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Foiled Again · 11-22-2007, 12:45 PM

I woke up this beautiful Thanksgiving morning to the thought that something wasn't quite right. Heard some noises on the roof and thought "critters on the roof?" Then I noticed that my bedroom vent cover seemed to be letting in too much light. Sure enough it torn loose from the edge and had holes in it. I jumped up and dressed planning to run out, grab my ladder and go up on the roof. OOPS, no ladder, it's in the office.

I brought home my new 2008 Chevy Silverado 2500 Diesel Crew Cab, long bed truck last night (RED). Since I haven't gotten a tonneau or work box for the truck, I have lots of stuff that couldn't move from the 'burb to the truck.

Well, by the time I'd gotten dressed the vent cover had blown completely off - in the opposite direction of the new red truck. Whew! It is also sunny and warm here in Virginia Beach, Double whew!

So I went outside hoping I could tape the cover together and do a temporary fix until I could get a new cover - and much to my dismay as I picked up one of the pieces it shattered between the pressure of my thumb and forefinger. The whole thing is totally brittle. And this is from a 2006 Airstream.

OK, it's Thanksgiving, nothing is open, how am I going to temporarily cover this vent - and do the work from the inside 'cause I don't have a ladder? Well I found that by removing six screws the inside trim came off, but not the screen. I found two more screws that looked to hold the screen in, and one that held the crank handle on. Removed those and pulled out the middle section with no problems other than cascades of fiberglass insulation and little aluminum shavings all over my unmade and unprotected bed. Dumb but minor. Next I started scrounging through my trailer and truck for something big enough and sturdy enough to fit over the vent, but small enough and flexible enough to be pushed on a diagonal up to the roof. Luckily I had bought some plastic boxes to stow stuff in the new truck - most open topped but a couple with lids. The size? Well it's rectangular but perfect fit on the short side. Now how to fix it in place? Duct tape wouldn't work from the inside. So then I noticed that this lid had a border and some interior flanges (probably for strength) about 2 inches from the edge. I drilled four holes in these flanges, one at each corner, then went to the sewing basket for some narrow elastic which I laced through the holes. I shoved the lid through the open vent, positioned it and laced it down over the bar that goes through the middle of the vent and allows you to raise and lower it. It should keep the interior dry in a rain that doesn't include high winds, but I'll want to replace it as soon as possible.

So here's some questions for all y'all (Lewster and Inland Andy especially). Is the vent hole size the same as the hole size for a Fantastic Fan - or any other similar brand? Is there any pre-wiring for a fan that I could just tap into? How do I seal it from the outside? I probably can't get the fan for a week or so, so I'll still have to do a quickie vent cover replacement. The simple vent cover shouldn't be that big a deal to buy - hardly want to bother Airstream about it, or drive 150 miles to have it replaced under warranty. I can get it locally tomorrow, right? And how the hell is that vent cover held in place? I couldn't see any screws, cotter pins, or anything else in the vent even though I have 95% of it (in pieces).

Thanks for your help and have a good Thanksgiving all. I'm seeing the cup half full

in that it wasn't raining, I hadn't been gone for three days, and even though all the stores are closed I was lucky enough to have a piece of flexible plastic big enough to be used, and smart enough to figure out a jury-rig fix.

Thanks all, Paula

Inland RV Center, In · 11-22-2007, 01:12 PM

Paula,

There are different sizes of roof vent covers. What size tells us how is was used and fastened.

What size is your cover?

Andy

53flyingcloud · 11-22-2007, 01:31 PM

Paula,
I leave you for a few days an all h--- break lose~!
Sorry abt the vent and, congrats on the new truck..

)
If your vent opening is like mine..The corners may have to be trimmed slightly for the Fantastic to fit properly and, yes the wiring can be tapped into from the wiring harness running in your overhead.
HT day to you...

Tim A. · 11-22-2007, 02:12 PM

When I replaced (several years ago) our Bambi's over-bed vent with a Fantastic Fan, the fit was perfect without any cutting needed. We took power from the light which is only a few inches away. In our case that means the fan is on the light's wall switch so we leave that switch permanently on and use the switch at the light to turn it on and off.

With the way our fan is constructed, condensation can drip down out of it and onto the bed, but that des not mean that it leaks.

JStanley · 11-22-2007, 05:53 PM

Interesting to read that someone else had a vent cover disintegrate on a 2006 Safari.
The pieces on mine were very brittle and yellow. It looked like it was in the sun for 50 years.
Since the trailer was still under warranty I had it replaced for free and added a hood over the cover.
I bet someone mixed up a bad batch of plastic or errors were made in the fabrication process. How many others had the same problem?

It broke and blew off during a heavy wind that preceded a thunderstorm. I was luck that I saw it in time to go inside and use a plastic container top to prevent the mattress from getting soaked. I’ll not write here what I was saying to myself at the time.
This is not an issue but another quality control problem and this time from an OEM or parts supplier.

Sean Michael · 11-22-2007, 06:49 PM

Mine also shattered and blew off in the wind. I used a Home Depot roof vent as a temporary quick fix!

SilverRanger · 11-22-2007, 07:07 PM

Hi, Paula.
Nice job on the improvised vent fix. I had a similar issue with my 05 Bambi:

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f142...tml#post298822

If I recall, my vent lid was held on by the arm that raises and lowers it. The arm is attached to the front and rear inside of the lid by tiny rivets. In retrospect, since this will inevitably happen again in about another year, I should have replaced it with a Fantastic Fan this summer at Perry when I had them install a reverse switch on my front fan.

Zugbug · 11-22-2007, 07:32 PM

Had the same thing on my 2006 23 Safari recently, obviously the material had little or no UV inhibitor. That is a flat out bad supply chain quality problem the AS needs to address.

lewster · 11-22-2007, 07:56 PM

Paula,

Call Fantastic Vent and tell them what happened. They will replace the cover NO CHARGE!!!! They might even pay for the labor to install it since it is less than 2 years old.

THEY WILL MAKE IT RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CanoeStream · 11-22-2007, 08:07 PM

I don't read Paula's post as saying this was a FF vent cover. The crank operated vent covers have been having a lot of problems!

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f455...mbi-22733.html
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f455...ver-23633.html

lewster · 11-22-2007, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CanoeStream

I don't read Paula's post as saying this was a FF vent cover. The crank operated vent covers have been having a lot of problems!

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f455...mbi-22733.html
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f455...ver-23633.html

OOPS!

I saw Fantastic fan, but on re-reading it....she WAS talking about the dead vent.

It should be pre-wired to add a second powered vent like a Fantastic or MaxxAir fan. The opening IS the same size, and the power vent should drop right in. It did on my 19CCD when I added a MaxxAir fan over the bed to replace the dead vent.

I guess all of that food is effecting my brain!!!!!!!!!!!

TBRich · 11-22-2007, 09:00 PM

We had to have the dead vent cover replaced on our 06 19' Bambi as well...Luckily, I noticed that the vent was cracked where it attaches to the raising arm by rivets...replaced under warranty before it blew away...we will eventually replace it with a 2nd Fantacic Fan and have a reverse swtich added to both front and rear fans...we had a reverse switch in our previous SOB motorhome and liked that feature very much.

Jim Clark · 11-23-2007, 01:47 PM

I am on my 3rd set on my 2005. When I picked up the trailer they were bad. I now carry a spare as they are cheap. I painted the current set with several coats of white paint to see if that will help with the UV deterioration. I don’t care about the light as it interferes with my naps.

Foiled Again · 11-23-2007, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inland RV Center, In

Paula,

There are different sizes of roof vent covers. What size tells us how is was used and fastened.

What size is your cover?

Andy

Andy the cover (what's left of it) is 13.5 by 13.5 inches. One end had perforations in it, so I think it just snapped in place. I saw no screws, or other evidence of fasteners.

Paula

Foiled Again · 01-02-2008, 11:44 AM

I got my new vent cover on Thanksgiving Saturday, set it on the dinette seat and promptly forgot it until yesterday. YIKES! I'm going to Topsail in Florida and I doubt if my improvised cover will hold up to 900 miles of high speed towing.... Must install today. TG I didn't drink on New Years Eve!

So I took the vent apart again and realized NO way am I going to be able to shove the cover through the opening on the diagonal - the center brace is welded in, not screwed in and the real vent cover is about 3/8 inch bigger than the improvised one.... sigh.....

AHA! Brilliant idea, I'll haul it up from the outside using something like a string but semi-heavy.... Extension cord, that's the ticket! So I threw one end of the extension cord through the vent hole and over the street side (no awning roll), went outside, tied the new vent to it, got on my step stool and tossed the vent up on the roof so I wouldn't scratch the side pulling it up. Went inside and lo, the cover had landed almost on the hole. With a little maneuvering I was able to stand on a stool and pop it in place, then reassemble the inside pieces of the vent. Getting it on the raise/lower arm was tricky, but I resolved to brute force to bend the cheap metal, then restraighten it after I engaged the arm.

I had briefly toyed with the idea of knocking the center arm loose with a paint scraper or chisel, then drilling a small hole and putting in self-tapping screws to put it back into it's original place after pushing the vent cover outside through the opening... but hey if I admit I have a Miketa variable speed reversable drill and that I KNOW what self-tapping metal screws are... that would disqualify me from claiming ownership of the GIRL TOOL KIT wouldn't it?

Paula

**jcanavera** · 01-02-2008, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JStanley

Interesting to read that someone else had a vent cover disintegrate on a 2006 Safari.
The pieces on mine were very brittle and yellow. It looked like it was in the sun for 50 years.
Since the trailer was still under warranty I had it replaced for free and added a hood over the cover.
I bet someone mixed up a bad batch of plastic or errors were made in the fabrication process. How many others had the same problem?

Well not too much different in that my A/C shroud also suffering from UV disintegration. Problem discovered in year 3 of ownership only to find out that the Duo-Therm 3 year warranty does not cover shrouds. What's even more distressing is that their warranty on the shrouds is only 90 days. Never have had a shroud come apart before and this isn't a southwest clime where I might expect this.

Jack

tpi · 01-02-2008, 01:53 PM

My '05 Safari needed new vent covers within a year of ownership. Both were severly brittle and UV damaged. They were "New Style Jensen" type covers. I spray painted the new ones with Krylon plastic paint, and so far they've been up there 2 years and are still intact.

The skylight dome appears UV damaged, but so far it is intact. Anticipating replacement at some point. Since I rarely open the skylight curtain, I may paint the new dome also-to cut down on heat entry (white paint) and prolong life.

Needless to say this stuff should be much better quality.

**jcanavera** · 01-02-2008, 02:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tpi

My '05 Safari needed new vent covers within a year of ownership. Both were severly brittle and UV damaged. They were "New Style Jensen" type covers. I spray painted the new ones with Krylon plastic paint, and so far they've been up there 2 years and are still intact.

The skylight dome appears UV damaged, but so far it is intact. Anticipating replacement at some point. Since I rarely open the skylight curtain, I may paint the new dome also-to cut down on heat entry (white paint) and prolong life.

Needless to say this stuff should be much better quality.

Yep I agree. I had to replace the front skylight dome on my Classic in the fall of 2006 due to a crack. Way too early for a trailer delivered in the fall of 2003.

Jack

pmclemore · 01-03-2008, 10:46 AM

Ingenious way to get a rooftop job done from the inside, Paula. Big smart points (and karma, too).

Pat

gotohatteras · 01-03-2008, 11:27 AM

Same thing happened last September with our 2006 23 Safari front front vent cover. Went to a RV dealer in South Carolina (was on a trip), and got new one. It was a "new style" JENSEN. It goes on without screws or rivets like you said. Also, we went ahead and put one of those funny looking air vent cover thingies so you can leave vent open without rain coming in. "Half-heimers" has set in, and after 30 years of RV's, can't seem to think of the name of that thing...and wife isn't around right now to tell me!