Rhino Lining

[John McNamara]

The roof on our 1996 Coleman Key West has all but given up the ghost. The roof is seriously starting to separate in several spots. We have tried Marine Tex, ABS repair kit and the do-it-yourself ABS mixture (MEK and ABS chips); none of it has worked. We are faced with two choices -- an alternative repair or try selling the unit either for scrap or to someone who would want to give an overhaul a go.

After talking with a lot of people, the best alternative repair idea we have come up with is replacing the external layer of the roof with something else. Rhino Lining has been suggested by several people we've talked to. Here's my question: Is the ABS roof a series of layers? Can we peel one off, coat the remainder with Rhino Lining and then say a rubber roof coating?

Thanks.
John

[mike4947]

In a word...no. The roof is made up of layers, but only three. Two layers (inner & outer) bonded to the foam core. The outside ABS shell gives the roof the majority of it's structural strength. Remove it and what remains couldn't support it's own weight.

[John McNamara]

In a word...no. The roof is made up of layers, but only three. Two layers (inner & outer) bonded to the foam core. The outside ABS shell gives the roof the majority of it's structural strength. Remove it and what remains couldn't support it's own weight.

Than something really funky has gone on with our roof. We've been talking, thinking and researching. We decided on a repair using fiberglass cloth and an ABS slurry (ABS chips mixed in MEK).

We've put one patch on a section that was cracked and flaking. It doesn't look too bad. (Pictures forthcoming). Then we tackled the big cracks.

After discovering we couldn't glue them down, we decided to cut away the worst part of the roof, shoot some Liquid Nails under the remainder and then fill in the cut away part with the ABS slurry and top it with the fiberglass cloth and slurry. When we cut away the roof, we found plywood underneath. It hadn't rotted (thank goodness).

So, in a roof that is supposed to be ABS, foam, ABS, we have plywood. We are continuing as planned. Right now, we are testing the Liquid Nails to see if it will hold down the roof. Any thoughts?

[mike4947]

I'm going by the cutaway the dealer had on his counter to demonstrate the ABS roof construction.
If you do have a layer of luan the liquid nails will work on it, and if the foam is still attached to the ABS it should bond to that as well. Bonding directly to the ABS won't be a long term solution.

[John McNamara]

The test from last night has held firm, so we have applied more Liquid Nails to another part. We'll see how that holds up. I can't locate any foam between the ABS and the plywood. I looked at the back side of parts we cut away and there is nothing there.

The first photo is where we have cut away the broken and buckled section of roof. The second photo is a side-by-side shot of an ABS and fiberglass cloth patch and a similar spot which will get a patch in the future.