Anyone Using the Front Section of the Roof?

[pdemarest]

In preparation for an upcoming trip I've been looking at ways to store things outside the RV to free up space inside. There's a small section of roof over the cab that has a small railing around its edges. The flat surface measures about 55" across at the front and 70" wide at the rear and is about 15" deep. I was thinking of using that space to tie down some folding camp chairs and possibly a pop-up shade using ratchet straps attached to the railing posts. Access would be gained by using a telescoping ladder. Another idea (delusion?) I had was to put my spare tire up in that space; it would be tilted
upwards towards the rear. I'd use a friend and two ladders to get it up there and then use a rope to lower it down if it was ever needed. Based on the responses I received to a previous post I made about carrying a spare most of you guys said you carry one but have never had to use it. I'm not at the point yet where I would travel without a spare but would like to get it off the bumper.

So, I have several questions. Do you think that the roof there would support this type of weight? Are the railing posts mounted firmly enough to handle the load that the ratchet straps would put on them? Anyone out there using that space for cargo? FYI, the rear part of the roof that was accessed by the stock ladder has now been covered by a large solar panel so I don't have the option of storing anything at the rear of the roof, plus I want to avoid adding more weight to the rear if possible.

[Blue~Go]

I'm not sure about the weight carrying capabilities of that section of roof. I do go up there fairly often (to clean the front of the overcab), but then the vehicle is not underway at the time so I'm kind of a "static" load. I feel like if I had something as heavy as a spare up there it could cause creaking on the road (from the overcab/roof movement). The rear of this area is not really supported in any meaningful way (the front of the entertainment center is not really structural).

I would definitely say the railing is not installed with that kind of load in mind. As far as I know, it's just a light aluminum extrusion and is only held on by pointy screws through the fiberglass and into plywood core. Some people have used the railing for things, so it's possible - I'm just giving you my point of view. You could also install heavy duty tie-down points with backing blocks, but I'd still have a concern about the weight in that area. Obviously less of an issue if you are gliding down a brand new highway vs. crawling into a backroad camp with bumps and bouncing.

If I felt that I needed to carry a spare on the roof, I'd likely carry just the unmounted tire. By the time you're talking about getting a full spare down off the roof it's not really a quick roadside maneuver anyway; but having the tire is much better than nothing, as you can have it mounted to one of your existing rims.

[deppstein]

I have not used that front area of the roof for storage on my 2004 Premier, but have thought about it--particularly for a couple of large dry bags that hold things like life jackets, spare tent, bug tent, and other misc. bulky stuff. But I came up with a mounting platform that attaches to my ladder to hold two bags (one on top of the other). Much easier to access.

Regarding your question about the strength of the aluminum guard rail--I usually defer to Blue-Go when it comes to all things electrical and structural, but in this case, I have a different opinion regarding the use of that rail for tying things down. I have mounted a Thule High Foot on the guard rail either side, front and back of the AC that holds a regular Thule cross-bar which I use to carry my canoe (or two kayaks, depending on where I am headed). I've logged nearly 30K with the canoe mounted up top (with the thwart removed, it fits nicely over the AC unit), including across North Dakota (REAL WIND), and I have not had any issues. I check the rail regularly to see how well it is holding, and all is well. Just sayin.

David

[Blue~Go]

I was thinking about your installation. I suppose one thing is that it spreads the stresses out over multiple small pointy screws, and the racks tie cross points together as well. I still wouldn't be comfortable with it (for reasons of movement and leaks as much as outright failure), but that doesn't mean everyone has to do things my way and you've got the miles on yours.

Also in some ways the cabover is strong. It's sitting on the roof edges of the Ford cab, and Chinook (at least on mine) left the entire overcab and even the downturned lip aft. There's still no support to speak of at the aft edge though (speaking to your thoughts of a spare tire and rim, not light bags). It's like above - I wouldn't do it; but that doesn't mean it would break anything for sure or that you shouldn't try it.

[Scott]

Hey Paul. The roof railings I've seen in person appear to be more cosmetic than structural. If I planned to lash cargo with ratchet straps or tie downs, I'd want actual anchor points with thru bolts/nuts/washers/backing etc. Even with light cargo, it's the wind force that would be in my mind. As David's experience illustrates, it can work just fine as stock, but it would be nagging at me while underway. Maybe I'm just a chicken.

In another post, I put up a photo of my inflatable kayak mounted under the rig. There were four tie downs in place and they were hooked directly to the frame's huge crossmembers, so I felt fine about that one. It works great, but it's impractical.

My rig didn't come with a ladder. The previous owner had one installed. It was fixed to the shell with small non-stainless wood screws and no backing. I didn't trust it to support a wet rat. It's gone. So I use a telescoping ladder like you mentioned. In addition to being stronger/safer, I can place it anywhere around the rig, reducing the amount I walk on the roof to basically zero, which is nice since 99% of the time I'm just cleaning bird dirt off of the solar panels. It has also come in handy a couple times on the road for other purposes. I know there are millions of RV ladders in service, and I'm sure Chinook's installation is sound, I just didn't trust mine.

Regarding the spare, I'd really only consider the rear bumper or a front mount hitch. Structural steel should be involved IMO. It's 75 lbs, and when you hit a big dip at high speed, that 75 lbs exerts A LOT more force. Again, others have had success with roof-mounting, and it's not like it would just punch a hole through the shell, I just wouldn't feel comfortable.

[Blue~Go]

Ratchet straps can put an incredible amount of force on things. Often more than is needed for the job. Another thing I don't like about them -- well, this isn't really to do with the ratchet -- is that they often have open hooks on the end. Just one little slackening (shift in load or whatever) and off comes the hook rendering the 10,000# strap moot.

[Scott]

I use both ratchet straps and cam-lock tie downs depending on what I'm doing. Usually the ratchets are overkill though, and more complicated to operate. I haven't had a hook come loose, but I can see how that might happen depending on the situation. I suppose you could always put a shackle through the eye portion of the hook ...

[pdemarest]

Hi All - thanks for weighing in on this. I figured out that I would need to have something under the tire (a load pad or something similar) to help keep the tire in place. Then I thought about the load of the tire itself and was thinking that I could cut a piece of marine plywood to fit the flat pad on that front section of roof to spread the load out more evenly. I think the roof is strong enough but those railing posts do worry me and I would probably need to do some through bolts to anchor any tie-downs or ratchets. The idea of putting holes in the shell is daunting but they put over a dozen of them in when they installed the solar panels. The good news is if I did put in some through bolts and blocks they would come out inside the entertainment cabinet so they wouldn't show. I'm still looking at the option of putting the spare up there but obviously I haven't thought it through enough yet. I thought a small cargo rack would help disperse the load and give me something to attach the spare tire too but I haven't found anything yet that would fit. Getting the tire down would not be a fast affair; I figure I could have a rope tied to the spare and get it to where its almost over the side rail, tie the rope off on the cab's door handle and then lower it down from the other side. Now that I'm carrying an air compressor maybe I should just carry a big can of Slime and hope it fills any punctures until I can get to a tire shop. I have to admit that I've only had one tire failure in the last 25-30 years, and it was a passenger car that I took on a gravel and rock road (sidewall cut).

Meanwhile, I just picked my rig up from my RV mechanic. Restrung a shade and also had them cut out the bottom four rungs of my ladder so that my pop-up shade fits neatly between the rails. With nothing but solar panels on the roof the rear ladder is not really useful. So, one less thing inside and more room for clothes in the rear closet.

[kdarling]

I think the roof is pretty strong, considering how much time I've spent up there walking and sliding around while cleaning, repairing, installing.

That said, I never thought about using the front for storage. However, I am close to putting a spare big solar panel up there on a slant. Just in case I'm driving into a sunrise or sunset

[pdemarest]

Hey Kev - even if you don't get much direct sun with that panel it will act as a wind deflector!