Hi All! I just got a 1996 StarCraft 1224 popup camper. This is my very first camper, and I've never even been in one before!
The roof is shot, it's come apart from the side and is sagging. I don't feel comfortable camping in it the way it is. Is there a semi easy fix to it? The seller said the top had vinyl on it, and to just peel that off the top and to replace the wood. My dad took a look and said he couldn't find any wood, and that it was metal. Any ideas?
Is there someone good/inexpensive in the Chester County PA area that you can recommend for repair?
Thanks so much!
[quote author=MariskaHargitay link=topic=1376.msg10635#msg10635 date=1328613919]
... The seller said the top had vinyl on it, and to just peel that off the top and to replace the wood. My dad took a look and said he couldn't find any wood, and that it was metal. Any ideas?
A rotted top is, unfortunately, not an easy fix. I don't know if Starcraft used an all aluminum roof structure, but I kind of doubt it.
The usual roof construction is a vinyl "wallpaper" on the inside, covering a wood structure on the sides. The outside and top is covered either in sheet aluminum or plastic/fiberglass panels. The roof framing, side to side, is usually just thin wood strips.
The only way to properly repair a roof is to remove it, strip the covering material and rebuild the wood. Not an easy job by any stretch of the imagination. You need a really solid structure to attach the lift posts, and I assume that's where yours is sagging? Water gets in through the seam at the sides of the roof and rots the side roof supports.
There have been a few campers on the market with aluminum framing in the roof and I don't know if Starcraft did it or not. If it is, you need to pull back any interior covering to be able to see the lift post attachment and see what's ailing it.
Keep us posted and post some pics if you can. With some pics of the damage we might be able to advise you better.
John
The good news is you have plenty of time to do the repair before the camping season.
I did a partial repair to the roof of my Coleman. Below is the video of my repair....don't know if it will help you but you can see how a coleman roof is put together. I don't have the time to do a full roof replacement so this was my bandaid. I also sanded and painted my roof and replaced the center seam because water was getting in there. I still have a problem with water droplets on the inside. Someone said it was because I had it tarped, but I had the tarp off for a month and still had water droplets. I'm done with figuring out my roof. My pup is now in the garage (thanks to a new house purchase) so I only have to worry about it when I am camping. If it is supposed to rain while camping, I will put a tarp over the roof before I raise it.
I only need to get another season or two out of mine before I can talk DW into getting a TT.
Matt O 2006 Skyline Nomad 27' travel trailer. Previously owned 1986 Coleman Columbia / 1992 Coleman Senecca / 1989 Born Free Class C RV.
My Dad ended up bracing the roof with 2x4's temporarily, then putting up 1x2's around side wall of the camper where the roof was sagging, and removed the 2x4's. Then he siliconed the hell out of the outside. It's a little scary feeling, but I have to trust my Dad, who was an engineer. Ideally a professional fix would be better, but my dad's costs were more agreeable 😉
If it works for a few trips, great!! Then you can decide if you will fix it more or move on to another camper. Or you could decide you hate camping and want to stay in a hotel from now one 😀
Matt O 2006 Skyline Nomad 27' travel trailer. Previously owned 1986 Coleman Columbia / 1992 Coleman Senecca / 1989 Born Free Class C RV.
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