Has anyone got any ideas of how to re-seal the canvas of my viking pop top. We have just come back from a short break to the Peak District and had loads of rain which I think managed to get underneath the edges of the roof and inside the roof lining. The pop is fixed inside with what looks like plastic strips which have been riveted onto the roof sandwiching the canvas underneath. I've been toying with drilling the rivets out and so detaching the canvas from the roof. I've then been looking at butyl sealant tape:
My idea is to strip this along the bottom edge of the pop roof then the canvas on top and then re-rivet the strip inside the pop so it holds it all in place. This should allow the tape to squash and seal underneath so in theory no water can get underneath or near any of the rivet holes which I believe may have let in water.
this is what i used on mine. aint had any rain yet though. helped holding the canvas down before you put the strip on. i also used large rivets to spread the load. got em from screwfix. heads on em are massive. regarding the strip, i got some 40mm by 5m strips from a window place.
I'm going through the Vikingisation project now, and am thinking about replacing the PVC strip with alluminium strip, or a plastic strip which is much thicker - the PVC strip doesn't hold the canvas very tight in the area between the rivets.
I'm also very tempted to put a TINY bead of urethane sealant along the edge of the canvas where it meets the van roof, and the poptop roof. I don't want any water to creep in either!
Allan
'84 T3 Kombi, EJ25 DOHC.
Duct Tape can't fix stupid, but it can MUFFLE the sound.
if you use the double sided sticky butyl then it will hold tight. like i said, i used huge rivets every 100mm and it is well tight. just make sure you drill the plastic/ally first so the bit wont slip when you drill the van part as it is well easy to do.
Thanks Guys, will be giving it a try soon as I'm not liking the damp panels when I wake up in the morning. Will try to re-rivet and seal with butyl but can't help thinking that at some stage a new poptop will be the long term fix. Not sure how much that would cost though.
nothing wrong with them, it is what is used at the top. just didn't fancy slipping as it is easy done off of the head of a screw rather than a rivet. i would use rivets though but thats just me.
Thanks will get myself a rivet gun and have a go. A fiddly job but I think it will be worth it in the end to keep dry. I've just sealed my windows with storm seal so hopefully they are much improved.
Just been looking at the pics of your van, looks really good I bet your really pleased. Can I ask did you paint it yourself using rustoleum? It's one of those things that I'm considering at some point in the future. My van has had a full respray but I'd quite like to change the colour to something a little brighter, maybe an orange or a red.
cheers mate, had it done the tradiotional way. haven't got the skill or the patience to do it either way myself. seems like, if you take your time with the rustoleum, you can get an amazing finish. i know there is a painter around here that combines the two techniques. his stuff looks great as well.
just take your time with that roof and mark the canvas where it meets the corners as it can easily twist and you will end up with a crease in one part of it. the corners are a bit of a pig to fold right to get it to look good but keep fiddling with em and you will get it.
