[Mike]

The roof on my 1997 Liberty is aluminum and painted by Prevost with Imron, a two part paint.

JIM

[Archived]

Apparently the roof is covered with aluminum, as I stated earlier, I wasn’t certain and never went through the colors to bare metal. That said, on my coach, there is a base/clear system that I can only presume came from the factory when the bus part was built. Further I would suspect that the primer on this piece would be some form of a chromate to as to inhibit electrolysis, perhaps zinc chromate.

My roof looks like a mine field with all of the vents, satellite things, lights, antenna’s, air conditioning units, etc. It is obvious that the converter applied another layer of paint, probably just clear with a hardener, after the holes were made, probably when they painted the entire coach. Further I would guess that they then installed all of the a/c units, antenna’s and vents, then they caulked…liberally!

My coach was about seven years from the converter when I noticed large patches of clear coat coming off. Once again, as earlier stated, this apparently is not uncommon and not just with the Country Coach. Much of this has to do with the environment I am sure; my coach has spent the majority of its life in the desert south west both in and outside, now mostly out. An aside, I noticed that all of the school buses around here have their roofs painted white which stands to reason and, after a bunch of reading and several discussions with others, I opted for Temp Coat.

I already discussed the reasons, for me, why I did not want to refinish the roof to original specifications, way too much work and expense with little or no upside! So now, we have repaired the torn away Temp Coat and everything now looks as it did when the job was originally completed a few years back. Lessons? Do not, under any circumstance, let anyone wash your roof with a pressure washer! This goes for the original finish and especially Temp Coat, if installed. I have used rv wash guys for years, in a variety of places and the one thing that they all have in common is a truck with a pressure washer. I have also driven through a truck wash a time or two…same thing only some harsh chemicals I would suspect.

Finally to Jim C., Imron is a brand name from DuPont for a polyurethane single stage paint with a hardener. I do believe that if Prevost painted with this stuff at the factory, any clear applied over that would fail in a week, nothing for it to adhere to, too hard and slippery. It is widely used on airplanes because it is hard and durable but it doesn’t sand very well and usually has to be stripped off prior to any re-spray.

[Archived]

This is a bit off base but about a year ago i was replacing the roof on my home with a metal one , I asked the enginer from Progress Engery thats my elect. co here , what color should i choose for the roofing metal to keep my home the most engery effecent. I was thinking galv or white, they told me forest green would keep my home cooler in the summer and be less expensive to cool , I don’t get it.. My bus roof is white , on my old bus it was also white coated with some grainey stuff from Kenedy Space Center used on the shuttle it had some R value factor aways keep celing cool to touch , Aways used preasure washer but it was probly extra good if they used it stayed on good but thanks for the advise i will stop all preasure washing in the future.My last paint was done by Stahr Design it is holding up great.

[Georges]

Hi David, I’d be interested to know how much down time was involved with your re-roof job and the cost too. I’m looking at several opitions and one was having it painted. Did Stahr give you a indiaction as to how long they thought the roof paint would last?

Thank you,

Fred

[Archived]

Look at his web site http://www.stahrdesign.com/portfolio/sample/6 he paints a lot of Prevost.

[JIM]

Thank you Daivd I’ll check it out.

[Archived]

Been more than 10 years since I originally applied this to the lid and it has held up very well overall. Yes I did have some issues however they were resolved when I stopped all on the roof pressure washing. Remembering that tempcoat is infused with small hollow glass beads, it becomes obvious that foot traffic was not included in its original design. My guess as the glass fractures under weight it leaves behind chards that will eventually cut themselves out from any additional roof walkers…….

I am now attacking the roof with a relatively new product that essentially has the original Temp Coat ingredients however the glass beads are much smaller and they have also added titanium dioxide for reflectivity. Manufacturer claims that all UPS trailer top are coated with this and that it was designed for roofing applications rather than a coating for hot steam pipes, tanks and the like..

[AL]

Great to get a follow up after 10 years, thanks,

[glen]

After I witnessed a bus washing employee nose dive from a Prevost roof during a rally…no more roof washing.

Let mother nature take care of it.

Truk, is right in his text above …. If your drawing S/S you are not allowed on a Prevost roof.

On both H3-45’s I owned the roof was coated with products designed to reflect heat. Worth every penny of cost, my opinion.

With the triple slide Marathon with three (3) Valid slides even coating the top of slides. Make sense as their extension greatly improves heat reflection. Marathon uses a product spray applied about thickness of a business card. With Valid slides does not damage the slide seal.

AL

[Deleted User]

Al,

The roof is not too bad if you opt to crawl rather than stand, knee protectors are a must plus with 4 on the floor, a smaller foot print of ones weight is left behind. All of the Prevost lids feel “spongy” when walking, especially between ribs…..not so much when crawling…..

[Ronald]

Good Flyu2there …..post catch Truk…LMAO

Great to get a follow up after 10 years, thanks, Tom & Nancy 7 Prevosts Owned

[Archived]

When I replaced the wingard and a vent fan I used plywood around

the bus Barn to move around on.

[Deleted User]

I bought a 22′ scissor lift at a auction a few years ago. I hate working of ladders and lifts are a lot safer. I’ve used it replacing roof airs, polishing, and even washing my bus. A smaller one would be sufficient and a good used one runs $2-3K.

[Billy]

So you are using an updated version of Tempcoat, Flyu2there?

[Archived]

Temp Coat is a very good product, as mentioned it’s original purpose was to insulate hot tanks and pipes Basically it’s a polymer with hollow glass beads, probably also mentioned. The last Temp Coat I ordered was perhaps 5-6 years ago and the price was a bit north of one hundred dollars per gallon plus shipping, it’s not inexpensive considering you need 5 plus gallons to cover a roof. I have seen it applied by trowel, brushed as well as applied with a roller however the later is probably not the best technique, especially if applied with a pole as too much rolling or pressure will damage the insulating properties.

i just received my 5 gallon replacement shipment of “new stuff” but will refrain from commenting much about it until I have garnered experience with it….suffice to say it contains the same ingredients as temp coat per the labeling and was advised that this was designed for roofing applications although we all know that is painting with a broad brush, no pun intended.
The manufacturer is more than happy to sell the product directly to the end user and the price point, as expected, is well below that of the first product.

What I have noticed is that both products have a similar viscosity somewhere between mayonnaise and creamy peanut butter which from my take, puts it out of limits of any spray equipment, at least that I own.

John