ladywendolyn
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1964 Golden Falcon
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Post by ladywendolyn on Feb 27, 2016 10:33:09 GMT -8
I saw some photos today of a completed trailer restoration where they did not replace the roof vent, because in their words, "They always leak eventually.". They said that they have enough air flow coming in through all the windows. It made me think.. hmmm, maybe having a tiny upper crank window somewhere in the trailer, would be smarter than a roof vent. -Is it necessary? Or is it simply tradition? What do you think?
Lady W
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Post by vintagebruce on Feb 27, 2016 12:29:56 GMT -8
Lady W, In a lot of the late 40's and very early 50's longer trailers I think we have all seen the small rounded end rectangular windows positioned just below the roof line, some have one on each side and some at least one near the front and one near the rear. I always thought those were for ventilation. My '51 Travelo has one roof vent in the rear bedroom but not one in the living area, it does have the side mounted small windows in the living area. If you bear with me and open this thread and scroll all the way to the bottom, I think this demonstrates the theory in the build plans for I'm guessing a very early 50's home built Midget camper. If I ever do a home built, I do not plan to put in a roof vent, but probably have a small side wall vented fan to move the warm air as it rises. In other words I don't think a roof vent is a MUST if you have opening windows or a side vent.. tnttt.com/VintagePlans/pln_midgettrailer.pdf
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SusieQ
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'62 Shasta Compact
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Post by SusieQ on Feb 27, 2016 21:42:00 GMT -8
I like the roof vent, even in my teardrop it does provide nice ventilation. But in the compacts, it also serves as the vent/fan for the stovetop. If you notice, it's right in front of the stove. And for that reason, I think it's a must. The Fantastic Fan is just a super nice convenience. But if it's not on your priority list, then do without.
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mobiltec
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1954 Jewel In Progress...
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Post by mobiltec on Feb 27, 2016 21:44:24 GMT -8
All the holes will leak in your trailer eventually if you don't reseal it every 15 years... This is just one more hole. And from my experience it is not the vent frame that leaks. It's the vent cover if it cracks or comes off, or people just leave them open. The latter is the biggest cause. So if you can't remember to close the vent then maybe it's a good idea not to have one. But it sure does let the heat out good. The Ultimate is the Fantastic Fan with the rain sensor. Then you can be forgetful as you want. They also have those vent covers that allow you to leave the vent open in the rain even while traveling.
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Ten
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70 Shasta 16SC + 1964 Airflyte
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Post by Ten on Feb 27, 2016 21:48:59 GMT -8
Whatever this is worth, I have a late-60's Bravo camper that had no roof vents from the factory. The body is styled like the Loflyte and the Loliner, low roof line and no step to the floor level.
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Post by vikx on Feb 27, 2016 21:49:22 GMT -8
My Loliners didn't have roof vents, just the little windows. The owners say they are cool enough, but I put extra insulation in both...
I install a Fantastic Fan in almost every trailer and people love them. And roof vents don't "always leak eventually". I have 60 year old trailers that have never leaked around the vent. I think a lot of that has to do with storage and maintenance.
When a trailer is properly rebuilt and maintained, there is no reason not to have a roof vent. I think they are important.
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mountainsounds
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1957 Rainbow & 1955 Starfire
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Post by mountainsounds on Feb 28, 2016 0:16:29 GMT -8
I love the roof vent for airflow and cooling. maintenance is required, like everything else.
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nccamper
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1962 Forester- 1956 Shasta
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Post by nccamper on Feb 28, 2016 6:06:07 GMT -8
Try to cook something in a camper without a vent and it literally heats up like an oven. Even in the winter with the windows open it's too hot.
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chriss
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Post by chriss on Feb 28, 2016 9:45:34 GMT -8
[quote author=" ladywendolyn" source="/post/59571/thread" timestamp="1456597989" "They always leak eventually.". -Is it necessary? Or is it simply tradition? What do you think? Lady W [/quote] I don't believe the roof vent is any more susceptible to leaking than the rest of the j-rail, windows, marker lights, or any other penetrations. They all will eventually leak if not maintained. Anyway, a true "restoration" would have retained the original vent. I'm glad I have mine. Lets the heat out and steam from the stove. My old hehr one was busted beyond repair, so I put an opaque white vent cover on. The additional light is nice too.
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mobiltec
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Post by mobiltec on Feb 28, 2016 12:00:15 GMT -8
Just make sure you use a vent with a metal cover. The plastic ones are junk.
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Post by vikx on Feb 28, 2016 20:28:24 GMT -8
Some plastic covers are OK. Depends if they have UV resistance or not. Fantastic Fan dome type lids do, not sure on other brands...
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mobiltec
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Post by mobiltec on Feb 28, 2016 20:37:36 GMT -8
Some plastic covers are OK. Depends if they have UV resistance or not. Fantastic Fan dome type lids do, not sure on other brands... Ya I've been wondering about the fantastic fan I'm putting in the 59 Airflyte. They hold up pretty good eh?
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Post by vikx on Feb 28, 2016 20:45:30 GMT -8
I've never had any trouble. I use the 4000R in white with a smoked dome lid. (new model is the 1250 which is reversible as well) This model doesn't have all the fancy stuff and circuit board to fail; just a simple 3 speed Fan with reverse.
I have to say that the grey VTS model looks very vintage from the outside, but the inside isn't nice against golden glow wood. The lid is flat and tends to drip condensation more than the dome lids do.
The Fantastic Vent Fan company has the best customer service in the business. If you break a part, even if it's your fault, they will send you a new part free, no shipping.
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chriss
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Post by chriss on Feb 28, 2016 21:43:20 GMT -8
Some plastic covers are OK. Depends if they have UV resistance or not. Fantastic Fan dome type lids do, not sure on other brands... The plastic one I have is an elixer and I installed it in '01 when I bought tbe trailer. It's held up very well with no leaks except the plastic is getting rough from uv exposure. Still it has no cracks and the plastic doesn't feel brittle. I went to an rv parts house and camping world last summer to check into a eeplacement lid since mine was getting dingy. All those new lids seem kinda cheesy compared to my old one. The plastic just seems thinner and more brittle. I hesitated and didn't buy one. Think I'm going to hold out for the gray lid fantastic fan.
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cowcharge
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Post by cowcharge on Mar 1, 2016 6:09:47 GMT -8
I'd say vents are more likely to leak than anything else on the trailer, just because they're on a flat roof where water can puddle and have the time to soak in wherever it can find an opening.
Mine's a '76 so it's not quite the same issue, because it has a range hood over the stove, as well as a small rectangular vent window in all four upper corners from where the upper bunks used to be (plus 8 other windows not counting roof vents). Also I live in Maine, so I'm not subjected to the same heat that all you crazy people who live in the South have. So I don't really need roof vents for airflow, but there are two anyway. One's directly over the shower, which helps with getting the steam out, especially since there's no bathroom window. And I do like the light the one in the kitchen lets in, since those low ceilings tend to limit the amount of light from the windows.
I'm sure they do a lot more for airflow in a cramped Compact with few windows.
I would think it would be no harder to prevent leaks in a vent than it would be to prevent them in whatever kind of patch you used to replace the vent. Unless you replace the whole roof...
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