Replacing The Rooftop AC Shroud June 28, 2022, 06:57:18 pm Another project I’ve been sitting on for a long while is to replac3 my brittle and deteriorating AC shroud. I’ve had the part for well over a year but, well, you know . . . Clear weatherproof tape always seemed to be the easy way out. However, every time I went on the roof my toe would graze the shroud’s side in passing, inevitably knocking off another piece of the thing. See photo. I bought the replacement online through Amazon, but for the life of me can’t remember the vendor. It may well have been Dometic itself as it is a Dometic product rather than some aftermarket unit. You’ll need to identify the model number of your unit as the model “name” Penguin can apply to quite different units. The instruction sheet that came with the shroud had instructions for “earlier” and “later” versions, without identifying either by year(s). See photo. The unit comes with various lengths of self-adhesion foam tape that gets attached in a specific manner on top of the unit so that the shroud can sort of perch on top of the foam. You’ll have to peel/scrape off the existing foam first. See photos. Some of the old foam was so disintegrated that it turned to dust when I touched it. That’ll have to be vacuumed or mopped up. The shroud is fastened to the frame by four screws which I found responded to a Phillip’s head screwdriver, although I’m not entirely sure they actually were PHs. The holes on my replacement shroud were perfectly aligned with the screw holes in the frame. I didn’t end up stripping all of the old foam as much of it was in good shape, but I’ll save the unused portion for later if it becomes necessary. The replacement went on quickly. I disposed of the old one by putting it on the driveway and lightly tapping it with my foot. It collapsed instantly in many small pieces. Long overdue. — Jon 3 Likes
Re: Replacing The Rooftop AC Shroud Reply #1 – June 28, 2022, 09:09:08 pm Nice job. And did you clean it while you had it apart? Hmmm? 1 Likes
Re: Replacing The Rooftop AC Shroud Reply #2 – June 29, 2022, 01:06:33 am Quote from: Linda B - June 28, 2022, 09:09:08 pmNice job. And did you clean it while you had it apart? Hmmm? Um, ah, no. 🙄
Re: Replacing The Rooftop AC Shroud Reply #3 – June 29, 2022, 08:43:52 am It’s a good idea to occasionally blow the coils out with compressed air. I have it down as an annual maintenance item which I think the LD manual recommended. Looks good, Jon & Loni!
Re: Replacing The Rooftop AC Shroud Reply #4 – June 29, 2022, 12:56:05 pm Jon, it's been suggested in the past that one should paint a new shroud white before installing. The paint blocks most of the UV radiation that causes the plastic to become brittle. I did it to mine, and while I can't prove that it extended its life, it makes sense that it would. I know the last thing you want to do is go back up on the roof and unmount that thing so you can paint it, but this would be the perfect time to do it. Just a thought. 1 Likes
Re: Replacing The Rooftop AC Shroud Reply #5 – June 29, 2022, 06:32:40 pm Thanks,Andy. You’re right, of course. I had a limited window of time for these repairs so the painting will have to wait for the next bring-home-from-storage day. Without a useful driveway, logistics are always a pain. Next up will be resealing the entry door with Joan’s recommended (thank you, Joan) Frost King rubber foam (which I found in-store at Home Depot). — Jon