Community Forums

ctsheri · 08-04-2018, 10:03 AM

We have a 2002 Alipine FDTS that has had a leak at the slide behind the driver. The water damage is in the floor of the coach and goes under the slide. Has anyone had any experience with fixing this? We are going to replace the ceramic floor all the way through the bath. How do we get it out from under the slide floor?

Old Scout · 08-04-2018, 10:17 AM

...you probably don't want to hear this but depending on the extent of the floor damage, I would look at removing the slide so I can get at it to fix it. With the sandwich foam/plywood sub-floor, you already have a bit of a challenged to repair it.

DrDaveMA · 08-05-2018, 03:37 PM

Is that tile original? They look too small.

Old Scout · 08-05-2018, 03:51 PM

...the cause of the leak may have been the slide gasket or the belt-line trip on the side of the coach which is somewhat common for Alpines. While you are at it, you might as well check the fabric-covered luan [sp?] plywood on the ceiling of the basement -- if the top of the sub-floor has rotted, the bottom side of the floor panel could be affected too....

Hartsnet · 08-06-2018, 09:40 AM

We had a 2003 38' and had the same problem. I took it to a local place that specialized in leak discovery an repairs. Here's what they found. The slid is constructed using alum square tubing. All the square tubing is welded at the corners and joints.
It is essentially a rectangle box frame. All the sides, floor and top are fastened to that frame.
My slide was leaking and water was coming out under the slide at the inboard foreword corner below the vertical wood facia board.

They found the square tube inboard vertical frame member was not welded to the ceiling frame pieces at that inboard corner on all sides, only on the sides sides of the tubing. If water got under the slide awing it ran down the inside of the vertical tube and exited on the floor under the front edge of the slide floor.

The fix was, with the slide in, they took a 3" wide very expensive weather seal tape and ran it on the top inboard edge of the roof of the slide from the forward location where it was leaking all the way back to the rear inboard corner of the slide. I replaced the floor and never had a leak again.

Hope you can follow my description if not your welcome to call and I can explain it better.
360-333-9594 Jim

Schuby · 08-06-2018, 09:56 AM

Have you established the source of the leak?

How does it leak at the belt line trim?

3x5 · 08-07-2018, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hartsnet

The fix was, with the slide in, they took a 3" wide very expensive weather seal tape and ran it on the top inboard edge of the roof of the slide from the forward location where it was leaking all the way back to the rear inboard corner of the slide. I replaced the floor and never had a leak again.

Can you tell us how to get the very expensive weather seal tape? Would Eternabond tape work?

Old Scout · 08-08-2018, 06:38 AM

…..I had slide leak issues on my 2003....I basically re-caulked all the seams on the top of the slides and used caulk to build small dams on the inside outer edges of each slide top to allow any water that manages to get passed the top slide gasket to get back outside. Sounds counter-intuitive but it has worked for me for the last 15 year.
PS--may vary my model/year but the caulk on the top seam of the beltline trim is subject to cracking which allows water to run down side of coach and get behind the beltline trim….

Hartsnet · 08-08-2018, 09:09 AM

Sounds like Old Scout figured it out using caulk. The key is to seal up the location where the water can enter the top of the vertical tube and make a dam along the top of the slide to divert the water.

I don't know the name of the tape but will call and try to find out.

WRV created a water problem when they attached a small angle to the top of the slide which was supposed to divert any water but in many of the Alpines I noticed the angle went from the front of the slide back to a spot directly above where the sink is, they left a gap of about 12" before finishing up with a short piece at the rear end of the slide top. In a downpour we had water running in and luckily down into the sink. I bought a piece of angle alum same size as was there and filled in the gap.

wolfe10 · 08-08-2018, 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hartsnet

I don't know the name of the tape but will call and try to find out.

Probably Eternabond: https://www.eternabond.com/

Old Scout · 08-08-2018, 02:12 PM

Yup=Hartsnet nailed it--all the screw heads on the inside angle iron along the top and the gap in the angle iron at the corner of the kitchen cabinets, plus the likelihood that they often cut the membrane too short in that same corner, create two of the most likely places for leaks on the main slide...