Roof Ballooning

Yareelohim · 10-13-2022, 07:40 PM

I have an almost 2 year old Keystone Hideout I bought brand new. The roof has recently started to bubble/balloon while driving. Its obvious some air must be getting in but I can't figure out where and not sure what to do.

I did inspect the seal on the transition strip of the front cap then I cleaned it well and applied dicor lap sealant over it. When inspecting I also noticed the sheet metal on the bubbling side appears to have been cut too short and there is a gap between the sheet metal and corner molding. There was a ton of sealant covering that but has now worn off and is exposed. I sealed it with non-sag dicor but the roof is bubbling when driving still.

1) Any ideas or advice on what I should do?

2) What are the proper sealants I should be using for routine maintenance? I know about lap sealant for the roof, but I am not sure about all the other sealants and what I should be sealing each year.

Thanks!

I'll try to figure out how to post some pictures.

**JRTJH** · 10-14-2022, 08:27 AM

Take a look at the structural warranty section of your owner's manual:

"“Structural” means the RV’s (i) main steel frame and steel support members (outriggers and cross members) (ii) exterior sidewalls, laminated or non-laminated, including fiberglass, aluminum siding and wall studs (iii) floors, laminated or non-laminated, including decking and floor joists (iv) roofs, laminated or non-laminated, including decking, roof rafters and roof material installation (v) fiberglass cap(s) including paint application, and windshield installation, if applicable (this structural warranty item does not cover damages to the cap(s) such as impact, rock chips, dents, scratches or failure to maintain all as addressed in the disclaimers below and elsewhere in this Owner’s Manual), and (vi) slide out box exterior sidewalls/end alls/roofs/floors, skeletal framing, decking and roof material installation"

The part in red applies to your roof issue. That said, it should be covered, but Keystone may object because of the condition of your roof seam. In your photo, there doesn't appear to be any "newly applied sealant" which is an owner responsibility. If they can attribute the problem to air getting under the membrane "AT THAT LOCATION" then they may have grounds to refuse a repair.....

The other "last line that bolded" applies ONLY to the slide and slide roof, which is not covered by the structural warranty. If your dealer points to that part and says, "Your problem is not warranted, it says so right here". Remind them that statement is "FOR THE SLIDE" not for the main chassis roof membrane. The way that last line is "worded" it could be interpreted as an "and" associated with the previous exclusion, or it could be "worded" as an additional inclusion with the previous ones listed in the paragraph. Logically, the Roman Numeral follows the inclusions, but "at first glance" someone could point to it as an exclusion, not the next inclusion.... READ CAREFULLY and be prepared for the dealerl to try to get you to pay for the repair rather then file a warranty claim because if you pay, it's $150+ per hour, if Keystone warranty pays, it's probably around half that much in labor allowances, so the dealer wants to maximize profits on the repair and may try to exclude any warranty claims.....

Yareelohim · 10-14-2022, 08:53 PM

Thanks.
That seal was just inspected 3 months prior to this happening. It was inspected during the annual inspection. The super white part is where the membrane got pulled away from the sealant due to the wind. I took it back to the dealership when we returned from the trip and they said warranty most likely wouldn’t cover this due to the extreme sun in our area (second sunniest city in the nation). However they are willing to do a full inspection to see if thee is something they can go back on for the warranty.

If the warranty doesn’t apply, is this a fix I can do?

**chuckster57** · 10-15-2022, 03:43 PM

Warranty won’t cover because of the sun??? I call BS on that one.

I personally would like to see a copy of the claim they submit. DIY? With all the loose spots your looking at a daunting task IMO.

**sourdough** · 10-15-2022, 04:53 PM

Who did the annual inspection? You or the dealer. Warranty not covering because of sun is just....not right. If the dealer is doing the yearly inspection/maintenance and this happened it's on them or their ability to convince Keystone everything was done and it still failed.

hxckidd · 10-17-2022, 08:39 AM

the same thing happened to mine. I pulled back the roof and applied more glue, then sealed everything back up. I added another strip across the top of the roof to keep the membrane down and sealed that up. So far so good and no problems anymore.

Yareelohim · 10-20-2022, 05:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hxckidd

the same thing happened to mine. I pulled back the roof and applied more glue, then sealed everything back up. I added another strip across the top of the roof to keep the membrane down and sealed that up. So far so good and no problems anymore.

Do you have any pictures of the work you did? I may need to consider doing this.

To everyone else saying BS on the sun/warranty. I agree. That’s ridiculous.

The dealership did the annual warranty inspection too which I submitted.

jasin1 · 10-20-2022, 06:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hxckidd

the same thing happened to mine. I pulled back the roof and applied more glue, then sealed everything back up. I added another strip across the top of the roof to keep the membrane down and sealed that up. So far so good and no problems anymore.

i just watched a video about rv warranty’s ( rv wingman) and the expert lemon law lawyer he interviewed said that you should be very very careful about fixing anything yourself that still has a warranty on it..or at least don’t admit to it because the manufacturer will probably void your warranty because of that…or they could void the warranty on something else if they can trace it back to your repair.

i thought i’d just fix anything that pops up myself but this does make me think twice on structural repairs

hxckidd · 10-20-2022, 07:03 AM

You can see the 2nd strip here. Disregard how messy my roof is on my trailer, and not sure why half my caulking is white and the other is attracting dirt, 2 different tubes of the exact same sealant. lol But now i realized i need to clean my roof. lol

Also i bought this trailer used and do not have a warranty on it. This was an easy fix

**flybouy** · 10-20-2022, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jasin1

i just watched a video about rv warranty’s ( rv wingman) and the expert lemon law lawyer he interviewed said that you should be very very careful about fixing anything yourself that still has a warranty on it..or at least don’t admit to it because the manufacturer will probably void your warranty because of that…or they could void the warranty on something else if they can trace it back to your repair.

i thought i’d just fix anything that pops up myself but this does make me think twice on structural repairs

You watched a video and didn't post it? The interventions must be working.

sorry, couldn't help myself!

I agree with your statement. When I was working in the retail and restaurant buisness (development dept. building out new sites) I would give the operators a lease abstract with the landlord's responsibilities. Then stress the point NOT to touch anything on that list. I sat in court and watched judges/juries had out judgements against the company when the issue was the responsibility of the landlord. Each time the operator had a landlord issue fixed to satisfy a customer. Then later when the issue reoccured the company now "owned it" because they took on the responsibility to "fix it".

jasin1 · 10-20-2022, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flybouy

You watched a video and didn't post it? The interventions must be working.

sorry, couldn't help myself!

I agree with your statement. When I was working in the retail and restaurant buisness (development dept. building out new sites) I would give the operators a lease abstract with the landlord's responsibilities. Then stress the point NOT to touch anything on that list. I sat in court and watched judges/juries had out judgements against the company when the issue was the responsibility of the landlord. Each time the operator had a landlord issue fixed to satisfy a customer. Then later when the issue reoccured the company now "owned it" because they took on the responsibility to "fix it".

yeah lol…you can’t really blame the company that is responsible for the warranty..they have no idea the skill level of the “repairman”…i run into that every now and then in my business

flookk · 10-23-2022, 08:24 AM

Hahahahahaha...extreme sun! That's awesome. What about disqualified because of the extreme wind of driving down the highway or the extreme rain in the Pacific Northwest?

I had the same response when my 35 year asphalt roof shingles disintegrated in 5 years due to me having installed them on my roof out in the full sun!!I

X3 on the BS

Gary Rivers · 10-23-2022, 12:33 PM

I had this happen to my Camper about 2 year of owning it. It was determined that the glue was not properly applied. Keystone authorized the warrenty repair. The RV lot that sold my Travel trailer had it for a few weeks. They need to lift the front membrane replace plywood and reapply the glue and reseal.
you will have poor adheasion if you just reglue it and would just fail again.

Get it repaired under warrenty if you can and keep an eye on it and watch your max speed.
The faster you go the greater the pressure diffrential is.

best of luck.

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