Roamer Truck Camper

[Roamer]

I may be the only Roamer here. Anyone else have a Roamer Truck Camper?

[John in Michigan]

AJ, welcome to the forum! Never seen a Roamer. Is yours like the one in this link?

https://www.truckcampermagazine.com/...roamer-camper/

Can you show us some pics?

John

[WaltP]

Just looked at the link. Avery sleek looking, very molded fiberglass looking trailer. Glad to see that here. Some pics would definitely be in order. And welcome to the forum.

Walt

PS: Merry Christmas all.

[Doug in Sacramento]

Awesome looking camper. I think I want one.

[Captleemo]

Looks like a very well thought out design for a truck camper.

[Roamer]

The truckcampermagazine is literally the one I bought. Some Eternabond tape on the roof is all it took to fix the leak. The dealer had used duct tape in places and the aluminum eternabond type tape, but applied it wet, so glad I took it off to get the moisture out or I would have had rusted-through bolts and screws. Dont trust dealers….
The roof is a foam sandwich, but the rest is not, just hollow cavities, so maybe one day I will fill it in.

[Roamer]

Originally Posted by Roamer

The truckcampermagazine is literally the one I bought. Some Eternabond tape on the roof is all it took to fix the leak. The dealer had used duct tape in places and the aluminum eternabond type tape, but applied it wet, so glad I took it off to get the moisture out or I would have had rusted-through bolts and screws. Dont trust dealers….
The roof is a foam sandwich, but the rest is not, just hollow cavities, so maybe one day I will fill it in.

Still chasing a few leaks. The fridge area leaks. The outer lower access door slants, the whole wall slants in, and there is nothing there to stop water from rolling in. I will fix this soon.
Front window leaks. Need to find plexiglass.
The fridge roof port leaks, again, more poor repair from the dealer or whoever. Lat sealant is so cheap, not sure how it never got used. Probably just the screws leaking as they are exposed.

I am finding in short time that fiberglass camper owners never need to become experts on RV repair. I had a HILO, and that forum is full of professional to expert do-it-yourselfers by necessity. I had to tear mine down to bones in places to make repairs, I dont see having to do this with Roamer

[Borrego Dave]

Originally Posted by Roamer

I am finding in short time that fiberglass camper owners never need to become experts on RV repair.

Wellllll, some become experts but for a different reason, mostly mods. Don't think you'll find too many stick owners replacing an axle or frame from old age, not to mention the floor from leaks. By the time their floor is bad so are the walls but on the other hand the frame and axle should still be fine . In reality, all RVs do the same overall thing. The FG shell just allows for many 30-40 y/o units to still be on the road making memories for folks.
BTW, welcome to FGRV and that's a nice looking slide in. Do post pics as you do your mods.

[DullTull]

Originally Posted by Roamer

The truckcampermagazine is literally the one I bought. Some Eternabond tape on the roof is all it took to fix the leak. The dealer had used duct tape in places and the aluminum eternabond type tape, but applied it wet, so glad I took it off to get the moisture out or I would have had rusted-through bolts and screws. Dont trust dealers….
The roof is a foam sandwich, but the rest is not, just hollow cavities, so maybe one day I will fill it in.

Hello Roamer,

I just picked up a 1996 Roamer and see that you got the actual Roamer from truckcampermagazine. My Roamer didn't come with the original tripod jacks like yours. The owner before Jimmy rigged his own system. I'd love to see some pics of your tripod jacks on and off the camper, as I'd like to know if I could make my own. I to have found some leaks already, and would like to know more about where you found most of yours and how you fixed them.

Look forward to hearing from you

Thank you,

[Roamer]

Originally Posted by DullTull

Hello Roamer,

I just picked up a 1996 Roamer and see that you got the actual Roamer from truckcampermagazine. My Roamer didn't come with the original tripod jacks like yours. The owner before Jimmy rigged his own system. I'd love to see some pics of your tripod jacks on and off the camper, as I'd like to know if I could make my own. I to have found some leaks already, and would like to know more about where you found most of yours and how you fixed them.

Look forward to hearing from you

Thank you,

Yep, i did a lot of fixes on it. All are from the exact same mold.
The tripods, are actually 4, one on each corner. Go into the propane compartment and see on the front side how much thicker the wall is. This is a piece of plywood between the fiberglass, so is much stronger, and where the legs attach. I will put a pic of the metal bracket that goes there, on the outside.
At the rear the leg bracket attaches to the side, but if you can put it on the back this makes a lot more sense. Keeps it out of the wind, but maybe the bumper thing is in the way.
I think anywhere along the corner is strong enough, top and bottom bolts should be at least a foot apart so the fiberglass doesent break from the camper rocking while on legs.

The leaks will for sure be the front window. That is a flat meatal frame forced into the curved shape, so lots of potential for leaks. Use lots of butyl window tape or LAP sealant.
I never got mine 100% leak-free, but got it where at worst it just puddled in the frame but did not leak further.
The running lights above that window are suspect.

The two halves seem to be sealed good, but I put on that Eternabond tape just as good measure and made sure the LAP sealant at the vents were good, and on the screws, same for fridge vent, which is near a curve so be generous with Lap sealant, and on the screws.

If the side windows leak then this is just a normal fix. Remove windows and put new butyl tape on the window frame, reinstall and watch the excess ooze out, cut with a plastic knife from Wendy's or similar after a day or two.

It is almost all fiberglass so no damage can be had from water unless it makes it to the floor which has plywood. No idea why they put wood on the floor and no drain holes on the floor. Mine had wood damage. A nightmare to cut the belly open, scrape out rotten wood, add new wood and seal it back up, but it had to be done.

**also, the fridge door will leak, even new from the factory. I dont have pics of my fix but will describe it. Since it is slanted the water tends to run inside the door. You need to get some 1/4 closed-cell foam weather stripping from Homedepot and fix to help seal around the door.
I got roof flashing aluminum and made a 2 or 3 inch high wall inside the opening to catch water and let it drain out. I sealed it well on the bottom and sides, lots of caulk on the sides. The metal was bent 90 degrees to make a wall and a floor thing, to make room for the outer door to still fit in. This is a serious place leaks will occur, so figure out how to make water not get it. It will get past the door, but inside you can catch it and direct it back out the bottom, don't fight it, just route it back out.

The toilet outer door same thing, put weather stripping as that door leaks, water will get plywood floor wet.
At propane box I just used white electrical tape and taped the top hinge, I also had weather stripping too and I drilled a hole in the propane box floor for water to drain out.
Same for battery box, keep it dry.

The light lenses, amber and red, I found red ones at PepBoys, and nowhere else. I never found amber, not sure if 1996 used same lights as mine did.
I'll put pic in the next post in a few mins...

[Roamer]

front leg attachement, behind the fridge. Front right corner.



Bonus. I took fridge to make storage. I used a danfoss compressor fridge so no need for finiky fridge. Lots of storage...


I was touring CO and mountains so did not need AC, just tapped it up. You can see the tape also on the clamshell halves I put on for good measure.



this was so much fun, cutting the floor out from under.




front left bracket



front right


another bonus. they never made doors. I did this quick, and just kept it bc it worked. 1/4" wood bolted to clamp.


rear. What you can't see is about 3/4 inch spacers between leg and wall.




it is not a simple bracket to fab up bc it is not at a right angle...

[DullTull]

Roamer,

This is all extremely helpful. With the cracks and the rot I've found so far, I'm pretty sure I'll need to open up the belly of mine as well. I pulled the fresh water tank and pump out of the front compartment, as the wood below them was completely rotted and pretty much fell apart.

My 1996 originally came with a tripod lift system which seems odd. there are two 1¹/²" receivers on the drivers side and one receiver on the passenger side. One of the first people to owned it decided to put the Roamer on a steady lift instead and left the floor unsupported. I guess it put pressure in weaker areas and caused cracking, or maybe the original tripod lift system caused it and thats why the person swapped the lifts...

Either way I have a bigger project than I was expecting.
I am very glad I found your thread and even happier how quickly you replied. I will definitely have more questions for you in the near future. Currently have $300 worth of fiberglass, resin, and gelcoat heading my way. Im gearing up for war!

[DullTull]

Here are some pic what I mentioned above. Also how do you access your waste tank and grey water tank? I want to check those areas as well.

[Roamer]

Access to the waste tanks requires unscrewing all the little screws holding the bottom of the bumper piece on. These are self-tapping metal screws, used all over the camper, the wrong screw, so take care with it. You will have to drop the entire lower section of the bumper to get to waste tanks, not worth it to just check. After I took mine off I just left it off.
Also the waste tank system is all glued together with pvc pipe and pipe glue like this is a house. No rubber connectors used. I put rubber sections in to be more road worthy. The vent stacks I used threaded female pipe fittings on top of the holding tank on the right side as this let me attach it from inside the closet, or un attach it if ever needed. You will be taking the tanks out to repair rot.
This is your chance to run a hot water pipe directly to the shower, instead of all the way up, across and all the way back. That waste a lot of water if you shower and wait for the warm water to make the 28 foot trip...

I dont think these campers were ever designed to be tripods. The giant overly-big window above where a center leg would go is not ideal for supporting the weight. All 4 corners is how this camper was designed to be lifted.
That pvc looking contraption might be fine since it seems to supports over a 4 foot span.

Always store the camper on its belly, sitting on something. Easy as a stack of pallets or make a saw horse support.

For just ripping open the belly you do not need fancy fiberglass, just cheapo stuff from homedepot is fine, The belly is not structural very much.
If you plan to keep camper forever, then consider cutting the fiberglass out and never putting it back. It is not a boat. Ideally any water that does leak in should be able to leak back out the bottom. The fiberglass seals it in as you are so painfully aware.

I cut 3 sides on belly is why pics show it hanging. I had enough access to work, and the un-cut side let me put it back perfectly after I was done.

I put wood back in the middle of the belly, but foam at the edges. The edges are where the water will be. You could even put in some drain holes to help drain water. Water will get in eventually, even if you have to spill a pot of water, or leave the door open in the rain.

The camper needs spacers under it to sit in most modern trucks. I recommend building a new outer floor, out of whatever other campers do, something that will not require cutting it open to do repairs, something no fiberglass glued on permanently, that bolts in and is easy accessible.

I have never ever seen receivers like that on a TC.

[David Tilston]

I am prone to thinking outside the box, (where is the box again?). Rotten plywood floors can be a problem for Trillium trailers as well. So I have put some thought into what I would do if the 3/4" plywood in the floor rotted out. I had considered the foam used in boats for foam sandwich construction, but I was supprised at how much that cost. We will see what I do, if it happens, but this is my current plan, pulltruded fibreglass grating.

https://www.grainger.com/product/SAF...ultruded-4AUA4
While it is about the same cost as the foam, it is designed to be walked on. I would install it in place of the plywood. It is 1/4" thicker then the plywood, but by the time I cut the bottom off the trailer, that will not be too difficult to compensate for. maybe grind off some of the grit to thin it out some. Glue the grating to the bottom of the inside floor of the trailer, fill the gaps with insulating foam, put the bottom back on the trailer. If I am thinking correctly, this should be a perment solution. No rot, no need to open the floor ever again. It is a bit heavy though, 86 lbs for an 8' x 4' section. Not sure how long your box is, but I am assuming 8'. For a Trillium I would mount a 6' long section, side to side. Maybe more sections, as I think from the rise in the floor for the dinette to inside the gaucho mighe be more than 4'. Maybe I will go for three of the 2' wide and 6' long stuff:
https://www.grainger.com/product/SAF...ultruded-4AUC3
I am sure that Granger is not the least expensive place to get the stuff.

[DullTull]

Originally Posted by David Tilston

I am prone to thinking outside the box, (where is the box again?). Rotten plywood floors can be a problem for Trillium trailers as well. So I have put some thought into what I would do if the 3/4" plywood in the floor rotted out. I had considered the foam used in boats for foam sandwich construction, but I was supprised at how much that cost. We will see what I do, if it happens, but this is my current plan, pulltruded fibreglass grating.
Attachment 139129
https://www.grainger.com/product/SAF...ultruded-4AUA4
While it is about the same cost as the foam, it is designed to be walked on. I would install it in place of the plywood. It is 1/4" thicker then the plywood, but by the time I cut the bottom off the trailer, that will not be too difficult to compensate for. maybe grind off some of the grit to thin it out some. Glue the grating to the bottom of the inside floor of the trailer, fill the gaps with insulating foam, put the bottom back on the trailer. If I am thinking correctly, this should be a perment solution. No rot, no need to open the floor ever again. It is a bit heavy though, 86 lbs for an 8' x 4' section. Not sure how long your box is, but I am assuming 8'. For a Trillium I would mount a 6' long section, side to side. Maybe more sections, as I think from the rise in the floor for the dinette to inside the gaucho mighe be more than 4'.
I am sure that Granger is not the least expensive place to get the stuff.

David,

This is actually a really good idea! I'm going to look into this.

Thanks for the idea!

[DullTull]

Decided to pull up the floor the previous owner installed, because I was less than impressed with any of the work he had done on the Roamer camper, and suspected that he covered the original floor because he was lazy and didn't want to fix it the right way...

My suspensions were correct floor board was completely rotted. Here's how the previous owner covered it, first he put down play sand to "level" it, next he laid down a sheet of chopped fiberglass... no resin, no epoxy, just a plain sheet of chopped fiberglass. I'll use this for future repairs... next he laid down an adhesive sheet that he stuck vinyl wood flooring to. Much of the floor also had black gorilla tape on the bottom side too.

Pull it all out and pull the silicone from the floor seam, there is moisture in the foam under the fiberglass floor. Time to start figuring out how it got in there, and how to prevent it happing again.

Next ill remove the oven and fridge to check behind them for water.

I also noticed that the floor dips by the wet bath. Its not soft in the area and not sure if that was how it was manufactured, if its sagging, or if the middle was just pushed up when the foam was sprayed in.

ROAMER did your camper have have a perfectly even fiberglass floor or did you have similar dips?

[Roamer]

Hi, sorry. I was not getting notified of replys.

Yes, my floor was all kinds of wobbly. I just left it and put carpet over the floor, no biggie to me.