Sorry but, with all elastomeric finishings, it boils down to scraping. Great ol RVs need good ol effort. Utilize a chemical paint stripper for around roof components and areas you can't get it all off. You could use it over the entire roofing system however, the concern is ... would you wish to? The stuff is just nasty to work with and extremely unhealthy to breathe and don't let it get in contact with your skin.

Elastomeric Roof Repair Coatings, Elastomeric Roof Coatings

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If (like me) you are the type of individual who applies caulk with the objective of getting professional-looking, smooth joints, then the application and appearance of lap sealant on a camper roofing system will throw you for a loop. Lap sealant looks more like somebody was trying to put icing on a cupcake.

And if someone has actually recaulked a location, there are even more blobs on top of the older blobs. It appears counter-intuitive to the objective of preventing water invasion due to the fact that the application does not necessarily encourage water to recede. Even an expertly applied application of lap sealant around an air vent looks more like a mini retention pond after a rain.

If you require to recaulk on location on your camper's roof, you first need to clean up all those unclean mounds and, per the producer, use more mounds of caulk on top of the old caulk rather than eliminating it. You are expected to inspect your roof a minimum of as soon as a year and apply caulk as needed.

The previous owner may not have cleaned the old caulk prior to plopping more mounds of new caulk on top. We have actually gotten rid of old caulk that removed easily due to the dirt and gunk beneath. We have actually found air pockets between layers of caulk. We have actually even found caulk mounds that seeped out tiny water beads when pushed, presumably due to pinholes.

When you're prepared to inspect your roofing, start by offering the roof and the caulk a good cleansing. Here's a link to our Do It Yourself roofing system cleaner. After rinsing everything off, take notice of where water may be pooling; particularly around the caulk. Once it's dry, utilize chalk to draw a circle any locations that have bad drainage.

Elastomeric Roof Repair Coatings, Elastomeric Roof Coatings

Look for signs of brittleness, fractures, pinholes, little cratering, or edges that easily raise. Once again, use the chalk to draw circle those areas that need attention. Air pockets, fractures and crevices within several layers of old lap sealantI prefer to get rid of old caulk instead of blob more on top.

To prevent tearing a rubber roofing system membrane or scratching an aluminum roofing, vibrate the tool around the edge of the caulk till it starts to lift. It's easiest to do this when outside temperatures are above 80 degrees, otherwise you might use a hot air gun or blow dryer to carefully warm the caulk.

The is to get the old caulk as flush to the rubber surface area as possible. Have a small tub, denatured alcohol, and rags close by to tidy up as you go. Store the can and rags in the small tub. Prevent letting the denatured alcohol make contact with the rubber roofing for too long.

Have a tub useful for all the old sealantOnce the majority of the old caulk has been gotten rid of and the surface has actually been cleaned and dried, use painter's tape to define the border of the area to be caulked. All the old sealant has been removedSelf-leveling lap sealant really doesn't level itself out to a good surface.

Being particular about how caulk looks, which it promotes proper drain, I use a customized application process. It's great to know in advance how the caulk will behave. A tube of caulk that is more than one year old can be more difficult to feed utilizing a caulk weapon and might not self-level as efficiently as a recently produced tube of caulk.

Less than 6 months is great. If there's no date, just prevent the tubes that have dust on them or used bottom edges. Use a piece of cardboard and lay a small things like a screw or bolt in the middle of the cardboard to test out your caulk. Apply a 3/8 inch bead of sealant in a straight line down the length of the cardboard, making sure to also cover the screw or bolt.

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The sealant needs to begin skinning over in 5 minutes. Older tubes of sealant might not self-level as nicely or they might skin over a lot more quickly. Repeat this test for each tube of sealant as you are all set to utilize it. As soon as you understand the how your tube of sealant will carry out after application and how quickly it will establish a skim coat, you can start applying beads of sealant.

Elastomeric Coatings, Acrylic Primers, Sealers, And More

Keep the sealant beads roughly 1/2 inch away from the painter's tape (or whatever range your tube test spread indicated). Within 5 minutes of application, dip your fingers or a plastic putty knife into the water/Dawn mixture, then "help" direct the sealant leveling by utilizing light pressure to push the bead circulation into the desired slope or shape.

Utilize the exact same technique to develop a feathered edge towards the painter's tape. As quickly as the sealant develops a skin coat, get rid of the painter's tape. Lap Sealant Remedy Time5 Minutes Skins over4 Hours Waterproof48 Hours 80% Cure30 Days 100% CureAnother alternative is to skip utilizing lap sealant completely and utilize roofing system sealant tape rather.

The price of the tape is similar to utilizing lap sealant (and maybe a little cheaper). We utilized Beech Lane tape, which we picked up at Amazon for under $35 (here's the link if interested). Rubber Sealant Applied To Camper Roof CleanedAnd here's a photo after applying a fresh coat of rubber roofing finishing.