Roof seam question - older camper (1989 Layton)

[Camper_G]

Hey Y'all, I picked up another TT over the weekend, a new to me 1989 Layton.

The owner told me he used to get up on the roof 2-3 times per year to check the seams and such, but they had not used it for camping for a few years.

As part of my usual maintenance when I get a new (to me) rig, I check all roof seams and calk/repair as necessary.

My question is this - on the front and rear, on the seam side that overlaps the aluminum for the front and rear vertial panels, there is some old looking gray sealer I've never seen before. On the inside of the joints (roof side) the guy appears to have used black (regular) residental roofing cement.

Needless to say, all seams and roof penetrations need to be re-done, many are cracked and need immediate attention.

My question is this, what can I go over the black roofing cement with and what Can I go over the gray stuff with? Will Di-cor Lap sealant adhere to those surfaces?

I also assume the screw heads should have a dab of sealant on every one as well, correct?

Part of me want to just overlap the entire seam and all old coatings (scraping off anything loose first) with some 8" Eternabond and call it good. The reason I hesistate there is if I'd ever have to take that seam apart to do any kind of repair, I hear the eternabond is VERY hard to get off.

If anyone has any suggestions in regards to what calk I could use to overlap/touch up the black and gray existing calks that would be great.

I did use some Di-cor I had from other TT's I've owned, but the thing I don't like about the Di-Cor (even if it's compatable with the existing calks) is you can't "work it", it's very hard to squeeze out of the calk gun and I like to "bed down" the calk when I apply it to make sure it has a good bond and that stuff is very sticky and hard to work.

Thanks for any help or suggestions anyone could provide.

Sincerely,
Greg

[Camper_G]

Thanks for the additional thoughts. I went ahead and bought some more Di-Core Lap sealant today, got 3 tubes and figure I'll use at least that much and can get more if necessary.
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I'll go over both the gray and black existing roof sealant, scrape off any that is loose or not adhered property and then re-calk. If it's just hair-line cracks, I'll clean them and go over with Di-Cor and check them throughly twice per year as I have on other rigs I have owned.
.
this may not be the typical "residental" black sealant, because the parts I found that were cracked were still adhered very well to the roof. Regardless, it's something I will have to keep an eye on, especially any of the existing black sealer.

I may eventually do a strip of eternabond, but I want to give this a chance first before I do that.

before I went to work today, I actually checked some of the di-cor I put on last night to see how it adhered to the existing black in certian areas and it seems to have bonded well. I guess I'm not suprised, that stuff seems to have really good adhesion to a variety of things.

Thanks again,
Greg

[gbopp]

Congrats on your new TT. Keep us updated, pictures if possible.
Personally, I would use the Eternabond. It may be difficult to remove but, it isn't going to leak and it will last a long time.

The Eternabond website has a section for Removing Eternabond

[JJBIRISH]

Assuming we are not talking about a rubber roof here… remove the asphalt sealer the best you can… it may take some doing but if it’s cracked like you say it may pull off in large pieces and not be adhered to the roof very well and may even have water under it…

Once its cleaned off just re-caulk with a better type of sealer… the gray stuff is most likely plumbers putty tape… if it isn’t dried out and cracking it should be on…

[camperdave]

I've used several methods over the years to seal stuff up on my roof. I did have a fair amount of 'unknown substance' that was used by a previous owner to seal the front edge of the roof where it meets the aluminum siding (my roof sort of rolls over from rubber roof to front panel, with a trim piece screwed down mating them together). Instead of trying to remove it all, I just layed a strip of Eternabond over the whole junction. It had enough overlap that it was sealed to the roof rubber on one side, and the aluminum on the other. If it doesn't really stick to the goop in the middle, I think that's OK. As long as all the edges are sealed, it's watertight.

I've had to remove Eternabond too (on a skylight fix I did, then had to open up the seal later). It was a pain, and took a while with an exacto knife and some scraping, but it's doable. Not that big a deal. Again, I didn't remove ALL of it, just enough to remove the skylight, then when I re-installed it I sealed up right over what was still there.

I like Eternabond. 🙂

[Camper_G]

Thanks for the replies, I appreciate them.

I guess my options as I see them now are to remove any loose residental roof cement and re-apply with the same stuff and just keep a good eye on it a few times per year to ensure it is not cracked and has a good bond, or scrape off the loose areas and apply some di-cor in those areas.

Or cover the entire area up with a wide enough piece of eternabond that would cover all of it.

I can't say for sure it's residental, but it is black and that's the only type of roof cement I'm aware of that is black (residental/home stuff)

[westend]

You're not going to like my suggestion: If there is an asphaltic roof cement on anything, it all needs to be removed before applying any additional caulk or sealant. The oil based roof cements will migrate, crack, and lose adhesion. Anything you put on top will eventually fail.
I removed it with a 4" grinder w/wire wheel, mineral spirits, and finally, with lacquer thinner, using a synthetic pad.

[Camper_G]

Hello,

The roof is not leaking presently that I'm aware of, but the seams and joints and roof penetration joints in general do not look good at all (hairline cracks, ETC).

That is why I want to address it ASAP on way or the other.

Thanks,
Greg

[Dtaylor]

Is the roof leaking now?? Either way, I know it is a lot of work but I would remove as much of the old stuff as possible.