The Tree Incident - Montana Owners Club

Okie Guy · 04-15-2009, 05:52 AM

Yes it happened. The Cedar tree at our campground grew down over the winter. As I backed into our spot the tree limb caught the side of the roof. I now have four 2" X 3" tears on the rounded corner about 6" apart. Adding insult to injury the local businesses have stopped handling eternabond. I managed to find a substandard product to get me through the weekend and called my insurance agent(who encouraged me not to jump off the roof in despair).

I have been blessed to not have a major incident in my 4 years of camping. For those of you who have been through a roof repair I have a couple of questions. Do you have the local dealer replace the roof? Is it better to drag the trailer to Goshen to have the roof replaced? How has your insurance company been to deal with? My insurance lady has been a God send during this nightmare. She told me to take it directly to the dealer when I get back into town. The dealer has yet to call me back. Has anyone had a dealer try to replace just a part of the roof?

Thanks in advance!
Phil

lawrenceb42106 · 04-15-2009, 06:45 AM

Have had the same problem with the roof and trees. We had the dealer replace one and a private RV shop replace the other one. We have had no problems with the insurance company. They paid for each one. You may want to check around for prices. We had one bid $7000.00 and one for $3500.00. Both used the same materials.

Clyde n Deb · 04-15-2009, 08:01 AM

Had an encounter with one of those trees as well. Same species I'll bet.
Had my roof replaced by the dealer I bought my Monty from. No problem with the insurance, and it wasn't cheap. They did a very nice job, and I think the new roof is almost a better job than the factory installed one was. Periodically they like to check it and make sure all is well. I had to have the refrigerator vent replaced too. Can't really replace part of the roof as it is basically one piece.
In looking also at the age of your rig, I was told my new roof was warranted like the original being I had them do it and if I'm not mistaken it has a 10 year warranty?

ols1932 · 04-15-2009, 08:11 AM

It's not feasible to replace part of the roof. Go here to get Eternabond tape. Click on Roof Repair and it takes you to the page where you can click on Eternabone. I carry it with me all the time and help fellow RVers when they have this kind of mishap. I buy all my Eternabond from this company because they seem to be the most economical and it's far less than what it costs through an RV accessory store.

Orv

iowaone · 04-15-2009, 03:58 PM

I had an ecounter with a tree on my previous camper. It only had a very small tear right at the edge. Insurance replaced full roof over $5,000 dollars. You just cannot repair the rubber roofs permently any other way.

ols1932 · 04-15-2009, 04:39 PM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by iowaone

I had an ecounter with a tree on my previous camper. It only had a very small tear right at the edge. Insurance replaced full roof over $5,000 dollars. You just cannot repair the rubber roofs permently any other way.

As long as the hole or tear isn't too terrible, Eternabond tape makes a permanent fix. Once it's put on you can't remove it.

Orv

grooving grandpa · 04-15-2009, 05:17 PM

Orv,

Do you just put down the tape, or do you seal all the edges with a Roof Silicon

Lou

Okie Guy · 04-16-2009, 10:57 AM

I talked to the insurance company and the dealer. I take her in on Monday for the insurance company and the dealer to debate the technical stuff and price. I know my friends at Leisure Time will do a great job. The service manager said he would not let anyone replace half a roof because it is too risky for leaks. He said a new roof will run around $4500 and they are installing one right now on another Montana. I was suprised to find out they install several each month. It is nice to know I have such a good service department. They are always so good to work with.
Watch out for those trees. The only good cedar tree is a dead cedar tree.
Phil

beakyfudd · 04-17-2009, 06:38 AM

Orv, I watched the video on that eternabond, and it looks like a real money saver. Lou, according to the video, adding caulking is optional. Jim

Bill DeMeulle · 04-18-2009, 08:38 AM

I also had a tree problem last year which did considerable damage to the bull nose as well as the roof plus the awning had to be replaced $10-11,000 claim which was comfortably taken care of with the help of a $100.00 deductible. It does also help to be an insurance broker.

Bill

Okie Guy · 04-19-2009, 06:03 PM

I am home and finally have some pics. This is before I added the tape to seal for the weekend. This simply is too large for eterna bond to take care of. There are pin holes all down the back half of the trailer before the big tears.

Clyde n Deb · 04-20-2009, 04:07 AM

I would defenitely replace that. Looks like you have damage under the roof as well. The edges have a soft metal "cove" that gives the rounded shape. That needs to be fixed as well.

Stichwerks · 04-20-2009, 02:33 PM

Looks like time for replacement. If anyone ever is in a bind for eternabond check with a local commercial roofing supplier for the product. It comes in a 50' roll as compared to 35' at the rv stores. Also it is available as large as 24" wide. Costly but available. I used the 4" on an older 5er that was at the end of its Arizona desert life. Just be sure to clean the old roof real well prior to applying the tape. If the surface has any oil or dirt it will not adhere well.

Okie Guy · 05-16-2009, 08:23 PM

UPDATE:
I have had the trailer at the shop since i returned from the campground. They suggesteed a complete replacement of the roof membrane. I also had some radius(sp) damage which has to be repaired. They now have the materials ordered. When the materials arrive it is about a two week job. The insurane company is great and the dealer is going out of his way to make sure my unit stays inside the shop even with all of their servie work. I am veery pleased with how fast the adjuster responded and cut them a check to get everything going. I love my dealership! I hate trees.

Merv · 05-19-2009, 07:38 AM

I have had a few small holes in my roof also. A few from tree branches and one from an awning mishap.
They were small enough that I used white silicon sealant to repair them. It has held up very well over the years.
Silicon sealant is a great thing to carry as a repair tool.
Merv

ols1932 · 05-19-2009, 10:54 AM

I'll add to this thread by saying I buy my Eternabond here. Best prices.

Orv

mcculloe · 05-28-2009, 05:19 AM

Have hit a 100 year oak tree at 40mph last year in our 2008. Tree branch was big, and took off from the corner. Took the front cap damage and the roof, and the awning was ripped off, too. Insurance paid $16,000 and 2 months to repair. The roof can never apparently be fixed, it always has to be replaced, but the front cap and the awning replacement were the biggies as well as some fiberglass reconstruction on the bedroom wall near the cap.

The best recommendation I found -- and it worked out well. I had it done at a fiberglass auto/RV/boat body specialist -- not a dealer. But they do a lot of RV repairs, and work with fiberglass alot (lots of boats and Corvettes). And, the insurance company, GEICO, was excellent also, very quick.

But the problem was the parts, and getting them. Took probably 6 of the 8 weeks to finally get all the parts (the front cap being the longest, and really the requirement to get started).

Luckily it happened at the end of the season, so it wasn't that big of a problem. If I had micromanaged them, I bet I could have cut a couple weeks off if I needed to.

Good luck.

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