Shower Skylight Rebuild

Topic: Shower Skylight Rebuild (Read 4259 times) previous topic - next topic

Shower Skylight Rebuild

August 17, 2018, 11:59:12 am

Got a question for The Collective: what is the purpose of the translucent flat panel directly above your head when standing in the shower. Our OEM skylight is cracked and due for replacement. From searching this subject on the Forum, I have learned that a replacement is available at Lowe's. Barry & Cindy wrote a excellent photo tutorial on the complete replacement process, so "How To Do It" is not a problem:

Replacing Shower Skylight

The replacement skylight comes with two pieces - a clear inner "bubble" and a tinted outer piece. Together, they provide a insulting "dead air" space. So why do we need the flat interior panel? What purpose does it serve, besides limiting head room (not a concern for the DW and I).

Inquiring minds (me) want to know!

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #1 – August 17, 2018, 12:25:09 pm

I may have answered my own question. Careful study of Barry & Cindy's tutorial shows that the replacement domes may not have a wide enough flange to reach the edge of the existing metal frame. The flat translucent panel might serve to span the gap between the dome flange and the original metal frame. I will be able to verify this theory when I actually start taking our old skylight apart.

Until then, my question stands.

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #2 – August 17, 2018, 12:41:18 pm

It will be interesting to see what you will discover, especially since I am sure you will document the process with pictures, sources, and links!

Fortunately, our skylight is still intact but time will win out in the end and this will eventually be on my project list.

Don

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #3 – August 17, 2018, 12:52:14 pm

Chuck. My guess is that the new skylight will not match up to the coach trim that covers the aluminum frame. But it might. I suppose there built different now than they were in 1994. Removed, cleaned and resealed ours in 2015.

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #4 – August 17, 2018, 01:00:24 pm

Chuck : Unless things have changed Lowes has dropped the item from their inventory. Fear not I have the solution. Contacted the manufacturer directly. Majestic Plastics 937-593-9500. The item can still be special ordered thru Lowes. It is a complicated process and most employees do not know how it's done. Majestic customer contacted our local Lowes ( Modesto CA. ) millwork dept and walked the buyer thru the process. Done deal! Arrived in 3 days. It is an EXACT fit for dome. Only bummer is it is a single piece with no inner airspace dome. But it works. About $50 if I recall correctly. Have attached a picture of the dome with UPC and part number. Going to send that separately as I have tried twice to connect it with this text. Good Luck!

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #5 – August 17, 2018, 01:04:14 pm

Well the picture did not come out very good.
Item number is 2424050850
The customer service lady at Majestic was awesome, wish I could remember her name.

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #6 – August 17, 2018, 01:07:15 pm

Our skylight is fine (knock knock, as we're parked under some very old trees and we do get the monsoons here!) Looks like the PO installed a cover with velcro strips, but must have thrown it and the cover for the fan away before we bought the coach. No matter, we like the 'glow'.

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #7 – August 17, 2018, 01:31:47 pm

I replace my cracked two piece shower skylight with one flat piece of dark 1/4 inch thick Lexan, cut to fit.
I had to dremel out the screw holes of the mounting frame because the Lexan was thicker than the OEM two piece cover.

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #8 – August 17, 2018, 02:47:19 pm

Quote from: steve31 – August 17, 2018, 01:00:24 pm

Chuck : Unless things have changed Lowes has dropped the item from their inventory.

Thanks for the info on the alternative source, but may not be necessary to jump through all those hoops. I guess these kinds of items must come and go in various store inventories. This is the first time I have actually looked for the replacement domes. Our local (Odessa, TX) Lowe's shows to have 4 of them in stock - the exact same part number mentioned in Barry & Cindy's tutorial. I'll get by there this weekend and check them out. Will report again on this project as it goes forward.

Shop Skyview Fixed Impact Skylight (Fits Rough Opening: 21-in x 21-in;...

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #9 – August 17, 2018, 03:11:03 pm

On our coach the trim that goes around the ceiling opening and then vertically on four sides to the flat whitish plastic sheet covers up the core of the roof structure. The joint between the vertical trim and the horizontal plastic sheet needs to be well sealed. If not condensation will get between the flat plastic and the trim and run down to the inside roof structure. I took mine all apart, sealed everything up and added come closed cell foam insulation between the roof structure and the vertical sides of the trim. With a bead of silicone glass sealer all around the flat plastic I pushed the vertical sides of the trim piece into position and then smoothed out the inside joint.

An easy place to overlook leaks from inside. It is work making sure it is sealed up well.

Re: Question About Shower Skylight

Reply #10 – August 17, 2018, 06:48:34 pm

I ordered mine from Foretravel on Tuesday and it arrived about an hour ago.... it was taken out in a hail storm and has been taped up for almost a year.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #11 – August 18, 2018, 04:54:29 pm

I renamed this thread, and will add to it as I go about rebuilding my skylight. I now have the answer to my question in the Original Post.

Roger (Reply #9) essentially answered my question, but in a roundabout way. He mentioned that the flat interior panel provides a sealing surface to keep shower moisture from getting behind the shower trim and into the ceiling. Which is true. However, the REAL reason it is needed is due to the way Foretravel installed the skylight. The photos below show my disassembly of our skylight. I removed 8 sheet metal screws, and then lifted the top metal frame piece up and off. Next I ran a knife around under the amber "bubble" and the translucent white sheet. Those 2 pieces were glued together, so they came off together. After that, you are looking down into the hole in the roof, which is surrounded by the bottom metal frame piece for the skylight. Notice that the hole in the roof is not centered in the metal frame. It is offset so that on two sides the gap between frame and hole are much smaller than on the other two sides. This should be obvious in the photos.

Because the skylight frame is not spaced evenly around the opening in the roof, the amber tinted bubble cannot seal properly against the trim on the inside of the shower. It touches the trim on two sides, but there is a big gap on the other two sides. To bridge this gap, Foretravel installed the flat translucent inside panel. If they had mounted the skylight frame with the roof hole properly centered, the amber bubble would have sealed against the inside trim as it was designed. Of course, then you would get a lot more heat coming in because the dead air space between the flat panel and the bubble would be missing.

My first thought on rebuilding our skylight was to replace the single OEM outside "bubble" with only the new 2-piece set from Lowe's (link in Reply #8), and do away with the flat interior panel. The double bubble assembly would provide the required insulating dead air space. But, due to the problem described above, I would also need to replace our inner flat translucent panel, since it is cracked and leaking. I could use either a clear or a translucent panel for that purpose, but would probably go with translucent to cut down on solar gain in the shower stall.

Instead, I have changed my mind and decided to follow Wyatt's lead (Reply #7). I don't see any real point in having the 2-piece bubble up there, since it isn't accomplishing anything but acting as a tree limb and hail magnet. I am going to try using a simple 24" x 24" flat sheet of material in the existing metal frame, same as Wyatt, but with a twist. He used 1/4" thick tinted solid Lexan - I will try using a more high-tech material.

I've been reading about Lexan Thermoclear 15 high performance multiwall polycarbonate. It is available in a 8mm thick Softlite double wall sheet, which will fit nicely in the metal frame. I believe this product has some outstanding characteristics that make it well suited to this application. I am now in the process of looking for a (reasonable) online source for the material, since I haven't found any locally. I will report again when I have it in hand. See link below for more info:

Lexan* Thermoclear* 15 | High performance multiwall polycarbonate sheets.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #12 – August 18, 2018, 05:58:31 pm

Chuck....where did you get those shoes....been lookin for some time.??

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #13 – August 18, 2018, 06:02:59 pm

Go ahead, Chuck, make him a deal. Even a fraction of a coach buck should do.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #14 – August 18, 2018, 06:16:10 pm

Quote from: Hans&Marjet – August 18, 2018, 05:58:31 pm

Chuck....where did you get those shoes....been lookin for some time.??

Where I get all my wearables...WALMART, of course. Bought several pairs last summer - haven't seen them any more this summer.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #15 – August 18, 2018, 06:43:33 pm

Chuck, if you get moisture leaking between the flat panel and the vertical sides the roof structure gets wet, not good, and you get brown water dripping on the floor of the shower. Maybe it is hot enough in TX to self dry. Not here when I fixed mine.

Lexan is very tough. I made Lexan storm windows to cover the stained glass windows on the stairway landing in our old house. It should make a good replacement for the bubble. You might want to verify that the Thermoclear will work as you intend. This stuff is commonly used for green houses and often needs weep holes to drain interior condensation.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #16 – August 18, 2018, 06:54:58 pm

Before you drill Lexan or Plexiglass, read up on it or you may crack it. We dull the bit a little so it does not catch and crack, especially important on plexi. Drill larger than you need to allow for expansion. Relieve the hole on both sides so there is not a sharp 90 degree edge.

You can buy pre-dulled drills just for plastic.

Pierce

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #17 – August 18, 2018, 09:03:59 pm

Plexiglass is much more brittle than Lexan. Plastics are usually drilled with bits that have a much larger angle on the end and often a starter point or for production work a Fuller tapered bit.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #18 – August 18, 2018, 10:00:02 pm

Quote from: Roger & Susan in Home2 – August 18, 2018, 06:43:33 pm

You might want to verify that the Thermoclear will work as you intend.

Yes, I know there is a chance that it might not work. I consider this a science experiment. No big deal! if it doesn't work out, I'll just remove it and go back to my first plan with the Lowe's double dome and a new flat inner panel.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #19 – August 19, 2018, 12:26:00 am

Sealing the top of the side trim for water tight fit.

Chuck, our replacement is still holding up fine.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #20 – August 19, 2018, 07:50:26 am

Quote from: Barry & Cindy – August 19, 2018, 12:26:00 am

Sealing the top of the side trim for water tight fit.
Chuck, our replacement is still holding up fine.

Barry & Cindy,

My compliments (again) on your excellent photo tutorial. It is clear, easy to follow, and to the point. A first class presentation!

You guys lucked out when you purchased the 2' x 2' flat white panel from Encore RV. Since they are no longer in business, that source dried up. In a big city there are places to buy material like this, but out in the sticks where we live, it is hard to find. I have found several online sources for polycarbonate sheet material, but the quoted shipping charges, even for a small piece, are exorbitant. The search continues...

I agree with you and Roger - properly sealing the inside shower trim piece to the outside panel (whatever is used) is critical to making the shower water tight. It doesn't help that the inside trim piece is kinda flimsy. I think Roger had a good idea when he added some material behind the trim piece sides to give it some added support.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #21 – August 19, 2018, 08:13:49 am

You can get Lexan up to 1/2" thick.
Lexan 9034 Polycarbonate Sheets, .062 to .500 thicknesses
The extra side material added some insulation to help prevent condensation on the vertical walls on the roof hole side.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #22 – August 19, 2018, 08:35:36 am

Quote from: Roger & Susan in Home2 – August 19, 2018, 08:13:49 am

You can get Lexan up to 1/2" thick.

I know "You can get it..."

The problem is finding a place that will sell me a small (24" x 24") piece for a total shipped price that does not require the sale of a kidney.

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #23 – August 19, 2018, 10:07:31 am

Quote from: Roger & Susan in Home2 – August 19, 2018, 08:13:49 am

You can get Lexan up to 1/2" thick.
Lexan 9034 Polycarbonate Sheets, .062 to .500 thicknesses
The extra side material added some insulation to help prevent condensation on the vertical walls on the roof hole side.

Lexan will stop a bullet but you need to see if it has UV treatment. Check specs before buying. Otherwise, it yellows and deteriorates in just a few years. If it gets scratched, you can't sand and buff like Plexi. Thats why aircraft use Plexi. Not much difference in price with Lexan only being ten or fifteen percent more.

Pierce

Re: Shower Skylight Rebuild

Reply #24 – August 19, 2018, 11:36:53 am

Quote from: Pierce & Gaylie Stewart – August 19, 2018, 10:07:31 am

...you need to see if it has UV treatment. Check specs before buying. Otherwise, it yellows and deteriorates in just a few years.

Yes - a very good tip. I have been schooling myself on plastic sheet products. Lots to learn. Never really studied on them before.

As you say, for this application, UV protection (on one side) would be very desirable. It is offered on some of the Polycarbonate products I am considering. It is interesting comparing the differences between Polycarbonate (Lexan) and Acrylic (Plexiglas). They both have pros and cons. Which is better depends a lot on location. The totally exposed, horizontal mounting position on roof of motorhome is challenging to any material.

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