RV and coach
Exterior, Body and Paint, Roof and Awnings
The outside of the coach: body and paint, the roof, the seams and the awnings. A roof leak does its damage quietly, and by the time it shows up inside, the repair is a wall and not a seam. We repair roofs and we replace them outright. This is the work a fixed shop is actually built for, because paint and sealant both have to go on dry and stay dry while they cure, and that is a building, not a driveway.
What it usually turns out to be
You do not need a diagnosis to call. Describe what it is doing and we will tell you whether it is a shop job.
A stain on the ceiling, or a soft spot in a corner
By the time it is visible inside, water has usually been travelling for a while, and rarely straight down. We look at the roof seams, the vents, the skylight, the antenna base and the front and rear caps, because water enters at a fitting far more often than through the middle of a membrane. Then we work out how far it has already gone, which is the part that decides the size of the job.
The sealant on the roof is cracked, chalky or lifting at the edges
That is the high desert doing what it does: sun and a big daily temperature swing age lap sealant faster here than the brochure assumes. We check every penetration and seam, remove what has failed rather than smearing over it, and reseal. Sealant put on top of failed sealant traps the leak instead of stopping it.
The awning will not roll out straight, or the fabric is tearing at the roller
Usually the arms, the spring assembly or the mounting rail rather than the fabric itself, and the fabric is the part people replace first. We look at the whole assembly, because a bent arm will tear a new awning as fast as it tore the old one.
You can hear wind or water at a vent, or the fan cover is cracked
Vent covers go brittle in the sun and crack, and the gasket underneath usually goes at the same time. Both are cheap parts and a fast job, and both cause expensive damage if left. We stock replacement vents on the shelf.
Something hit the side, and you are not sure how bad it is
Bring it and we will look. Body and paint repair is work we do here, and the first question is always how deep it went. A scrape in the finish, a cracked panel, and a hit that moved something behind the panel are three different jobs at three different prices. We will tell you which one you have before anyone starts.
The finish is faded, dull or peeling on one side
The sun does this, and it does it fastest on the side that faces the afternoon. What matters is whether the coating has failed or the panel under it has, because that decides whether the fix is refinishing or a repair first. We look before we quote either one.
The part you need has not been made for fifteen years
Fairly common on an older coach, and not automatically the end of it. We fabricate and modify parts, so an exterior fitting nobody stocks any more is worth asking about before you write the rig off or start hunting salvage yards.
What we do
- Body and paint repair
- Panel respray and full repaint
- Fiberglass and aluminum body repair
- Insurance body and paint claims
- Full RV re-roofing
- Roof inspection
- Rubber roof leak diagnosis and repair
- Roof resealing and recoating
- Vent, skylight and seal replacement
- Awning repair and replacement
- Satellite and antenna hookups
- Custom fabrication when the part is no longer made
Will it fit
The question owners ask first and almost nobody answers on a website.
- Service bays
- 7
- Sized for big rigs
- 4
- Sized for cars and light trucks
- 3
- Yard entrances
- 2
Two yard entrances is what makes a long rig easy to get in and back out of. Call with your length before you drive over and we will tell you whether it fits and when the bay is free.
What we do not do here
- This is shop work, and on a roof that is the whole argument. Sealant goes on dry and cures dry, so the coach comes inside, stays out of the weather for as long as the job takes, and goes home when the roof is actually finished.
- This is the outside of the coach. The membrane, the seams, the vents, the awnings, the panels and the paint. Water that has already got inside and damaged the living space is a different conversation, and we will have it with you once we know how far it went.
- Body and paint here is focused on RV and coach work, and that is what the bays and the schedule are built around. It is the same trade on a car or a light truck and we do take that work, we just do not chase it, so ask rather than assume either way.
- We do not quote body or paint work sight unseen. What it costs depends on how deep the damage went and how much of the panel it takes to put right, and neither can be judged from a description.
- Bigger body jobs we try to put into the winter, so the coach can hold a big bay for as long as the work actually takes instead of being worked around all week. Call and we will give you a real date rather than a hopeful one.
- We will not seal over a leak we have not found. Sealant on top of failed sealant hides the problem for a season and makes the eventual repair bigger, and anyone offering to do that quickly is not doing you a favor.
- We do not quote roof work sight unseen. What a leak costs depends entirely on how far the water already travelled, and that cannot be known from a description.
Before you call, have this handy
None of it is required. It just gets you a real answer on the first call instead of the second.
What the roof is made of, if you know
Rubber membrane, fiberglass or aluminum. Each takes different repairs and different sealants. If you are not sure, the year and the RV brand usually tell us, and a photo from a ladder tells us faster.
When you first noticed it, and whether it changed
A stain that grew after one storm is a different problem from one that has been the same size for two years. Both are worth fixing, but they are not the same job.
What has already been done up there
Previous sealant, a patch, a repair by a previous owner, an aftermarket antenna or solar panel bolted through the roof. Anything that made a hole is worth knowing about, and nobody is judging the workmanship.
For body or paint, where the damage is and how it happened
A photo or two saves a lot of guessing, and the angle matters more than the quality. Tell us whether anything is cracked, whether a door or a bay hatch still shuts, and whether an insurance claim is involved.
The length and height of the rig
Length tells us which bay you go in. Height matters more on this job than most, because roof work means getting above the coach with it indoors.
Questions
Questions we get asked
Do you do body and paint work?
Yes. Bring it in and we will look before anyone gives you a number, because what a repair costs depends on how deep the damage went. Tell us what happened when you call and we will tell you whether it is work for us.
Can you match the paint on an older coach?
Tell us the year, the RV brand and where the damage is, and we will give you a straight answer before you drive over. A finish that has faded in the sun for fifteen years is a different job from a fresh one, and that is worth knowing up front.
Do you come to me?
We do have a service truck and we do go out. Roof work is the one job we would rather you brought in, and that is the point rather than a limitation. Sealant has to go on dry and cure dry, and a covered bay is what keeps the roof out of the weather until the job is finished.
Can I book a roof inspection on its own?
Yes. You do not need a leak to book one, and given what the sun here does to lap sealant it is worth doing before you have a reason. If you do tell us you have a leak, we will usually inspect the roof anyway.
Do you work with insurance on body damage?
Yes, and we deal with the insurance company on the cost of the repair so you are not relaying numbers back and forth. How the money moves depends on your carrier: some pay you, some have you pay us and get reimbursed, and some pay us directly. Tell us who you are with when you call.
Can you find a leak if I cannot?
Usually. Water almost never enters where it appears, so finding it is a matter of working the seams and the fittings rather than looking at the stain. Tell us what you have already tried when you call, so we do not spend your money repeating it.
Do you do full re-roofs?
Yes. They are an expensive job and we will tell you so before you commit to one, but a coach that needs the whole membrane replaced is work we do here rather than send somewhere else.
How often should a roof be resealed?
Look at it more often than you think and reseal when it needs it rather than on a calendar. The sun and the temperature swing here are hard on lap sealant, so a coach that lives in the Carson Valley ages its roof faster than the same coach parked on the coast. An inspection is cheap and a delaminated ceiling is not.
The part I need is discontinued. Is that the end of it?
Not necessarily. We fabricate and modify parts, which is unusual and worth asking about before you give up on an older coach or start calling salvage yards.
Do you sell the sealant if I want to do it myself?
Yes. The store stocks rubber roof sealants and replacement vents and it is open to walk-ins whether or not we are doing the work. Tell us what your roof is made of and we will make sure you leave with the right product, because the wrong sealant on the wrong membrane is worse than none.
How long will you need the coach?
Longer than most of what we do, and honestly so: cure time is real and it is not something we can hurry. We tell you the realistic number when you call rather than book you in and hope.
Talk to someone who works on these
Call the shop and we will tell you the soonest realistic date rather than book you and hold your rig. Mon-Fri 8:00 - 5:00, Saturday 8:00 - 12:00.