Hi-top seal perished.

['hanish-boy]

Hi volks,

Looks like I'm going to have to re-seal my hi-top.
I've just found out that the seal has perished at the top of the passenger's front post (LHD) and when poking around inside (steady on) I've found a bad dose of rot.
Sadly it looks like this has been going on for some time.
It's not possible to see the affected area, though I can feel the corrosion as well as a damp patch when feeling around the inside of the hi-top edge.

Anybody here had experience re-sealing their hi-top?

In the interim I was thinking of cutting out the perished section and re-doing it with bathroom sealant. Good/bad idea?
Ultimately I won't be satisfied til the whole thing's been replaced but need to sort out storage so I can get it totally dried out.

Any thoughts/ideas?

Thanks.

[syncrosimon]

generally the hightops will just be stuck on with a sealer/adhesive similar to Sikalex 221. It is not a massive job, rather a fiddly one, to cut all around the seal between the roof gutter, and the hightop, and lift off.
This will allow you to sort the rust out, and then to properly re-seal when you replace.
You do need a few people to get the thing off, as is quite heavy. You will have to make sure that all the internal fittings are either gonna lift off with the roof, or stay in situe without hindering removal.

I have seen roof beds made in hightops where beams of wood have been glued with expanding foam to the inside of the hightop, this would be more tricky.

Sounds like you have already had a look down the inside of the roof.

Where is the water coming from, it is usually from a roof vent or window, the water then trickles down inside and collects in the rear corners, and rusts.??

I would forget the bathroom sealant, and double check where the water ingress is.

['hanish-boy]

Thanks for the reply.

Standing in front of the vehicle, the seal directly above the top left corner of the windscreen has perished slightly and appears to be allowing water in.
Where the top joins the main body of the van above the front seats there is a small 'shelf' all the way round, from above the drover's door to the passenger door. I can't see the shelf because it has a large lip to prevent items falling off but when I sit in the passenger seat and stick my finger into the corner I can feel corroded metal and, if it's been raining recently, water.

I know what area of the sealant is the problem but I haven't the garage space needed to remove the top and fully deal with the problem right now.

A temporary fix is needed. I'm planning to cut out the perished seal and replace it.
Any tips? What sealant to use (if bath sealant is not suitable)?
Any info/thoughts very much appreciated.

Thanks.

[Nicola&Tony]

Any tips? What sealant to use (if bath sealant is not suitable)?

I've done one side of ours so far. Cleaned all the old sealant out of the gutter and then pulled out all the sealant was under the edge of the hi-top. I wasn't in a position to be able to remove the whole roof either (but would like to have).

As syncrosimon says, use Sikaflex or Tigerseal (available on e-bay, and from some local motor factors) and use a decent gun to apply it, not a cheapo gun, the job got a lot easier once I'd bought one of these bad boys!

Tony

['hanish-boy]

Hi Tony,

Thanks for the reply.
I've just ordered some Sikaflex (thanks for the tip syncrosimon) so will give that a go after the weekend (heading up to Skye for a few days).
I've not had any problems with applicator guns before. Why was it easier with a £18 gun as opposed to a £3 one? What was the difference?

Are there any issues with the new sealant joining the old sections?

Have a nice weekend folks.

Thanks.

[Nicola&Tony]

I've not had any problems with applicator guns before. Why was it easier with a £18 gun as opposed to a £3 one? What was the difference?

If you're just replacing a short length of sealant a cheap gun might last, but whenever I've used Sikaflex or Tiger Seal it hasn't been as easy to squeeze out of the tube (even though they were both new tubes and freshly opened) as the bathroom etc sealants. I got through a couple of the cheap guns because the trigger mechanism kept breaking under the pressure. Maybe it I was just being too heavy handed though?

It was definitely a lot easier with the more expensive gun though, and if you're planning on working your way around the whole roof it might be worth the investment? Could always try the cheaper gun and see how you get on.

Tony