Roof Construction

[Paul Meehan]

While switching out the ceiling mounted halogen map lights with LED lights acquired from Doug Allman, I noticed that I could see about two-inches of plywood where the fixtures were inserted. 

Does anyone know if the entire roof has a similar construction?

Wondering what the weight capacity might be of the roof.

Thanks in advance.

[Eric Palmer]

Hey Paul. I have a 1998 Beaver Patriot Brandywine and it just so happened I had the pleasure of replacing a section of the ceiling in the kitchen area that had rotted from a long time leak in the roof. The ceiling is a 2" foam board sandwich with very thin plywood (less than 1/8th inch) on either side glued together (so plywood, foam, plywood). Then on top of that was 3" thick foam board between the ceiling and the roof. Extra 1"x1" wood support was around the fixtures. Oh, I'm 300 lbs and haven't fallen through yet!

[Gerald Farris]

The roof and walls on Beaver coaches get most of their strength for the welded square tubing framework that is at the center of their construction. The square tubing will be made of either steel or aluminum, depending on year and model.

Gerald

[Mike Gineris]

I just bought a 1999 Contessa Naples.  I was curious why there was no ladder and am concerned about walking on the Gel Coated Roof for fear of cracking from flexure.  I need to get up there and clean up the AC units.  Am I good to walk on it?  Does it flex at all with your 300 pounds?

[Gerald Farris]

Mike,
SMC (the company that built your coach) lost a law suit because a coach owner fell off of the rear ladder on his coach and was injured, so the decision was mad to stop installing ladders on coaches to reduce liability exposure. Ladders did not reappear on Beavers until the 2003 Monaco designed coaches went into production. Most Beaver coaches in the very late nineties and early 2000s that have ladders were aftermarket installations.

There is no concern about walking on the roof as long as you do not fall off. You weight will not cause any damage. The metal framework in your roof will support anyone's weight who can climb a ladder to get up there.

Gerald

 

[Doug Allman]

Paul, We found the same plywood doubled in our 2004 Marquis and found it because we installed at that time 3.5" LED lights to replace the old Halogen puck lights.
Our suspicion is that due to the high heat produced by the halogen bulbs coach maker decided to leave some space for the bulbs to cool off. As a result the roof in all those areas was very poorly insulated, at least worse than the remainder of the roof. Led's do not produce any significant heat so we using can foam filled the void we did not need for the new LED puck lights.
Those lights have been in since February 2015 and all are still working with no problems.
Gerald is best answer on the roof use but thought you might want this info on the lights.