trailer roof cracking

[JRS]

I have a 1996 Mainliner (out of business) enclosed car trailer that has a flat aluminum roof. years of sitting in the sun has made the roof bow up in many different spots and crack. I have sealed it many times with many different type of sealents without any luck. The local trailer guy told me to call the Pace factory about having them replace the roof, since the only good way is to replace it with one flat piece of aluminum. Pace in Waco won't call me back. Any other ideas?

 

[fkovalski]

What about something like---> THIS

 

[jelag]

I've done this on a motorhome..... really wasn't a bad project. . You can buy off a roll a wide piece of material like what you'd find on the roof of a semi trailer..... easy to install... . but takes a lot of time...



Or you could get the snow seal... from the box store... . put a nice heavy coat down with the material that is designed to seal and bond... . with a cover coating... . I've done this as well... and it works fine... but make sure the roof is very clean... . I washed it... with tri-sodium phosphast (sp) scratched the surface with 100 grit paper and applied the snow seal... . 3 years later it was fine when I sold the trailer... .

 

[JRS]

Both of those might work. My problem is the existing aluminum. It is bowed up so bad in so many places, I couldn't begin to screw every bow down.

 

[fkovalski]

Both of those might work. My problem is the existing aluminum. It is bowed up so bad in so many places, I couldn't begin to screw every bow down.

Is there a substrate under the metal?... Can the aluminum be taken off?... or would that leave the trailer exposed with just the cross beams left in place?



A roof just has to hold up its own weight and a snow load if required. If removing the aluminum open up the inside... . is it possible to add something like 3/8" plywood, then rubber roof it? This might be more work than you wan to do.

 

[nps]

My problem is the existing aluminum. It is bowed up so bad in so many places, I couldn't begin to screw every bow down.

Hummm... . maybe that's why they went out of business.





Like fkovalski said - either remove the aluminum, or you could deck it on top with some 1/8 lauan plywood like they use under vinyl floors then cover it with a membrane.

 

[fkovalski]

... either remove the aluminum, or you could deck it on top ...

I would do both. If the aluminum is bowing, it would probably still continue to do so even with a sheathing of sorts on top. I was thinking that the luan, pltwd... would replace the aluminum, then use a waterproffing of choice.



It's hard to get an idea of the existing conditions... are photos available?

 

[JRS]

Got a call this morning from the Pace factory outside of Waco. A guy named Mike was really nice and new the exact problem with my trailer roof. He said they couldn't fix it there because they were only new construction. He also said there were probably only a handful of places in the country that could repair it, because of the length of the aluminum top. He recommended Country Side Trailer Sales. I spoke with Chris at Country Side Spring, Tx. (outside of Houston) He took my information and called me back. After speaking with his bosses, they called Pace to get a price on a new piece of aluminum (32' long x 8'4" wide) Their quote was lower than what I expected, but they encouraged me to bring the trailer by for a firm quote. I'm heading up there next week. Thanks for all the ideas, if it doesn't work out with Country Side, I'll try the membrane idea.

 

[fkovalski]

You might want to ask why/ how the original aluminum bowed the way it did. Expansion due to heat on a piece that is 32' long could be why this is buckling. Ask if the replacement will do the same thing. Is it possible to cover the roof using sections that are overlapped properly and sealed as to help reduce this scenerio?



I'd ask more questions before commiting to the work. Look at othe trailer brands to see how they are constructed. You don't want to be dealing with this hassle in another few years.