Community Forums

mrbodywork · 08-18-2014, 12:23 PM

Hey Folks,

The collective here is always so knowledgeable so a couple questions about my 2004 Monaco Windsor Roof.

We recently had 5 inches of rain in a 2 hr period and my coach appears to have sprung a leak. The exact location is a mystery because I had water in the back of the cabinet next to the shower and water dripping from the ceiling mounted kitchen light. The water appears to have moved along the metal supports in the roof and wicked along the foam padded ceiling. The coach only has water on the driver side and I think we may have been a little low on that side.

I removed the ceiling lights, the stereo speakers and the vents on the driver side, tracking the moisture. I also removed the shower skylight thinking that was the likely culprit. I sprayed the roof with water to simulate the rain but could not duplicate the leak.

I have recaulked, put fresh eternabond around the skylight and I am hoping for the best.

If anyone has some ideas on trying to track this leak I am open to suggestions.

Now the big question. I have not been on top of many RVs. When I walk on my roof, in places it feels like the fiberglass sheet is not attached to the underlying wood. It flexes and sort of pops up. How common is this? Is this delamination? Ignore it or seek a repair?

Thanks for the help.
Bill

MSHappyCampers · 08-18-2014, 02:37 PM

Bill, when we bought our MH in 2012 we had a leak in the bathroom area but could never pinpoint the source. I bought a 50' roll of 4" Eternabond tape and two tubes of Dicor 502LSW self-leveling sealant and re-sealed EVERY opening on the roof! I used the Eternabond around all the larger openings such as skylights, vent fans, etc., and the Dicor around all the small openings such as vent pipes, TV antenna, etc.

We've never had a leak since!

Good luck, happy trails, and God bless!

mrbodywork · 08-18-2014, 05:22 PM

Joe,

Did your roof have any spots where the fiberglass roof didn't seem to be attached to the under layment. The flex has me a little concerned.

I don't mean that the roof feels like it is going to cave in, just the fiberglass has some up and down movement.

Bill

Jobert · 08-18-2014, 05:59 PM

You may want to take a minute and look at the air conditioners around the area of the base gasket as one possible source. We had one that compressed the gasket while bouncing on the roads, the 4 hold-down bolts loosened up because of that and the air conditioner leaked as a result. I just snugged up the bolts and all was well, but it sure took a while to find. Hope this may help, Happy Trails Bert

Cfnocn · 08-18-2014, 06:30 PM

Air conditioners are a great place to check

pwhittle · 08-19-2014, 04:32 AM

I has a leak in the seal that runs between the roof and the side panels. It was small but let water in all way down to the bathroom floor.

Paul

MSHappyCampers · 08-19-2014, 07:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrbodywork

Joe,

Did your roof have any spots where the fiberglass roof didn't seem to be attached to the under layment. The flex has me a little concerned.

I don't mean that the roof feels like it is going to cave in, just the fiberglass has some up and down movement.

Bill

Yes, there are some areas that don't feel as solid as others. Not sure if it's what you're describing though.

Joe

Chef Guy · 08-19-2014, 08:32 AM

Bill,

According to the current tech experts at the Monaco service facility in Coburg, Oregon, your roof sponginess is perfectly "NORMAL."

I have never believed this even though I have pics of several side to side 1" high ridges on my MH to show you, if you private email me, or search for my earlier posts. This is caused by improper attachment of the luan panels to the high density foam underneath, so they have bent upwards on the ends of some luan panels forcing the filon roof to bulge.

Should this be a concern? Mine has not changed in the 6 years I have had this coach, so I wouldn't worry too much about it. Other people who have not had this problem will tell you to sell the coach or to replace the roof. We had one person on this forum who did that, under warranty, and the same ridges came back later. He eventually sold the coach and bought another brand.

We have what are called Floating Roofs, that are only attached to the sides and to the front and rear caps. This causes the roof to be spongy in certain places, especially where the luan has not bonded with the framing/foam materials underneath. Faulty glue, improper installation, etc....I can only speculate as to what caused this. The other places that hold the roof down are where your roof cutouts are located...vents, skylight, air conditioner, etc...

We also had a leak by the driver's side left floor area and the techies in Coburg quickly identified it and fixed it.

Good luck on fixing the leak..they can be painful to diagnose

38 Special · 08-19-2014, 12:40 PM

I had a roof leak that drove me crazy. Had a shop seal the A/C. No help. I sealed the Fantastic fan, no help. It would only leak sometimes, but when it did, it was a lot. Sometimes out of the A/C, or Fantastic fan, or ceiling light. I found that the caulking had failed where the wire for the solar panel penetrated the roof. So, I had a 1/2" to 3/4" hole in the roof. But the solar panel blocked the rain most of the time. If not completely level, it would run under the solar panel and in the hole.

Also had one on my dads Allegro Bus we could not find, but knew it was in the front. So, air horns, sat dish, CB antenna, Sirus antenna. Built "dams" using duct tape. Stuck to roof two directions and up in middle, like a mowawk. Like __/\__. Around each penetration one at a time. Filled dammed area with water. Waited for leak inside. Ended up being where the CB antenna wire penetrated the roof.

RCLImperial · 08-19-2014, 07:01 PM

I had a leak where water appeared on both the driver's and the passenger front windows. I bought the coach used and the previous owner had siliconed some of the interior trim. The lot where I bought the coach replaced some of the wallpaper that had come loose, but couldn't find the source. I finally went up on the roof and checked all the roof penetrations, and even removed the satellite dome without finding it, in checking the crank-up TV antenna, I discovered that it had been caulked at the factory with the antenna down and there was no caulk under one of the arms. That was the source of my leak!!! The water got in at the antenna and only showed up at either side windows, Once water gets into the roof structure it can travel for several feet before it shows up inside.

Dick Lucas '04 HR Imperial

mlh2013 · 08-25-2014, 07:34 PM

Bill my aluminum roof has what you described on one side. It feels like the aluminum gives some when you walk on it but it is still solid. What is going on with it? Mark

Vanwill · 08-27-2014, 05:40 PM

Many leaks that cannot be traced down, or exhibit themselves in multiple locations are the result of water entering the "band" that connects the roof to the sidewalls. Once inside, it might travel to the far end of the coach before leaking into the inside. One telltale sign that you may have this kind of leak is if there are any bumps or protrusions on that vinyl molding (which is all you can see) that covers the aluminum strip underneath. If you see ANY bumps in it, then water has entered it and is rusting the screws. Once they are severely rusted, they begin to back out, causing the bump.

The "100%" fix is to remove the vinyl cap, replace the rusted screws and add additional ones. It is, however, very difficult to remove the cap without damaging the paint. If you have only one or two bumps, you can simply reseal the vinyl strip (top and bottom). Use a polyurethane sealant NOT silicone. Or you could do as one poster suggested, and cover the whole band with Eternabond.

Papa_Jim · 08-27-2014, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrbodywork

Hey Folks,

Now the big question. I have not been on top of many RVs. When I walk on my roof, in places it feels like the fiberglass sheet is not attached to the underlying wood. It flexes and sort of pops up. How common is this? Is this delamination? Ignore it or seek a repair?

Thanks for the help.
Bill

Ignore it. Your fiberglass roof sheet is not glued down. It simply lays on top of a sheet of plastic, which in turn simply lays on top of the plywood sheets that are fastened to the roof rafters. The only thing that holds that fiberglass sheet down are the things that are fastened down on top of the roof, like the air conditioners, fans, vents, etc. The roof is fastened at the sides to the top of the sidewalls.

Jim

Bfmorgan · 08-27-2014, 07:33 PM

In my experience the sponginess of the roof or "delamination" indicates you have a leak. Water will pool between the roof supporting structure and the roof covering at least if it is an aluminum roof. On Monaco's I have found leaks around the black water and gray water vent penetrations (did not get sealed at the factory), wire penetrations for the TV signal near the Winegard TV antenna, and the fan vents seem to develop deep cracks in the dicor sealant annually. Good luck with the leak. They are hard to find and easy to fix once you find it.

To help get the moisture out of the sealing put a dehumidifier in the MH with all of the windows, vent fans, etc. closed. The reduced humidity will help the moisture evaporate faster.