Eternabond as prevention

[DC8Captain]

Hi all,

Has anyone used Eternabond to tape up all their lap sealant seams on the roof as preventative maintenance? I was looking at doing a RV Armor lifetime roof but the cost is pretty steep. Eternabond says their roof sealant tape should stand up to UV rays for 19 years. I would be interested in your opinions about doing this and if you have already done it how you think it is working out. I can not get on the roof period due to physical limitations. Same for DW.

[TechWriter]

billyboy wrote:
I did my entire roof with eb, but don't believe what they say about 19 years. My tape started looking bad after 5 years. The white started deteriating, cracking, and they as much as told me tough. The sun here in the northeast really has done a job on it.

Yeah, I'll have to re-tape my fiberglass roof after 5 years. The SouthWest sun is merciless. This time I'll use white instead of gray Eternabond tape, and I also recommend using EternaCaulk on the tape edges. The caulk worked great at keeping the tape edges adhered.

This will be my 3rd roof taping. The first time I used the wrong caulk and all the Eternabond tape tented up, the 2nd time I did it right, and this last time (hopefully) shouldn't be as involved. We'll see.

[yankee_camper]

I had used Eternabond twice with horrible adhesion results to a bare clean surface that was properly prepped.I figured the 3rd time was the charm but applied their primer down that time and the results were night and day. Definitely spend a few more bucks and get the primer or you'll be doing it over and it's not easy to get the tape that does stick off!

[Kylesmith3021]

couple of questions on this..Do you go over the side seams till you meet the gutter..Also i have a tan roof..Do they make the tape in a tan?

[billyboy]

I did my entire roof with eb, but don't believe what they say about 19 years. My tape started looking bad after 5 years. The white started deteriating, cracking, and they as much as told me tough. I even took pictures. The sun here in the northeast really has done a job on it. But there is nothing else to use. The only thing to do is tape over it.

[DE88ROX]

Over the memorial day weekend i brought the trailer home gave her a good bath top to bottom, as well as a good coat of wax and cleaned the awning as well as applying some EB tape to all the seams on the roof. Bought the EB prime as well as a roller.

Thanks for all the tips.

[jspringator]

I like to use lacquer thinner applied with a cloth rag for surface prep. I've had some lift offs using acetone. Wear gloves.

[spoon059]

Much like others stated, I use it as a preventative tool. I haven't done it on my current Jayco, because I didn't want to do anything before the general warranty was up. Clean your roof well (I spend the $12 and buy the Eternaprime) and use a good quality roller to thoroughly activate the adhesive and you are good for a LONG time.

You still need to inspect the roof, but the biggest failure areas will be covered by the tape. I use 2" wide on the sides and rear wall. I will buy 4" or 6" wide for the front cap.

[winnietrey]

DE88ROX wrote:
So you just tape over the lap sealant (putty looking caulk) that's on the roof?

Ive noticed that my lap sealant is starting to form small cracks. Eternabond tape is a good way to go to seal them up?

This is my first TT after camping in a pup for 22 years. was curious about those roof joints.

Edit: was just browsing Amazon found the tape and I might as well grab some primer/cleaner while im at it.

You might want to look at the instructional videos, on the Dicor website.

Basically what you can do, is clean those cracks with denatured alcohol, the fill them with Dicor self leveling. Very easy and quick.
Something I do every year. Unless the Dicor is peeling and lifting off
the seams and or roof, and is fairly pliable. It is doing its job This as an alternate, to going over with Eternabond

[shar3890]

camp-n-family wrote:

DE88ROX wrote:
So you just tape over the lap sealant (putty looking caulk) that's on the roof?

Ive noticed that my lap sealant is starting to form small cracks. Eternabond tape is a good way to go to seal them up?

This is my first TT after camping in a pup for 22 years. was curious about those roof joints.

Edit: was just browsing Amazon found the tape and I might as well grab some primer/cleaner while im at it.

You can put it over the lap sealant but it must be clean to adhere properly. I usually cut down the lumps in the lap sealant and apply new in a smoother fashion than the factory does, then apply Eternabond over it.

Make sure you buy EB tape that's wide enough to really cover your seams. We used 5" tape. This allows for at least 2" to adhere to roof on each side of caulk. Works really well. Make sure you really clean roof before applying it.

[camp-n-family]

DE88ROX wrote:
So you just tape over the lap sealant (putty looking caulk) that's on the roof?

Ive noticed that my lap sealant is starting to form small cracks. Eternabond tape is a good way to go to seal them up?

This is my first TT after camping in a pup for 22 years. was curious about those roof joints.

Edit: was just browsing Amazon found the tape and I might as well grab some primer/cleaner while im at it.

You can put it over the lap sealant but it must be clean to adhere properly. I usually cut down the lumps in the lap sealant and apply new in a smoother fashion than the factory does, then apply Eternabond over it.

[tvman44]

I did it. 🙂

[DE88ROX]

So you just tape over the lap sealant (putty looking caulk) that's on the roof?

Ive noticed that my lap sealant is starting to form small cracks. Eternabond tape is a good way to go to seal them up?

This is my first TT after camping in a pup for 22 years. was curious about those roof joints.

Edit: was just browsing Amazon found the tape and I might as well grab some primer/cleaner while im at it.

[MrWizard]

i put EB on the cap seams and side edges on (3) class A MH
this one being the 3rd one

[ncrowley]

Yes, I recommend using Eternabond to prevent problems.