Caulking the lazy way

[TY PECK]

Any thoughts on taking the lazy way out of caulking roof vents, a/c, etc . I was thinking of only cleaning the areas to be caulked, wiping with alcohol, and apply new caulk extending the caulk line out and inch from the previous one. Yes this means not removing the old caulk. Think I can get away with it just once?
2006 Bambi stored outside in the Colorado sun.
Thanks Ty

[SeaLevel]

That's not the approach I would take. I think this is one area where "anything worth doing is worth doing right" would apply.

[vswingfield]

Originally Posted by TY PECK

...
Think I can get away with it just once?
...
Thanks Ty

Yes, probably.


Don't you want your caulking be good for more than just once?

[mikextr]

Was thinking the same thing yesterday when addressing a leak originating from my refrigerator chimney vent and cover. My conscience wouldn't let me just do a quick caulk job. I ended up doing a complete removal, cleaning, and proper reinstallation of the chimney vent cover using butyl tape and vulkem. It was a 2 hour job. Now I am satisfied knowing that the repair was done right.

[ROBERT CROSS]

3m Extreme Sealing Tape

Cleaned, did not remove, 7yrs SFSG

Bob
🇺🇸

[lsbrodsky]

I am with Sealevel. I don't get up on my roof to caulk so I paid my dealer to do it, the whole job the right way. My experience from my boating days is that if you do not do it the right way, it will leak sooner rather than later.
Larry

[DavidsonOverlander]

I used eternabond tape.

[05ModPod]

Originally Posted by TY PECK

Any thoughts on taking the lazy way out of caulking roof vents, a/c, etc . I was thinking of only cleaning the areas to be caulked, wiping with alcohol, and apply new caulk extending the caulk line out and inch from the previous one. Yes this means not removing the old caulk. Think I can get away with it just once?
2006 Bambi stored outside in the Colorado sun.
Thanks Ty

While everyone will have their own views.....

I have an 05. There is the original layer, then a second layer at 5 years, then a touch up for soft spots and cracks. Now being 15 years, IMHO it is time to take her down to clean edges again. Mine aren’t leaking, but have had evidence of little leaks.

It’s just good at this age to see how the actual unit is doing. Large cracks in aging plastic can creat issues from underneath that you will not see until you start leaking good inside the skins. Believe it or not it is the biggest reason for floor rot.

The extra couple hours since you are up there anyway, will give you peace of mind. On hot days the sealant is far more pliable to remove.

This is my forward vent sealed over three times, the little tabs cover hairline cracks that have developed.


The rear vent is worse, all black and yucky and definitely will be redone this time round.

I will be removing it all and repairing the cracks with fibrecloth and resin. I like to keep things going as long as possible before having to replace. Have repaired my AC shroud several years running with each new crack.

Take the time, simply because of the year of your trailer, enjoy the view while up there

[RJJ]

Originally Posted by TY PECK

Any thoughts on taking the lazy way out of caulking roof vents, a/c, etc . I was thinking of only cleaning the areas to be caulked, wiping with alcohol, and apply new caulk extending the caulk line out and inch from the previous one. Yes this means not removing the old caulk. Think I can get away with it just once?
2006 Bambi stored outside in the Colorado sun.
Thanks Ty

Aahhh... The road to h#ll is paved with good intentions. 😈 Maybe this is how some rooftop equipment ends up looking so monstrous with heaps and globs of caulk slathered all around, then left for years to become some one else's problem. 🤷🏽 Nah, just best to do it right the first time and be confident you did the right thing. After all... it's these small annoyances have guilt attached and never leave us alone... for we know it wasn't right and now we suffer! 😂 Just fix it right and lessen your guilt pile. 😬😏

[billhenry58]

We have a 2005 and noticed a small leak around the fan this winter. After investigating the seals i noticed that were all cracked and suspect. I took a putty knife and scraped up the high spots of caulk, wiped the area down with mineral spirits and applied Gorilla tape and then topped the tape with aluminum foil tape to protect the rubber from UV. It worked great! A much easier fix and probably better in the long run that sealant. I'm gonna tackle the skylight seals next, but I think it will require removal of the cap to get it done right.

[Pimms]

Originally Posted by billhenry58

We have a 2005 and noticed a small leak around the fan this winter. After investigating the seals i noticed that were all cracked and suspect. I took a putty knife and scraped up the high spots of caulk, wiped the area down with mineral spirits and applied Gorilla tape and then topped the tape with aluminum foil tape to protect the rubber from UV. It worked great! A much easier fix and probably better in the long run that sealant. I'm gonna tackle the skylight seals next, but I think it will require removal of the cap to get it done right.

Wondering if we could proactively take this approach on our 2018, potentially extending the life of the underlying sealant for many years, maybe never needing to re-seal. Any thoughts?

[GMFL]

Originally Posted by billhenry58

We have a 2005 and noticed a small leak around the fan this winter. After investigating the seals i noticed that were all cracked and suspect. I took a putty knife and scraped up the high spots of caulk, wiped the area down with mineral spirits and applied Gorilla tape and then topped the tape with aluminum foil tape to protect the rubber from UV. It worked great! A much easier fix and probably better in the long run that sealant. I'm gonna tackle the skylight seals next, but I think it will require removal of the cap to get it done right.

Gorilla tape? Aluminum foil tape? Really? Make sure you have plenty of Sham-Wows to dry up the water.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by Pimms

Wondering if we could proactively take this approach on our 2018, potentially extending the life of the underlying sealant for many years, maybe never needing to re-seal. Any thoughts?

NO!!!
Imagine trying to get the gorilla off the roof when it's dead.
I just removed the sloppily applied goop from the Factory, cleaned well with Brakleen and used 3m Extreme Sealing Tape, 7yrs SFSG.👍
Take note of the second 'detail' photo.😁

Bob
🇺🇸

[Pimms]

Perhaps leaving out the Gorilla tape, but wouldn't the aluminum foil tape, (or some other product), applied over good condition but yes, sloppily applied factory sealant protect the sealant from UV? Our dealer advised we can expect to re-seal every five years or so and we are in the northeast, not exactly tropical sun.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Is it just me?...but why not use a product that was designed for the job you want to use it on.🤔

Bob
🇺🇸

[J. Morgan]

years ago someone "sealed" my trailer seams with silicone, it was a bear getting all of that stuff off, then I sealed it back with clean little lines of latex calk.

That was over four years ago.

What you want to do with the top of your trailer will depend upon how well your patch up job will work on the surfaces you have to work with, and how well the solution will actually work.

If it was me, I'd probably patch it up, but, I'm resistant to convention.

[billhenry58]

I guess we'll just agree to disagree on my Gorilla Tape method. The caulk was a factory bitched up mess. I'll let you know in a few years...months if I'm wrong. and as to the comment about the aluminum foil tape over the new Airstream's caulk, that's probably a good preventive measure to keep UV from degrading he caulk, but it's applied so sloppily that the tape won't cover it very well. It will definitely prolong the life of the Gorilla tape. Next time i'm at the camper, I'll try and take some pics.

[Foiled Again]

When I was brand new here, I saw a post where the owner of a vintage trailer had carefully removed the old gross silicone, and put down two rows of blue painters tape on each side of his seams, caulked, then pulled the painter's tape before the caulk set completely. Looked PERFECT. I can't decorate a cake without making it look like a drunk having DTs did it, but that trick gives me delusions of adequacy!

[perryg114]

The lazy way would be to use a self leveling caulk like Dicor on roof vent. Chances are the caulk will outlast the plastic vent. Personally I would clean and probably use the eternabond tape.



Perry

[Hittenstiehl]

Robert Cross, your solution with photographs and the Eternabond tape have both intrigued us for a bit now. They look very neat and in your description have sealed for many years now.

Is your trailer stored outside and is it exposed to quite a bit of sunlight and heat.

Having vintage trailers we can see where this tape would be very helpful for long-term or temporary fixes. Scraping 50 plus years of caulk, trempro, adhesive, rubber, glue, chewing gum and a variety of other adhesives off is very arduous and time-consuming work with lots of chemicals involved.