Coleman ABS Roof

[Sjm9911]

Yea, not abs. And rhats not good. Take a look at the thread I posted. And start a new one with the corect roof. Others will help. I have not had that roof.

 

[Sjm9911]

2005 Fleetwood - Alumitite Roof Rebuild - Rack Track Leaks

So, to start, thanks to all who helped me source the crank assembly needed to repair my "as-is" purchase of our 2005 Fleetwood Allegiance (Americana Line) trailer. Upon finally sourcing a key, and being able to actually peek inside, the interior is is fantastic shape - stove, fridge, heater...

www.popupportal.com

 

[Breckler23]

Yea, not abs. And rhats not good. Take a look at the thread I posted. And start a new one with the corect roof. Others will help. I have not had that roof.

Thanks i have created a new thread, let me know if i need to do anything else, or a good person to reach out to.

 

[NRCAMPING]

Hello all, new member here. Recently purchased a 1996 coleman santa fe will cracking/delaminating abs roof. I have gone through this whole thread and I am trying to confirm if anyone has had success with abs removal and then using the Henry's topicool silicone straight on the foam?
THANKS Nick

 

[erincel]

Hello all, new member here. Recently purchased a 1996 coleman santa fe will cracking/delaminating abs roof. I have gone through this whole thread and I am trying to confirm if anyone has had success with abs removal and then using the Henry's topicool silicone straight on the foam?
THANKS Nick

Hi Nick,
As you can see this is a really old, and very long thread. I have the same year and model of pup as you. I removed the cracked roof, just finished building the unistrut frame and installing inside to remove the sag. I am in the process of sourcing materials to seal the outside after going through and removing left over adhesive, and applying bondo to any places that foam got pulled away with the ABS. It was so delaminated that there are only a few spot that this is needed. I'll try to throw some pictures up later this week. Henry's sounded like a good choice for the outside, but I was leaning more toward Lanco Ultra Siliconizer, as it clearly states on the label that it can be applied to foam ( I assume that means spray foam, but the rigid foam of the roof doesn't seem much different).

 

[Sjm9911]

All I know is that the bedliner holds up. And people had good success with it. Anything else may work fine or not. Just post some info on how it holds up or dosen't here. That way people will know in the future.

 

[Brian Rudichuk]

I was wondering who here has a Coleman ABS Roof. Also, if you have had problems and fixed it, what did you do?

This is a common problem with the Coleman ABS roof system. The outer layer cracks and eventually de laminates. I purchased a 2001 Coleman Cheyenne and pretty much parked it for the winter and the following spring got ready to do some cleaning, repairing and what I thought would be touch up the roof cracks. However, the roof was so badly cracked that I soon realized I was looking at a much bigger repair. Then upon closer inspection I discovered that large sections of the abs plastic had completely separated from the layer underneath.
I ended up completely stripping the plastic off of the roof. My solution was to paint on 3 coats of Flex Seal Rubber Paint. I rolled it on heavy and it took about 3 gallons. It is about $100 per gallon. That was done in the spring of 2019. We have traveled to Canada (3600 mile round trip), Kentucky twice (1600 round trip) Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma and been in lots of rain. Not a drop of water and the rubber is still like brand new after 3 full years. The only thing is it shows dirt and needs to go through a high pressure car wash a couple times a year to look nice and white.
There are other solutions and several good videos on Youtube regarding different solutions. I am not a real craftsman so using a spray gun, etc. was not in my skillset which is why I went with my solution.

 

[tomson]

bought new , always garaged but still looks like new.

 

[Genebob]

I was wondering who here has a Coleman ABS Roof. Also, if you have had problems and fixed it, what did you do?

I bought it, the ABS peeled off while I was driving it home. I put Grizzly Grip on it. It is better than it was before.

 

[Nonfictionally]

This is a common problem with the Coleman ABS roof system. The outer layer cracks and eventually de laminates. I purchased a 2001 Coleman Cheyenne and pretty much parked it for the winter and the following spring got ready to do some cleaning, repairing and what I thought would be touch up the roof cracks. However, the roof was so badly cracked that I soon realized I was looking at a much bigger repair. Then upon closer inspection I discovered that large sections of the abs plastic had completely separated from the layer underneath.
I ended up completely stripping the plastic off of the roof. My solution was to paint on 3 coats of Flex Seal Rubber Paint. I rolled it on heavy and it took about 3 gallons. It is about $100 per gallon. That was done in the spring of 2019. We have traveled to Canada (3600 mile round trip), Kentucky twice (1600 round trip) Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma and been in lots of rain. Not a drop of water and the rubber is still like brand new after 3 full years. The only thing is it shows dirt and needs to go through a high pressure car wash a couple times a year to look nice and white.
There are other solutions and several good videos on Youtube regarding different solutions. I am not a real craftsman so using a spray gun, etc. was not in my skillset which is why I went with my solution.

I understand you completely stripped the plastic of the roof. But how did you work around the hold down buckles and awning rail (if you have that)? Did you leave the sides of the roof intact?

 

[NRCAMPING]

Hi Nick,
As you can see this is a really old, and very long thread. I have the same year and model of pup as you. I removed the cracked roof, just finished building the unistrut frame and installing inside to remove the sag. I am in the process of sourcing materials to seal the outside after going through and removing left over adhesive, and applying bondo to any places that foam got pulled away with the ABS. It was so delaminated that there are only a few spot that this is needed. I'll try to throw some pictures up later this week. Henry's sounded like a good choice for the outside, but I was leaning more toward Lanco Ultra Siliconizer, as it clearly states on the label that it can be applied to foam ( I assume that means spray foam, but the rigid foam of the roof doesn't seem much different).

This is off the Henry's topicool brochure I downloaded.. It mentions spray foam roofs as well.

 

[Sjm9911]

Just remember that some are all foam ( what type I have no idea) and some have fiberglass mesh reinforcement on top.

 

[Kevlore]

I haven't had issues with any leaks yet on my 2002 Bayside.

The roof had the start of what looked like hairline cracks, do I decide to decrease it and spray with white Raptor coating.

Looked great after I finished but after the first year in the extreme weather up in Canada, the hairline cracks showed up through the Raptor coating.

Now I'm thinking of using a roll on rubberized white coating. Probably overkill but still no leaks from roof.

Back panel was cracked, so damage from water in back and front box has water issues, cracks in lid, front and sides of box. The biggest issue with front box leak was a sagging centre of top of box, where the interior light is, the box was about 1.5" lower in center then sides creating a trough where water would sit then seap in through the screw holes from hinge. I build a 2x2 support to place under this area to lift the sag straight/level. Removed the hinge ( I take whole lid off to dig in the box now), seals up the screw holes with mej, hasn't leaked since.

I rebuilt the whole inside back panel and floor corners at rear, but didn't want to trouble of rebuilding the front too

So far so good.
Fingers crossed. This winter there was probably 4' of snow on the trailer parked outside under a camper cover. Maybe the whole roof is screwed now altogether, who knows.

Might not be able to afford the had to pull it anywhere this summer anyway. Yikes. Ha ha

 

[Brian Rudichuk]

I understand you completely stripped the plastic of the roof. But how did you work around the hold down buckles and awning rail (if you have that)? Did you leave the sides of the roof inta

I understand you completely stripped the plastic of the roof. But how did you work around the hold down buckles and awning rail (if you have that)? Did you leave the sides of the roof intact?

I did not receive an awning with my camper. The awning rail was broken at both ends, so when I removed the abs I removed the rail as well. It was attached to the abs layer and not to the substructure of the roof so it came off easily. I use a 14 foot square canopy for the purpose of an awning/outdoor kitchen setup. Just make sure if you go this route you use a canopy that has vertical legs; some have legs that are angled and do not allow you to erect the canopy close enough to the camper to act as an awning. The 14 footer allows me to place the canopy across the entire length of my camper overlapping the roof and putting the drip edge over the roof. This is not always workable depending on tree location, type of parking pad, etc. You would also want to bring some sort of blocks that would allow you to level the canopy because of uneven terrain. If you are dead set on having an awning, you can purchase an aluminum replacement rail. It installs with a bunch of screws or bolts. But you have to drill into or through your roof to attach it. There is a polybutyl tape available at Camper's World which effectively seals out moisture and would be put between the rail and roof. It would effectively seal all points of water ingress I would think but I preferred my canopy solution.

As for the hold down buckles, I would use a reciprocating saw to cut around them leaving the rectangular abs pieces and buckles intact. On my unit none of these were delaminated at all. Then I just painted over the abs really well and so far it has held up. My camper is garaged when not in use. Being parked out in the elements 24/7/365 may impact the durability of my solution. I have been on some really long trips and driven 70-75 all the way. The rubber paint has adhered beautifully to the surface below with zero peeling, bubbling or loosening in any way (I also might mention that I did zero prep to the surface before I painted it). I have since seen that many people use bondo to smooth out the surface before applying their solution. I would have had a prettier finished product if I had done this but I didn't. I forgot to mention that I added a very fine silica sand to the final coat to add some texture. This was mostly for aesthetics.

I have used a high pressure car wash wand to wash it several times and have had no issues with peeling or separation so far. Just keep the nozzle at a reasonable distance to minimize this possibility.
For me Flex Seal was a cheap, easy and functional solution.

 

[Sheri Stripling]

I was wondering who here has a Coleman ABS Roof. Also, if you have had problems and fixed it, what did you do?

Yes. Our Coleman Destiny had a roof that was sagging, cracking, and delaminated! We started out fixing it.
Tried gluing the top back on with construction glue, and weighting it down with multiple gallon water jugs.
It worked! (Kinda) Then we looked on Pinterest and found info on fixing the cracks with MEK and plastic forks/spoons. That worked too! (Kinda) The sagging we fixed by putting another bow/brace in front of the roof a/c. Ten we covered the whole thing with Rhino Liner that protect it from further deterioration. Then we took it on a road trip…
By the time we got back, everything had cracked again… (see photos) Needless to say, it was a lot of wasted time and materials. So…we ended up having the roof replaced. Not cheap! But,
in the end, it gave us many years of
pleasure with our Pup.

 

[Sjm9911]

Just take the abs off and recoat with bed liner. Abs repaires sometimes work. Read the thread to find out why. Should be how ro re attach the awning in here also, and the latches. Easy to do, but dont glue it on like the previous one was. You need backer plates.

 

[Nonfictionally]

I did not receive an awning with my camper. The awning rail was broken at both ends, so when I removed the abs I removed the rail as well. It was attached to the abs layer and not to the substructure of the roof so it came off easily. I use a 14 foot square canopy for the purpose of an awning/outdoor kitchen setup. Just make sure if you go this route you use a canopy that has vertical legs; some have legs that are angled and do not allow you to erect the canopy close enough to the camper to act as an awning. The 14 footer allows me to place the canopy across the entire length of my camper overlapping the roof and putting the drip edge over the roof. This is not always workable depending on tree location, type of parking pad, etc. You would also want to bring some sort of blocks that would allow you to level the canopy because of uneven terrain. If you are dead set on having an awning, you can purchase an aluminum replacement rail. It installs with a bunch of screws or bolts. But you have to drill into or through your roof to attach it. There is a polybutyl tape available at Camper's World which effectively seals out moisture and would be put between the rail and roof. It would effectively seal all points of water ingress I would think but I preferred my canopy solution.

As for the hold down buckles, I would use a reciprocating saw to cut around them leaving the rectangular abs pieces and buckles intact. On my unit none of these were delaminated at all. Then I just painted over the abs really well and so far it has held up. My camper is garaged when not in use. Being parked out in the elements 24/7/365 may impact the durability of my solution. I have been on some really long trips and driven 70-75 all the way. The rubber paint has adhered beautifully to the surface below with zero peeling, bubbling or loosening in any way (I also might mention that I did zero prep to the surface before I painted it). I have since seen that many people use bondo to smooth out the surface before applying their solution. I would have had a prettier finished product if I had done this but I didn't. I forgot to mention that I added a very fine silica sand to the final coat to add some texture. This was mostly for aesthetics.

I have used a high pressure car wash wand to wash it several times and have had no issues with peeling or separation so far. Just keep the nozzle at a reasonable distance to minimize this possibility.
For me Flex Seal was a cheap, easy and functional solution.

Thanks! I appreciate the detailed explanation. It's very helpful.

 

[NRCAMPING]

Hi Nick,
As you can see this is a really old, and very long thread. I have the same year and model of pup as you. I removed the cracked roof, just finished building the unistrut frame and installing inside to remove the sag. I am in the process of sourcing materials to seal the outside after going through and removing left over adhesive, and applying bondo to any places that foam got pulled away with the ABS. It was so delaminated that there are only a few spot that this is needed. I'll try to throw some pictures up later this week. Henry's sounded like a good choice for the outside, but I was leaning more toward Lanco Ultra Siliconizer, as it clearly states on the label that it can be applied to foam ( I assume that means spray foam, but the rigid foam of the roof doesn't seem much different).

Have you tackled the roof coating yet? Any pics?
THANKS Nick

 

[erincel]

Have you tackled the roof coating yet? Any pics?
THANKS Nick

I just posted an update with photos, in the “sagging ABS Roof Repair with photos & How to tips” thread if you want to see the progression.

 

[MeghanE]

I got most of the roof off. When I was trying to get this section, the only part not delaminating, I gouged the foam. Discretion being the better part of valor, I decided to stop here and ask for help.

Question is can I sand down the edges of the stubborn ABS maybe bridge it with Bondo since I have a hole that needs bondo anyway, and then coat with Grizzly Grip? Or do I need to risk additional gouges trying to get this section removed? Not sure if it matters, but there is fiberglass on top of the foam. As well as embedded in every part of my body. Ouch.

I am happy that there is no sagging and the only damage was self inflicted.