The Ventline vents have a drain hole that should be kept clear. Below is a photo showing it on our 1994 Excella. If the vent is off center then the drain hole should be on the lower side.
We haven't had trouble with this vent leaking. If we did, then I would remove and remount it with a 3/8 thick spacer underneath to raise that drain hole above the roof line a little more. Happy to machine these for those folks who are experiencing leaks. Please PM or email me.
When a flat vent is placed on a curved roof it creates a low flat spot that can pool water. This can be seen in photo. That could conceivably let water run into the drain hole. The heads of the screws that hold the vent to the roof should be sealed when installed or water could come in past those if they work loose.
All the best,
Hein
P.S. Here is a install how-to (not mine) with good photos but no mention of sealing the tops of the mounting screws or maintaining an open drain port.
After putting a dab of caulk under each of the eight-to-ten screws that hold the vent to the roof, under the cover with two screws which I also dabbed. I did not have any leak in a one-hour heavy rain storm. I also added caulk around the plumbing vent pipes, making them look like the ones in Hein’s picture. I need a longer rainy and damp day to be confident that it is fixed, but am hopeful after this short rainfall test.
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Hopefully this was our problem, we took it to the shop and they found the vents were not properly installed, in one of them the pipe coming out of the trailer was too short and the other one was wrongly installed, ill report later after we test it under a down poor.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LDM
I had the same problem found it to be vent pipe bushing had slip out of place. When it rain hard & wind blew it in vent. Remove it put bushing in right place caulk everything up good.
I found it by pouring water down vent out it came on floor. I removed the other vent and the bushing out of place also.
Thank you all for the great tips. We're pretty handy so we appreciate all your suggestions!
We did take your suggestions and caulked the screws in the bathroom vent. We replaced the weather stripping that was in there too while we were there. We caulked around it, leaving the draining hole up we also caulked around the sewer vent. We're unsure where the "vent pipe bushing" would be but would be interested in checking it out if we could get more details.
It rained hard after re-caulking and we still have the leaks. One in the ceiling, at the seam, to the right of the fan and one along the wall under the cabinet, straight down from the one in the ceiling.
So we bought a suction cup and some Capt Tolley's and have been hitting rivets. We haven't had any substantial rain yet. Think our next step may be to do what Ray mentioned and/or a leak test.
Keep the suggestions coming and if I find the cure, I promise to post it!
The vent pipe bushing is under the black tank vent, and to tell if it is leaking pour water in the black tank vent and watch for it to leak. If it leaks pull the vent cover off and seal around black pipe at the roof.The bushing is between vent cover & vent pipe. Both grey & black tank bushing were out of place on my 25fb. I first sealed around vent cap, still leaked. Until i sealed around vent pipe itself and got bushing back in proper place, no leaks now.
The vent pipe bushing is under the black tank vent, and to tell if it is leaking pour water in the black tank vent and watch for it to leak. If it leaks pull the vent cover off and seal around black pipe at the roof.The bushing is between vent cover & vent pipe. Both grey & black tank bushing were out of place on my 25fb. I first sealed around vent cap, still leaked. Until i sealed around vent pipe itself and got bushing back in proper place, no leaks now.
OOO my friend! You, sir, are owed a beer! We have found our culprit!
Question: I'm attaching a pic of our vent, can that top be finessed off or will we need to remove the caulk and unscrew it from the roof?
We are having this exact issue with our 2017 25FB. Did you all find a solution?
Thank you,
Theresa
Hi emelaich,*
We are very sorry about the leak you have. If we can assist, please send us a direct message with your contact information and the last 6 digits of your VIN so we can share it with our Customer Service and Technical Support team. We look forward to helping you get this resolved.
Thank you.*
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The bushing snap in the under side of white vent cover. I put a little silicone behind bushing to keep it from falling out again. Both of mine had fell out of place. Probably all of these rough highways.
I was just tipped off to this thread when I asked about leaks from the bathroom vent today on the forums.
I just came from 7 weeks in the dealer service department where they were unsuccessful I believe at solving my identical same problem.
Today there were pretty gentle rains and it came through, the vent was open for ventilation since it’s cool here, but the rains were really quite gentle and no wind to speak of..so it is really amazing to me.
Multiple pressurized leak tests were conducted and they were not helpful. They re-caulked all kinds of things on the roof..they reinstalled the bathroom fan (a new one since the old one wasn’t not installed right)...
Very reassuring to know it’s not just me..
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Sorry, my frustration leaves me at a loss for words. The advice and tips given here will be shown to them when I see them again. Thank you all
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Men are but men, and the greatest men are they who soonest learn the simpler things. ROBERT E. HOWARD
What a man does for pay is of little significance. What he is, as a sensitive instrument responsive to the world's beauty, is everything! H. P. Lovecraft
Many thanks to everyone that posted solutions. I believe this is the fix and, bonus, we took pictures!
Short story. We had this same exact leak as shown. We removed both the black and grey vents as advised. Heavy rain was forecasted for Sunday night so we got it in gear.
What we found:
All had silicone caulk. Silicone everywhere!
The grey tank had the bushing and gasket and pipe was caulked with silicone
The black tank had the bushing. The gasket was installed incorrectly (adhesive side down adhering to the Airstream) and the pipe was not caulked. Our culprit!
Both vents were indented at the screw holes because they were synched in too hard. One hole cracked a bit.
What we did:
We didn’t have time to purchase new vent covers and gaskets, checklist for another day.
We removed cleaned the vent covers and roof with (write this down, you’ll want it!) FOSHIO Plastic Razor blades and Specialty Adhesive Remover-Aerosol 38987 Talk about making our lives easy! We had a Jayco we resealed and did not have these. These are must haves but I digress.
We discussed and tossed the gaskets in favor of using Butyl Tape
We sealed both pipes, screw holes and screws (bought stainless steel screws) with Sikaflex.
We ran a bead of Sikaflex around the grey tank because it was on a slope and had the tiniest of gaps between the roof and vent cover.
The results.
Nearly 3 inches of rain last night, some coming down hard, bathroom ceiling and wall bone dry.
Here are the pictures. I’ll try to keep them in order. Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.
Many thanks to everyone that posted solutions. I believe this is the fix and, bonus, we took pictures!
Short story. We had this same exact leak as shown. We removed both the black and grey vents as advised. Heavy rain was forecasted for Sunday night so we got it in gear.
[...]
Thanks so much for posting your findings and great photos. Come spring I will be up on my roof checking the vents.
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Dealing with the same leak on a 2018 International Serenity FB. Super frustrating that the dealership, with pressure testing said the vent caps leaked under pressure, so they “fixed” them, but the leak persists... Back to the dealership this week. 2018 rig, you would think this problem would be addressed at the factory. Love my rig, but between this leak and the 8 trips to the dealership for Atwood H2O heater problems, I am frustrated with the cost vs quality of my purchase. Sooo glad to hear yours is fixed! Happy New Year...
There have been a number of "leakers" that seem to squeak by the factory water test, only this time, if I am reading this correctly, it would appear to be a prob with a specific model, which is also puzzling as to how so many of the same units got through the "rigorous" water test and passed. Some of these units are only a few years old, if that, so deteriorated caulk shouldn't be an issue.....misapplication could be, or perhaps bad design, shoddy parts or go figure, poor workmanship. The trailer is a work of art, but on the roof it's basically hammer time. Very messy, unrefined work (in terms of sealant and support)compared to the rest of the trailer. Heck mine leaked too when it was right off the factory floor. Turns out, the source was from the wheel well, but only when the trailer moved. Static it was fine. In my case it was found that there was ZERO caulk applied to the wheel well trim. Honest mistake, probably, but when I take into account the food wrapper I found stuffed in an area not normally seen when I did work on the trailer myself, it tends to make me feel there is/was a fair amount of laziness on the line at times....but mine is a 2004 and who knows how many of those folks are still around.
I would second getting a pressure leak test if the culprit is not obvious. In fact, it's not a bad idea to get one every 5-6 years depending on if it your unit is outside most of the time and/or the condition of the sealants. They do deteriorate. Mine is long overdue for one. It's always better to be proactive than reactive IMHO.
Dealing with the same leak on a 2018 International Serenity FB. Super frustrating that the dealership, with pressure testing said the vent caps leaked under pressure, so they “fixed” them, but the leak persists... Back to the dealership this week. 2018 rig, you would think this problem would be addressed at the factory. Love my rig, but between this leak and the 8 trips to the dealership for Atwood H2O heater problems, I am frustrated with the cost vs quality of my purchase. Sooo glad to hear yours is fixed! Happy New Year...
Hi erudolph,*
We're very sorry to learn about the leak you are having. Please send us a direct message with your contact information and the last 6 digits of your VIN so we can share it with our Customer Service and Technical Support team. We look forward to helping you get this resolved.
You can also reach Airstream Customer Service and Technical Support at*customer_support@airstream.com*
Thank you.*
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Airstream Customer Service and Technical Support can be reached at 1 (877) 596-6111, option 1.
So after reading various posts I think I can confirm our leak originates from the tank vent pipe above the bathroom extractor. It happens in heavy rain with rain bouncing off the roof into the vent. I have fashioned a temp cover for the vent (to stop rain bouncing up but not to stop it venting) and in the most recent two periods of really heavy rain where we are currently staying, no repeat of the water seepage. Trailer back to Airstream on our return to check the vent is properly sealed to the roof and vent pipe. Hopefully this is an end to a really annoying problem (since Day 1).
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