Travel Trailer leaking issues

fishinhogdaddy · #1 08-26-2019, 10:06 AM

[ATTACH]IMG_0604 Trailer2.jpg[/ATTACH][ATTACH][ATTACH][ATTACH]Attachment 157195[/ATTACH][/ATTACH][/ATTACH]

Buddy having issues with water in his trailer. The damage in the one picAttachment 157195

Attachment 157196 is from the bottom storage boot area. He has sealed the roof seams and indicated that the rubber on the roof looks really good. This was confirmed by his trailer guy who he has used of all his trailers for work and leisure. He has sealed the edges, transitions and around anything that he could including windows with silicone. It was dry when we got home before the storm yesterday and the wetness is a pic from this morning.
Anyone have any experience in this or ideas?
Does a rubber roof get "tired" and not repel water at a certain age?
Trailer guy said that it could be a $5000 job depending on if the outer skin is able to be taken off intact. If not.....
He's got and done many upgrades to the trailer and uses it for his business so just disposing or selling of it isn't that palatable for him at this time.

All responses to help based on experience are welcomed.
Thanks
Rick...aka...FHD

Dean2 · #2 08-26-2019, 10:12 AM

The chances of the rubber roof having become permeable is pretty low but it can happen form long exposure to sun. You need to be able to trace where the water is coming from. Take a garden hose and put one person inside watching while the other works over spraying the outside methodically. Start on the lowest part of the trailer and work your way up VERY SLOWLY. It often takes quite a while for water to enter and travel to where you can see it. Unless you can trace where the water is starting to penetrate from no one can help you fix the issue.

Sooner · #3 08-26-2019, 10:23 AM

Good advice above. I would spray the cargo door too with someone watching. Maybe he got lucky and the hard rain was at the right angle to by pass a sketchy section of the door seal.

That wall paper stuff looks like it has been wet before.

Have a look along the exterior wall above the cargo door. And other parts of the hard wall exterior. These hard walls separate when the glue from the Philon skin gets wet. Tell tale sign is a bulge on the exterior wall. Not flat anymore. If your buddy has a bulge along his wall above the cargo door or anywhere else, he has a big water issue.

bat119 · #4 08-26-2019, 10:28 AM

Silicone wont seal a rubber roof you have to use RV self leveling caulking on the roof.

I would suggest removing the silicone and apply the correct caulking with an air powered caulking gun let it pool up on the seams it will level out.

https://www.smartrving.net/best-rv-roof-sealants/

I do mine every 3 years

fishinhogdaddy · #5 08-26-2019, 10:29 AM

[QUOTE=Sooner;4018939]Good advice above. I would spray the cargo door too with someone watching. Maybe he got lucky and the hard rain was at the right angle to by pass a sketchy section of the door seal.

That wall paper stuff looks like it has been wet before.

Have a look along the exterior wall above the cargo door. And other parts of the hard wall exterior. These hard walls separate when the glue from the Philon skin gets wet. Tell tale sign is a bulge on the exterior wall. Not flat anymore. If your buddy has a bulge along his wall above the cargo door or anywhere else, he has a big water issue.[/QUOTE]

YUP! It was bulged. It is dry as a bone underneath his front bunk. And yes, I think it has been leaking for some time too. But finding where is puzzling.
FHD

Sooner · #6 08-26-2019, 10:56 AM

[QUOTE=fishinhogdaddy;4018945]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sooner

Good advice above. I would spray the cargo door too with someone watching. Maybe he got lucky and the hard rain was at the right angle to by pass a sketchy section of the door seal.

That wall paper stuff looks like it has been wet before.

Have a look along the exterior wall above the cargo door. And other parts of the hard wall exterior. These hard walls separate when the glue from the Philon skin gets wet. Tell tale sign is a bulge on the exterior wall. Not flat anymore. If your buddy has a bulge along his wall above the cargo door or anywhere else, he has a big water issue.[/QUOTE]

YUP! It was bulged. It is dry as a bone underneath his front bunk. And yes, I think it has been leaking for some time too. But finding where is puzzling.
FHD

My friend has a hard wall and he is meticulous about looking after it. Within 5 to 8 yrs, his is one side is rotting out at the roof line but the water traveled back to his bathroom and showed up there in his ceiling. That was rotting too. He fixed the bathroom, can't do anything about the roof line. Those hard walls are a bugger to repair or access the leak. My 30 yr old trailer has rotten spots but you expect that and I only paid 3G for it and fixed a bunch of spots myself. To spend big bucks on a new trailer to have it rot out in under 10 yrs is driving my friend nuts.

I will only own tin sided trailers for that reason. At least you can access the wood behind the tin if you have to. For the $$$ they cost to buy, RV's are built so cheap and they all will leak sooner or later. The sealers they use don't stand up and there is so many places on a trailer where water can get in when the sealers fail over time.

FishOutOfWater · #7 08-26-2019, 11:20 AM

My father has been a service manager at an RV dealership for the last 15-20 years.

He's preached to me since he started, "STAY AWAY FROM RV's WITH FIBERGLASS SIDING !"

He's cursed the industry for 20 years for making trailers and motorhomes with that garbage, & that metal corrugated siding is the only way to go.

The repairs to some fiberglass units have been so costly, insurance wrote them off or the owner was on the hook for $10,000+ repair.

NCC · #8 08-26-2019, 02:55 PM

A hard wall trailer can also suffer thousands of nearly undetectable cracks in a hail storm that allow water in. Hard walls look great but I don’t think they’re as good as aluminum sided RV’s.

To find leaks in the roofs of heavy trucks, techs use compressed air to pressurize the cab and then spray soapy water on the roof and watch for bubbles caused by the exiting air. If you have enough air compressor (or shop vac, leaf blower, etc) it should work on a trailer.

Dean2 · #9 08-26-2019, 03:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NCC

A hard wall trailer can also suffer thousands of nearly undetectable cracks in a hail storm that allow water in. Hard walls look great but I don’t think they’re as good as aluminum sided RV’s.

To find leaks in the roofs of heavy trucks, techs use compressed air to pressurize the cab and then spray soapy water on the roof and watch for bubbles caused by the exiting air. If you have enough air compressor (or shop vac, leaf blower, etc) it should work on a trailer.

Now that is a cool idea. Truck cab is relatively small so I can see it working great for that, wonder if you could get enough pressure into a trailer to make this work. Think you might need a pretty high volume compressor. Would be worth a try.

Dewey Cox · #10 08-26-2019, 03:50 PM

I dont think a compressor would work for an rv.
Probably need to use something like a blower for a bouncy house.

fishinhogdaddy · #11 08-26-2019, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NCC

A hard wall trailer can also suffer thousands of nearly undetectable cracks in a hail storm that allow water in. Hard walls look great but I don’t think they’re as good as aluminum sided RV’s.

To find leaks in the roofs of heavy trucks, techs use compressed air to pressurize the cab and then spray soapy water on the roof and watch for bubbles caused by the exiting air. If you have enough air compressor (or shop vac, leaf blower, etc) it should work on a trailer.

Great idea. I'll pass it on.
Thanks for this!
FHD

schleprock · #12 08-26-2019, 09:50 PM

Have your friend check the window vent weep holes to see if they are plugged off. There is a YouTube video by the “willful wanderer” on plugged window vents and how to unplug them.

sewerrat · #13 08-27-2019, 06:30 AM

We had a 2010 hardwall trailer, the thing sprung a leak water had slowly seeped down the walls and the front cap, the thing looked bad, I took it to Red Deer rv to get and estimate done to this repaired, it was going to be over 10 grand, so not worth it for that trailer. So we sold it tis spring with a loss, and now I'm only sticking to fiberglass or aluminum like the airstream.

Just youtube any rv manufacturer, and you will be shocked , They can slap an rv together in 8 hours from frame till when it rolls outside.

Freedom55 · #14 08-28-2019, 07:41 AM

You might want to check the marker lights. I had leakage around a red lens that left a wall panel soggy and the vinyl cover separated , plus the paneling softened a bit. Left unchecked it may have caused extensive damage.

robfraser · #15 08-28-2019, 07:51 AM

Father in law has an 1981 Leocraft Class A motor home for sale.
Great condition inside, no leaks, 67000km, may need fuel pump, $4000

fishinhogdaddy · #16 08-28-2019, 08:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Freedom55

You might want to check the marker lights. I had leakage around a red lens that left a wall panel soggy and the vinyl cover separated , plus the paneling softened a bit. Left unchecked it may have caused extensive damage.

Yes, thank you. He did inspect the top marker lights and found that one wasn't the correct one and switched it out and sealed. But, it's still leaking somewhere.

FHD