Anyone know about fiberglass roofs?
I’m getting serious about putting that roof back on the bus and I’ve been debating the different type roof coveringsand of course the roof design. Fiberglass was mentioned and I followed a link to http://www.mertons.com/ which supplys fiberglass products.
One minor problem….I’ve only patched a small hole in my duck boat and it was ugly with a capital U.
Is it possible to put a fiberglass shell on top of the bus and make it look decent?
My alternatives are:
1) frame with wood, sheath and then overlay with metal, or a rubber roof.
2) Get an awning company to build a framework and cover it with canvas.
3) This fiberglass idea. This idea appeals to me if the shell was self sustaining and didn’t need a wood substructure. It would seem easy to uncouple and ship independently if we ever decided to move the unit.
I should mention that all the money is being used everywhere else and I’m faced with a ridiculous “no way possible” budget for the bus work. So, any help is appreciated in the way of advice. Just don’t tell me to run the bus into the creek bed…that idea was already floated and shot down. I’ll post pics in the next reply.
Replies
The first pic shows the original roof. The next pic shows the hacked off version.
I'm thinking of adding a 12" fascia immediately above the windows, then starting the curved portion of the roof above that.
The last pic shows the 2 x 2 framework that currently houses the lower roof. The ends of the 2x2 are supported with metal gusset style brackets that extend into the buss about 10". That effectively reduces the span of the 2x2 to about 66". It seem sturdy enough.
I'm thinking I'll basically duplicate the original system but I don't have any of those metal brackets...I hacked them all up in my emergency roof removal process.
So....any suggestions are welcome.
Edited 2/27/2009 4:10 pm ET by jimAKAblue
Get ya some of the 3/8th thick hollow Lexan Green house panels, awesome stuff and won't shatter in a hail storm.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
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I checked their website and didn't see any curved sections.
It's very flexable, you bend it on site as you install it.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
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Yeah - as Duane said, it'll take the curve you've got.
What are you gonna do with the bus?http://www.quittintime.com/ View Image
We are using the bus for both seating and an eyecatcher.
I'm not sure I wan't nor need a roof I can see through and I don't understand how I'd put the "hips" together on the ends with the lexan.
IIRC they make a channel type joiner strip, either in Lexan or alum. Picture two J channels back to back with out the nail flange, just an "H" layed sideways. I think I saw an angled way with that. Resource Conservation also has gasket.joiners.
The whole system is really great stuff, and very easy to install. I have some scrap here that is Smoke, not clear, and 3/4" thick and eacl "cell" has a film dividing it into mini cells, so it really even has an R value when the ends are taped with foil tape.
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Edited 2/27/2009 5:54 pm ET by Sphere
U should try to find a local guy who knows a bit about carpentry, get him to frame a roof outta wood for ya.
Jeff
Buck Construction
Artistry In Carpentry
Pittsburgh Pa
LOL, I'm looking hard.
If I have to, I will do it but I hate curved stuff.
had to make some curved cuts the other day.
told the helper "luckily I can't cut straight" ...
Jeff Buck Construction
Artistry In Carpentry
Pittsburgh Pa
Jim, I had a '47 Ford woody. The top was thin oak ribs and slats all covered in painted canvas... it lasted until the mid 70's.My boys and I built a Roy Underhill kayak out of ribs, slats, painter's drop cloths and latex paint... floated for 10 years.http://www.tvwsolar.com
I went down to the lobby
To make a small call out.
A pretty dancing girl was there,
And she began to shout,
"Go on back to see the gypsy.
He can move you from the rear,
Drive you from your fear,
Bring you through the mirror.
He did it in Las Vegas,
And he can do it here."
there ya go ...
build it like a slat canoe.
Jeff Buck Construction
Artistry In Carpentry
Pittsburgh Pa
I've decided to do the wood roof and membrane. I dont think theres a cheaper way. The underside of the roof will be made of 1/8" birch ply. I've already done the lower level ceiling and it worked great.
I've done some FG work (put together a sailboat) and put a fiberglass panel roof on our deck.
I think you'd find constructing a FG roof from scratch to be difficult and not likely to produce satisfactory results, but you could probably buy flat FG panels somewhere and FG them together to do what you want, producing fairly good results.
For our deck I took short sections of the (corrugated) FG panel and FGed them together in a shallow vee to make a ridge piece. Was relatively simple and turned out well. Putting together your roof would be similar to that, if you can figure out how to make it out of (flexed) flat sections, joined at the mating edges with a layer of fresh FG.
There's a guy here that does copper roofs. Now that would be cool.
Yeah, and now that copper is so cheap, I could almost afford to do my roof. About a buck and a half a sq.ft for raw..not too bad for a lifetime roof.
I hate the heat, I think Grant oughtta go to Texas and help out Blue (G)Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
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The copper seems like great value but I'm not so sure that the color scheme would match with the old faded red base colors.
Now that I'm thinking about it..maybe I should just do one of those silver/white paint on roofs that I've seen on trailers. Do they still sell that stuff? We don't get much rain here in TX and that stuff would last until our budget allowed for a nice adjustable crankup canvas top.
Epoxy, not fiberglass.
West systems or Clarkcraft
Wooden frame, maybe 1x ribs and nice 1/4" ply roof
Lay fiberglass mesh matched to epoxy system, then fill weave w/ epoxy
Prime and paint to desired color
Like an upside down boat bottom
Woodworking skills combined w/ long lasting, tough, waterproof coatings.
Polyester resin, not epoxy.
The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness. -John Kenneth Galbraith
But niether one has any UV resistance, both need a coating of some sort to avoid premature degradation, Lexan does not. It is specifically made for this aplication.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
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Our deck roof is over 20 years old. The surface has gotten rougher over the years, but it's still plenty sound.
The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness. -John Kenneth Galbraith
Keep in mind that I've never done this!!!
Anyway.... A few years ago I thought about getting some more headroom in a van, didn't want to spend a lot, so I was thinking about this, I believe it would work:
Canoes used to be made of canvas, stretched tight (wet) over a wood framework, and it would dry tight as a drum. Then they'd apply several coats of oil based paint, starting with a thinned coat that would soak into the fabric.
If, instead of the paint, you used a penetrating epoxy (Abatron, West Systems, etc.) I think you'd get what you need.
Once the initial hard shell was in place, it probably wouldn't be too difficult to add layers of fiberglass mat, or maybe canvas again, to build thickness.
Fiberglass is not too hard to work with. You will need a bug sander and a big air compressor (the little nail gun compressors don't quite keep up). Sand everything with rough sandpaper (24 or 40 grit) so the layup sticks well. Make sure ALL the rust is gone from any steel. Thin plywood (or high density foam if you're worried about the weight) and a bit of framework can fill in the open spaces. The fiberglass will stiffen and strengthen your roof . Finish everything so there are no huge gaps or steps.
Lay down a few plies of heavy decking cloth. Epoxy resin bonds very well to steel and wood and gives a reasonable work time (30 minutes) but it is expensive. Surfboard builders use polyester to make beautiful boards but I always use epoxy. Besides it is stronger. And polyester will melt styrofoam, epoxy will not. Squeege the resin into the cloth until the cloth is saturated (it is easy to see through wet fiberglass). Work in the early morning when it is cool but make sure it warms up later in the day so the resin kicks off. Wait 24 hours, sand, Bondo, sand (no more rough paper) and paint. You can do beautiful work with enough effort.
The bus roof looks really big. That might be a bigger area than can comfortably be done. And it will take a lot of expensive material. Are you planning to drive the bus? If so, then fiberglass might be the best bet (light, strong and can be finished to match the original). Fiberglass is perfect for valueable car restoration. I used glass over thin plywood on a steel frame on a custom Corvette - it looked sweet!. But it was expensive and took a long time. Finding a different bus with a stock roof might be better and cheaper.
If the bus is stationary, use heavy plywood (maybe a couple of plies bent and glued together to get the desired curve and plaster or foam for the compound curve corners) and an elastomeric roof - that will be a lot cheaper.
Eric
If the bus is stationary, use heavy plywood (maybe a couple of plies bent and glued together to get the desired curve and plaster or foam for the compound curve corners) and an elastomeric roof - that will be a lot cheaper"
I think that is the answer. For some reason, I was thinking that the fiberglass shell would be less expensive.
I will look further into the Lexas products though...if I can locate any locally.
Edited 2/28/2009 12:13 pm ET by jimAKAblue
Once and done.
http://www.cloudtops.com/polycarbonate_index.htmSpheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
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