Question about sealants for rooftop RV's

[menglor]

Greetings!

So, I am sure to open a can of worms with this question, and I am sure its been answered many times, but honestly I have searched and I cant seem to find the a decent explination of why one product is better than another.


Short version is, I am looking to clean up my roof on the Roof of my RV, so of course everyone is suggesting DICOR, but they want like 15$ a tube here in Canada.

- I have a sunroof on the roof of the trailer and I am noticing the stuff there looks like the self leveling product, but its rubbing off and turning to dust as I rub or touch it.
- I noticed where one of the Antenna connections is, its dried up and cracking.
- There is now a gap at the black tank exhaust
- The vents as well need to have sealant product cleaned up and then re-applied.

My thinking is, I am going to take a “stiff plastic bristle brush” and loosen up the failing sealant, and then re-apply something.

In the searching I have done, I have noticed some people have made due with “Elastomeric Latex Sealant” and recent searches suggest “10 oz. Premium Elastomeric Plus Silicone Caulk”

But the question I would like to understand is “Why this, and not that”

I am asking for help understanding what makes the DICOR stuff better, and anything else inferior?

This is the stuff I am considering.
https://www.homedepot.ca/en/home/p.3...000160762.html

I haven’t made any “decisions” but I need to get this done soon, the rain season is about to start.

I would like really like to hear from everyone, but I hope the replies are going to be more then “because” or “Dicor is the best”

thanks

[Restcure]

As a fellow Canadian I empathize with the high cost of parts, equipment, accessories and supplies. Why does the same tube of Dicor cost USD 11.88 on amazon.com and CAD 26.99 on amazon.ca?

Where did you find Dicor for, like, CAD 15?

And why does this guy look so SMUG?



I can't comment on the substitute you're suggesting because I have no experience with it. I will posit that Dicor does work (for a time, at least) and CAD 26.99 (or, like, CAD 15) is not a lot of money compared to the cost of repairing water damage because you used a cheaper product on the roof.

Eternabond tape is also good. Also expensive. I used some 2" stuff a few years back to seal a roof vent I installed on our last TT... and I just bought a 4" x 50' roll to seal the vents and front seam on this TT. CAD 99.99, special ordered through Home Hardware... and worth every penny.

[menglor]

when I picked my RV at the dealership , I remember seeing the tub for 15$ and thinking I am going to need a few of these, but I gonna find them cheaper.

I cross border shot a fair bit, so I am likely going to buy in the US rathern then pay 26

[Restcure]

On sale now - USD 7.87 at Camping World!

[SeaDog]

You may want to check the mfg, when I called RNR rv the folks I bought my rig from because I thought I had a rip (was only dirt mark) they said to not use dicor on my flagstaff roof? I have not confirmed this with FR and didn't ask the dealer why not.

[youroo]

The OP has a 2007 Palomino,type of Roof Material is "Unknown"! Need to know in regards to type of" Compatible Sealant"! Youroo!!

[camaraderie]

I need to be inspecting and touching up problem areas on my roof as well but it is fiberglass. Is dicor the recommended product for fiberglass as well or is there something better??
BTW...I would never use anything with silicon on any area that will need to be renewed occasionally. It prevents other things from sticking when reapplied.

[hillsdaletc]

Menglor , first you need to know Exactly what material is on your roof. EPDM rubber, TPO, or the new plastic. NEVER use any kind of silicone on the roof. One it won't adhear to the surface and will lift in a short time. Dicor is excellent for EPDM and a few of the TPO products. Dicor has a new product for the TPO's. Be sure to remove the old sealer from the roof. We have repaired many roofs where water ran under the old sealer and the owner just put a new layer on top of the old. Best tool for removing the old sealer is a vibrating multi tool with the scraper blade. We use Eternaclean to prep the surface. It's used for applying eterna bond tape.

[menglor]

I believe the roof is a Rubber sheet. the black stuff I believe is mold of some kind , maybe even dirt.

I will look to see if I can find any `lap sealant` from the posts I have seen, Silicon based products is a bad idea.

this stuff here :

https://www.homedepot.ca/en/home/p.3...000160762.html

I dont believe is silicon based, in the absence of Dicor, would this do?


I am headed to the RV store after work, to pick up a few thigns. I cant see myself spending 30$ a tube, when I know I am going to be in the US on monday to pick up stuff.

[menglor]

adding another picture

[menglor]

Originally Posted by hillsdaletc

NEVER use any kind of silicone on the roof. One it won't adhear to the surface and will lift in a short time.

is this the only reason or the main reason to use the DICOR stuff?
oh and thanks for the suggestion of the Mutli tool.

[rsdata]

after removing old/cracked/peeling sealant, why not use Eternabond tape? It is sold in 1,2,3 and 4 inch wide rolls. Try amazon... read the reviews there...

Eternabond sticks to any roof without regard to roofing material, and sticks for a long time without cracking or peeling. Several people on here including me have done write ups of installing Eternabond tape to seal any surface on the roof.

Does not look pretty, but after cleaning small roof area with a little bit of mineral spirits on a rag, then rubbing that off with IPA (alcohol from the drugstore) the Eternabond tape sticks like crazy over any surface you might have.

just my 2 cents, but I would not think you need anything else... unless someone has a different idea

[thandel]

One more thing. If you think there is a possibility that water has already leaked through the cracks, I think you should inspect for damage and dry it out and repair any damage before sealing it up and forgetting about it. Just my 2 cents.

[Strigflag]

I have a FR Flagstaff and wound up with a tear in the roof due to a low branch getting caught at a Thousand Trails campground. I repaired the tear (with tan to match my roof) Eternabond that I picked up at Amazon for $10.99 USD. The roll was 4" x 6' and appears to have been cut from a longer roll. After application I used Dicor self leveling, also tan, and have not had any issue at all. I don't know why FR would say not to use Dicor since it appears to be what they use.

[jtesta1]

Spend what's necessary for the repair. If you wait it's going to cost you a small fortune to fix it later.

[menglor]

Originally Posted by Restcure

Where did you find Dicor for, like, CAD 15?

I was able to go back into RV Canada, and they had a bunch of tubes for 15$ so i bought 2 of them.

http://rvcanadaottawa.ca/parts/

[Happy Vibe]

around $15 is what I pay for dicor around Kitchener Ontario , the price on Amazon.ca is way over priced.

[itat]

Dicor 501 in the yellow-green tube for EPDM and Dicor 610 in the blue tube for TPO. Alpha Systems also has a self-leveling sealant for TPO roofs.

[Skyliner]

If that black "dirt' doesn't wash out, it may be that your roof is worn. EPDM roofing is white on black and if the white is gone and black shows, your roof should as a minimum get coated with a roof coating to extend its life.

[Wolverine 1945]

I used a product called Duck Patch to cover the screw heads on our MH roof,,, it is white and looks like it is going to hold up ???