Rust in Water Compartment - 05 Horizon

LK23 · 06-21-2006, 10:32 AM

I have rust in my water compartment near the door gasket (see photo). Has anyone else experienced this? I will have to remove the door gasket, clean the rust off and then prep the area before painting. What rust preventer or treatment should I use to keep this from re-occuring? I have the same rust problem around the base of the water hose reel.

LK23 · 06-21-2006, 10:32 AM

I have rust in my water compartment near the door gasket (see photo). Has anyone else experienced this? I will have to remove the door gasket, clean the rust off and then prep the area before painting. What rust preventer or treatment should I use to keep this from re-occuring? I have the same rust problem around the base of the water hose reel.

GG1 · 06-21-2006, 11:13 AM

Let Winnebago know about it before its too late. They should repair if its not too far out of warranty. Check along the lower edge on all of the inner panels before they all go the same way.

smlranger · 06-21-2006, 12:04 PM

I found some of that same rust behind the door seals on my Journey. So much for the 'E' coating they claim is so great.

I sand-blasted the areas, used Rustoleum 'Rust Reformer,' followed by Rustoleum flat paint. I also replaced the door seals....that stuff is pretty pricey.

John_Canfield · 06-21-2006, 04:07 PM

Gary has a good process. You need to completely get rid of the rust and the best way is to sandblast. I have tried the wire brush route and Ospho (phosphoric acid)but the rust will come back. The gasket should come off and who knows what else.

I have heard that in old car restoration when body panels have rust they must be cut out and replaced because there is no effective method to permanently eliminate the rust problem. Found this out on a classic car I bought a few years ago - it looked beautiful for two or three years then the rust started pushing up the paint in problem areas. The restorer of that car obviously didn't cut out and replace rusted sheet metal.

I might be wrong, but I believe the only frame part that is dipped is the cab assembly (watched it happen!)

Totally agree with GG1 - make Winnie aware of the problem. Probably the best way to do this is to let a dealer take pictures of it and send them in to Winnie.

ichn2go · 06-22-2006, 01:55 AM

http://www.por15.com/

Is this stuff any good? They make great claims.

It really is important to notify Winnie. Document your call. Good Luck

GG1 · 06-22-2006, 03:13 AM

Try a product called POR-15. Do a global search for the web site. I have used it so far it works good. Mine was applied in Feb of this year. It is supposed to neutralize the rust. I used a wire brush they reccomend to let some rust residue remain behind. I was told by a Winnie factory rep that if the problem was brought to their attention before the warranty ran out they would probably have taken care of it, mine started after 2 years, was fixed temporarily then came back, now its along the entire length of the inner black panels and under some of the rubber gasketing. IMO there is no excuse for this to occurr so soon.

MrTransistor · 06-22-2006, 07:24 AM

Hi All,
This sounds similar to a product that I think was developed by Loctite called Extend. I've used Extend and it does every thing is says it will do. I think it gets used as an undercoating on steel bridges and you don't have to paint over it. It hardens to a nice coal black finish. Should work great for all rust jobs under an RV.

http://www.loctite.com/int_henkel/loctite_us/loctite_co...754&disp_language=en
http://tds.loctite.com/tds5/docs/EXTRT-EN.pdf

smlranger · 06-22-2006, 12:02 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by MrTransistor:
Hi All,
This sounds similar to a product that I think was developed by Loctite called Extend. I've used Extend and it does every thing is says it will do. I think it gets used as an undercoating on steel bridges and you don't have to paint over it. It hardens to a nice coal black finish. Should work great for all rust jobs under an RV.

http://www.loctite.com/int_henkel/loctite_us/loctite_co...754&disp_language=en
http://tds.loctite.com/tds5/docs/EXTRT-EN.pdf </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I've used both Extend and Rustoleum Rust Reformer on this coach. At this point, both seem to work well but I am anxious to see which holds up best. I agree with the others that there is no good excuse for the rust I have seen behind the door gaskets and in some other places. Would have to believe the metal did not have proper surface prep before paint was applied.