cracked plastic skylight on the roof

[K. Meckes]

I have a skylight over my shower and it is in the passenger side back corner of my 2019 Thor Axis. I think it may have been hit by a low hanging branch so the white plastic covering on the roof has a small crack in it. I was wondering if anyone can be so kind to give me a cheap easy way to fix it. Because of the skylights location on the roof I feel that this isn't going to be the only incident. I was thinking of using super glue and then maybe a piece of white gorilla glue tape overtop. I would be thankful for any suggestions. K.

[Mr Sunshine]

Most any glue will work on that, something like Go rilla glue or superglue. The tape won't last, I would skip that step.

Broken skylights haven't been discussed much here, so I think it's rare. I replaced both outer and inner ones on my previous coach after an break in where they broke them out to get inside. (In storage, they found nothing worth stealing.)

[HarryS]

Get some clear silicone sealant and smear it over the crack

[cpmath]

Funny you posted this question last week mine broke due to a Hickory nut falling from a tree and punctured a neat 4 inch hole in the skylight outer cover. I trotted off to the local RV supplier and purchased a TPO roof patch kit ($12). Cut the supplied piece of TPO to overlap the hole by one inch and cleaned the area with alcohol pads provided. Put the patch over the hole and hit the edges with a dab of Dicor so it wouldnt lift up. Done. It's what the dealer recommended unless you want to replace the whole cover.

[Bob Denman]

Wow!
That Hickory nut must have been well-motivated!

Patching that skylight... Would some Gorilla Glue and Eternabond tape do the trick?

[cpmath]

Not sure about the tape Bob, I had some really sticky duct tape over the hole but the wind lifted it up coming back from Rochester so I went with what the rv dealer here recommended. I've used the TPO roof patch sticky tape before it was still in place after 6 years on our other MH. By the way I use packing blankets on the hood to protect it from dents thats worked very well. One of the perils of living in a hickory forest.

[Bob Denman]

This fella is well-equipped for the barrage...

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/at...1&d=1598274338

[K. Meckes]

Originally Posted by cpmath

Funny you posted this question last week mine broke due to a Hickory nut falling from a tree and punctured a neat 4 inch hole in the skylight outer cover. I trotted off to the local RV supplier and purchased a TPO roof patch kit ($12). Cut the supplied piece of TPO to overlap the hole by one inch and cleaned the area with alcohol pads provided. Put the patch over the hole and hit the edges with a dab of Dicor so it wouldnt lift up. Done. It's what the dealer recommended unless you want to replace the whole cover.

Thank all of you for your answers. I am going to go with this for the fix. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you,... K.

[Lt Keefer]

I would suggest you drill stop drill the ends of the crack before applying your patch.

[K. Meckes]

Originally Posted by Lt Keefer

I would suggest you drill stop drill the ends of the crack before applying your patch.

Thank You. I would not have thought of that. K.

[OKnative]

I just put Dicor over small cracks in mine about 4 years ago and I keep checking it. Still sealed. I also use headlight restorer to take off the yellowing and keep it from drying out and getting more cracks.

[Bill Johnson]

I would get on the roof and replace it I'm only about 70 so I'm still young. And what is a few hours work.

[Bob Denman]

Yeah... I'd want to replace a cracked one A.S.A.P..
Would you want to be rained on; while taking a shower?

[KCKim]

Originally Posted by K. Meckes

I have a skylight over my shower and it is in the passenger side back corner of my 2019 Thor Axis. I think it may have been hit by a low hanging branch so the white plastic covering on the roof has a small crack in it. I was wondering if anyone can be so kind to give me a cheap easy way to fix it. Because of the skylights location on the roof I feel that this isn't going to be the only incident. I was thinking of using super glue and then maybe a piece of white gorilla glue tape overtop. I would be thankful for any suggestions. K.

The skylight over our shower in our 2017 Chateau 35SF broke last year. We're not sure how it happened, but it could have been from debris blowing from the tornado that passed a few miles from our home. We didn't realize it was cracked until a piece blew out of it during another storm while we were traveling. While we were on the road, we used the Flex Tape we had with us to cover the hole and secure the remains of the skylight until we got home.


Once home, I found a replacement skylight on Amazon (cost a lot less than going through a dealer). Our son, the engineer, climbed up on the roof and took care of removing the old skylight and putting in the new one. So if you're handy with a few tools, you can replace the skylight yourself.

The one mistake I made was ordering a clear skylight, instead of the "frosted" style that the original was. Lots of sunlight comes in through that skylight now.

[Bob Denman]

Could you put some window tinting treatment on it?

[roy stone]

Use transparent Flex glue orFflex Clear Spray if the damage is not too severe. Flex glue and Flex tape and Flex Clear Spray are handy items to keep on board.

[keger]

There's a lot of good suggestions here. I like the drilling relief holes at the ends of the crack. That will stop any additional propagation of the crack. I did that on my motorcycle windshield and it worked great for years till I sold the bike. After you repair the outside you might want to add additional repair tape on the inside for additional protection. I understand your thoughts on repairing the skylight but I got the impression that you think it will happen again. If that's the case then maybe you should be looking to add a branch guard around the skylight or you'll be revisiting this issue many times. Good luck on your repair I hope it all works out for you. Why don't you post a picture after your done of your handy work for others to see.

[Lt Keefer]

Originally Posted by KCKim

The skylight over our shower in our 2017 Chateau 35SF broke last year. We're not sure how it happened, but it could have been from debris blowing from the tornado that passed a few miles from our home. We didn't realize it was cracked until a piece blew out of it during another storm while we were traveling. While we were on the road, we used the Flex Tape we had with us to cover the hole and secure the remains of the skylight until we got home.


Once home, I found a replacement skylight on Amazon (cost a lot less than going through a dealer). Our son, the engineer, climbed up on the roof and took care of removing the old skylight and putting in the new one. So if you're handy with a few tools, you can replace the skylight yourself.

The one mistake I made was ordering a clear skylight, instead of the "frosted" style that the original was. Lots of sunlight comes in through that skylight now.

Take out the inside part of the skylight and spray a couple of coats of white spray paint to the inner side of the outer skylight. Put back the inner part and instant frosted skylight. Or you could do what I did and make a liner for the airspace between the layers of the skylight. Thin sheets of white foam core worked for me.

[thisoldman]

I accidentally stumbled over and cracked the unnecessarily tall skylight on our 2019 Chateau 31W last year when I was putting a cover on the coach to keep it free of dirt, bird droppings, and leaf debris during a couple of months of non-use. I used some high quality "outdoor rated" duct tape as a temporary repair that worked just fine over the short term, but I ultimately replaced the original skylight with a replacement unit that I found on the Camping World website. The replacement skylight had the same footprint as the flimsy factory-provided unit but a much lower profile, and the new one also proved to be a lot sturdier. I carefully removed the broken skylight and sealant, using a heat gun to get the old sealant to release its death grip on the rubber roof. It was a simple matter to install the new skylight, applying a snake-like bead of Dicor self-leveling lap sealant to the underside of the skylight's lip, reusing the screws that held the old skylight in place to fasten the new one to the roof, and then covering the top of the lip with a generous amount of sealant to keep everything nice and waterproof. Tape works for a while, but it's not a permanent solution—you do NOT want water finding its way into the roof of your RV.

[Bob Denman]

Glad to see that you "stumbled" onto a very successful solution!