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Davegeer · 05-22-2020, 11:54 AM

The gasket/seal under the bottom of the bedroom slide on our 2019 Newmar Ventana has apparently become detached when I extend the slide. I ordered a replacement from Newmar. They could not tell me how to install the new one, but did tell me to go to a Newmar service center. The two dealers are each 4 hours from me in different directions. So not wanting to spend 16 hours on the road to get it fixed, I would like to do the work myself.
It seems to be really straightforward. There is an aluminum Trim/ fascia that the gasket is mounted to. When I remove the screws it seems to be bedded in some sort of adhesive. Newmar parts thought maybe Sikaflex. It appears to be a hard rubber substance. Anyone have any ideas? I thought maybe a heat gun but do not want to damage the body paint or fiberglass skin. I also dont want to bend the aluminum.
Not too sure what to do so am turning to the forum here

dutchstar10 · 05-22-2020, 01:13 PM

Let me know what you find out. Mine is the same and I would like to fix it also.

Stealth01 · 05-22-2020, 06:33 PM

What the hell is happening to Newmar quality???

Davegeer · 06-06-2020, 01:33 PM

As it turns out the fix for my problem was fairly straightforward. That is not to say it was easy.
The most difficult was removing the aluminum trim. After removing the silicone sealant, I removed the screws from the trim. The I was able to carefully inserted small pry bars under the edge of the trim. I protected the side with several layers of tape and pried against a small block with rubber cover. It took several hours to work the trim loose. Heat gun did not help. Just patience. Being careful not to bend it I found the trim was also attached with rubber sealant. Actually found five different types of sealant.
Under the trim is an aluminum angle fascia. Removing it involved more prying as it is stapled with many staples and another kind of tar like sealant. Mine had been pieced which made it easier as the piece runs behind both of the vertical trim, which I chose not to remove.
I called Newmar parts and they sent out the correct seal after I sent a photo of the old seal. The Newmar part number is 21289. There are two different rubber seals. The smaller seal is not listed with Newmar. I used a 1/2” wide D seal that is available on Amazon. Had to replace because old one destroyed in the process. It just adheres with the 3M tape the is already mounted on the seal.
The big seal is mounted on a flange on the back of the aluminum flashing. There smaller seal Is mounted on the front of the flashing right at the bend where the flange is.
It was a little difficult To get the large seal worked onto the flange behind each end. As I replaced the seal I glued the seal to the back of the aluminum flashing with acrylic adhesive. After getting the seal in place I also glued the front of the seal to the flashing with black 3M weather-seal adhesive. Now the large seal is glued both front and back. It was originally attached with a very small bead of acrylic sealant which had pulled away from the seal
After all back together I cleaned all the seals with alcohol and treated with 3in one rubber seal conditioner. I also applied several coats of auto paste wax on the bottom of the slide out to lessen the friction between the seal and the slide.
Aside from the difficulty removing the fascia trim, the hardest part of the process was removing all the different sealants originally used.
All in all if you do not have a lot of time and patience, you might want just go to a dealer to have this repair done. I am fairly handy so cannot imagine it would not take a dealer fewer hours to do this. I estimate this took about 5 hours. If the fascia were to be damaged it would require replacement and repainting to match the original.
Sorry no pics. I just wanted to get this done and did not think of it. Good luck.

"007" · 06-06-2020, 03:07 PM

Welcome to the forum, Davegeer
Thanks for your thread on slide seal will be posting in this big thread for your fix and you will find many other items related to slides over the years.
I have a question, that black box indentation in floor of bedroom slide, why is it there, older coach's didn't have it.
Could it be that black plastic indentation pulled the slide seal off floor of slide.
Enjoy forum and safe travels.

Davegeer · 06-07-2020, 06:50 AM

007,
I do not know what the black indentation is for unless for some option that I do not have. I have had it off so I could run the cable for Boogey Lights I mounted under all three slides and entry steps. The indent is just a hole in the three Layers of 3/4 plywood that make up the slide floor. The cover at the top of the plastic bezel is on the floor of the slide under the bed.
As far as the bezel pulling off the gasket, I don't think that was the cause.
The gasket on mine was damaged in quite a few places along its length.
I believe the cause was the lack of good anchoring. The flange on the aluminum flashing is under 1/2 inch and really thin metal. The gasket was not very well anchored as the was just a 1/8” bead of sealant along the length. In some places there was no sealant. The gasket is highly compressed along its whole length and rubs along the rough surface of the slide bottom. A recipe for problems.