Rubber roof, or metal and paint?

[Lin]

We used Kool Seal about 5 years ago, and it has stood up to the desert sun since then with no problems.  I was thinking of maybe giving it another coat as a preventative measure come winter when it will be more comfortable to work here.  Some have complained that the product chalks a bit leaving ghost lines down the side of the bus.  This is sometimes true, but they rinse right off.  Also, there are probably some other similar elastomeric roof coatings that may not do that.  I do not know if they provide as much of a radiant barrier as Bus-kote, but it definitely does help.  The application is simple with a brush or roller, and if you ever want to recoat as I might, you just wash down the roof with something like TSP and your ready to go.  Kool Seal gives a 10 year warranty, but I really do not know what they means.

[chessie4905]

Rustoleum carries a spray can of clear for spraying a rubberized coating. I've seen it at Lowes. Also body shops used to use a product called chip gard. Don't know if it is still avail.

[gus]

Rubber roofs is one of the reasons I never want a S&S RV.

If you look at any RV accessories catalog and see all the different things sold to repair/renovate rubber roofs you will see what I mean!

[Simy]

Yeah we decided to not go on with it for that very reason, sounds like too much hassle and we have a steel roof that has now been patched and is less maintenance then most rubber roofs and should last just as long with half the effort; if not longer.

Now a standard RV's wooden roof, that is a different story...

[pabusnut]

I just got around to painting(well about 1/3) of the roof on my GM 4905.  The existing paint looked to be original and was nearly all chalky and gone!  There were even lichens growing in the paint prior to sanding with the 150 grit sandpaper!  The original MK&O stickers on both ends of the top roof were all gone except the adhesive, which was a booger to get off.  I sanded it down and used a rotary wire brush around all the rivets(where all the paint cracking was) which took like forever! 

I used the enamel primer and glossy white from Tractor supply.  I used a 4" roller with 3/8" nap to roll on both paints.  It doesn't leave a completely smooth appearance like spray paint, but I think each coat is significantly thicker.  Since nobody sees the top, I really don't care what it looks like, I consider the roof paint to be a "protective coating."

I think I am going to roll the paint on the sides too, but I will probably use a foam roller in hopes of a smoother appearance.  I am hoping to get a 50/50 paint job out of it!  My color of choice is white to reflect heat, thus cutting down on my cooling load.  The glossy white TS paint looks good, and I am cheap, so $30/gallon is right in my price range!

Steve Toomey
PAbusnut


S

[Simy]

Its funny you mention that, we got rustolem paint from home depot but basically the same deal as you. Its quite bright/reflective and I've noticed a significant reduction in heat with the new paint. (I have no insulation on the ceiling currently) Granted my roof looks terrible... I call it frankenroof but its not leaking on any of the welds (It does leak on the temporarily positioned rooftop AC's but I didn't feel like going through the hassle just to take them back out in a few months. They are just to be able to work inside if we need to.)

Here are some links to the work in progress.
The work: http://www.maxrving.com/2013/07/nearly-done-with-patched-roof.html
And a quick fix: http://www.maxrving.com/2013/08/roof-ac-update.html

In between there is a post that shows the freshly painted roof without the roof AC's.