Damage to Pop Top

[Paradiddle]

The canvas on my pop top has come awat from actual roof. Has anyone experienced this??

 

[drinfinity]

Maybe the gas rams getting really hot in this climate and pushing very hard? Although many vans have been to hot places and not seen this before.

 

[JumpShip]

Are they rams uprated maybe (for something like a roof rack) ?

 

[Badjamin]

First thoughts are that possibly the glue has softened/perished in the high temp. The board for the roof I believe is ply with chopped cross strand glass mat fibre glassed to it. It looks like they have taped and stapled the canvas to hold it while the glue dried but potentially they haven't cleaned off the release agent off the fibreglass or the adhesive wasn't good quality. With this heat there'll be excessive expansion of the fibreglass on the wood causing movement and softening of the adhesive/sealant combined with the ram pressure and it's come away I think.

I'd be taking it up with the company that installed the pop top urgently. Sorry about tht, what a b@ll ache

It also looks like the ceiling board has come away from the roof which is a little more concerning



They need to resecure that and then re glue the canvas with potentially a thin ali rail along the fold to properly get it secured - belt and braces

They also need to give you a brand new camper as a courtesy vehicle while the work is done please

 

[Sasquatch]

They can change those painted mild steel hinges for stainless ones by way of recompense.

 

[Paradiddle]

Maybe the gas rams getting really hot in this climate and pushing very hard? Although many vans have been to hot places and not seen this before.

handn't thought of that

 

[Paradiddle]

Are they rams uprated maybe (for something like a roof rack) ?

no nothing changed on them

 

[Paradiddle]

First thoughts are that possibly the glue has softened/perished in the high temp. The board for the roof I believe is ply with chopped cross strand glass mat fibre glassed to it. It looks like they have taped and stapled the canvas to hold it while the glue dried but potentially they haven't cleaned off the release agent off the fibreglass or the adhesive wasn't good quality. With this heat there'll be excessive expansion of the fibreglass on the wood causing movement and softening of the adhesive/sealant combined with the ram pressure and it's come away I think.

I'd be taking it up with the company that installed the pop top urgently. Sorry about tht, what a b@ll ache

It also looks like the ceiling board has come away from the roof which is a little more concerning

View attachment 295808

They need to resecure that and then re glue the canvas with potentially a thin ali rail along the fold to properly get it secured - belt and braces

They also need to give you a brand new camper as a courtesy vehicle while the work is done please

Thanks for this info, very helpful. After further inspection doesnt seem like any glue used, just lots of staples. The roof liner (which is just material) has indeed come away. Hopefully just a case of applying more adhesive. Unfortunately van bought 2nd hand so will be responsible for doing all repairs myself!

 

[Badjamin]

I think it'd be worth getting a quote from a conversion company near you with a break down of exactly what they'd need to do to fix it. If you get us more photos of the gap up close we can possibly give you some pointers if you're not sure.

Or just gorilla glue (or similar) absolutely everything hehe

 

[Paradiddle]

Thanks for all the help. After closer inspection and some searching online I decided to fix it myself. Got a decent staple gun from screw fix and stapled the canvas back to the the top of the roof and some high temp spray adhesive to refit the roof liner. So far so good!

 

[Vanbus]

I don’t know what roof you have but looks similar/copy of Reimo. The canvas is not glued in. It is held in place by a tough plastic/tubber strip which is stapled through into the edge of the roof. It looks to me as though there are not enough staples so it has simply pulled off under tension. We follow what the factory do and have staples approx. every 3-5mm. Lots of staples, but never comes off. Also make sure the staples are long enough. You also don’t know how this roof is manufactured. Does hit have enough wood in the fibreglass core for example for the staples to bite into? If not staples will likely work loose in fibreglass over time.

To repair you could reuse canvas, the staple strip is normally folded over the canvas, so needs lifting up to allow access and then canvas fixed back down, We normally take the roof off. I se you have repaired it, id the canvas is not wrapped around the staple strip it may not be very strong. Its similar to how leather upholstery is clipped onto seats. Cheers

 

[Paradiddle]

I don’t know what roof you have but looks similar/copy of Reimo. The canvas is not glued in. It is held in place by a tough plastic/tubber strip which is stapled through into the edge of the roof. It looks to me as though there are not enough staples so it has simply pulled off under tension. We follow what the factory do and have staples approx. every 3-5mm. Lots of staples, but never comes off. Also make sure the staples are long enough. You also don’t know how this roof is manufactured. Does hit have enough wood in the fibreglass core for example for the staples to bite into? If not staples will likely work loose in fibreglass over time.

To repair you could reuse canvas, the staple strip is normally folded over the canvas, so needs lifting up to allow access and then canvas fixed back down, We normally take the roof off. I se you have repaired it, id the canvas is not wrapped around the staple strip it may not be very strong. Its similar to how leather upholstery is clipped onto seats. Cheers

thank you very much for this it is very helpful. I got long staples that bite into the wooden batton you mentioned and used the staple strip same as the other side. Seems to be holding well for now