Small amount of water damage on new 3011

[WVrich]

I recently took delivery of a new 3011. I spotted a drop off of the edge of the entertainment cabinet over the door during a heavy rain. Instead of crying about it, I resealed and touched-up many spots on the roof (The antenna area seemed the culprit) and this seems to have worked. It was easier to spend the 10 bucks than to take it to dealer. I noticed some damage to the cabinet where the veneer (wood contact paper) has peeled off of the corner. Just asking the crowd here - What should I expect from FR on warranty? This thing was manufactured in late February and was sitting on the lot for a while, Why wasn’t this caught by the dealer?

[kenandterry]

I’m not sure how many outings you’ve had since purchase and if this was the first rain you mention to produce the dripping you found.
If the drip is minor enough, it would disappear if someone wasn’t inside soon after the rain.
I doubt the dealer went inside all units after a rain event, and they probably never investigated as closely as you did to see any evidence. I can almost guarantee they never went up on the roof to inspect the factory work.

Each warranty claim is different so I can’t answer for you.

[WVrich]

We discovered the leak on the first day!

[Oaklevel]

Welcome to the Forum.

Not sure what you are looking to hear, but if the camper was built in late Feb. The dealer got it probably in late March (maybe later with Covid). Many plants closed for a while. When it got to the dealer it was probably inspected by a mechanic. (If it was not raining he would not see a drip. Who knows if a salesman has been in it for the last couple months.

With many campers on the lot I am not at all surprised that they did not catch a small leak / drip. You apparently did not catch it on your PDI either.

No I am not defending your dealer I am just not surprised at all.

As far as to Forest Rivers warranties, the dealer is usually the big hang up. Not sure how they will take to your repair though.

[WVrich]

Well the whole PDI was a crap-show. They put me with a real greenhorn who couldn’t answer the most basic questions and every time I turned around they were gone. My salesman was about as useless. I was so close to walking on the deal but drove 4 hours and pickings were slim.

[BehindBars]

That wood grain contact paper/vinyl, known as “seam tape”, is available in 3”, 12”, and 24” widths. If the cabinet damage is not structural, Forest River would probably just send the dealer seam seam tape to cosmetically repair the cabinet, or you could do it yourself.

[Duckogram]

I use wallpaper seam glue to fix pealing edges. Piece of crumb cake.

[Clarkc32]

I definitely would contact Forrest River. I bought a 2017 FR Sandpiper used. There was some crazing around the furnace exhaust when we purchased. So we had a reputable dealer take it apart to repair and they discovered the original pipe from the furnace to the exhaust vent was too short and didn’t go all the way to the vent. $2700 later I called FR and they hesitated, but realized it was a safety issue and paid for the whole thing. FR has a good reputation for their customer service. I would at least call them And tell them about it. Maybe they can suggest a reputable dealer you can work with. There may be more water damage than you can see and you should never let that go, for sure. Just a thought...

[Reverse_snowbird]

Originally Posted by WVrich

, I resealed and touched-up many spots on the roof (The antenna area seemed the culprit) and this seems to have worked. - What should I expect from FR on warranty?

Congratulations on doing the repair yourself before any more damage could be done.
Next time, make certain that you take lots of pictures of the problem before making repairs. You'll need to go through the dealer to see what repairs are covered by warranty.

[WVrich]

My dealer "advocate" has been really helpful. I submitted some pictures and FR said they will cover repairs.