Water was definitely the bane of my ownership existence although it takes A LOT to destroy an RV. Get a ladder (if one is not built in) and get on the roof. Use a finger to poke everywhere on the roof. If it's soft, you got problems! In that regard, don't walk around, crawl around methodically as if you're clearing a mine field lest you put your foot through a damaged spot. Also note if the rubber is flaky. Do the same thing on the ceiling from the inside. Pay particular attention around vents.
Is the roof flat or curved so the rain falls off?
RV Recommendations
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- Posts: 882
- Joined: Mon Aug 31, 2015 2:50 pm
- Location: Midwest, USA
Re: RV Recommendations
Also consider cutting some pieces of plywood not too big but bigger than your feet that you can move around with you and put your weight on to spread it out more instead of just in the area of your feet. I think most RVs are built better than the ultra light travel trailers I'm looking at but I'd still proceed with caution.
The ultra light travel trailers like to make a panel with thin luan plywood on each side and foam in the middle bonded by glue. The foam can crack and over time, with repeated flexing, the bond can break and make things feel spongy (and then presumably, the plywood starts to break down). This reduces the weight but then they went so far as to use this approach for the interior floors of some of the trailers! And this was within the past 10 years. Apparently, the failures were mostly due to using that build approach and then having long unsupported spans of flooring. One fix was to weld in more support beams (presuming you have access to the bottom of the floor). I read one persuasive argument that basically this type of panel and approach is best suited for vertical applications but not horizontal and certainly not horizontal with load and poor support.
The ultra light travel trailers like to make a panel with thin luan plywood on each side and foam in the middle bonded by glue. The foam can crack and over time, with repeated flexing, the bond can break and make things feel spongy (and then presumably, the plywood starts to break down). This reduces the weight but then they went so far as to use this approach for the interior floors of some of the trailers! And this was within the past 10 years. Apparently, the failures were mostly due to using that build approach and then having long unsupported spans of flooring. One fix was to weld in more support beams (presuming you have access to the bottom of the floor). I read one persuasive argument that basically this type of panel and approach is best suited for vertical applications but not horizontal and certainly not horizontal with load and poor support.
- Mister Imperceptible
- Posts: 1669
- Joined: Fri Nov 10, 2017 4:18 pm
Re: RV Recommendations
I picked it up in a monsoon rainstorm and there wasn’t a drop. No stains on the ceiling whatsoever. The roof appears to be *slightly* curved. It has a ladder. I looked at the roof but did not get on it yet. I have it parked behind a bar, the owner is a friend of a colleague. I rented out a spot at a local campground with full hookups for $500/mo starting Sunday. I plan to pick the brains of the fellow campers in exchange for whiskey and beer. Perhaps will put on solar panels. By the end of the month I hope to be parking for free. I’ll get on the roof and get back to you.
- Mister Imperceptible
- Posts: 1669
- Joined: Fri Nov 10, 2017 4:18 pm
Re: RV Recommendations
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Last edited by Mister Imperceptible on Sat Jan 11, 2020 7:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: RV Recommendations
@mferson
Not much. I removed seats on one side, lined five identical crates for my stuffs, and put some planks on it to sleep on. A friend borrow it and added some velcro tape to add curtains.
Not much. I removed seats on one side, lined five identical crates for my stuffs, and put some planks on it to sleep on. A friend borrow it and added some velcro tape to add curtains.