Roof leak- Flagstaff Hardside pop-up HELP

[Rob Smith]

Hi
Last spring I purchased a new flagstaff hardside pop-up(T12RB). When folded down during heavy rain I am getting rain on the bed mattress. It appears to be comming from the bubble window and the light. Both are directly above the mattress when the unit is folded down and not in use. I haven't noticed a leak when the unit is opened in the camping position. I have has it to the dealer on two occasions. The 1st time they applied silicone to the rivets at the corners of the bubble window and applied silicone to the exterior frame of the window. On the second visit the dealer removed the bubble window and reinstalled with all new silicone. This was done late in the fall.
It has been parked outside for the past 4 months. I opened it up today only to find water again leaking from the inside bubble window frame and 12 volt light fixture, both above the wet mattress. Is there anyone that has similar expreiances with the new hard side pop ups? BTW my wife and I like the camper very much, except for the leaks.
Robert

[thehamguy1]

That is puzzling, besides being frustrating as h--- for you, I imagine. We have a Rockwood hard side, which is identical to the Flagstaff series as far as I can tell, and haven't seen the leaking you're reporting. The thing that's puzzling is that you have water in or around the light fixture as well as the window frame. To me that hints that the water is entering somewhere else and traveling to those two points via some internal route, perhaps through the wiring channel, which comes up from the hinge area, goes around one end of the window opening, and up to the light fixture. That would imply the water is entering at the rear edge of the roof (a loose rivet or screw in that area?) and entering the wiring channel. That would also explain why you don't get a leak when the unit is set up--the wiring channel runs uphill then.

But I imagine your dealer would have checked for that. Other than advising you to always park uphill, I would think a warranty roof (and mattress) replacement is within your rights. As D-mo--another Canadian on this forum--reminds us, there's a long-term warranty on our roofs. If the dealer won't help, call the factory. They ought to want to do surgery on the leaky section to tell them what they did wrong--after replacing it of course.

[Rob Smith]

Hi Lee
I believe the Rockwood is the same as our unit .Thanks for the suggestion on the origin of the rain . I have uploaded a photo of mine to my photo gallery. Yes, I am convinced that the rain is coming in elsewhere. Your suggestion will be helpful when I visit the dealer next. I'll play around with the hose before hand. The dealer seems very co-operative when I talk to them. Hardsides are new to them. Happy camping and DX'ing in 2012.
73
Robert
VE1BHR

[thehamguy1]

I wish you great luck in finding the solution. You're the third ham with a hard sider that I know of on this forum! What nice little hamshacks they are. My call sign is WU0V, but I'll be appending /VE(x) to it this summer when we travel to Alaska via BC and the Yukon. If I can fit it in, I'll take along a small PSK31 rig to feed my Outbacker. Wouldn't it be cool to QSO on 20M while traversing the wide open spaces?

73!

[D-mo]

Sorry to hear about the leaks. One thing i noticed with our Aframe is .. that the front forward rubber roof gasket, is shaped by the over the bed 12 volt receptical ..for some unknown reason. This may cause a leak scenario that could happen when closed ... depending on how level you store your trailer, when closed.
But this is a far reach ... your most likely scenario is what hamguy says ... or your window seals ... FR should be contacted .. to timeline this problem .. and make it go away ...

d-mo

[Rob Smith]

Before checking again with the dealer and FR I removed the mattress and plywood under it. I was then able to crawl inside the rear storage compartment with the unit collapsed. I had my wife spray the bubble window and all rivets and screws. After 30 minutes of watching from inside(with trouble lite) with the wife soaking the exterior we gave up, as no leak was detected. BTW I had removed the moulding inside the bubble window as well as the light fixture to allow for a good birds eye view. Don't try this if you are clostrophobic :-). Ham Guy , It does not appear that source would be the wiring to the light as the water would have to flow against gravity with the unit collapsed. D-Mo, I dont have a plug receptical in an area high enough it cause the leak from what I can determine. My receptical is at matress level on the counter side. I am wondering if the water may be an accumulation of condensation. It was pooled on a sheet of plastic covering the mattress and the volume would amount to about 1 1/2 cups accumulation over our Nova Scotia winter. See attachments.
Rob

[thehamguy1]

I suppose it could be condensation. I put a container of Damp-Rid in my unit before garaging it for 4 months, and when I took it out last week it had about a cup of water in its collection reservoir. I'm guessing there would have been more if I had stored it outside where the temperature and humidity changes were more extreme. It also makes sense that the area of greater condensation would be around the window, as it would be the first thing to cool.

What a relief if it turns out to be condensation. Stuff like Damp-Rid is easily available. Boat owners use it, they could tell you to what degree condensation is an issue in your area.

Nothing beats crawling in there and seeing for yourself, as you did. Good on ya!

[wmartind]

I have a Rockwood 128 it has a leak. Inside the trailer at the bottom middle of the rear window. I thought it came from the rear window so I re-did all the caulk around the window. The leak didn't change it leaks just as much as ever so I don't think it's coming through the window, maybe the rivets? It leaks when the camper is set up. Don't know about closed. Very frustrating.

[Jeep4Two]

Wmartind,

Not real sure where to tell you to look next. You might try creating a new thread for your problem and add some pics if you can. That might help more people see your issue.

[Rob Smith]

Well my leak returned over the summer. My invertigation determined the caulking failed. Also stress cracks developed in each corner of the rear bubble window.(see below) The dealer has ordered a new window. I will also have him use the best quality silicone caulking for the installation.
wmartind, I suggest you apply silicone over each of the rivets at all corners. This is where my initial leak started. We'll see how it goes once the new window is installed.

[wmartind]

My A128 also leaked at the rear window. I took it back to the dealer and they applied the 3M Extreme Tape over all the rivets and rear window seams. I think it's fixed. I also talked to the Dealer and he said they have had trouble with sealing of those windows. They now seal under the window as well as caulking. They don't use rivets now. None of which does us any good.

The 3M tape looks pretty good and I think the problem is solved at least until the tape deteriorates.

The Tape is the 3M Extreme Sealing Tape 4412N, Acrylic Pressure Sensitive Adhesive, 2.5" Wide. It covers the rivets and seams pretty well. I also bought a roll at Amazon for $114 for an 18 yard roll just in case the fan ventilator leaks.

[Rob Smith]

Thanks for your update wmartind. I'll re-post later after I get some experiance with the new window(on order now) I also have access to some of the 3M tape,for insurance if nothing else.Hopefully my new window will be rivet free

[wmartind]

Let me know when your window comes in with/without rivets. Also how much did new window cost?

Ken

[Rob Smith]

Will do.
Cheers
Rob

[wmartind]

Thanks Rob,

Ken

[D-mo]

Any news on the fix to the rear window?
i just came back from a 2000 mile trip only to find that on our last day of camping we started having the dreaded roof leak in our trailer ... the lowest edge of the window sink side.
phoned my dealer and of course they said bring it in .. and they will recaulk the window ...however im thinking the external bond is the right way to go. Does anyone know if this fix has been issued by forest river to solve this problem .. or is it just a good dealer making sure to go the extra step.
i will be contacting FR to ensure this is covered under my extended warrenty/origional roof warrenty ...
thanks in advance .. d-mo

[wmartind]

I had the same leak, took it back to the dealer and under Forest River warranty and as per Forest River instructions a special tape was applied (3M Extreme 2.5 inches wide). I also re-caulked the window before the dealer applied the tape. and it still leaked maybe through the rivets. I don't trust the caulk. The tape covers the rivets.

Currently it's not leaking nor do I expect it to, at least for a while.

Good luck and have fun,

Ken

[beyond-there]

I hope you get the leaky frame issue resolved.

[wmartind]

Me too,

Ken