Chieftrain owners. One pesty leak.

liveaboard74 · 03-15-2023, 04:06 AM

Having a ball fixing up the new to us 35 c but have one leak I'm not finding.
I cut off and resealed everything on that side of the RV up top. . See the water in the track? Its dripping from that top all the way up in the top left hand cornor of that photo.. Its not in the door just just over the door. Its about a two inch opening up there in the track thats where the leak is coming from. .
I've resealed the Am/fm antenna, there was lap sealent on that, its not coming from the top on that side all newly sealed. .
Could it be coming in by the front clearence lights and rolling over to there. Thats what I'm going to check next.

Not hoping a leak on anyone but hoping someone has experenced this and knows what i'm looking for. Spent 1650 for new shoes on it yesterday. Other tires were 11 years old. Getting it ready for summer but that one leak is driving me nuts.

Ranger Smith · 03-15-2023, 04:15 AM

A lot of times they will leak in the corner where the front cap/roof and sidewall meet. Other area is the front marker lamps on top of the cap will leak and need to be removed and resealed.

Morich · 03-15-2023, 07:42 AM

Just as a wild guess and not being able to see well, I would look at the window itself. Since there is that much water and that far away from the font. I lean toward the leak being closer, considering how much you have.
Possibly just one screw that sticks out just a bit or a small open spot on the window seal?
If that area has a lot of caulk clombed on it, look for a space others may have worked without cleaning it down to metal. What I find is that they may have just added more on top of old and that can leave the hole still there under the old and still leaking.

Not any chance it is simple condensation collectected and a weep hole needs to be clear so it drains outside? Cold weather and warm inside , we can get lots of fog on winddows??

It's a trek to find it sometimes!

liveaboard74 · 03-15-2023, 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ranger Smith

A lot of times they will leak in the corner where the front cap/roof and sidewall meet. Other area is the front marker lamps on top of the cap will leak and need to be removed and resealed.

Think we nailed it. Had to call the local winny dealer to day parts girl said what we thought it was, cork gaskets behind the lights over time fade and srink . Picked up a sheet of gasket material will take one down make 10 back gaskets tomorrow replace very one of then then wait for the rain.

Have a feeling thats it. Got my fingers crossed anyway.

Duner · 03-16-2023, 06:57 AM

If you get water inside the gutter it should come the 2 or 3 weep holes on the bottom side of the rail. Now if your coach is sloped down in the front and there is a substantial amount of water inside the gutter, then it can overflow the dam at the end of that extruded metal and come down in the drivers corner. I only had that happen once on my coach when pulling out the driveway. My leak was along the seal where the fiberglass tucks into the gutter rail. You can test for this problem by keeping the front up higher on the jacks so the water flow towards the rear and goes out the weep holes as designed. With Winnebagos you must have a good seal all along the side of the fiberglass roof. Check by pressing in on the roof and see if it separates from the seal. This test for sealing is something to do every year.

Good luck,
Bill
ps, what year is your coach???

Morich · 03-16-2023, 07:58 AM

That post jogs the brain to another thought!
There are times when we get trouble passed on to us from previous owners who "fixed" things the wrong way!
There are vents cut as small horizontal slots in the outside of the window metal along the bottom. Then there is supposed to be a plastic guard that snaps into the slot to keep it from whistleing as we drive. There are times when folks trace down that whistle to the slot and come up with the "fix" of putting tape over the slot!
It fixes the whistle but keeps the water from draining outside----so it runs over inside!
Any tape on those vents? Take it off and get the little snap in guards!

liveaboard74 · 03-16-2023, 05:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Duner

If you get water inside the gutter it should come the 2 or 3 weep holes on the bottom side of the rail. Now if your coach is sloped down in the front and there is a substantial amount of water inside the gutter, then it can overflow the dam at the end of that extruded metal and come down in the drivers corner. I only had that happen once on my coach when pulling out the driveway. My leak was along the seal where the fiberglass tucks into the gutter rail. You can test for this problem by keeping the front up higher on the jacks so the water flow towards the rear and goes out the weep holes as designed. With Winnebagos you must have a good seal all along the side of the fiberglass roof. Check by pressing in on the roof and see if it separates from the seal. This test for sealing is something to do every year.

Good luck,
Bill
ps, what year is your coach???

Title says 2000 Girl at Sawyers I'm racking her brain but her and her husband are car nuts so we have a ton in common. LOL We're friends.

Morich

Everything is resealed up there. I cut the old off used almost a half a tube on that side.
Cut out the new gaskets for the front clearence lights got GF cutting the middle out and sealed them up. LOL I"M ON A MISSION>

Left the center one disconnected the camera for the time being just put duck type over it suppose to rain Saturday, WE WILL SEE> LOL
Elimanated all the clearence lights but the center with the camera wire run out of it so if it leaks now, I'm back to square one. The gaskets behind the lights were pretty much trashed. Everyone of them were seperated at the bottom.
Where the top mets the sides every bit of that is newly sealed. I left no carck uncocked. LOL

I"m hoping my service girl is right and the gaskets were wet so water was soaking down behind them.

liveaboard74 · 03-18-2023, 07:36 PM

Guess what. I still have the leak. Going to drive me to drinking. LOL
Braking the ladder out and sealing that gutter that runs all the way down that side tomorrow.

liveaboard74 · 03-19-2023, 07:36 PM

Sealed the gutter or track all the way down the RV today. Front to rear.
Sitting in the drivers seat that opening is where the leak is coming from. Doing that track was the last thing that is not freshly sealed on the top.

Jim_HiTek · 03-20-2023, 12:24 PM

Might be a bit late since it sounds like you've already got the problem solved, but what I did was add another gutter right over the window frame.

I didn't have a drivers window leak at the time, it was preventative. Used plastic stick on gutter available from Amazon.

liveaboard74 · 03-20-2023, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim_HiTek

Might be a bit late since it sounds like you've already got the problem solved, but what I did was add another gutter right over the window frame.

I didn't have a drivers window leak at the time, it was preventative. Used plastic stick on gutter available from Amazon.

Think I will. RV place just before you cross the bridge into OBX. I"ll stop there next time I pass by and grab me enought to do just what you did. Sealed the whole over side of the RV today so both sides are done.

liveaboard74 · 03-26-2023, 05:56 PM

Have good news. It was that gutter. All the way down my 35c the sealent had dried blown away just flat gone. Rained hard today not the first leak. Where ever it was behind that track or rain gutter was leaking in and running all the way down to the front.
I did both sides last week. There ain't nothing else to caulk up there I've done it trying to find this leak.

Thanks for the help..