Timeking
Florida USA
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Question: About how many tubes of caulk should I order to do all of the old cracking caulk on a 28 ft TT?
I figure someone on here had done this job, and would know 'about' how much self-leveling goo is required. The quote to have someone do this for me was $660. Wow!
Thanks in advance.
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ronharmless
The far side
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I re-caulk every year but only where it is needed; I’ve never used more than one tube.
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Krusty
Calgary, Alberta,Canada
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Get 2 or 3 tubes. Keep an extra one handy. Never know when a branch is going to poke a hole in your roof or something and its good to take care of it right away.
Krusty
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JBarca
Radnor, Ohio, USA
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Timeking wrote:Question: About how many tubes of caulk should I order to do all of the old cracking caulk on a 28 ft TT?
I figure someone on here had done this job, and would know 'about' how much self-leveling goo is required. The quote to have someone do this for me was $660. Wow!
Thanks in advance.
This may help guide you as you did not say how old the camper is or what shape the old caulk is in.
If the old caulk is cracked and crumbly, and you are replacing all the old with new, (which is a very wise thing to do on an old camper, replace and start fresh with touch up as needed in the years to come) then:
After doing a 30 ft camper re-roof with no caulk on it, I use qty. 8 to 9, 10 oz. tubes to caulk the entire roof. Out of those tubes, I use 1 to 1 1/2 tubes of non sag, non self leveling to do the tops of the gutter rails to the membrane and the rest I use self leveling caulk on the top horizontal surfaces.
A few tips, to spread the non sag lap sealant, Dicor or Alfa brands, I use a light soapy wet finger to gently tap tap tap the fresh puddle into the right location if you cannot gun apply perfect. Best is to not over apply, add more if needed if it is too light. Too much caulk and you have to get rid of some to not make a mess. Then gently smooth in light strokes with the wet finger. Do not press hard or you will break the skin and be into the goo puddle. A tiny skin forms as the caulk hits the air and it can breakthrough very quickly with pressure. You will find the sweet spot, too light does nothing, too much is a mess. If your finger starts dragging, it's too dry, stop and a light finger rewet and keep going. Apply about 4 to 5 feet and go back and smooth out, then reapply more. Do not pump the entire length of the camper gutter rail and then start smoothing, pending temperature it will start to set too quick and not smooth out as nice.
Do not apply in the hot sun, or on a hot camper, 75 - 80F plus, it cures too quick and will start early shrinking/wrinkles as it fully cures. If outside when applying, do on cooler, 70F or lower low sun days. If you are doing inside a building, then there are not as many issues, out in the hot sun is what causes the issues.
Make sure when caulking the moldings to the roof or siding, you have to contact the molding and the roof with good contact. Three quarters to all the way to the top of the molding, like the front seam, is good. If you have a small fillet of caulk, it will shrink as it cures and ages and pull away from the molding starting a leak.
Good luck and ask for more as needed.
Hope this helps,
John
* This post was
edited 12/08/22 09:34pm by JBarca *
John & Cindy
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deltabravo
Spokane, WA
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What material is the roof made of? If it's a rubber roof, then you don't want to use caulk. Use Dicor Self Leveling Sealant.
2009 Silverado 3500HD Dually, D/A, CCLB 4x4 (bought new 8/30/09)
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Timeking
Florida USA
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Thanks JBarca for your insight!
It is Alpha system roof, so only Dicor's "Ultra" is compatible (per Dicor, not the regular Dicor), or use the Alpha caulk.
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JimK-NY
NY
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If the caulk is old and "cracking" it would be best to remove the old caulk and entirely reapply. That is a big job and that $660 cost is very reasonable. If you do the job yourself, you will need to do lots of scraping with a plastic scraper. I also recommend mineral spirits to help remove the old caulk.
It is tough to predict how much caulk will be needed. I believe about one tube for every 15-20 linear feet.
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zigzagrv
Nazareth, PA
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As an alternative, I would consider using EternaBond instead of Dicor. It still requires thorough cleaning and removal of excess caulking, which is the worst part of the job, but once Eternabond is down, it is good for ???..I don't know since it's been 3+ years since I put it down and NO PROBLEMS! I used the 4" wide. Good luck and have fun.
Ron
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