Eternabond Failure

[TurnThePage]

I have to eat a little crow. A while back someone posted that Eternabond could trap water behind it, thus causing rot or some other issue. I cockily responded with, How could water get behind it? Well I found probably half a cup of water trapped behind Eternabond tape wrapped around my fridge vent. As I kept searching, I found that a good amount of the tape had dried out and literally rotted away. In the attached photo, you can see where I used left over tape to secure solar cable to the roof. Look how it cracked open. If you look close, you can see tiny cracks all over it. Yeah, it's a mess too. :B

[MrWizard]

Slightly off topic, well a different direction

I used strips of EB across the wires to hold them down, ( instead of Dicor ) but did not cover the wires with EB, it makes no difference if the wires get wet, there is no hole for water
The solar wires come thru the fridge vent, no extra roofing holes to seal when i did the solar, except for sealing the mounting screws

[LarryJM]

TurnThePage wrote:
As the OP, I should clarify a bit. My roof has Eternabond on all four edges and on various fittings. The only place I'm noticing this issue is on the tape I used to secure the solar panel wiring running across the roof. The Eternabond tape on the edges of the fridge vent (very near that wiring) is looking pretty bad too, especially where it gets warmest. Everywhere else seems to be OK. I'll have to inspect closer once I've finished my current project.

Trying to secure something like a wire to a flat surface with Eternabond Roofseal is IMO high risk since you can never get continuous contact between the wire and the roof surface because of the edges of the wire is generally round and if you try and stretch it at all it will tend to release over time. I've had that same issue going just over screw heads, but have minimized it by using extra wide tape or putting a graduating layer over the screw head first so there is a gentler slope for the tape up over the screw head. This is not a problem with the Eternabond, but just a limitation in it's use that one had to understand and account for.

Larry

[TurnThePage]

As the OP, I should clarify a bit. My roof has Eternabond on all four edges and on various fittings. The only place I'm noticing this issue is on the tape I used to secure the solar panel wiring running across the roof. The Eternabond tape on the edges of the fridge vent (very near that wiring) is looking pretty bad too, especially where it gets warmest. Everywhere else seems to be OK. I'll have to inspect closer once I've finished my current project.

[LarryJM]

That surface cracking is only cosmetic since the actual sealing is from the microsealant and IMO any water issues are most likely due to improper uniform sealing because folks want to slap the Ethernabond on top of bulky uneven caulking. It is critical that you have uniform adhesion and the normal roof seal is not made for anything but smooth surfaces ... there is a thicker microsealant version of the roof seal that is made for better adhesion on minor non smooth surfaces, but all that only goes so far. That top white layer is for UV protection and to prevent dirt/debris from adhering to the microsealant. If you remove the white layer you basically have what is the webseal version of Eternabond that needs to be painted or covered with a sun protective layer for lasting sealing. I removed all the caulk prior to applying the Eternabond and now after 9+ years I'm just now starting to develop some cracking on the front roof to end cap seal. This I attribute this to it's continuous full exposure to the sun. I also sometimes wonder of folks are getting the real Eternabond when they buy stuff off the internet not realizing that there is a shelf life of something around 5 yrs for the actual Eternabond product.

Larry

[billyboy]

that's what I have seen, facing the sun here in md, about 6 years and it can open up and let water in.

[JIMNLIN]

well dangz....... that put a dent in the theory we see posted all the time "just Eternabond it and forget it".

Pooling or lake effect is a problem when many folks with not much experience add a brand of tape or even a brand of roof sealant over existing piled up sealants.....especially for those of us that live where we get rains and constant freezing and thawing all winter long.

[TechWriter]

George H wrote:
After 10 years I found that the factory tape on the cap seams had failed and needed to be replaced. Not going to complain, just part of maintenance.

In the Southwest, 5 years is about the limit.

[George_H]

After 10 years I found that the factory tape on the cap seams had failed and needed to be replaced. Not going to complain, just part of maintenance.

[MrWizard]

It was a precaution
I clean and resealed the molding strips, tighten loose screws
And put on the eternabond

The comment about hiding imperfections, is just talk
If the stuff is stuck to the roof, then no water is coming in thru the eternabond,
If it come in from some where else, that is not Eb fault

The same thing could happen with Dicor

I think it's important to overlap the roof edge on the sides of the Caps when sealing with anything to keep wind blew water from being forced in

[Kayteg1]

MrWizard wrote:
mine has been on the roof seams for 5yrs
no problems so far, knock on my wooden head

Did you have leaks on the seams when you applied the tape, or used it only as precaution?
Main problem with the tape is that dual layer is hiding imperfections and wrinkles holding the water.
You are not aware about the problem till the water shows inside, or roof collapse.
5 months ago I applied latest technology roofing coating on my house flat roof. I had dealt with black and silver coating in the past and results were mixed.
I keep eye on new stuff and it looks really good. The roof had small leaks last rain season, so I am waiting for next real test this winter, but I think I know what I will use on my camper rubber roof this winter.
Main advantage beside lifetime warranty - with nice white coating you will see each hole or crack.

[mike-s]

rexlion wrote:
Well, doggone it! With a name like Eternabond, I thought it might last longer than the trailer itself! What's in a name...

It's Eternabond, not Eternaseal. The sun rotted stuff is still stuck in place.

[3oaks]

That is precisely why I would never purchase a "used" RV which had had Eternabond tape applied. Hidden defects? In the past, too many people touted Eternabond tape as "once and done". Well as we hear, that is far from being true.

I personally would only use Eternabond tape as a patch to repair a accidental tear in the roof, should that ever become necessary.

To each their own. I'll stick with cleaning, inspecting, and Dicor self levelling calk.

[gbopp]

I applied Eternabond to my front and rear cap seams about 8 years ago.
It still looks good and is holding up very well.
Maybe it was just a bad batch of E/bond?

[MrWizard]

mine has been on the roof seams for 5yrs
no problems so far, knock on my wooden head