Fiberglass roof

[Big_Tom]

The product recommended by Winnebago is Manus-Bond 75-AM, it comes in white.
It is a Urethane based sealant. This is the only product you use to seal the roof. Do not use silicone!!! This project is a lot of work but necessary to stop the filon from peeling away from the roof . I did the entire perimeter on my Winn 36ft Adventurer while standing on a ladder. It took three full days to do it properly. I think I used four tubes. It is a three step process. Make sure you have good weather and no rain for at least 3 days to tackle this project.
You must 1. Clean out any loose dirt and gunk that has settled between the Filon and the Aluminum.. I used two plastic paint scrapers one to to open up the space between the filon and the other with a rag scrape the big dirt out best I could, then a vacuum (set on the roof) to suck out the big chunks and dirt . After completing that first side start step 2 on same side: Step 2: Now you need to prep/clean the surface of the Filon and aluminum rail so the Manus-Bond will adhere to both and properly seal the roof. Clean the aluminum rail and the Filon with a 70 or 90% alcohol. Again use one plastic scraper to open a gap , the use the other scraper with a rag soaked in alcohol to get the remaining fine dust, water and gunk out of the gap. Repeat with a until you get all the mess out, then ldry it with clean rag thoroughly. I completed cleaning the entire side before applying the Manus bond.
Last step: applying Manus-Bond
You’ll need one thick or two thin scrapers to open up a gap between the Filon and the aluminum rail. Now you’ll be able to push the Magnus bond into the gap opened up by the plastic scrapers, wipe the excess off as you move 5 or 6 inches along the rail and repeat the process. Have a lot of rags handy as working with Manus-Bond is messy, it sticks to everything and after it sets it is EXTREMELY difficult to remove. Have alcohol or acetone handy to remove excess as to work down the coach.
Lastly wear good latex or similar gloves, you will use a lot!

[youracman]

Originally Posted by AKIQPilot

That's great advice. Thanks for the contact info. I'll post back what they tell me.

Thanks a bunch.

Agree with the great advice. Like you, I had mine all cleaned out and ready to go so I used Geocell ProFlex RV adhesive sealant. After a couple of months it had a very fine longitudinal crack right down the middle of sealant groove on both sides ....... probably about 75% of the length. Looked like a "cure crack" but in many places it went clear to the bottom of the channel. I couldn't face digging out that fairly fresh (tougher than heck) sealant so I went over the length of the coach with a continuous strip of 2" Eternabond tape using their cleaner and a hard rubber roller. It's been up there about 2 years now and still looks great.

Wish I had contacted WGO (or Lichtsinn RV) to get the correct adhesive sealant. At that time they were using a Manus Bond product......made in Canada I believe. If that is still the case, be aware that it has a shelf life (6 months?) and the company is very firm about not using it beyond that date as another poster discovered.

Good luck with your project; and safe travels.

[AKIQPilot]

Originally Posted by Big_Tom

The product recommended by Winnebago is Manus-Bond 75-AM, it comes in white.
It is a Urethane based sealant. This is the only product you use to seal the roof. Do not use silicone!!! This project is a lot of work but necessary to stop the filon from peeling away from the roof . I did the entire perimeter on my Winn 36ft Adventurer while standing on a ladder. It took three full days to do it properly. I think I used four tubes. It is a three step process. Make sure you have good weather and no rain for at least 3 days to tackle this project.
You must 1. Clean out any loose dirt and gunk that has settled between the Filon and the Aluminum.. I used two plastic paint scrapers one to to open up the space between the filon and the other with a rag scrape the big dirt out best I could, then a vacuum (set on the roof) to suck out the big chunks and dirt . After completing that first side start step 2 on same side: Step 2: Now you need to prep/clean the surface of the Filon and aluminum rail so the Manus-Bond will adhere to both and properly seal the roof. Clean the aluminum rail and the Filon with a 70 or 90% alcohol. Again use one plastic scraper to open a gap , the use the other scraper with a rag soaked in alcohol to get the remaining fine dust, water and gunk out of the gap. Repeat with a until you get all the mess out, then ldry it with clean rag thoroughly. I completed cleaning the entire side before applying the Manus bond.
Last step: applying Manus-Bond
You’ll need one thick or two thin scrapers to open up a gap between the Filon and the aluminum rail. Now you’ll be able to push the Magnus bond into the gap opened up by the plastic scrapers, wipe the excess off as you move 5 or 6 inches along the rail and repeat the process. Have a lot of rags handy as working with Manus-Bond is messy, it sticks to everything and after it sets it is EXTREMELY difficult to remove. Have alcohol or acetone handy to remove excess as to work down the coach.
Lastly wear good latex or similar gloves, you will use a lot!

Thanks for the info. I spent just over an hour on hold this morning when I called the Winnebago Parts department. I had to go before a parts technician was available to take my call.

Thanks for the details on how you applied the sealant. I think I will do a little more cleaning on mine before I apply the sealant. I like how you wedged the space open and applied more sealant into the groove. From the factory they put about 1/8" of sealant in the gap. It was applied perfectly but now 16 years later it had broken down and come loose mostly on the aluminum bond.

I searched three local RV dealers here and none carry the Manus-Bond 75-AM. I found it on Amazon for $9 a tube but don't know the date code on the tubes. I sent them a question inquiring about the date codes.

Thanks for all the info.

UPDATE: Local Winnebago Dealer has the sealant in stock. They were well aware of the shelf life and will not sell it if its more than 6 months old.

[AKIQPilot]

Originally Posted by youracman

Agree with the great advice. Like you, I had mine all cleaned out and ready to go so I used Geocell ProFlex RV adhesive sealant. After a couple of months it had a very fine longitudinal crack right down the middle of sealant groove on both sides ....... probably about 75% of the length. Looked like a "cure crack" but in many places it went clear to the bottom of the channel. I couldn't face digging out that fairly fresh (tougher than heck) sealant so I went over the length of the coach with a continuous strip of 2" Eternabond tape using their cleaner and a hard rubber roller. It's been up there about 2 years now and still looks great.

Wish I had contacted WGO (or Lichtsinn RV) to get the correct adhesive sealant. At that time they were using a Manus Bond product......made in Canada I believe. If that is still the case, be aware that it has a shelf life (6 months?) and the company is very firm about not using it beyond that date as another poster discovered.

Good luck with your project; and safe travels.

Good info on the shelf life. I didn't realize it was so critical. I will make sure I get fresh stuff when I find some.

[Big_Tom]

Originally Posted by AKIQPilot

Thanks for the info. I spent just over an hour on hold this morning when I called the Winnebago Parts department. I had to go before a parts technician was available to take my call.



Thanks for the details on how you applied the sealant. I think I will do a little more cleaning on mine before I apply the sealant. I like how you wedged the space open and applied more sealant into the groove. From the factory they put about 1/8" of sealant in the gap. It was applied perfectly but now 16 years later it had broken down and come loose mostly on the aluminum bond.



I searched three local RV dealers here and none carry the Manus-Bond 75-AM. I found it on Amazon for $9 a tube but don't know the date code on the tubes. I sent them a question inquiring about the date codes.



Thanks for all the info.

I ordered mine from Amazon too!
I just remembered I could not purchase direct because their min buy quantity was one case- like 25 or 40 tubes!! So I went with Amazon. You should be fine

[Big_Tom]

Originally Posted by Big_Tom

I ordered mine from Amazon too!
I just remembered I could not purchase direct because their min buy quantity was one case- like 25 or 40 tubes!! So I went with Amazon. You should be fine

One last comment, I also used the Manus bond to also seal up the seams on the front and rear fiberglass caps where they join at the body and those seams still look great after 14 months.

[FIRE UP]

Originally Posted by Big_Tom

The product recommended by Winnebago is Manus-Bond 75-AM, it comes in white.
It is a Urethane based sealant. This is the only product you use to seal the roof. Do not use silicone!!! This project is a lot of work but necessary to stop the filon from peeling away from the roof . I did the entire perimeter on my Winn 36ft Adventurer while standing on a ladder. It took three full days to do it properly. I think I used four tubes. It is a three step process. Make sure you have good weather and no rain for at least 3 days to tackle this project.
You must 1. Clean out any loose dirt and gunk that has settled between the Filon and the Aluminum.. I used two plastic paint scrapers one to to open up the space between the filon and the other with a rag scrape the big dirt out best I could, then a vacuum (set on the roof) to suck out the big chunks and dirt . After completing that first side start step 2 on same side: Step 2: Now you need to prep/clean the surface of the Filon and aluminum rail so the Manus-Bond will adhere to both and properly seal the roof. Clean the aluminum rail and the Filon with a 70 or 90% alcohol. Again use one plastic scraper to open a gap , the use the other scraper with a rag soaked in alcohol to get the remaining fine dust, water and gunk out of the gap. Repeat with a until you get all the mess out, then ldry it with clean rag thoroughly. I completed cleaning the entire side before applying the Manus bond.
Last step: applying Manus-Bond
You’ll need one thick or two thin scrapers to open up a gap between the Filon and the aluminum rail. Now you’ll be able to push the Magnus bond into the gap opened up by the plastic scrapers, wipe the excess off as you move 5 or 6 inches along the rail and repeat the process. Have a lot of rags handy as working with Manus-Bond is messy, it sticks to everything and after it sets it is EXTREMELY difficult to remove. Have alcohol or acetone handy to remove excess as to work down the coach.
Lastly wear good latex or similar gloves, you will use a lot!

Big_Tom,
Just for your info, take a look at this video from Lichtsinn RV. If you don't know them, they're about a couple of blocks from the Winnebago plant. They get all their info and proper procedures directly from Winne. See what they say about the use of Silicone for roof cove maintenance.
Scott

https://www.lichtsinn.com/webcast-ar...maintenance-rv

Originally Posted by AKIQPilot

Thanks for the info. I spent just over an hour on hold this morning when I called the Winnebago Parts department. I had to go before a parts technician was available to take my call.

Thanks for the details on how you applied the sealant. I think I will do a little more cleaning on mine before I apply the sealant. I like how you wedged the space open and applied more sealant into the groove. From the factory they put about 1/8" of sealant in the gap. It was applied perfectly but now 16 years later it had broken down and come loose mostly on the aluminum bond.

I searched three local RV dealers here and none carry the Manus-Bond 75-AM. I found it on Amazon for $9 a tube but don't know the date code on the tubes. I sent them a question inquiring about the date codes.

Thanks for all the info.

UPDATE: Local Winnebago Dealer has the sealant in stock. They were well aware of the shelf life and will not sell it if its more than 6 months old.

AKIQPilot,
If you also take a look at that video by Lichtsinn RV, you'll see what they recommend for various Winnebago coaches.
Scott

https://www.lichtsinn.com/webcast-ar...maintenance-rv

[powercat_ras]

On my 2015 Vista 27N, Winnebago did a recall that was stated to address hairline cracking in the 90 degree radius bend of the Filon. The recall used 4" Eternabond Tape the entire length of the sides covering the top 1/2" or so of the Aluminum and the bottom 3 1/2" of the Filon above where it entered the Aluminum.

So, after the recall the joint is "sealed" and no longer even view-able unless you removed the Eternabond Tape. After 2 1/2 years since the recall was applied it seems to holding up very well.

So another option if the roof - aluminum bond is still solid to just clean and apply Eternabond tape. Still not cheap as the 4" Eternabond tape is $ 50 for a 50 foot roll.

[Big_Tom]

Originally Posted by Big_Tom

One last comment, I also used the Manus bond to also seal up the seams on the front and rear fiberglass caps where they join at the body and those seams still look great after 14 months.

I watched the Lichtsinn video, they do a good job showing the flexible Filon and where to place the Magnus-bond urethane for the older non painted coaches like mine.

I was very surprised they recommended a silicone product to seal the Filon for newer coaches with full body paint. There is a clear urethane product made by Manus Bond that I would research before I ever used silicone on a painted coach.

There is a 3 video series by AZ Expert on YouTube that shows a Filon roof replacement on a class B coach. Very detailed and interesting. I highly recommend watching that series to get a good understanding of fiberglass RV roofs and how they are made.

Start with part 1:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcXCq0ZJx80

[Big_Tom]

I plan on painting my coach in the next two years and will definItely NOT use silicone as a seam sealant

This looks like a winner:
Ultra Clear Urethane Manus Bond

Link Here:
75-AM Ultra Clear

[AKIQPilot]

Originally Posted by FIRE UP

Big_Tom,

Just for your info, take a look at this video from Lichtsinn RV. If you don't know them, they're about a couple of blocks from the Winnebago plant. They get all their info and proper procedures directly from Winne. See what they say about the use of Silicone for roof cove maintenance.

Scott



https://www.lichtsinn.com/webcast-ar...maintenance-rv







AKIQPilot,

If you also take a look at that video by Lichtsinn RV, you'll see what they recommend for various Winnebago coaches.

Scott



https://www.lichtsinn.com/webcast-ar...maintenance-rv

Thank you Scott. That video was perfect and showed me exactly what I need to do in preparation for resealing my roof seam. I think they referred to is as the roof cove.

I need to do a little more cleaning before Im ready to reseal.

This video helped a lot.

[FIRE UP]

Originally Posted by AKIQPilot

Thank you Scott. That video was perfect and showed me exactly what I need to do in preparation for resealing my roof seam. I think they referred to is as the roof cove.

I need to do a little more cleaning before Im ready to reseal.

This video helped a lot.

Roger that Sir, glad to be of help.
Scott