Post by swampmonster on Nov 15, 2018 5:50:30 GMT
Well folks, there are many methods out there...Yep, so take yer pick
But, in reality, there are very few methods that will actually work reliably nuff to survive HWY speeds and storms..We are talking glass panels here, not flex panels.
Panel makers all offer their version of 'Z' bracket type roof mounts complete with screws and bolts....Or you can fabricate your own, but unless you are mounting your panels to a custom rack, then you like me, will wanna screw them to your roof...YUP....Most of us will decide to screw them to our actual roof....Yup, lotsa holes in your roof, I know, I know, but there are ways to seal those holes, so let's just talk about HOW you attach them....The hardware-the fasteners you must select to insure they don't fly off on I-10 at 80MPH.
Before you begin to select fasteners, you really need to determine how and of exactly WHAT your roof is constructed....Fiberglass, metal, wood...what?...And how THICK is that material?
Trust me, you may very well be surprised to learn how fragile and thin most RV roofs are....I certainly was with mine.
My particular roof is very likely exactly like yours.......My huge beautiful expensive motor home has a roof made of 1/8" thick luan plywood, covered in a very thin film of rubber type stuff call TPO....
That's it, that's all....1/8" thick plywood and TPO film....And yeah, my whole RV and roof is framed with aluminum trusses and studs, but WTF the roof is only 1/8" thick plywood?
!!...Yep, it is....How can me and my buddy walk on it with out breaking thru?!!!! Been up there countless times and it seemed solid as concrete!...HUH? 1/8" thick plywood?....Yup, it's true.
Well it seems solid because of how the total roof is constructed...because those RV makers bond that thin plywood to thick foam insulation and carefully calculate the number of trusses and only reinforce areas where heavy stuff like your A/C sits.....The foam and the trusses and the plywood all combine to make a structure that will support you, but the items you need to attach to are really iffy because it is so thin and made of wood....And those selftapping 1 1/4" long screws supplied with your Z brackets are totally worthless in thin plywood.
To understand it, start with the TPO film..It is very thin and only glued down with water based adhesive.....And friend, it WILL easily peel off in big chunks, but usually hold for many years to the plywood beneath it IF you don't tug on it....hmmmm....That means if I stick my panels down with that super forever Eternabond or 3M tape, then the attachment is only as solid as the TPO to the roof?...YUP, exactly...Your panels will blow off yet the Z brackets will still be attached with high dollar tape to the shredded TPO it took with it down the HWY....Yup, happens often.
That sucks, and you say the screws are worthless too?...Yup, the plywood is too thin to allow them to bite nuff to resist the forces of the winds....They simply pull out....If they are screwed and taped, then the tape yanks chunks off roof film too for bigger suck.
So what do we do?...Simple, we use fasteners designed for the materials we need to attach to....In the case of most RV's that fastener is called a WELL NUT....then you apply a screw thru the Z bracket hole into the inside of the well nut and tighten the screw....Then the Well Nut expands greatly and it's attachment strength is multiplied and spread out over a much larger area of the back side of that thin ply wood.
Neoprene well nuts with thread brass inserts that will last forever and remain in the roof ready to be reattached whenever the panels are removed...Cool, huh?....BUT they cost almost 2 bucks each....Kinda buy once, cry once thang, yaknow?
Now I know many of you guys will get your panties all wadded up and scream I don't need well nuts and my panels have been on my roof two years, and yada, yada, yada...But friends there are many just like you that have experienced their panels blowing off at HWY speeds onto the cars behind them.
ALL truly professional installers use well nuts on thin wooden, fiberglass and even some metal roofs..All of them...So do I
But, in reality, there are very few methods that will actually work reliably nuff to survive HWY speeds and storms..We are talking glass panels here, not flex panels.
Panel makers all offer their version of 'Z' bracket type roof mounts complete with screws and bolts....Or you can fabricate your own, but unless you are mounting your panels to a custom rack, then you like me, will wanna screw them to your roof...YUP....Most of us will decide to screw them to our actual roof....Yup, lotsa holes in your roof, I know, I know, but there are ways to seal those holes, so let's just talk about HOW you attach them....The hardware-the fasteners you must select to insure they don't fly off on I-10 at 80MPH.
Before you begin to select fasteners, you really need to determine how and of exactly WHAT your roof is constructed....Fiberglass, metal, wood...what?...And how THICK is that material?
Trust me, you may very well be surprised to learn how fragile and thin most RV roofs are....I certainly was with mine.
My particular roof is very likely exactly like yours.......My huge beautiful expensive motor home has a roof made of 1/8" thick luan plywood, covered in a very thin film of rubber type stuff call TPO....
That's it, that's all....1/8" thick plywood and TPO film....And yeah, my whole RV and roof is framed with aluminum trusses and studs, but WTF the roof is only 1/8" thick plywood?
!!...Yep, it is....How can me and my buddy walk on it with out breaking thru?!!!! Been up there countless times and it seemed solid as concrete!...HUH? 1/8" thick plywood?....Yup, it's true.Well it seems solid because of how the total roof is constructed...because those RV makers bond that thin plywood to thick foam insulation and carefully calculate the number of trusses and only reinforce areas where heavy stuff like your A/C sits.....The foam and the trusses and the plywood all combine to make a structure that will support you, but the items you need to attach to are really iffy because it is so thin and made of wood....And those selftapping 1 1/4" long screws supplied with your Z brackets are totally worthless in thin plywood.
To understand it, start with the TPO film..It is very thin and only glued down with water based adhesive.....And friend, it WILL easily peel off in big chunks, but usually hold for many years to the plywood beneath it IF you don't tug on it....hmmmm....That means if I stick my panels down with that super forever Eternabond or 3M tape, then the attachment is only as solid as the TPO to the roof?...YUP, exactly...Your panels will blow off yet the Z brackets will still be attached with high dollar tape to the shredded TPO it took with it down the HWY....Yup, happens often.
That sucks, and you say the screws are worthless too?...Yup, the plywood is too thin to allow them to bite nuff to resist the forces of the winds....They simply pull out....If they are screwed and taped, then the tape yanks chunks off roof film too for bigger suck.
So what do we do?...Simple, we use fasteners designed for the materials we need to attach to....In the case of most RV's that fastener is called a WELL NUT....then you apply a screw thru the Z bracket hole into the inside of the well nut and tighten the screw....Then the Well Nut expands greatly and it's attachment strength is multiplied and spread out over a much larger area of the back side of that thin ply wood.
Neoprene well nuts with thread brass inserts that will last forever and remain in the roof ready to be reattached whenever the panels are removed...Cool, huh?....BUT they cost almost 2 bucks each....Kinda buy once, cry once thang, yaknow?
Now I know many of you guys will get your panties all wadded up and scream I don't need well nuts and my panels have been on my roof two years, and yada, yada, yada...But friends there are many just like you that have experienced their panels blowing off at HWY speeds onto the cars behind them.
ALL truly professional installers use well nuts on thin wooden, fiberglass and even some metal roofs..All of them...So do I
