RV OWNER’S FIELD GUIDE · ROOF & BODY
Roof Coating & Resealing
Two different jobs that get confused constantly — resealing seams and penetrations, and coating the whole roof. Here’s the difference.
Resealing Seams & Penetrations
Every roof vent, AC unit, antenna, and seam is a potential leak point, and the sealant around them degrades faster than the roof membrane itself — this is the maintenance that actually prevents leaks. A visual inspection twice a year, checking every penetration for cracked or lifted sealant, catches most problems before they become interior damage.
Full Roof Coatings
A liquid-applied coating over the entire roof surface, marketed as extending roof life and improving UV/heat reflection. Useful on an aging roof in otherwise sound condition — but a coating applied over an already-leaking roof just traps the moisture problem underneath where it’s harder to find.
Inspect Before You Coat
A proper pre-coating inspection checks the roof decking underneath for soft spots (a sign of existing water damage) before anything gets sealed over it. Coating a soft roof deck doesn’t fix the structural problem — it just makes it harder to diagnose later. See our roof service page for the signs of an active leak.