I have a C rail/channel on my roof between the gutter and the pop top. It was used by the previous owner to hold a drive away. I need to remove this rail so that I can use the gutter rail to clamp on my sun canopy, as not enough clearance with it there. If/when I take the rail off I will have a dozen holes left in the roof from the self tappers. Apart from welding up and repainting, I would welcome any suggestions on sealing these holes in the most unobtrusive way... Cheers YD
personally i'd dab a bit of paint into the hole once you've removed the self tappers to cover any exposed metal to reduce rust risk. once that'd dried i'd prbably just put a dab of transparent silicone in each one to seal. rubber bung might leak unless they are tight fit.
Thanks for your thoughts so far I could use a kador strip and I would have to sew this to the canopy (over 3m). I wonder what the best soln is sewing or hole filling! You can call me a bodger but I had thought about using a small plastic sticky patch - like puncture repair - in whatever shade of white I can find Keep em coming - all advice welcome! Thanks YK
You are right, I am convinced...was looking for the easy option. So, C channel stays and I have some kador on the way. Thanks for all your suggestions. Just thought, I could put the self tappers back in with some silicone...
+1 for Baysearcher and use the rail that’s already there. I’m looking to fit a similar rail onto mine and sew some kadur strip onto my canopy. Saves all that mincing about with the gutter and fig 8 rods and clamps.
@Youngdub have you got a picture of how and where your c channel is fixed as I’m thinking of fitting one myself for my awaning thanks.
Here you go... The strip runs one end to the other and these are each end pictures. The channel is fixed with self tappers (small previously drilled holes would have been made) and on mine there is a waterproof sealing strip between the rail and the metal roof (a bit like thin door/window seal). Good luck
Dont forget to make sure the self tappers and holes are really sealed against water. Rotting roofs are expensive . On my sun visor which was held in by self tappers it always leaked down the threads. In the end I bought some marine grade Monel pop rivets, drilled out the holes, gunged in some sikaflex like polyurethane sealant and pop riveted it on. It has stopped the leak. If I need to remove it , take the rivets out with a drill and a centre punch.
