Preventative Maintenance/Shower Leak

[Siegmann]

In an effort to track down a new vibration noise being transmitted from my pump through a water line, I discovered a hidden leak in the wall of my shower behind the the control valve and sprayhead/hose connection. During a shower, water was running down the inside shower wall (totally normal) and managing to get behind the trim pieces and dripping down the outside of the shower to the plywood deck (not normal). Probably no more than a 1/4 cup or so. Not enough to soak into the hallway and become visible. Possibly enough to rot the plywood with the daily showers of two full-timers. Removing the trim pieces revealed that the manufacturer had originally sealed behind them with thin foam gaskets, that after 14 years, has become brittle and crumbly. Until I can find replacement gaskets, the problem was easily solved with caulk.

I'm sure these fixtures have changed many times over the years in various Airstream models, and may or may not be a problem with other fixtures, but it's an easy thing to check by unscrewing a few screws. I know I'll be adding it to my preventative maintenance list.

[curioscat]

We have just purchased a 2006 25' Safari in British Columbia and are on the maiden voyage to California. Two problems have cropped up. 1 the trailer tongue jack broke and the gears are no longer meshing. We are on our way to a supplier to buy a new one.
2. Bigger problem: shower appears to be leaking as you described. Can you explain a little more about removing trim? Dennis will first try to remove the access panel behind the shower mixing valve and check for leaks. Not sure what else to do.
Thanks for any further help anyone can provide!

[Siegmann]

If you can get at the back, that will give you the best view of things.

If not, you can try looking from inside the shower. I don't know if our hardware is the same. But my control valve has a plastic insert in the center that I can pop off (carefully) with a small flat blade screwdriver. Beneath that is a phillips head screw. Remove it, and you can take off the control handle. My 6 " diameter trim piece under that has two obvious screws that retain it. You can see a fair bit with that off. Lower down on the wall, the hose connection can be unscrewed, and the two obvious screws allow removal of the 2 1/2" diameter trim piece. Good luck.