Quote:
Originally Posted by JRTJH
Some other Keystone trailers are constructed with aluminum or steel rafters, that's not the case with Springdale.
Springdale trailers are constructed with wooden rafters. As posted above, they are not much more than 1x1 and 1x2 spruce that's glued and stapled together to form an arched rafter. Over the years moisture, twisting motion from towing, walking on the roof and decomposition of the adhesive will cause the rafters to "weaken". Additionally, as with any "mass produced product" there's no "sure fire way" to know that all the staples are actually "holding the rafters together"....
So, the less weight you put on any rafter, the less number of times you walk on the roof, the more you can "spread the weight" over a larger area, the longer your trailer roof will last.
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I agree the Springdale rafters are not built robust, but don't assume that because they are wood and not aluminum that they are not strong. In the case of the Springdale, that's is probably a correct statement. There are several high end brands that still use wooden rafters for different reasons and they are designed to be fully walkable. Last I checked, my house was built with wood rafters too. It's not the material, it's the design. Kids build bridges in shop class with popsicle sticks that can withstand hundreds of pounds of pressure.