New Skylight Installation for RV

The kitchen was a very dark area of our Jay Feather 24T that was just screaming for more light; the only answer was a skylight. I was, needless to say, very apprehensive about cutting a 14" x 22" hole in the perfectly good roof, but it was WELL worth it.
These are the products I used to install our new skylight:
Single Pane Exterior Skylight Kit - amzn.to/2fPwLRm
EternaBond 4" Sealant Tape - amzn.to/2gP5rCq
EternaBond Spray Cleaner - amzn.to/2gQOjcS
EternaBond Surface Conditioner - amzn.to/2gvKyM0
Dicor Self-Leveling Lap Sealant - amzn.to/2fPtGAJ
Blog: www.wan-der-lus...
Instagram: / wanderlust2356
My Camera Equipment:
Canon EOS M3 Mirrorless w/ 18-55mm Lens - amzn.to/29YiSIP
Canon EF-M 22mm f2 Prime Lens - amzn.to/29OVGRX
Shure VP83 Condenser Microphone - amzn.to/2aKgZTP
Shure A83-FUR Windjammer - amzn.to/2bdQkjs
32GB Memory Card - amzn.to/2a3MKHb
Rode Lavalier Mic - amzn.to/2ayAlcu
Joby GorillaPod Tripod - amzn.to/2ad7A7M
Sametop Jaws Flex Clamp - amzn.to/29QuWNg
Wireless Remote Control - amzn.to/29X4SoE
Equipment Bag - amzn.to/29X4QNA
iPhone Tripod Adapter - amzn.to/29X6xdP
Mpow iSnap Selfie Stick of iPhone 6 - amzn.to/29OWDcU
OP/TECH Strap System - amzn.to/29X76UX
OP/TECH Wrist Strap - amzn.to/29Z9IyN
Music By:
Skin & Bones
/ acttough
The 5th Dimension
"Aquarius / Let the Sunshine In"

[@ceciliam.1889]

Song choices on point!

[@Duckyboy6972]

Great job! Your are the only one on KZbin who had the courage to do this. With your quality of work, I am sure their are many who would love to have you to install one for them. :)

[@jos.4276]

Me.

[@eliwol3789]

For some reason this cheered me up! Great job.

[@wanderlust101]

Thanks... you made my day!

[@douglasharley2440]

lol, this was WAAAY doper than one would expect from the title alone! nice skylight install, thanks.

[@buckrussell1403]

Nice work man. I just shoveled snow off mine and found a little hole in mine patched it but will be replacing next year. That stuff is sure cheap made

[@elizabethhu351]

I literally said “wow” out load after seeing the difference. My boyfriend said “no, it sounds like a leak problem” but he doesn’t have that can-do-it-yourself attitude like me. I think I’m going to do it :)

[@wanderlust101]

not leak problems AT ALL.

[@wsgriffi]

wan-der-lust, I just bought the same material you used and am planning on installing the skylight in my Coleman RV next to the kitchen table. The reason for my doing this is because a large tree limb fell through my roof last week. I hope my install goes as smooth as yours did. Thanks, Scott

[@wanderlust101]

wsgriffi good luck. Let me know if you have any questions.

[@christinebagatin5945]

You are a brave man! :). Awesome job!

[@DispelMusic]

Very helpful, thank you🤘

[@backroadgypsy1229]

Excellent music choice!

[@CrossCountyTravelers]

Yes, I got the point.... You definitely needed something. I actually like the idea and I bet Gail did too! Wow, that was a lot of work, but I am sure it worth it. Good job showing how to do this. Makes the rest of us a bit more less apprehensive. (see what I did there?) Good job! It is definitely something we will be keeping in mind for when we get our own! Thanks! Ren

[@wanderlust101]

I did see that... thanks.

[@jos.4276]

The best trailer mod I've seen yet. Do mine next, k?

[@tednugent8210]

Great vid dude i might do this to replace my fridge vent hole

[@glennmatthiesen1749]

Hi Robert, my wife and I have a 2010 245RBS Starcraft Travelstar trailer (manufactured by Jayco) which is nearly identical to yours, same layout. Very inspiring videos! I've done the programable thermostat, upgraded the water pump and installed a 2.1 gallon precharged tank. Great upgrades, thank you. I'm planning the skylight install, but did not have any luck with Jayco on the roof truss plans. I'm hoping you still have a copy of the plans you obtained and could post or forward a copy? I've done a few additional mods myself; installed the IOTA Engineering IQ4 Smart Charge Controller, a simple plug 'n play module that upgrades your trailer's existing IOTA DLS-45 12V DC Converter/Charger (located under the fridge) into a smart 4 stage charger for your onboard batteries. $25.86 on Amazon. In the front bedroom, we dyed the blinds black and painted the exterior of the roof vent black. Really cut down the light pollution from street and campground lights. Also swapped-out the OEM reading lights with two 1.4W Flexible Wall Reading Lamps - 3W DC 12 Volt Warm White Acrylic, Dimmer Touch with Blue Night Decor Lights. Amazon again. Very easy on the eyes! Cheers, Glenn & Maria

[@wanderlust101]

Glenn Matthiesen - sounds like you’ve done some great projects. I did get some drawings from Jayco - some correct and some not - I’d be glad to send you what I have but I won’t be able to for another week. I discovered there are no roof trusses because the roof itself is structural (ridged foam sandwiched by inner and outer 1/4” plywood.) there may be some wood blocking about the walls but that’s it. There is a wire harness that runs front to back but the location is random and not shown on the drawings.

[@glennmatthiesen1749]

Thanks Bob, I hope you're up and around soon. Cheers, Glenn

[@shamusmcgee7584]

Love the music

[@Walterz930]

Nice video maybe if you ever install one more maybe cut the tape on a angle so that they don’t over lap but join together

[@jos.4276]

I spent a decade in commercial roofing. Mitering the tape is not recommended, as that joint could shrink, separate, and leak. Nobody will see it anyway.

[@LifeWithBethandCourt]

Question - our RV manufacturer won’t give us the plans to our rig. Any advice on how to find where to safely cut a skylight in your roof WITHOUT the plans?

[@wanderlust101]

Great question to which I don’t have an answer. What kind of rig to you have?

[@LifeWithBethandCourt]

@@wanderlust101 we have a Heartland North Trail 22RBK. They said it’s company policy that they can’t share the CAD drawings or blueprints 😞 We have a large space free of lights, vents or speakers right next to our AC in the ceiling but I don’t wanna start cutting and find out it’s going to interfere with the vent paths or electric paths 🫢

[@sabby1802]

awesome!!

[@JC-ok7qd]

Great vid !

[@kennethpauldykstra9223]

Great and informative video

[@hikethisplanet1017]

Wow this was fantastic. I have the exact same trailer and my biggest bitch is the lack of natural light. So thank you very much. this was great.

[@birdielein9636]

NICE!!!!!

[@jamesrowland1508]

Hows it holding up? I'm about to do it.

[@wanderlust101]

All good.

[@jamesrowland1508]

@@wanderlust101 ah shit now I actually have to then 😆

[@nehuge]

How does one know if this compromises structural integrity?

[@wanderlust101]

David C. This is s “sandwich” roof (styrofoam sandwiched between 2 sheets of plywood) that already has multiple openings: AC, bathroom skylight, 2 vents so I figured 1 more opening wouldn’t hurt.

[@markhenderson218]

Hi Bob, I am about to make this very same upgrade :-) I've purchased all the same parts you recommended. Thanks so much for the detail in your blog and video.Any tips you learned after/during that you'd like to impart to me ;-)I wondered if you allowed the roof rubber to fall down to cover the layers of the roof and ceiling? That is to say, did you make a precise cut in the rubber so when looking thru the skylight from the top you can see the layers of roof and ceiling or does the roof rubber cover them?Thanks, Mark

[@wanderlust101]

Hey Mark Henderson , after drilling the holes at the corners I went up top and cut the roof rubber diagonally from the corner. I pulled the rubber back and cut through the roof with 6" long saber saw blades. The 4 rubber triangles turned down n side to cover the exposed edge. I pulled them tight and stapled to the ceiling close to the edge, trimmed the excess and the inner garnish covers the stapled rubber roof. I hope you understand that. Let me know if you have any other questions. We are in NE Florida for a couple weeks and we commenting how great the skylight is.

[@markhenderson218]

Hi again, thanks for getting back to me so quickly. Yes, I understand and what a good idea. I'll do the same. :-)When drilling the corner holes to begin the cuts, is it safe to say you were on the inside of the measured dimension? I am a bit apprehensive not working with a template provided by Specialty Recreation, so I have made my own - just don't want to cut the hole too big (I hope that makes sense). Thanks again!Mark

[@wanderlust101]

Hey Mark, I believe you have enough room for a little error. Tolerance is not that critical.

[@Skuits]

wan·der·lust thanks so much!!! Travel safely 😄 Sincerely, Mark.

[@markhenderson218]

Hi Bob, all went well and we now have a beautiful skylight. Thanks again so much for posting your work and including the links to the products. I watched your video several times and had that song in my head while I worked ;-) Now I just need to come up with some sort of shade for when my RV is parked, so I don't end up with a faded spot on my floor.Keep up the good work! :-)Mark

[@MR_UNOoo]

I like this video already

[@frzncstrd7647]

How is it holding up? Do you think the dicor is necessary around the tape? I put sealant between the skylight and roof, but want to seal it with the tape.

[@wanderlust101]

frzncstrd - It’s holding up great. If I had to do it over again, I would use the Dicor. I always have Dicor on hand. Does it hurt? No. Could it help? Yes. Is it necessary? Probably not.

[@frzncstrd7647]

wan-der-lust thanks for the info and video.

[@frzncstrd7647]

Where do you normally buy the eternabond tape? I see that camping world sells a knock off brand. I tried a roofing company and they are double the price of online prices.

[@jubouc3898]

Hello Wanderlust! I love your video. Refreshing when everyone calls you crazy when mentioning making an additional hole in an rv rubber roof. I am looking for the links to the products you used as mentioned at the end of you video, but can't seem to find them. I have an EPDM rubber roof, has to be Butyl based products as I understand. Are the products you used butyl based, or EPDM friendly? Do you know if that tape would adhere to metal? Thank you so much!

[@wanderlust101]

The links to products are in the description area just below the video, click on *SHOW MORE* above. I'm going to add another skylight above the couch soon. My roof is EPDM also, the Eternabond tape will stick to anything... great stuff. Good luck.

[@roberthogan621]

Sir , that's one great video.I just E-Mailed Jayco as you did , looking for the framing details on my 2014 Jayco 28BHBE and hope to have the same response from them.The Newer Jayco 28BHBE models come with this feature and it looks great and very functional. And thanks for your attention to detail. Again, Great Job !

[@jasongaskins3066]

Nice Job Bob! You always display personality. hahaha I guess you upgraded quite a bit from the last camper you had. Good job. I've got a 26' with wheel and need a taller shower. So i'm looking to put in a large skylight. funny you were on the first video I pulled up. I feel less apprehensive now but you didn't say what you did between the two roofs. Any need for bridging or sistering rafters? for building spacers?

[@wanderlust101]

Too funny you came across this. I was expecting to put in some additional wood for bracing, but I didn't cut through any framing and there was a solid core of rigid styrofoam between the interior and exterior ply sheathing. Actually, I was surprised and how solid it felt, no structural degradation at all. What kind of trailer did you get?

[@esau82]

Why not just put the sealeant between the roof and the dome? Seems easier and as efective to me

[@wanderlust101]

Esau Picado There is more than one way to skin a cat, as they say. This work for me and I feel confident that it won’t leak. Easier is not necessarily better. Whatever works for you.

[@jos.4276]

I spent a decade in commercial roofing. Whenever you have a choice to use an adhered flashing over a lap seal, you should. That flashing will outlast the roof, most likely.

[@irvinsandoval7827]

@@jos.4276 should I Google adhere flashing? Or what do u recommend

[@robertgarner6129]

great