ATC Roof Question

[Texan76]

I am still researching my camper purchase, and have a question. Four Wheel uses a one piece roof, while the All Terrain has numerous screws drilled into the roof. How well does the ATC roof hold up? Would I have to reseal every single screw periodically? Does this design make the roof more prone to leaks?

 

[Alley-Kat]

Just my experience...

I've had my ATC for 5 years. I've gone through about 10 hell and back rain storms each year, along with searing heat and sun for more days than I can count in those 5 years. I've done no resealing yet, and I've had no leaks. All caulking looks great to me, on the vent/fan openings, the seam between the two roof pieces, the trim around the edges, or any of the attachment screws on the top or sides.

IMO (and others will surely disagree with me), once a hole is drilled through the one piece roof, for either solar panel mounting, or solar panel wires, or roof racks, or even holes for roof vents/fans, it can leak just like any other roof.. It just takes one hole that is not sealed to leak. Sure the number of holes are lower on the one piece roof, however, they are still holes. You can do a lot of caulking for the price of that one piece roof. And, as far as I know, we never got a definitive answer if the "oil can" sounds from the one piece roof have been fixed. Now we'll probably hear from one of the hyper-passionate guys on the "Fridge Revisited" thread with a rebuttal to this paragraph..

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

<snip>

Now we'll probably hear from one of the hyper-passionate guys on the "Fridge Revisited" thread with a rebuttal to this paragraph..

I'm going to toss out a thought for consideration... "It's OK to disagree, it's not OK to be disagreeable."

Here's a clip from the site rules... "We take the "be nice" rule VERY seriously! We do not tolerate ANY rudeness."

No one on the site team wants to censor someones post, but we really do take be nice seriously.

 

[kmcintyre]

I think the 2 roofs are different in their construction too. ATC uses a slightly upward bend roof with panels. FWC uses the one piece flatter roof (unless things have changed). I suspect there are pros/cons to both.

 

[Dughlas Stiubhart]

I've had my All Terrain since December of 2007 and have no leaks and have done no resealing of the screws in the roof or around the two vents. I bent the corner of the roof on the drivers side and added a little more caulk to close a crack but have not had any problems there either.

All in all the camper is holding up well.

 

[MANXMAN]

I've had my All Terrain since December of 2007 and have no leaks and have done no resealing of the screws in the roof or around the two vents. All in all the camper is holding up well.

Good to hear this.

When I ordered my ATC, the only thing I couldn't get that FWC could do was the smooth roof. I liked it purely for the appearance as I don't mind resealing the roof screws every couple of years. It looks from Doug's experience, the resealing isn't needed for a lot longer than I was expecting.

I have read here on WTW that there are some issues with the FWC smooth roof. Ripples and some sort of banging noise have been reported by owners. The other thing I have read is the smooth roof adds a significant up charge to a FWC base price. I can't see paying much extra for it as there seems to be no real advantage if the ATC roof doesn't need any maintenance for many years.

 

[ski3pin]

The ATC roof is also one piece. It does have a center seam but it has been joined under pressure making the roof one piece. It is purchased from the supplier this way. The material has texture and ridges and valleys making the sheet more rigid and strong then a flat piece of aluminum. As said in a previous post, the roof ribs are made with a nice bow that add strength. I watched Marty walk down the ribs of our roof (while on the assembly table) with no damage to demonstrate what the roof will hold. The roof is held on with screws in the proven, old fashion (if you want to call it that) way. Our old camper never leaked. Our new camper does not leak. My background is skiing in the backcountry where mountain cabins have metal roofs with ridges and valleys and are held on with screws. After holding and wiggling a large flat piece of thin aluminum and then comparing that to the roof material ATC uses, I made my decision. My personal take is I sleep soundly with our camper roof over our heads without worries wherever our travels take us. The big advantage of screws that I see is the need for patches or repair from damage during travel down the line.

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

The ATC roof is also one piece. It does have a center seam but it has been joined under pressure making the roof one piece. It is purchased from the supplier this way. The material has texture and ridges and valleys making the sheet more rigid and strong then a flat piece of aluminum. As said in a previous post, the roof ribs are made with a nice bow that add strength. I watched Marty walk down the ribs of our roof (while on the assembly table) with no damage to demonstrate what the roof will hold. The roof is held on with screws in the proven, old fashion (if you want to call it that) way. Our old camper never leaked. Our new camper does not leak. My background is skiing in the backcountry where mountain cabins have metal roofs with ridges and valleys and are held on with screws. After holding and wiggling a large flat piece of thin aluminum and then comparing that to the roof material ATC uses, I made my decision. My personal take is I sleep soundly with our camper roof over our head without worries wherever our travels take us. The big advantage of screws that I see is the need for patches or repair from damage during travel down the line.

Thanks Ski.
AMEN!
Frank

 

[DesertDave]

I have owned a 1997 FWC camper with the roof made, as far as I can tell, just like Marty makes them at ATC today. I think he was at FWC when my first camper was made. I never had any roof issues with that camper in the nine years I owned it. Never resealed a single screw.

I now have a FWC with the new style roof, with none of the issues that are mentioned. The new roof has the same curves side to side and front to back as the old roof, for drainage.

I would have no concerns with either roof style. There are other reasons to select one brand over the other, but in my opinion, the roof design and function differences are not really a reason to differentiate.

 

[JaSAn]

I have a 1977 FWC Grandby with a 2 piece screwed down roof. Roof looks like someone took a ball peen hammer to it, but I can find no evidence of leaks.

jim

 

[Texan76]

Thanks for all the insight. It helps my decision process.

 

[SWE]

What about weight? Isn't the old roof design (ATC) more labor intensive and lighter in weight?