Slide out awnings yay or nay?

[solman]

Hello All,
I just got a new fifth wheel with three slideouts. I never had slideouts before so this is new to me. I did a search on slide awnings this forum, I know that some people love them and some do not. I thought I would post my own query on this and see what the latest thought are on the matter. If you don't have the awnings I assume you have to climb a ladder and clean the roof on the slide. One fellow told me the rubber wiper will take care of it. Guy at the rv center said just blow them off and close them up, is this acceptable? Do you need to wipe them down dry in the rain?
Thanks

[Arcamper]

We did not have them on our Laredo 5th wheel and after a couple of times getting on the roof to sweep the slides I said this is crazy and there must be a better way. Added a slide topper and never had an issue again. Ordered them from the factory on our Montana and have never had a problem with wind or anything else. I do know that if you have water pooling your topper was either not installed right or there was not enough room over the slide to mount the track high enough for the proper angle. If you have enough slope they will not hold water period. Its like a regular awning that does not angle down enough, it pools water. Lower or tilt it and problem solved. My vote is I would never be without them.

[cummins2014]

tomman58 wrote:
Carry an 8' step ladder and an leaf blower........ total cost is less than one topper and the ladder has several uses. No ladder needed either if you are under 65 and can use the ladder on your rig.

Best solution so far. I have had toppers, ya they flap a bit in the wind ,yes they pool water . The flapping was the most annoying. Do I care if I have them, no. The present fifth wheel does not have them. I have not lost any sleep not having them, but they did wake me up a few times when I did have them :B

We will see in the long run if I will miss those toppers, but I doubt it .

[tomman58]

Carry an 8' step ladder and an leaf blower........ total cost is less than one topper and the ladder has several uses. No ladder needed either if you are under 65 and can use the ladder on your rig.

[ppine]

maybe in Florida. Otherwise no dice.

[Lantley]

kellem wrote:
I've honestly never had the issues with toppers others may have experienced, no flapping, no water intrusion, very minimal and I mean minimal pooling.
Didn't care for the build up of mildew on the underside, extremely hard to clean.

Now....the 2 trailers I've owned without toppers had double seals, no issues there either.
Kept the seals and top treated with 303 which significantly increased the water repellency and ease of cleaning.

Idk, coin flip.

At the end of the day this is where I ended up on the subject.
Toppers became take it or leave it. They resolved a few issues, they caused a few issues.
Which led me to ask why spend the money? So I took the savings and decided to go topper free.

[kellem]

I've honestly never had the issues with toppers others may have experienced, no flapping, no water intrusion, very minimal and I mean minimal pooling.
Didn't care for the build up of mildew on the underside, extremely hard to clean.

Now....the 2 trailers I've owned without toppers had double seals, no issues there either.
Kept the seals and top treated with 303 which significantly increased the water repellency and ease of cleaning.

Idk, coin flip.

[MarkieBob]

Well, it's been quite some time since I've allowed water to be up there but maybe I was a bit off level too, not sure.

[fj12ryder]

That really is pretty odd. I've never had water come in under the seals when bringing in our slides. It makes me wonder if your toppers aren't just a bit too short in width and allowing water to drain off the sides onto the top of the slide. Ours extend past the end of the slide at least an inch or two on both sides.

[MarkieBob]

fj12ryder wrote:
Not criticizing, but am curious how water gets into the trailer when you bring in the slides. Are they too short for the slides, and water gets under the topper and on the slides?

Really, just curious.

Well my owners manual says to bring them half in then wait for water to run off. I have brought them right in with water and it makes it way under the rubber flap and in. NOT much but a little. Maybe its the flood of water up there that doesn't have time to mostly run off?

[2_Retired]

How do so many "make sure you don't park under trees"? So many of the RV parks we go to, particularly State Parks, have so many treed sites we can't usually avoid it! We have been RVing for over 45 years, and have dealt with both having and not having slide-out awnings. In our experiences, have never had a problem with them - not even in very high winds. Did occasionally have trouble with water from heavy rains seeping through gaskets when bringing in slides without the awnings.

[Bobbo]

Lantley wrote:
I have witnessed pooling toppers dump water when retracted.

That is the very purpose of toppers. To dump the water OUTSIDE the trailer rather than let it find its way into the trailer. Toppers dumping water when being retracted is a GOOD thing.

[DallasSteve]

I have awnings on my slideouts and they seem like a great idea. I don't know why someone wouldn't want them.

[Lantley]

MarkieBob wrote:
Hi guys!!! I have had many rv's--all of them with toppers. So I haven't had one without to comment there, but toppers have been fine for me EXCEPT: I have to bring it in and stop so the water runs off or I WILL get some water seep into the rig. It's happened. The biggest problem is the flapping. It keeps me awake at night worrying they might rip. Hence my rope idea above. Of course I haven't tried it yet because the rig has sat since January. Boy am I getting anxious!

Thanks for the testimonial that some toppers do flap. I've been accused of parroting what I've read or heard because I don't actually own toppers. While I do not have toppers on my rig by choice. I have personally witnessed them flapping and pooling on other RV's at the CG.
I have personally been awakened by the RV next door's flapping toppers.
I have witnessed pooling toppers dump water when retracted.
Bottom line I don't think you have to own a set of toppers to experience/witness their pitfalls.

[2012Coleman]

solman wrote:
For those that sweep the top of the slides before retracting them do you work from a ladder or climb onto the roof of the rv? I had thought perhaps a leaf blower while standing on a ladder might be easy enough. I have 3 slides but one will not get an awning for sure as the adjacent patio awning doesn't allow enough clearance for a slide awning as well. I may do an awning on the other two slides so as less to do when breaking camp.

I use a collapsible ladder and an electric leaf blower which works well for me. I've considered getting them, but so far have not.

Only saying that in case someone makes an Assumption on something they think I'm commenting on without actual experience, because I may or may not have actually stated I did have them, hence saving the need for any rebuttals to my post.