Longshhm
Senior Member
We have a 2021 310GKR fifth wheel camper. Last summer traveling through southern Utah and Arizona the daytime temps were 115+. When we arrived in California at Sequoia NP (3,000 miles from home), we observed that our roof membrane had come loose near the front of the camper and was torn around the front A/C unit. The rip was causing the A/C unit to blow air under the membrane causing a big bubble on the roof. We had a mobile service do a repair in Visalia CA the following week.
We concluded that the adhesive used to bond the TPO membrane had either failed under the extreme temperatures, or there was an insufficient amount of the adhesive used to bond the membrane to the OSB roof deck. Once the membrane adhesive failed, the suction pressures from the air moving over the roof surface while in transit lifted the membrane up (and down), eventually tearing the membrane around the frame of the front A/C unit. The repeated lifting and lowering (flapping) of the membrane eventually worked to crack and loosen the seal along the front cap where the membrane terminates and is attached to the camper frame with fasteners.
Our $1,600 repair consisted of cutting the membrane across the width of the camper, peeling back the membrane, re-applying new adhesive, and re-securing the membrane. The cut and the cap joint were sealed using a felt-backed peel and stick rubberized-asphalt strip and covered with a pourable flexible epoxy-based coating. We know that this repair is not recommended; however, we have had no issues in the last year with the performance of the repair.
We inquired with GD about the issue, but they told us that our problem was caused by us not properly maintaining the seal along the front cap.
Laura & Rob
We had an almost identical situation with our 2022 2930RL-R. Our membrane was lifting due to airflow across it at highway speed. Resulted in tears around the AC frame; we repaired those several times. We had it looked at and were told that the adhesive wasn’t sufficiently holding the membrane to the substrate. We are full-timers, so we needed something that would fix the problem quickly. We decided to replace it, but did so out-of-pocket because we didn’t want another membrane (as would have been done under warranty, when they could get to it). Instead, we had the roof covered with RV Flex Armor. We couldn’t be happier with it. While it wasn’t inexpensive, it has been worth every penny. It has been maintenance-free, trouble-free, and has a lifetime warranty. It is just as pristine now (1 year later) as it was the day we picked our unit up from the installer. I’ll never own another RV without it.