Making a poptop roof higher

Hi Nick,

Not an expert on these matters, but it seems to me that your issues will be with the length of the “scissor” brackets if it has any, and the strength and length of the gas struts used to raise and lower the roof. The length or height of the canvas may be an issue when folded down, is there enough room in the available area when it is folded?

Just my two cents worth. Good luck with your project.

Macca.

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Hi Nick,

The responses so far have identified some problems with obtaining a higher lift.
Instead of changing the lift mechanism, struts and skirt, consider fitting a 150mm wall around the roof opening to simply lift the existing skirt at its point of attachment to the roof.

Theoretically, there should be no problem in raining the height of the roof. You would need extended lifting mechanism - later model pop-tops use gas struts instead of the old scissor lifts. The principle is the same though - you have the canvas or fabric skirt raised and under tension. I am not sure about my Jayco Poptop - how high the roof raises, but I doubt it would be 550 mm - I suspect more like 450 mm.

As for stability in high winds, we used to have a camper with wind up roof and slide-out beds. The roof raised at least 1 metre on what appeared to be flimsy corner posts. Now that roof used to sway around in the wind but it never failed and we went through some very strong winds at times. Eventually I put some cleats on the sides of the roof and under windy conditions, I tied the roof down to pegs in the ground. With a poptop caravan, the roof stability comes from the fabric un der tension - for the roof to move laterally in any direction, it has to dip lower at one end than the other, and with suitable tension provided by the gas lifts, it won't do this. We have had our poptop out in very windy conditions and on one night, we slept with the roof closed, but the was the only time.

Speak to a caravan repairer or a supplier of the skirts and see what they say, but I can see no reason that your proposal won't work, given the extra height gas lifts as well. You will also have to extend the electrical wiring because of the extra height.

The easy lift bars / frames call it what you want , that lift the roof from inside would be a major
redesign .
the skirt easy peasy,
longer struts not so, but would be doable , you would have to work out the repositioning due to the length increase and when compressed to where they seat in the closed position

maybe a bump hat would be cheaper hahaha only joking
but maybe keep looking until you get what you want would be better
Bob

Thanks all for the replies, I decided to buy the caravan. The extended top will have to wait a while though. I bought it as a project, the interior will be getting modified to suit.

New question, are there any issues with removing the overhead cupboards and the top shelf?
Does the shelf serve any other purpose than to hold the skirt when the roof is down?

This is the caravan, above the door and fridge there is no shelf, I would like it to be like that all around the interior.

Hi Nick,

Without showing a photo of the “other side” with the shelf, it is difficult to give a definitive answer. However, I suspect that there will not be a structural component to the shelf that has any bearing on the roof and skirt structure, with the exception of the two ends. If there is a shelf at each end, it may be providing some lateral support. You could contact the manufacturer and ask their opinion on what you intend to do.

Macca.