Roof Wieght Capacity - Hi-Lo camper travel trailer forum

kalohe · 12-21-2012, 08:59 PM

Planning to attend some racing this spring and wanting to perch on my roof to watch. Any idea what the weight capacity is or how / where would the best place to set a chair ??? Any input would be appreciated. I tried the search option and came up blank ... I have a 2805 C if that would make a difference.
Thanks for your time and effort ...
Kalohe

JackandJanet · 12-21-2012, 10:06 PM

Wayne, you can walk on your roof, but I'd be careful about putting a chair up there. The chair has small feet that concentrate your weight in small "footprints". If you DO use a chair, I'd incorporate some kind of "sleeper shoring" to spread the pressure out over a wider area. Probably, two wood planks running longwise along the roof that would be under the feet of the chair would be sufficient.

Additionally, if you have a rubber roof, you need to be careful not to damage it by cutting the membrane.

And, HiLo says YOU can walk on your roof, but I wouldn't have a party up there.

- Jack

Dee Tillotson · 12-22-2012, 01:25 AM

Also, can one or many, for that matter, walk on the roof with the top half in the up position? DH has only been on the top half of the roof when in the down position for the purpose of cleaning the roof.

Dee

RudyRedNek · 12-22-2012, 06:30 AM

I WOULD NOT recommend walking/sitting/square-dancing on ANY Hi-Lo rooftop. The roof framing is minimum 2 feet on center, and in most places is 4 feet on center. Metal roofs are a VERY thin piece of metal over 3/16 (or so) plywood, over the framework. Some frames are wood, others are aluminum or steel. To put it simply, the roof wasn't designed to be a patio. I've seen people do it, but I won't!

RichR · 12-22-2012, 07:44 AM

You can walk on it for cleaning and maintenance, etc. I definitely wouldn't be up there when the top is up for cleaning or anything else. But, it is your trailer and you can do what you want.

garyk52 · 12-22-2012, 09:27 AM

Since I have installed new ceiling paneling and rebuilt part of my roof and have seen how the roof is made, no way would I walk on that roof. The rafters (if you want to call them that) are on 4 foot centers, the rafters are made out of 1 inch square tubing with 1/8 inch sheeting on the top, 1 inch styrofoam in the middle, and 1/8 inch paneling on the bottom. Not only that, now having the camper extended and it is being held up by 4 thin aircraft cables, now you would be walking around on the roof putting a lot of extra stress on possibly one corner. You might get away with it, but then you might not and end up with a collapsed ceiling or broken cables and pulleys.

davidc · 12-22-2012, 09:34 AM

Bad idea all the way around... not what it's for. Look at it when the frost is on the roof and the sun starts to hit it... it should outline the framing of the roof clearly.

All that being said, I still wouldn't do it. Given that the roof is the only thing keeping your RV leak free - why would sit around, walk around or square dance - LOL on it?

Bad idea.

kalohe · 12-22-2012, 11:40 AM

Thanks for the input, lots of good advice and food for thought ... watching others at the race track climb on other brands made me wonder about Hi-Lo ... I think I will only touch the roof with my long brush for cleaning from a ladder in the down position. I have lawn chairs for a reason.

davidc · 12-22-2012, 12:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kalohe

Thanks for the input, lots of good advice and food for thought ... watching others at the race track climb on other brands made me wonder about Hi-Lo ... I think I will only touch the roof with my long brush for cleaning from a ladder in the down position. I have lawn chairs for a reason.

Has nothing to do with a HiLo - quite frankly - NONE of them are made so you can sit on a lawn chair on them.

Just because people do it, doesn't mean you should.

gus · 12-22-2012, 03:58 PM

I was also watching the tv show "walking dead" and on most of the episodes they had an older winnebago from the 70's or so and they always put a couple of lawn chairs, some umbrella a table with drinks and had a really nice place to watch out for the zombies and the thought came across my mind just in case of an outbreak of zombie whatever, we who have the Hi-lo's are not going to be able to climb on top of ours to be at a safe distance from them. but in that case who cares about the roof damage any place high enough would be ok, provided you have some sharp objects and enough guns to take care of 30 or more zombies.

Rolff · 12-22-2012, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gus

I was also watching the tv show "walking dead" and on most of the episodes they had an older winnebago from the 70's or so and they always put a couple of lawn chairs, some umbrella a table with drinks and had a really nice place to watch out for the zombies and the thought came across my mind just in case of an outbreak of zombie whatever, we who have the Hi-lo's are not going to be able to climb on top of ours to be at a safe distance from them. but in that case who cares about the roof damage any place high enough would be ok, provided you have some sharp objects and enough guns to take care of 30 or more zombies.

I have considered it myself Gus. With the top only up a few inches the windows would make good gun ports. You could even be towing it if you had to escape. In a Zombie Apocalypse I will be driving something nicer that that old Winne with a bad radiator hose. LOL.

gus · 12-22-2012, 07:40 PM

rolff, that is funny with the radiator hose, of all the things that could go wrong with it, its always the hose, actually on many occasions when I am driving around here I always see at flea markets what looks like an abandoned winnebago of that age. The walking dead tv show is filmed in GA and there is a web site that list every episode and what town it was filmed at.

sam · 12-22-2012, 10:59 PM

Nobody mentioned that if the roof caved in you would get seriously hurt. Guess that is the perspective of a Nurse. I was a patient in the ER. The flimsy curtain was what was used for privacy. The 20something male in the next bed came in with burns from pouring gasoline on a hot carb. of a lawnmower. The lawnmower wouldn't start again and this was his solution. The DR. came in and asked him what level of education he had. Maybe it was the same Dr. that on another ER visit asked me why I didn't see my primary for abd. pain.My Drs office isn't open on friday evenings. He had the orderly come and tell me that I was being admitted for you guessed it,emergency appendectomy. My neighbor with a Masters degree poured gasoline on the raised flower bed that happened to be at the side of her house. DH heard her screams and saved the day with the shovel he used to beat the flames down.

Rolff · 12-23-2012, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gus

rolff, that is funny with the radiator hose, of all the things that could go wrong with it, its always the hose, actually on many occasions when I am driving around here I always see at flea markets what looks like an abandoned winnebago of that age. The walking dead tv show is filmed in GA and there is a web site that list every episode and what town it was filmed at.

I would love to be a shamble on Zombie on the show. I would have been better prepared that them to leave the farm towing my Hi-lo. Heck I am better prepared now than they were. SLC is in a fault zone and we could have a major earthquake at any time. We would be OK even in winter but it would be crowded with all the neighbors in there too.
Maybe when they build new Hi-Los they should promote them as the survivalist trailer?

davidc · 12-23-2012, 08:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rolff

Maybe when they build new Hi-Los they should promote them as the survivalist trailer?

Who's going to build new HiLos?

gus · 12-23-2012, 10:53 AM

nobody that I know off is going to build new hi-lo's, it just that me and rolff are going into hi-lo modifications called the survivalist series, reinforce the windows with rebars and whatever we need to make them withstand a Zombie Apocalypse, earthquake, tornadoes and any other threats.

davidc · 12-23-2012, 10:55 AM

uh huh....

RichR · 12-23-2012, 11:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidc

Who's going to build new HiLos?

Supposedly a dealer here in PA was going to resurrect the HiLo, but so far it has been all talk and no show. Kerola's RV dealership specializing in lightweight campers. Small camper experts!

hilltool · 12-23-2012, 01:40 PM

Zombies Are Coming Surviving in an RV

http://jalopnik.com/5514798/ecoroame...of-survival-rv

gus · 12-23-2012, 01:56 PM

hilltool, read the last link you provided, wow some people take these very seriously, the person with reason #32 has been prepared already, they have enough food to last 12 months, complete with solar panels, radios and all the things a survivalist needs to pack a 31' rv. Me one the other hand have enough stuff to last 2 days.. but at least I don't have to worry about busted radiator hose.