Well it turns out that doing the roof is not HALF as bad as fixing any other leak. Including the floor or sides (which will also be documented).
I had intended on working on the passenger rear floor and wall, but as I started and the weather was right for a few days, it progressed from taking the corner metal trim off, to actually taking rear roof trim, cutting out rotten wood, replacing, and securing the roof back together.
Important things I learned from all this...
- Dealer / previous owner did not put Butyl tape between metal roof and EPDM (rubber membrane) so the water just wicked in when the putty deteriorated.
- Dealer / previous owner did not clean the surface before putting caulking / silicone down. (It pulled up easily where it shouldn't, and stayed where I did not want it to)
- Alot of time was taken to remove all the existing brittle Butyl tape / caulking.
If you are fixing / replacing your rubber roof, make sure you read the installation instructions on Dicor, the pictures of terminations helped amazingly!
Most important thing to remember... Clean all surfaces and make a "sandwich"...
- Decking
- metal sheeting
- Butyl tape
- rubber roof
- Butyl tape
- Termination bar (trim)
- Lap sealant
I also went with 5/8 plywood and not the original OSB that was down. I was going to go and buy it, but I had a sheet of the plywood that I am using for the floor, and from doing research, the swell rate of plywood to OSB was less. So, I stuck with what I had.
I "glued & screwed" (seems to be my moto with Alice...), staples did not secure the wood tight to frame, I then sanded and covered seams / screws with foil tape.
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| The new plywood is in place |
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| Seams were taped and rubber roof was glued on |
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| MAKE A SANDWICH!!! Putty on skin side as well as on top of rubber. |
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| Clean up excess putty. |
Personally I think overjoyed I discovered the blogs.
ReplyDeleteklaus
This is great information. I appreciate how your posts are written. Good pictures and tutorial style of writing is excellent. Thanks. I need to address our aging metal roof at some point I think and I want to do a plywood decking (which it doesn't currently have) so it will be a little stronger.
ReplyDeleteI would have used 1x6's as the swell factor is MUCH less, and you'll never get delamination like plywood can give you should it get wet in a future leak, and will not swell like chipboard.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I would have removed the entire roof, to check out the entire roof area, especially around all the vents and flashings.
Really Awesome Job Though!
Well done!
Thank you. I gutted the inside so I was able to check all vents and the rest of the roof. Had to fix the front portion as well. Did not think about 1x6's...
DeleteI'm curious, my roof has the fiberglass back-cap over the roof membrane. Did you "reverse" the order or was yours that way to start with?
ReplyDeleteAlso, my original "terminator" (aluminium extruded bar) has an L check on the bottom. I can't find one with just the exact height. Yours looks flat. is it?
It sounds like you went through quite an extensive repair process! Tackling the roof, especially when dealing with rot and improper previous work, is a huge challenge, but it seems like you learned a lot along the way. The lack of Butyl tape and poor surface prep by the dealer or previous owner are common issues that lead to long-term leaks, so it's great that you caught those problems early. Removing old, brittle Butyl tape and properly resealing everything must have been time-consuming, but it will certainly pay off in the long run. Thanks for sharing those insights—future DIYers will definitely benefit from your experience!Learn more
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