A leak in an RV's roof can be catastrophic! Avoid unnecessary damage with some very easy preventative RV roof maintenance!
Before starting this process, contact your RV manufacturer to get their recommendation on cleaning and sealing products.
Gutters
Most RVs have very small gutters running down both sides of the roof. These gutters are not one long piece. They are in sections with seams. These seams are usually sealed using silicone sealant, but that sealant will degrade over time, letting water leak down the side of your RV.
This could be repaired using more sealant, but I wanted to try flex seal. The hope is it would sit lower in the gutter and let water travel more freely. I cleaned it up, put down a little border tape, sprayed a bit in, and voila!
Note: I did this the day before cleaning so it would have time to sure.
Cleaning
While RV roofs can go years without cleaning, it's still a good idea to clean them about once a year.
A clean roof is more reflective, which means lower heat. It can also mean better performing solar panels. Additionally, a clean roof is easier to inspect for any issues like punctures or tears. Clean sealant is also easier to inspect for cracks (see below).
We used simple green. It's inexpensive, comes in concentrate, and is biodegradable.
Just mix it in a bucket and give the roof a scrub using a soft brush. Be sure to not press hard. Just let the brush do the work! When rinsing, be sure to get any run-off rinsed off the sides of the RV.
Sealant
The sealant used on RV roofs will shrink over time. In some places, this shrinkage will cause cracks in the selaant.
Once the sealant is clean, it should be fairly easy to spot these cracks. If you're not sure if some flaw is a crack or not, re-seal it anyway. Sealant is cheap!
Before you apply more sealant, clean the old sealant with some mineral spirits. Then, simply put the new sealant right on top. No need to be super neat about it. Lap sealant is designed to level itself.
Vents
While you're up there, you might as well take a look at your vents. If you have covers on them, take the covers off and check the sealant around them. Use some of the cleaner for your roof to clean them up and look for anything amiss. We've had one gear mechanism go bad and it had to be replaced.
Just like the slide seals, the rubber seals on the vents can get a bit sticky. Treat those with whatever you use on your slide seals. We use Pledge. That's right… The furniture polish! Spray a little on a rag and clean the seals with it for a nice non-stick protective coating.
Products in Video
- Flex Seal Clear Spray – amzn.to/33IUGsP…
- Blue Painters Tape – amzn.to/3dgOnQk…
- Solid Brass Hose Quick Connect – amzn.to/3iMXXfd…
- Solid Brass Quick Connect Fittings with Ball Valve – amzn.to/34NwyVA…
- Zero-G Potable Water Hose – amzn.to/36PlYQs…
- Soft screw-on brush head – Lowe's
- Shur-Line 43-inch to 78-inch Aluminum Painting Extension Pole: amzn.to/33JtyKk…
- Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner – amzn.to/2SDVx7W…
- Denatured Alcohol – amzn.to/3nyntIH…
- Mineral Spirits – amzn.to/2GBm2Zs…
- Microfiber Cleaning Cloth 8-Pack – amzn.to/2SKSUkA…
- RecPro (Alpha) 1021 Self-Leveling RV Sealant – amzn.to/30PKqxc…
- AirTite Caulking Tube Preserver – amzn.to/3lvifvh…
- Caulking Gun – amzn.to/36MQbj2…
- Maxxair Fanmate Cover with Ez Clip – amzn.to/2GL7lCS…
- Pledge Multisurface Furniture Polish – amzn.to/3iPEZ7A…
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- Camp Setup and Breakdown (T-24, etc) – youtu.be/uPXNmS0IBRQ…
- More RV Maintenance Content – www.youtube.com…
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