Water Leak

[jcanavera]

Was out in some heavy rain on Sunday and saw water dripping down the wall just behind the stove hood. As it ended up the water was coming from the hood vent. I pulled the filter and felt water in the vent itself, you know the plastic vent that is outside the trailer on the side of the wall and extends and connects to the hood assembly. I've checked the caulking and it looks fine. No breaks, cracks or pin holes. The vent cover was locked so it wasn't an issue of the cover flopping open and closed allowing water in. On the other hand the cover is not weather sealed so wind driven water could probably get around it.

Anybody with a newer Airstream have this problem. I'm a little puzzled as to fix this short of bringing it to the dealer and letting him figure it out.

Jack

[gwsullivan]

Jack, I have not experienced this on my Safari. We even had a tornado go overhead while in Cabool, Missouri last March and nothing leaked. Leaks never seem to be where you think they are. Could it be around the awning rail and the water ran down to the vent from there? Good luck and keep us posted.

[jcanavera]

Yea, I've seen enough threads regarding leaks that it could be coming from a much different area. I'm going to see if I can try to recreate the problem this weekend. Trailer's too new to start doing this.

Jack

[James Schmidt]

Don't forget to check the waste tanks vent gaskets!!! These often go bad with time and can be a very hard leak to find. I had to replace both of them after searching for several years for a leak. My leak showed up in the living room area and was entering the trailer around these gaskets near the rear of the trailer. The fix is easy and cheap. Andy has the gaskets or you can do as I did and make some out of an old inner tube.
Good Luck,

[jcanavera]

Thanks James,
I'll take a look at these also. The trailer has only been exposed to the outside air for 11 months of its 15 month life. If we have a problem at all its probably a rivit that popped or faulty caulk. I don't believe we've come close to the normal wear and tear point yet. If I don't find it, it goes back to the dealer. I still have 9 months left on warranty.

Jack

[denellen]

Jack:
My 2005 22' CCD has numerous leaks to the interior.One area was " at the range exhaust vent" according to the Airstream dealer." They removed the outside vent, screws and exterior sealer and cleanedthe surface. Caulking was then applied to the back of the exhaust vent and they added silicone to the screws befor re-attaching to exterior skin."
This may have stopped that leak, but stopping the leak is only the first part of remediating the problem. According to the EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency): " Fact Sheet-Avoiding Indoor Air Quality Problems": anything that can't be cleaned within 24-48 hrs. needs to be removed and discarded. In my case ,I could see the water dripping from between the overlapping panels above the counter top. This says that the insulation in between the interior and exterior walls was soaked. You may not be able to see this on your model trailer because of interior finish differences, but if you found water on the counter, or on the floor it's a good bet that you also have water soaked insulation.
This can present a SERIOUS HEALTH PROBLEM! On the internet Google up "mold,mildew, fungus".
While your trailer is still in warranty, you should insist that Airstream perform proper remedial repairs. Remember this can seriously effect the value of your trailer from the standpoint of safe and healthy habitat, future structural deterioration, and finaly resale ( you will be legaly obligated to inform the prospective buyer of the leak problems).
It won't be easy getting Airstream to do it right because of the expenses involved in removing/replacing insulation, cleaning and sealing the interior wall cavity , but it needs to be done.
Airstreams when assembled with normal care should'nt leak, but it seems they do (sadly).
Dennis.

[Safari Tim]

I had this leak too. But my trailer is a little older than yours ;-)

One thing figured out when chasing leaks down. The seal may look good until you push down on the body. The idea is to flex the area of the expected leak where the seam is like the hood vent to the body and watch the seam.

I found when I do this a crack will appear that looks perfect with just a visual inspection. On my vent hood, I found it was able flex a lot. So after replacing the vulkum, I added a couple of rivets to limit the flexing between the vent hood and the trailer body.

I have found leaks in windows, and fridge vents using this technique.

Good luck finding your leak. I know how frustrating they can be.

[Silvertwinkie]

It's funny to see threads get "re-born" after such a long time.....fact is though, in this case, Jack has already traded that Safari and now has an '04 Classic slide out.....

[jcanavera]

And as it ended up I really didn't have a leak. The problem was the vent flap on the range vent was overwhelmed by the wind from a severe thunderstorm. As the driving rain hit the side of the trailer, the flap was raised by the wind, thus allowing water to come in. The remedy for me was to use the exisitng locks to secure the vent flap during storms.

Jack

[Pahaska]

Originally Posted by jcanavera

And as it ended up I really didn't have a leak. The problem was the vent flap on the range vent was overwhelmed by the wind from a severe thunderstorm. As the driving rain hit the side of the trailer, the flap was raised by the wind, thus allowing water to come in. The remedy for me was to use the exisitng locks to secure the vent flap during storms.

Jack

The night before I picked up my former International 22', there was a near tornado that swept over the dealer's lot. The storm came in from the vent side of the trailer. When I arrived that morning, there was a little water on the counter even though the flap was securely locked. The vent was perfectly sealed all around. The vent flapper simply does not seal well enough to keep out that sort of a storm with horizontal flying water.

BTW: I need to go check my trailer at the storage yard this morning. My trailer is under roof, but we had a near tornado come through in the night that took out one of my trees and a swath of trees and limbs in a path through the neighborhood. They are doing some construction in the storage yard and I worry about loose items or the boat beside me being blown into the trailer.