Quick question on roof sealers

[Jim Godward]

I would probably use a No. 12 self-tapping screw or 1/4" one, the 12 should be sufficient though.  About 1" or 1 1/4" in length.  I would probably use the 1" one and see how it goes.

In my Dutch star the roof membrane is no more that 1/16" thick if that.  The plywood is probably 1/4" but could be 3/8" - I doubt that though.  The space to the ceiling is at least 4" and maybe as much as 6" as there is a lot of room and thick insulation there.  I have no idea what yours is.

 

[DonTom]

I would probably use a No. 12 self-tapping screw or 1/4" one, the 12 should be sufficient though.  About 1" or 1 1/4" in length.  I would probably use the 1" one and see how it goes.

In my Dutch star the roof membrane is no more that 1/16" thick if that.  The plywood is probably 1/4" but could be 3/8" - I doubt that though.  The space to the ceiling is at least 4" and maybe as much as 6" as there is a lot of room and thick insulation there.  I have no idea what yours is.

Thanks for the rough idea of what mine MIGHT be like.

Seems strange we can walk on these roofs with the plywood so thin. But it makes me wonder if I could use some type of anchor bolt in the areas where there is no real support otherwise. I guess it won't hurt to experiment a bit, as long as the roof sealer works well. ;D 

On the one solar panel I already installed up there, I am thinking about leaving it put, BUT with another bracket tied to a strip of metal of some type and mounting the other end of that to one of the rafters. I might be able to do this at a couple of places.  And then, I will just have to check it once in a while instead of also having to worry about it going through the windshield of the car behind me.

I just ordered some more Solar panel brackets and I will try to complete this job after I receive them. The one panel is fully installed as far as wiring so mounting three more is the only problem. While I was at it, I removed the stock red LED (bottom of A/C unit) that was in series with the 5 watt panel and put in a green led in parallel (with a 5.8K resistor in series) of the solar panel for having light indication. I don't like red to show a normal condition!

-Don- SSF, CA​

 

[DonTom]

Here's an update. I screwed into the rafters and that worked well on the solar panel I installed today. I have a screw into metal on each side down nice and tight. However, I thought it was odd that I needed a different length screw on each side to get to the metal. One sheet metal screw was 1.5" and was fine. The other would not even reach any metal with the 1.5" screw, but a 2 inch sheet metal screw worked well there.

With the previously installed  panel that is screwed only into the "cardboard" I tried to remove it. The screws came out easy under the Dicor sealant but that sealant under the bracket is probably as good as any adhesive. It's down tight even without the screws (but the screws really aren't doing much anyway). I would probably have to rip up the EPDM rubber roof off to remove those solar brackets! Nevertheless, I managed to add a bracket screwed to another few brackets in such a way that I can reach one of the rafters to screw into, so it has some solid support which I feel will hold up fine.

I decided to check for metal where the satellite dish was added by the previous owner. There does NOT seem to be any rafters there. It seems it's only held down with sealant. I cannot see or feel any screws under the sealant, which looks like it also might be Dicor.

I have two solar panels mounted.  Will add another two when I received more brackets that I ordered last week on-line. The local RV shop  here in Reno (Safari RV Parts) usually stocks them, but they have them on backorder and they don't expect to get them in for at least a couple of weeks.

-Don- Reno, NV​

 

[Jackhal]

Rutherford
"I have another question about something I found up on the roof, but never paid attention to it before. I have what looks like a vent tube sitting up a few inches near the front of the RV, but it has a metallic, kind of foil-like cover on it. I am not going to do anything to it, but just curious about what it could be. It is not a vent, the other vents have a normal venting cap on them."

That maybe the sensor for your automatic awning.  Do you have an automatic awning that will roll up automatically if the wind gets too strong?  If you do that thing is the wind sensor for the automatic system.  I have one on my Journey and it is in the front and dead center and it does look like a vent of some sort.