Wet Floor

[J. Frank]

So I bought an old 1994 Coachmen Catalina Class A with a Ford chassis with 35K, 7KW Onan, etc. The kitchen floor was suspect and the PO had said a roof leak must have caused the floor to rot? They had a rubber roof installed 5 years ago and they thought everything was good.

I thought it seemed odd since there is no de-lamination at the roof level, but some under the windows down low. Also noted that the kitchen counter top had water damage, again not usually a roof leak problem. At any rate I tore out the kitchen cabinets, and was amazed to see that the floor under the linoleum was waterlogged, not rotten. Obviously, something is still leaking and it ain't the roof. At first look it appears to be the window over the sink. I poured a quart of water down the outside and noted a moderate sized puddle on the inside sill.

This RV is built with 1" square tube steel support with sheet metal under and 1" of rigid foam in the middle and 1/2" osb deck. So it holds water pretty well and the framing tends to segregate the areas that get wet.

The question I have is can a 12"x 24" kitchen window leak enough to water log an area 3' x 8'. The osb has been wet so long that it crumbels in pieces as you pull it up. If so, how can I fix this window. It slides up vertically.

[pwhittle]

Sure. I had a leak in the sealant on my upper rail that was under 1/4 inch and it allowed enough water to enter that it rotted out about 3 ft by 4 ft of my subfloor.

Paul

[J. Frank]

Thanks. I cleaned out the track, which had a considerable amount of stuff in it. I will test it again to verify it is fixed.

I have noticed that the weather stripping on all of the windows has shrunk and there is sometimes a 1" gap in places. What can be done about this?

Jerry

[Bill1374]

sounds like you've got some sealing to do. First, check all the penetrations on the roof, vents pipes and all. You will likely need to redo all with Dicor self leveling sealant. Next, on the windows, you can either pull all the windows and replace the butyl tape sealant or use Dicor non leveling sealant around the frames. If you have that much of a gap now, that could be a lotof water coming in. DO NOT use silicone sealants.

[J. Frank]

It appears that majority of the current issues are with the sliding windows. They have not been kept clean and the drain holes are plugged in several of them. Today we had a pretty heavy rain come through and I found that the slider in the sitting area just behind passenger seat was plugged up and leaking (overflowing). As far as the fixed windows, the issue is not with the seals, but with rubber inserts. They have shrunk, but from other posts this does not appear to be a, major problem. I do need to check all the penetrations just to make sure they are good.

[mojoracing]

Take it to a dealer with a seal test system. They pressurize the coach with an air pump installed in one of the roof vents then spray the coach down with a soapy solution. Any leaks will quickly make themselves known by the bubbles you will see forming wherever it is leaking. If you are going to caulk around windows, I recommend OSI QUAD in clear. Its made by Loctite and is available at home depot. It is the stuff fleetwood uses to seal around windows, side mirrors, running lights ect. It is absolutely the best stuff available. It wont shrink, turn yellow or get brittle. It sticks to everything and can even be applied in the rain. You would be amazed at how much water can come in from the smallest of leaks and I would be willing to bet you have at least a couple more your not even aware of. With that amount of damage done to the sub floor, I would worry about mold and replacing the floor and interior walls will be a huge job that often ends up in a coach being a total loss. Hopefully yours has not gone too far and can be saved.