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Old 07-17-2015, 04:18 PM   #41
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Originally Posted by Deaver View Post
Yes, Please do if you would be so kind. I am more concerned then ever

Thanks for your help
Deaver, here are some photos. We are camping in it now - hence roof debris.
The photos are: one of the roof vents, the skylight, the front fiberglass cap transition, the side wrap of front cap and the last one is the run down the roof above the sidewall. This was done on both sides.

Bobby
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Old 07-20-2015, 08:45 PM   #42
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Bobby

Thanks ever so much for the pics. They will help greatly
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Old 07-21-2015, 08:19 AM   #43
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A quick update on our situation. When we arrived in Ottawa I was able to buy a tube of silicon which I very generously applied to the clearance lights and those two screws holding the rain gutter to the front cap. We moved on to New Brunswick then PEI where we have had pretty steady rain both while driving and parked. The good news is the overhead area seems to be dry. I removed the speaker and there is no moisture. I have been running a fan up there to dry things out out and it appears to be okay.


The bad news, there was water leaking down the wall from the hood fan. We first noticed it packing up in NB when the paper towel roll was damp, nothing to do at the time. When we arrived in PEI it was pouring rain and we were inside the unit slides out for about an hour when we saw a small dribble of water work its way down the wall and settle on the counter behind the stove. I removed the hood fan thinking the leak was coming from the vent but it looked dry towards the outer edge wet and pooling water at the inner edge of the cut out. I climbed on the roof looked under the awning of the slide and there was a small puddle of water just about where the vent for the hood fan is. When I cleared the water and dried it up I can see a small break in the caulking along the seam. I am guessing this is where the water is getting in an leaking down the interior wall and coming out of the vent cut out.

It is dry out now but there is rain forecast for the next few days so I will keep an eye on the slide out and make sure no water can pool on it as well as the vent area (which I re caulked) to make sure it does not come in through there. I can't quite reach the slide out area where the caulking is cracked because of the awning but I can only do so much.

I guess when we get home I will get the repair shop to tape every seam on the roof as well as on top on the slides. I wonder if this is also the cause of some water issues others have talked about in regards to their slides?

Not so quick of an update. I hope the next update will happen after we get home and all is repaired.

Ned
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Old 07-21-2015, 08:46 AM   #44
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Ned, unfortunately I had that problem too but mine leaked on the bunk slide. I didn't mention this before in this thread because I assumed FR stopped sealing the slides with silicone.
In short I removed my slide toppers on both slides, cleaned the slide-out roof and applied Eternabond over the entire length of the slide-out over the aluminum trim.

Bobby
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Old 07-21-2015, 08:52 AM   #45
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Bobby those pictures are exactly what my slide out looks like. Just another item on the fix list. I would attempt this myself but seeing as how the cab over will need some major repairs I'll let the shop do all of it with very detailed instructions.
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Old 07-21-2015, 09:20 AM   #46
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You do not have to scrape off existing product! If your eternabond is wide enough you simply encapsulate the area, as long as tape hase good purchase on surfaces on either side of existing caulk


Quote:
Originally Posted by Deaver View Post
Short Answer - Yes

Ray, over at LoveYourRV has an excellent write-up about using Eternabond Tape. He is doing repairs on a rubber roof 5th wheel but the process is the same.

His write-up can be found HERE

There is a Youtube Video at the end of the page that is worth watching.
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Old 07-21-2015, 09:35 AM   #47
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Bobby those pictures are exactly what my slide out looks like. Just another item on the fix list. I would attempt this myself but seeing as how the cab over will need some major repairs I'll let the shop do all of it with very detailed instructions.
Ned
Yea, if you are in warranty definitely let dealer fix all these issues. I fixed all mine so the factory doesn't have a record of the occurrence - which means they don't know that they may have something that needs improvement.

Good luck!

Bobby
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Old 07-21-2015, 09:46 AM   #48
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You do not have to scrape off existing product! If your eternabond is wide enough you simply encapsulate the area, as long as tape hase good purchase on surfaces on either side of existing caulk
This is mostly true but Eternabond instructions state the bonding surface needs to be clean and "sound" meaning whatever you are bonding should be very secure. I found it difficult to thoroughly clean the factory sealant and I didn't have confidence that the large "globs" were well adhered like around roof vents and front cap.
Small amounts of the sealant weren't a concern such as on the trim running the length of the roof on both sides.

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Old 07-21-2015, 09:50 AM   #49
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Thanks for all the information.
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Old 07-21-2015, 10:04 AM   #50
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my work to finish the factory's job...
I purposefully looked at TT's during & just after heavy rains and found that new ones from the factory leaked whereas the used 2011 unit we eventually purchased was bone-dry. I actually opened access panels & looked for signs of prior water penetration. Since these units leave the factories with so much un-swept sawdust everywhere, it was easy to see where water had entered because the sawdust was clumped.

In comparison, my unit was over 2 years old, but the original factory sawdust was still evenly spread (under the outdoor kitchen, under the tub & other places the previous owner would not have swept-up the factory dust...) So I guess it's actually good they don't sweep-up after their work...

IMO the units built during the last 3 years have been thrown-together to meet demand. Interest rates are low & they are lending money to anyone with a heartbeat... In comparison, units built during the recession appear to have better quality & control. When the kids get older I want to upgrade from our 2-slide bunkhouse TT to a MH but I won't do so until Q & C improves across the industry...
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Old 09-30-2015, 12:39 AM   #51
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Update on the leak.

Things went from bad to worse. After getting back from our trip in mid August I took the RV back to the shop. They resealed the clearance lights, and placed eternabond tape along all of the seams on the roof. They said enjoy the rest of the summer and bring it back when you are done for the season and they will make the repairs to the liner on the inside.

We went out every other weekend since and at the end of every trip I go up on the roof and sweep it off before we leave. Last time I was on the roof was September 13. Today I washed the RV and climbed onto the roof and as soon as my eyes cleared the rung I spotted something odd at the front. As I walked toward the front my heart sank. The roof is delaminating at both front corners. A 3 foot bubble on the passenger side and even larger bubble on the driver side.

I went over to my dealer and he confirmed what I saw. Now despite being busy they took the RV in right away and will put in a dehumidifier for a few days to try and suck up as much water as possible. Then they will do a seal test (pressurize the unit) to determine exactly where the roof is leaking, take lots of pictures, and coordinate with the repair shop to get this repaired properly.

This is turning into a very expensive nightmare. A 3 year old unit with water damage and a delaminating roof is not right.
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Old 09-30-2015, 05:53 AM   #52
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Thank goodness mine never got that bad. It's good you have a dealer that seems to be working well for you. You might try to submit the repairs to Forest River warranty department. They will review it and if it is faulty construction they may step up and help cover some of the repair work.

The front cap transition is a terrible design. It is one of the few faults of the Forest River Class C units.

Bobby
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Old 09-30-2015, 09:10 AM   #53
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I'll try Bobby but my feeling is no one will step up.
Forest River will say I'm out of warranty and it is my responsibility to climb up on the roof and inspect the seams 2x a month. The dealership has already said that when they inspect the roof every fall it looks good every time.
Short of doing a pressure test twice a year I don't think you can see problems until it's too late.
Anyway. No point in getting too worked up now. Just hope that the water didn't get into the walls, replace the front 1/4 of the roof, repair the interior, pay and move on with life.
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Old 09-30-2015, 09:17 AM   #54
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Don't count us out just yet! I can't speak for the warranty department but they may be willing to help you out.
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Old 09-30-2015, 10:40 AM   #55
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I will try Joshua. Can you provide a name and number or should my dealer contact warranty
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Old 09-30-2015, 01:13 PM   #56
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You can call Warranty directly to see what's going on.....574-206-7600
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Old 09-30-2015, 01:33 PM   #57
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I also had a problem with a leak on the front cap of my 2013 Class C Sunseeker. The dealer I took it to for repair said it is a common problem with Class C's because the cap bounces when the vehicle is driven. Supposedly they have redesigned the cap to keep that from happening, but I have my doubts.
Fortunately I was parked nose-down and the water collected in the front bottom of the cap and didn't damage the ceiling. I only noticed it, because I had a rust stain on the windshield from a slow drip out of a seam. Once I leveled out the vehicle, the water started pouring out of the sides around the doors. The dealer seems to have fixed the problem for now, but he said it needs to be resealed every year.
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Old 10-01-2015, 05:25 PM   #58
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So true about checking the roof yourself. I was up there often but it looked good to me, and the clearance lights look good from the ground but get up there after you have been driving in some rain and you may see some water in the lens.

But to all of our defence, one shouldn't have to inspect the roof weekly or even monthly for that matter on a brand new rig. I'm young so no biggie for me, but for some people that might be quite a chore.

Class C motorhomes are nothing new. I'm surprised that there are still so many people having leak issues. You would think that with today's technology and know how, these would be yesterday's problems.
Josh,

Winnebago and Thor put their MHs through a high water pressure test.
Is that same test done at Forest River?

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Old 10-02-2015, 05:00 PM   #59
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Just got back from the dealership and the news isn't great.
They have the dehumidifier running and drying the MH out and will continue to so for the rest of the weekend. Yesterday the put their seal tech machine on and pressurized the MH and found that all four corners on the roof are leaking and one spot on the side rail about the halfway point. The good news is there are on other leaks.
Next week we will discuss the repairs.

Stay tuned.
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Old 10-05-2015, 11:00 AM   #60
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Yes before any unit leaves it gets pressurized and then sprayed to see if there is any seals that could develop a leak.
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