2010 21SS getting a new front bunk door

[latner]

Yes, that's right, our 2010 21SS that was manufactured Sept. '09 is getting a new bunk door because of water getting around the door seal. The guys at the factory did a leak test on it and figure either the seal was installed wrong or the seal itself is bad. I never saw any water inside the camper, just a gradual swelling of the bottom 3"-4" of the door.

This was the one thing I was concerned about with the HTT's. Hopefully I won't be disappointed. Other than that, it is a great camper!

[Leaf-Peeper]

Originally Posted by latner

… I never saw any water inside the camper, just a gradual swelling of the bottom 3"-4" of the door. …

If the bunk door is delaminating, I can’t envision the problem being the fault of bad door seal, or poorly installed door seal. Those black foam rubber seals around the perimeter of door opening are meant to keep the water from getting inside the camper.

When the outside/bottom of the bunk door core (made up of a layer fiberglass, Styrofoam & vinyl back luan board) begins to swell up or budge, it is delaminating. Often the inside/bottom area of the vinyl backed luan will also become soft and damp, you may even see some staples in this area along the edge beginning to rust too. This is caused by water getting past the frame that’s wrapped around bunk door core. The sides/edges of the core are encased in the frame, but if water sneaks inside, it will be absorbed into the core.


Here’s a photo of the front bunk door on our ’08 Roo, your 2010 is a little different, but the frame surrounding the core is much the same. If you look at the lower horizontal section of the core frame (not framework with the screw showing), you will notice that’s there is some caulking applied to seal the area between upper edge of the core frame and the fiberglass layer of the core. If the caulking isn’t done correctly, water can sneak in, get trapped inside and start the delaminating process. You’ll notice that the caulking is applied around the whole perimeter of the core frame, but it is most important that the lower horizontal section and joint to either side is sealed quite well (the photo is not a good example). Because the front bunk door slopes backward with the camper, water tends to collect and sit in this caulked area. If you notice water sitting between frame and fiberglass panel after it’s rained, it’d probably be best to apply a least one additional application of caulking to build up this area to shed the water away.

[latner]

Well I'm not sure what to think. Hopefully it is delamination that wasn't caused by water. We got the camper back and after inspection we obviously have a new bunk door but it appears the seal around the door opening is the same original seal. They did add a piece of small rubber seal to the door frame itself so when you close the door that seal meets the door opening seal. We'll see what happens.

[tmmar]

Hope it was taken care of under warranty and that you don't have an further problems!!!

[dlstewart01]

I replaced my front bunk door and rebuilt the rear door on my 05 Roo 21SS last year. They don't half way seal them at the factory. I sealed mine where water can't get in the door. I have had no issues since.

Even the new door I purchased from Forest River was not sealed properly. I resealed it before I installed it.