Headliner Sagging

[yve79]

Originally Posted by starfire104

We also had this problem. We took it all down and had it reholstered $2500 later, it looks new and it should . I need to know about replacing the draperies, our are rotten and look bad. That is a lot of sewing, all those pleats...any suggestions where to go?

I bought the $11 rolling shades from home depot. Then we pulled off the plastic sheet and cut to size my fabric choice and glued to the roller. It looks a million times better than those heavy pleated drapes and we use the windows for a breezeway every day compared to never when we had to fiddle w drapes and blinds as before. Havent used the AC all season yet in the sweltering Texas sun!

[Tinkler2002]

I was wondering about just cutting out old vinyl and removing old adhesive. Could I just leave ceiling bare metal would the finish look ok if I did this I could experiment in bedroom due to being smaller area. Any suggestions on this thanks in advance!

[bake315]

Originally Posted by Tinkler2002

I was wondering about just cutting out old vinyl and removing old adhesive. Could I just leave ceiling bare metal would the finish look ok if I did this I could experiment in bedroom due to being smaller area. Any suggestions on this thanks in advance!

Hi Tinkler,

I still have the areas of galley and bath with the vinyl and adhesive removed. It actually looks okay, but there may be differences in what people find when they remove their own vinyl and adhesive. I don't think Airstream expected anyone would be doing that, and so might use sections of skin that may have scratches or holes, since they knew they were covering it up anyway. In my case, I have the odd scratch here and there, as well as a few holes where they missed a rib when drilling for rivets. I took care of those by just filling them with a rivet.

Things like this are why I cringe a little when folks talk of re-fastening their headliners with screws... Sort of limits your options should one ever wish to go with the bare ceiling, IMO. ;-)

[Tinkler2002]

Yea also screws scare me with electrical wiring running in ceiling!

[johndes]

I also have a ceiling that is beginning to sag. I have been to two local auto upholsters and their message is the same as I have been reading. You got to tear it out and redo it. The 1991 Land Yacht 33 Motor home has a fiber board ceiling, that the foam vinyl is attached to. Has anyone dealt with this type of backing? Can I use the brake cleaner on this? Can I buy the same foam backed vinyl from the Airstream factory?
Thanks in advance

[richinny]

there are lots of posts about this. pick one or a few from this list:
Google Custom Search

[Cable]

Originally Posted by Inland RV Center, In

It doesn't matter what adhesive you may want to use, it will not work until you completely remove the old adhesive.

The old adhesive is the problem. Adding more adhesive to a bad adhesive, is a waste of time and money.

Two things you can do.

Install screws, or remove the foam backed vinyl, clean off "ALL" the old adhesive, and then install new foam baked vinyl.

Again, the old, "BAD" adhesive is on the foam as well. You will have trouble trying to get it off the foam, without destroying the foam.

Not what you want to hear, but you will waste your time and money, if you try any salvage routine, other than the screws.

The Airstream factory, also says, it can't be done.

Andy

Jackson Center quoted me $7,700.00 and seven days in the shop to replace the headliner in my 27 foot 2002 Safari. I am not sure that is a good investment.

What length of screw is recommended? Are there decorative washers to use with screws?

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by Cable

Jackson Center quoted me $7,700.00 and seven days in the shop to replace the headliner in my 27 foot 2002 Safari. I am not sure that is a good investment.

What length of screw is recommended? Are there decorative washers to use with screws?

OUCH!!!!!

I did not know they had "gold plated" headliner material.

There are all kids of decorative washers available.

The most common is chrome plated.

3/8 to 1/2 inch long screws are more than long enough.

Andy

[johndes]

What we did. Removing the old adhesive is the real problem, almost impossible. The first section came down and we removed the old adhesive by scraping with a razor blade. Took forever. Then glued a hard board ceiling panel, purchased from an RV supply store (Sands RV Madison, OH) to the wood ceiling. It looked so good we took the next section down and did the same thing, except we DID NOT remove the old adhesive. Using construction adhesive (Home Depot) we glued right over the old stuff, looks great and is very permanent. We have a 1991 Airstream Land Yacht these panels were installed in the bedroom.

[Andrew T]

When we do one instead trying to get all the old glue off. We recover the ceiling in underbelly aluminum which is thin cheap and light and then glue the new vinyl to it.

It definitely must be heat related as we see very little of the problem on Canadian units.

I would guess most of it is caused when the unit is closed up tight in storage and the internal temps go very high. A solar panel and a fantastic fan set to come on when the temperature goes over 90 might be a good investment.

Andrew T

[dznf0g]

To Andrew's point. That is the main reason I use MaxxAir vent covers. I leave my FF lids open 24/7/365 to allow ventilation while in storage. Keeps temps under control and doesn't allow mold and mildew to get a start.

[Lucy815]

Our first AS, a 1994 Excella front kitchen, bedroom ceiling began delaminating about six months into owning her. We debated. We read. We prayed it would only be the bedroom ceiling!!

Then, my husband, armed with eye protection, breathing apparatus because of the fine particulate crumble the yellow foam backing had become, and painter's blade slowly began the week long joy of scraping, vacuuming, and removing the headliner. Secondly, he used an aerosol paint stripper and plastic paint spatulas to remove the goop, and finally acetone to remove the last layer of debris. Ultimately, my husband was exhausted, but the headliner never looked so good!!

Best of luck with whichever method you choose.

Lucy749

[Melody Ranch]

Tell me how the stripper and plastic scrapper worked out.

[Gene]

You don't have to use chrome plated washers or screws. Stainless steel is readily available and probably cheaper.

Gene

[Skater]

Another member sent me a PM and said he used Goo Gone to get rid of the glue, with good results. We plan to try it on one of our panels this winter. I can rub the residue off pretty easily so I think it'll work...

[chromis]

Isn't Stainless + Aluminium + Moisture bad ?

[Gene]

Originally Posted by chromis

Isn't Stainless + Aluminium + Moisture bad ?

Good point and I'm not sure. Many different metals react electrically and cause corrosion, but how much and whether it matters are a question for metalurgists. Maybe chrome is also a problem. Various combinations of metals react fast and matter or so slowly to not matter.

A thin nonmetalic washer between the 2 metals would solve the problem. Paper washers may be available or could be cut out of paper. A black rubber washer between shiny metals could provide an attractive contrast under the principle of if you can't hide it, show it off.

I put a stainless steel electrical receptacle cover plate against the aluminum interior 5 years ago replacing the plastic one. So far, no corrosion. It is in the kitchen where there's a lot of water vapor.

Gene

[Lucy815]

To Melody Ranch et. al....the plastic scrappers (many) worked quite well in tandem with the remover plus they did not leave drag marks on the ceiling. One swipe, lift, remove and throw away. Tedious, but worked well.

[Cable]

My 2003 Safari started sagging in 2011.

We decided to repair it ourselves.

Plastic buttons were installed on 12 inch intervals to hold up the head-liner. The 5/8 inch drill point screw was used to make sure a hole wasn’t drilled through the roof and to speed up the job. The buttons were snapped onto the washer using minimal force but some buttons required driving into place with a rubber mallet. The pattern used was designed to look like a quilt pattern, continuous from one end of the trailer to the other.

The first step was to precisely locate the trailer’s center line. A string was installed and kept taut by use of a spring on one end. A laser level mounted on an old camera tripod was used to show the center line and the laser center line was marked on the ceiling at twelve inch intervals using sticky labels. Round sticky labels were used because their one-quarter inch diameter enabled leaving them in place on the ceiling, thereby reducing the over all effort of the project.

Next, using the laser again, a forty-five degree diagonal line was marked at each of the 12 inch intervals. It was important to use the same color label throughout in order to facilitate pattern evaluation before drilling holes. I ran into a problem when working over the storage compartment under the bed. The wood strength of the storage compartment was not enough to prevent it from flexing as I moved about, thus causing movement of the laser mark.

Total time required was 12 hours.








Materials List for Head-liner Repair

Item Quantity Cost
Cap, color almond, plastic Package of 100 $5.00 2 each $10.00
Part number: PD88 103
Washer, countersunk, plastic Package of 100 $5.00 2 each $10.00
Part number: PD88 W

Source: Woodwokers Hardware
P.O. Box 180
Sauk Rapids, MD 56390
(800) 383-0130

Screw, Phillips, 8-18, flat head, Package of 100 $8.91 2 each $17.82
drill point, stainless steel
Part number: 94195A137

Source: McMaster-Carr
200 New Canton Way
Robbinsville, NJ 08691-2343
(609) 689-3000

Labels, Avery, 1/4 inch diameter, Package of 700 $699 1 each $6.99
sticky
Source: Staples Office Supply
Part number: 5795

Total cost of material $37.82

[johndes]

Originally Posted by alscottfree

The 1997 25' Safari That We Are Picking Up Sunday Has The Headliners Coming Down In Some Areas. We Are Assured There Were No Leaks, Just Extreme Heat & Cold - But We Have No Idea What Product Or Process To Use To Reglue Or Reattach This. Help????
Thanks, Al

All I tell is what we did. We removed the ceiling material (ours was foam backed vinyl) removed most of the glue residue from the plywood. Then remover the cabinets and glued hardboard ceiling material (you can get from most RV supply stores) onto the plywood. Looks great will last forever and was the best way out for us. You CANNOT re-glue foam backed ceiling material, we tried. I don't care what this guy says his roof leaks.