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Old 09-25-2014, 10:25 PM   #1
kcs
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Got a Water Leak! But Where's it Getting In

I have a 2014 Sunseeker 2300 that I bought earlier this year and now has about 3500 miles. After returning home last weekend, I parked it in the driveway until I could get it moved to storage. We received some rain during that time. Well anyway, I leave out to take it to storage and I pull up to a stop sign. I am somewhat pointed downhill and to the left. I then notice there is a steady drip of water from the underneath corner of the rubber molding strip that you would see if you looked out your drivers window. It is the corner where the other strip is curved down from the cab over( if that makes sense). So, I turned left to attempt to shift the weight of the rv to the right to see what would happen, and the leak stopped. I then repositioned the RV leaning to the left and down and the leak resumed. I then got out of the RV to examine the molding. I looked for any water dripping from above and the cab was completely dry. I then slightly pushed on the molding and the leak got even worse. The water dripping even smelled like it had been sitting a while. So, I sat there about 5 minutes with a steady drip.

Due to recent surgeries, I am unable to climb up on the roof to look. I am in the process of trying to schedule a time to take it to a dealer. I was able to get up in the bunk and I could not see nor smell any signs of rot.

I guess my question is how concerned should I be? Does the design of the cab over provide additional protection and the water is just confined between two walls of fiberglass. And will just drilling some weep holes in the molding at least get the water out. I just dread taking it to the dealer. Or does the design of the roof generally lead a well trained technician to easily find the leak.

Come to think of it, a couple of months ago, when I climbed up top to wash the top, I actually noticed water would pool up at the front left corner. I just hope I can find a dealer that can get it fixed. One other thing, if they are able to duplicate the leak and can locate the area the water is penetrating the roof at, is sealing it up the only thing they should be doing. Or should they be examining the interior walls for damage.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions. This is not our first rv, just our first Class C. We had been doing the TT for the last couple of years.
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Old 09-26-2014, 08:12 AM   #2
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You really need to get on the roof to inspect. I had a mystery leak on my coach (in fact - several), the most likely place for the over-cab is the roof joint from the fiberglass roof to the fiberglass cap.

My leaks were hard to find. I found them after pressurizing the coach and checking all around with soap/bubble solution. I found a small pinhole in the sealant at both front corners by the gutters.

Bobby
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Old 09-26-2014, 09:44 AM   #3
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I had the same leak on my 2012, 2650. I pried the seal above the windshield lo0se and got about 2 cups of water to drain out. At a loss to explain after checking the seals on the roof, I checked the front running lights on top of the front cap. I found that there were gaps between the rubber seals on the light fixtures and the holes in the fiberglass front cap. I had to remove the lenses and caulk around the fixtures to seal the gaps. I put weep holes in the rubber seal above the windshield to alert me to more problems. It's been several months in the FL rainy season with no more leaks.
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Old 09-26-2014, 03:11 PM   #4
kcs
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Leak

I was able to take it to a local dealer this morning. They are going to duplicate the set of circumstances to see what is going on. I did learn after showing him where it was leaking from, that the water is not coming from the front fiberglass cap. But instead, somewhere along the left side of the cab over, which of course is more concerning due the wood construction behind the cap.

But anyway, it is sitting over at Country Roads RV in Lexington NC. I will tell you this, I wished they had sold Class C's. What a great bunch of guys. At least they are an authorized Forest River repair facility.

I hope to know something next week, so I will update at that time. Thanks for the advice.

Kent
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Old 09-26-2014, 03:19 PM   #5
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Water leaks can be a real pain in the butt to fix from reading a lot of these posts. Water is also the death of an RV so you need to get a handle on it before you store it away.

Your dealer should be able to handle this for you since your unable to get up there and fix it yourself.

Good luck.

Vin.
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Old 09-26-2014, 03:23 PM   #6
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I had a leak show up at the lower side of my cab-over. Like I stated earlier, I found a number of leaks around the coach with pressurizing and soaping down the coach.

Bobby
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Old 09-26-2014, 05:05 PM   #7
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This is all intresting. How do you pressurize a coach?
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Old 09-26-2014, 06:50 PM   #8
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It wasn't by conventional methods (leaf blower taped off through an opening). I removed the vent cover over the bedroom (the only one without a fan) and connected a large floor drying blower to the vent roof curb.
It worked great.

Bobby
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Old 09-27-2014, 10:51 AM   #9
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I have a 2012 Forester 2651S and I had the same symptoms as you state. Water would pool on the left front of the roof and just behind the “joint” where the roof and the where the front cap meet. When I would exit my driveway which is a slight downhill and a slight slope to the driver’s side, I would get the same “stream” that you mentioned even days later after a rain event. First, I added more Dicor to the joint area and touched up the entire seam per the prep instructions from Dicor. This effort only lessened the stream but did not eliminate it. Next, I cutaway the Dicor that I added plus some of the original to expose more of the roof-Front Cap seam. When I pressed down on the roof, a crack appeared at this juncture. I would have expected that the roof panel itself would extend up and under this front cap juncture. Mine did not. I purchased a can of RTV adhesive sealant from the fellow on TV who shows fixing everything with it. It is called FLEX SHOT.

I cleaned the area from dirt and Dicor residue as best I could. I waited for a series of warm sunny days and for a forecast of more of the same. I made sure the area was dry. I pressed down on the roof exposing the crack and “shot” the Flex Shot into it. I went from the outside or Driver’s side edge toward the middle to where the crack no longer appeared. I waited several more days and then re-covered the effected area with Dicor. This does appear to have fixed my problem.

Should the need arise in the future, I would try the impressive approach that bgilly used.
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Old 09-27-2014, 10:17 PM   #10
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Update on Leak

Dealer called me this morning. Said they had found some areas in the front left corner of the roof where they thought the water may be getting in. Further informed me Forest River instructed them to extend the rain gutters to keep water away from the side window of the cab over. But what concerns me the most is when they informed they had found what appeared to be small areas in the cab over that looked like spider webbed stress fractures. When I inquired as to what would have caused those considering the unit is like new, dealer said they were probably there from day one. They are sending pictures to Forest River to see what they tell them to do.

I hate to think how much money we paid for this unit and now we are dealing with an issue like this. One of the biggest reasons we went for this unit versus other units was the roof structure. We were told and we believed this type of roof would lessen or actually prevent water leaks that typical rv roofs tend to experience. I even recall the sales manager of the dealer we purchased it from going the extra length to describe how much better this type roof is. Oh well, here we go. At least I can say the dealer doing the repairs is making an effort, so only time will tell. I am suppose to hear back from them the first of the week.

Maybe this is not the right time to ask this question, but here goes. Lets say they have to remove the entire cab over to replace and reseal. It would seem they need to get in there to see if there is any water damage of the interior structure. But is that just going to open a can of worms and potentially cause additional issues? And would I be out of line to request that whatever work they do, including replacement parts, be warrantied beyond the initial warranty period. Bottom line, the unit needs to be fixed. How long will this take, who knows. Just kinda stinks considering we have seldom used the unit, but now that we plan on using it almost every weekend through mid November, this happens. At least we have an enclosed trailer I can set up as a temporary toy hauler/trailer to get us by. Just don't look forward to hearing it from the other half. I can hear her now...We paid all this money and look what we got now...Bla Bla Bla....Be quiet woman and go buy something from QVC, here's my credit card....

One other question. Do incidents like this affect future resale value? Am I required to mention the leak even if the repairs are done to 100 percent satisfaction. I am just concerned down the road that a dealer would be able to pull something similar to a carfax and find out about the repair. Would seem I would then be screwed. I guess for now, it's just sit and wait.

Thanks again for all the advice.
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Old 09-29-2014, 05:20 AM   #11
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Don't panic yet. Those spider-like patterns can simply be in the clear coat finish. They may be completely harmless. Likely your water leak is at the seam and can be easily fixed.


2012 Forest River Sunseeker 2300 Chevy
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Old 09-29-2014, 06:12 AM   #12
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Deaver, should I have a sealant problem again between the fiberglass cap and fiberglass roof - I will remove all the self-levelling sealant, clean, and install Eterna-Bond tape. I would run a couple parallel strips along the joint. That is the best product out there for sealing joints and transition.

Bobby
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Old 09-29-2014, 11:01 AM   #13
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1. carfax is only for accidents and insurance repairs.
2. Try not to jump to any conclusions. I can source (and if you search you can find them) when a dealer said there was a huge crack and all it was, was a paint line gap or caulk line. Or a customer said we were negligent because a support structure was bent (when it was just a plastic box around a support not the actual support).
3. any warranty items are noted in the file and that file is on record for ever. If there are other issues that come up related to that same issue we can see what work was done and if its out of warranty address it on a case by case.
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Old 09-29-2014, 01:00 PM   #14
kcs
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Water Leak

Thanks for all the replies and yes it would be smart of me to calm down and not get too far ahead. I can only relay what I have been told and without first hand knowledge, quickly make some assumptions. Not too smart on my part. That's is why I prefaced the question the way I did. I appreciate the Rep. coming on and saying what he said. I truly believe it will be repaired correctly and that may be the end of it. Or, it could very easily go the other way and I am sure the internet is full of horror stories. Sometimes it just helps me to look at a problem from many different aspects, good and bad. That way you can be prepared to handle the matter appropriately when the time comes. The one positive thing I can say is the repairing dealer and Forest River are trying to get to the bottom of this. To me that speaks volumes regarding doing the right thing. Customer service these days can be a downright dissapointment. Not here and I hope it doesn't change.

Regarding the water leak, it is my understanding it is in the upper left corner of the roof. And the water is getting between the cab over, the side gel coat and the interior wood wall, thus the potential for water damage. That is why I am concerned!

I must fill you guys in on something. Not once in our quest to find a new TT did I ever imagine it would be this unit. I actually had a Toy Hauler picked out and was about to buy it myself. Wife chimed in and said she wanted a motorhome. So, the arguments started to the point she said thats what I think we need and I will just pay for it. Now, jump 9 months later with the rv in the shop, it has now suddenly become my fault for allowing her to buy this unit. I CANNOT WIN!!!!!!
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Old 09-29-2014, 01:09 PM   #15
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sounds vaguely familiar. The not winning part.
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Old 09-29-2014, 09:15 PM   #16
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Ok. Given the walls are a synthetic material (Adzel), this shouldn't be a problem, right? Just fix the leak and let it dry.
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Old 09-30-2014, 05:34 AM   #17
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Azdel is the underlayment of the exterior gel-coat, the interior walk panel is still on luan. At least up to my 2014 model that's how it is.

Bobby
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Old 09-30-2014, 05:45 AM   #18
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My buddy has a new Coachman Class C and his has the Azdell inside and out.
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Old 09-30-2014, 05:50 AM   #19
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Well it's easy enough to check. Remove the interior window frame trim piece. You can see the cut edge of the interior panel and tell if its luan or azdel.

Bobby
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Old 03-25-2017, 12:01 AM   #20
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We have a huge leak a Sunseeker we bought new May 2016. I just want to subscribe to this.
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