Why do I have these, what should I do?

[juel]

I have these holes evenly spaced under all the windows in my "new" 1976 Sovereign. I noticed them when I was repainting the logo yesterday. I thought they were weep holes; however, the Argosy doesn't have them and my friend's AS doesn't have them. I've read that you NEVER have open holes in an AS. Should I Vulkem them, leave them alone, or what. I have checked this trailer carefully and cannot find where it has leaked under the windows. I do see that the vista windows get condensation inside them often. I haven't tackled the dreaded "vista window fix" yet.

[overlander63]

They could either be missing rivets, or holes drilled to allow water to escape from the windowsill.

[Jaxon]

Looks like a rivet somehow popped off... maybe was one that hadn't been secured properly?

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by juel

I have these holes evenly spaced under all the windows in my "new" 1976 Sovereign. I noticed them when I was repainting the logo yesterday. I thought they were weep holes; however, the Argosy doesn't have them and my friend's AS doesn't have them. I've read that you NEVER have open holes in an AS. Should I Vulkem them, leave them alone, or what. I have checked this trailer carefully and cannot find where it has leaked under the windows. I do see that the vista windows get condensation inside them often. I haven't tackled the dreaded "vista window fix" yet.

Those holes are below the window frame, therefore cannot be weep holes.

They could be that the previous owner had something mounted over the windows, as indicated by the rust deposits.

But, whatever the case, replace the rivets with Olympics, and add some sealer to the rivet shank, before you insert the rivet in the hole.

Andy

[flyfshr]

Just a thought. With the rust, could possibly have been steel screws for securing a window awning. Especially if they're under each window. Is there one at each lower corner?

Brad
FF

[overlander63]

It could be "redneck storm shutters", where the PO stuck a piece of plywood over the window, and screwed it in place... In any case, they will need to be made watertight again.

[juel]

Thanks for the answers. They can't be random missing rivets because they are all spaced between the rivets under the windows in the same place. Each window has them at the same spacing. I am going to look inside to see if I can see where they come from, but they do stick out about 1/16th of an inch past the skin and look like inside-out rivets. I guess I will fill them with Vulkem and try to insert rivets into the holes. I'm not sure new rivets are possible, but now I know the holes must be filled in some manner.

[azflycaster]

I see what you are talking about in one of the pictures. It might be a helicoil (threaded insert) to allow something to be attached to the window or possibly a secondary window lock? Are these only found on the bottom of the windows and on all the windows?

You may need to remove these to get an Olympic Rivet to seat properly.

[47WeeWind]

If, as Richard mentions, the holes are threaded, I'd find proper size screws or bolts that thread into the holes. I'd cover the screw or bolt shanks with some vulkem and thread them in place. That will give you more time to think about how those holes can be put to a very good use while preventing water from entering in the meantime.

[juel]

The holes are just at the bottom and spaced equally the same distance apart on all windows except the vista view. Don't we wish we could have some written record of everything that is done by POs to these trailers before we get them? Whatever these things are, they don't seem to have damaged the integrity of the trailer thus far.

[Excella CM]

Olympic rivets are bi enough to to replace those if you drill them out. would look a little more uptown too.

[juel]

Mystery solved thanks to an idea from Balrgn. I stuck a wire into the little tube and it came up inside the trailer in the window sill. It's a drain tube. Glad I didn't fill them with Vulkem. It's just a little metal tube on each side of the window sill that runs to the outside.