Eternabond complete....well, almost

puckdad · 10-21-2011, 12:42 AM

Recently finished applying Eternabond tape to our '11 Salem 26TBUD.
Did both front and rear seams, fridge vent and after removing the vinyl cover strip that covers the screws, the entire length of the gutters.
Total time (over a few days) was about 7 hours, but I'm slow.

Just need to order another roll to finish the plumbing vents and antenna.

Cheers,

Mike

BigRed · 10-21-2011, 01:27 AM

Nice job ! NO LEAKS HERE !!

EastlakeRoo · 10-21-2011, 04:43 AM

This is good stuff. I did our 2010 this year as well. Hope to have years of leak free issues.

**RV Guy** · 10-21-2011, 05:50 AM

Interesting - it's easy to understand what you're trying to accomplish with this and it seems that the issue of "routine maintenance" to your seams basically disappears.

But (and I'm really wondering because I don't know) to what degree does this prevent leaks in these key areas over time?

I'd like to hear from anyone who has done this several years ago on a unit and what were their results. Again, not saying it won't work, I'm just curious.

PTM

lindy · 10-21-2011, 07:24 AM

I did this to my ROO 23SS and the 5 years I had it, I had NO leaks. My new Ultra Lite 2604 will get the same treatment in the spring. In this case an ounce of prevention is better then a ton of cure.

**RV Guy** · 10-21-2011, 07:26 AM

lindy - given you did this to the roof, did you ever do any other maintenance in the areas where you applied the ETERNABOND?

Rugged Brown · 10-21-2011, 07:53 AM

I applied eternabond tape early summer based on the feedback from this forum. I got lazy toward the end and now those areas that I didn't thouroughy clean with Acetone is not adhering. If you are deligent and do a good job of cleaning before applying, this stuff will stick pretty good. I cannot comment on the long term effectiveness of it.

**RV Guy** · 10-21-2011, 07:59 AM

RB - you're definitely right about cleaning. That's always a concern for us, too.

Did you just do the perimeter of the roof like puckdad?

PTM

sherdep · 10-21-2011, 08:49 AM

wow - thats looks pretty clean in the way you laid out the stuff versus using the Dicor Lap Sealant.

wondering what's the diffrence in cost though - Dicor Self Leveling Lap Sealant tube is about $8 or $9 a tube and when I did my roof - I used 2 tubes.

grhodes50 · 10-21-2011, 09:10 AM

Looks really good puckdad!

I have also had questions about how well eternabond holds up over time. I've read many post where people have applied it with great results intially, but lindy's post is the first one I have read where it's been 5 years since he applied eternabond.

When I asked my service manager about eternabond he told me he sees a lot of tt's where the eternabond is curling up at the edges after 3 years or more. I'm just guessing that whoever applied the eternabond didn't prepare the surface properly.

Rugged Brown · 10-21-2011, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RV Guy

RB - you're definitely right about cleaning. That's always a concern for us, too.

Did you just do the perimeter of the roof like puckdad?

PTM

I did the front and rear seams, the vents, antennae, and plumbing pipes. I did not do the sides as the roof wraps around, nor did I do the AC.

frankm · 10-21-2011, 11:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rugged Brown

I did the front and rear seams, the vents, antennae, and plumbing pipes. I did not do the sides as the roof wraps around, nor did I do the AC.

Same here.

Quote:

Originally Posted by lindy

In this case an ounce of prevention is better then a ton of cure.

Agree 100%

**RV Guy** · 10-21-2011, 11:38 AM

RB - Where were the areas that peeled?

Rugged Brown · 10-21-2011, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RV Guy

RB - Where were the areas that peeled?

The front seam. First noticed it when driving through heavy rain. This was the section I had most difficulty doing and the section that didn't get cleaned the best. In retrospect, I probably should have spent the most attention to this area, considering it was the area that likely got exposed to the elements the most.

lindy · 10-21-2011, 12:11 PM

All I did to the roof after applying the tape was wash it each spring and fall with DAWN dish soap. But like the instructions say it MUST be completely cleaned with acetone before application of tape. It took longer to clean then apply the tape. I taped both front and rear roof seams, along both side edges (incase of a branch scrape), and around skylights, vents, fridge vent, etc, basically everything on the roof except the AC.

puckdad · 10-21-2011, 08:25 PM

The only reason I did over the sides where the roof rolls over is that our previous 'new-to-us' trailer had major damage occur when water got inbehind the gutter (which also doubles as the method of securing the rolled over roof material), found the screws, travelled along the screws and once it made it to the roof sheeting it whicked itself up about 8-10" - what a mess!!

Glad I won't have to worry about that anymore

Mike

Pilotdaddy1 · 10-25-2011, 10:59 PM

Just ordered 2 rolls of Eternabond 50' x 4" for my SV-305. Do most of you agree that acetone cleaning and steel roller is the way to go, or should I also use the primer? The Di-chor lap sealant is still very sticky and pliable (TT one year old). I want to eliminate as much roof work as possible...flying doesn't bother me, but getting on the roof of my TT does.

Thanks.

frankm · 10-26-2011, 05:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pilotdaddy1

Just ordered 2 rolls of Eternabond 50' x 4" for my SV-305. Do most of you agree that acetone cleaning and steel roller is the way to go, or should I also use the primer? The Di-chor lap sealant is still very sticky and pliable (TT one year old). I want to eliminate as much roof work as possible...flying doesn't bother me, but getting on the roof of my TT does.

Thanks.

Yes acetone or Eternabond own cleaner (which is 60% acetone) is what most people have used prior to the tape application. However please note that if you have an AlphaSystems rubber roof their maintenance instructions warn you against the use of acetone When I did our roof I tried to keep the acetone to just the area the tape makes contact with.

Rugged Brown · 10-26-2011, 09:12 AM

I used acetone and as I stated earlier, areas that I wasn't as diligent as I should be resulted in poor adherence. I did not use the roller either. I applied pressure with my fingers and hands. That worked fine where I cleaned it thoroughly with acetone.

Pilotdaddy1 · 10-26-2011, 07:22 PM

Thanks for the info. I will get this project underway as soon as my tape arrives.

You may also like: