cleaning up and fixing up things and making road trip ready.

There is a ladder to get to the roof and it has some railing around the back part of the roof.

Is it ok to step up on the roof without damaging it? Will it support my weight (170lbs)?

It essentially looks just like this one:



Thanks!
Tony
  • I have a coachmen Saratoga that looks just like the falcon. Mine is a 1993 Chevy with a Viking top.
    I have walked all over it and changed the roof air. Fiberglass is very strong and I have had no flex at all
    Hope this helps
    Jeff
  • thanks for all the replies and suggestions.

    I went up on the roof yesterday no problems (I treaded carefully) and only stayed in the back part

    the van in the picture is not mine (it was just for reference).

    I will post some pics in another thread in order to not pollute this one with other topic
  • I had a 1989 Falcon 190 model and I climbed up the ladder and onto the roof several times with no problem. One time was to change the roof mounted ac.
  • If it were me, I would cut myself several pieces of plywood about a foot square and use them for pads on the roof. I would put each knee and each hand on a square and move them forward as I needed to progress. At your weight, you would be putting less than fifty pounds per square foot that way.

    Incidentally, that may be the best looking Falcon I have seen in years. I love them! We had a Horizon (which is the kid brother to the Falcon) and have marvelous memories of our travel in that rig. Ours had the gaucho couch arrangement and we used the bed space above the cab for storage.

    Got any pics of the interior?
  • Since it is meant to carry luggage up there I would advise a plank of some sort to distribute your weight across a depth and width. And be aware of any slight "give" indicating denting.
  • wow, that's "falcon" clean !

    On my PW, I lean a padded ladder against the side to wash, wax, reseal the roof.

    the first time I essentially built scaffolding beside it, but had to lean way over.

    the ladder is low tech and quick and easy.

    I padded it with foam plumbing wrap

    mike
  • Even though there is a ladder to get up to the roof it does not mean that the roof was intended to be walked on. You should be able to get up on the roof flat and get to where you need to work and do what you need to do without putting full weight on any one spot. You have it looking real nice - it would be a shame to put your foot through it...
  • Yes. There is a ladder to allow access to the roof. Why? So you can do maintenance on the roof. How does one think you service the AC without getting on the roof? Need to resell the vents and can't do that on a ladder. So get up there if you need to.
  • I don't know about walking on the roof, you would be placing your total weight in a small area (read small area receiving rather high pounds per square inches). I have a 2002 Chevy Roadtrek and know the roof should support my 190 pounds - to crawl around the roof which distributes the load over a larger area is one thing, but I would not stand up on my roof. Your roof may be different, but it is also a long way down if you standing and fall.
  • Don't know about the Falcon, but Roadtrek, PW, and others are too thin to support a human. I think a 1/4 inch or less in some areas.
    Since the Falcon has a roof top AC, it may be thicker, or or just better supported in that area. I would tread lightly.