The Main Slide Water Leak!!!! - Montana Owners Club

Okie Guy · 07-05-2009, 05:37 AM

I have had Miss Monty out of the shop for a few weeks now. They took off the facing of the slide and resealed everything. Last night when we had the rain storm I went to check for leaks. Sure enough right there behind the couch in the corner was wet carpet. This is so frustrating! Where in the world is the water getting in? Everything has been sealed, siliconed and water is still getting in.

There isn't much water just a little but any is not acceptable to me.

Has anyone else had a slide water problem before?

We have sealed the roof with new tape. Used silicone around the entire slide. No water is coming in on the inside wall near the couch. I have looked everywhere I can think for running water but can't figure this out.
Please Help!
Phil

exav8tr · 07-05-2009, 06:05 AM

Phil, How about slide toppers, do you have them? The rain could be coming from the top of the slide and running down the side if you do not have the toppers. This is just my opinion and am not saying you must have the toppers to stay dry, but sometimes you never know.

Phil

Exnavydiver · 07-05-2009, 06:26 AM

Phil, have you made sure that the "floppy" vertical gasket has been dragged out when the slide it all the way out? We have had the same gasket stay folded in on the kitchen slide a few times. When I run the slides out I usually stop them about half way out and go check that they are following the slide wall out. If they are still folded in I just reach in and push them out (easier than trying to do it from the outside). This has worked for us so far and exav8tr had a good question about slide toppers too... Dave

sreigle · 07-05-2009, 08:47 AM

I am definitely not an expert on this but have heard many times that water in the rig may well come from far away from the symptom. Could there be a leak somewhere outside of where you'd expect?

Also, like Dave, whenever we have a seal curled under and it rains, we get water in the rig. I usually don't check it like Dave does. I've always checked it after the slides are out, then if one is curled under, I insert the L portion of the awning rod under the seal and run it upwards to turn the seal. Using the rounded edge of the L doesn't hurt the seal and if it scratches the rig at all, that's under the seal anyhow.

One other possibility is the window seal. You might check all around that window, especially along the top. Also, the windows should have some weep holes, two I think, along the bottom frame. That's to let any moisture from condensation get to the outside. We've only had water in the rig from these holes when hitting the window area with high pressure when washing the rig. But maybe there is some way rain water is getting in through those weep holes?

Countryfolks · 07-05-2009, 10:08 AM

We had the same problem on our last trailer, we never found the problem for sure. Under the rubber strip/flap at the intersection of the slide wall and the unit wall is a spout somewhat similar to the one draining the roof. The end of the spout was about a 1/4" longer on the leaking side and was being blocked/dammed by the flap allowing the water to overflow instead of draining. I tried building a dam inch or so back [partially worked] and then used a shim [a small stick] a little ways above the spout to hold the rubber away from its end. That seemed to work a bit better. Don't know for sure because we only had a little rain after trying it.

Check that the window frame was installed with the weep holes at the bottom and are unobstructed, sometime they are installed with them at the top or inside. The sliding windows allow water to collect in the frame and it will overflow on the inside without the weep holes.

Check both ends of the slide for these items also.

lightningjack11 · 07-05-2009, 01:39 PM

Happened to me. My slide had a very small slant to it so the water always went to one side. As a result it come down the slide and seeped in at the bottom. No sealant down there. It was also coming in at the top through the bar that clamps the roofing on. So I eternabond everthing.

If it is coming in the walls check for soft spots on the inside.

You need to get a ladder and search for soft spots in the roofing. Also check the floor underneath for soft spots outside. This problem creeps up on you.

Also had trouble with the bedroom slide and had to re-enforce the floor.

Water also cause some de-lamination.

My coach was not seaed well from the factory. Once water gets to the Luan then de-lamination follows.

Sorry about the problems

Sinterior · 07-05-2009, 04:20 PM

Hi, does your dealer have a pressure tester (I think its called) where they pressurize the inside of your RV with air, and spray a soapy solution all over the outside. This can find leaks where they originate by looking for bubbles, which may not be anywhere near where its wet.
I hope this helps.

Peter

sreigle · 07-06-2009, 02:19 PM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by Countryfolks

Check that the window frame was installed with the weep holes at the bottom and are unobstructed, sometime they are installed with them at the top or inside. The sliding windows allow water to collect in the frame and it will overflow on the inside without the weep holes.

Good point, Skip. I'd forgotten about that happening. One of our members a few years ago had a Montana with all the windows upside down and they got leaks. Keystone, or their dealer, took care of it, as I recall.

Countryfolks · 07-06-2009, 02:47 PM

We're probably thinking of the same one Steve.

wersqu · 07-06-2009, 03:39 PM

I get water in the weep holes of the windows when it rains hard. I wind up putting a rolled up pieced of paper towel in the ledge until the rail lets up.

Countryfolks · 07-06-2009, 05:06 PM

The holes are on the inside?

sreigle · 07-08-2009, 10:22 AM

Skip, ours are horizontal slits through the frame just below the glass. They go all the way through. In this picture you can see sunlight coming through a weep hole.

Countryfolks · 07-08-2009, 10:56 AM

I should have been clearer and asked wersqu if the slots/holes are visible/draining on the inside part of the frame, not the outside like yours. they may also have plugged holes or a bent window frame with a low point on the inside.

sreigle · 07-08-2009, 04:45 PM

Yes, good point, Skip. Water coming in through ours will be held within the frame by the "tray" effect of the frame. Blowing rain might go past it but I would not think that would be enough to make a noticeable wet spot on the carpet. In our case, the high pressure washing resulted in water stains on the curtains.

Countryfolks · 07-08-2009, 05:51 PM

What happens is the rain sliding down the window enters around the sliding window and collects in the containment area provided by the channel shape of the window frame since the sliding part of the window is not sealed. When enough water collects over time it is supposed to drain out through the weep holes. If it can't/doesn't, guess what happens, down the wall it goes. I watched it happen several times. With the washing, not enough time passes for this to happen. Our older 5er windows had holes, not slots, I suppose they changed to slots on some of the larger windows so they could drain faster.

sreigle · 07-09-2009, 04:40 AM

I took a closer look at those slots to see if I can shed any light on this. The slot is at the very bottom of the channel. The channel floor is canted downward towards the outside, forcing water to flow towards the outside edge of the channel. I cannot tell for sure whether the floor also slopes downward towards the slots from the sides. I don't think so.

I could not tell whether the slot itself is slanted downwards toward the outside. I pushed a small piece of paper through the slot but still couldn't tell for sure. The paper had too much curl. I would be surprised if rain coming from above would enter through the slot. However, water under pressure, either from a hose or rain, coming from below, most likely could enter.

I would think, maybe I should say I hope, the water would drain before it could overflow the channel and into the rig. That assumes the slots are not plugged and the water is not impededed from reaching the slots.

Does that sound reasonable?

Interestingly, the big window next to our dining table has four weep holes, no slots. Two holes to the right and two to the left. But the neighboring big window has two slots, one to each side. The first window is taller than the second but each is roughly the same width. Maybe they changed the design and we got some of each.

Countryfolks · 07-09-2009, 05:10 AM

Yup, sounds reasonable to me. I don't think any rain enters through the weep slots/holes, only around the unsealed, movable parts of the window.

garyka · 07-09-2009, 03:05 PM

I had my side to side windows leaking down the wall.

rich6506547 · 07-09-2009, 04:08 PM

I have a 2007 3400rl and the The big slide had a small leek went to dealer and had it fixed. Then we had a big rain storm rain storm had much biger leak the they had to replace a cabinet and repair the roof had a slide cover put didn't want to take a chance.

Mr.oddjobs · 07-14-2009, 10:08 AM

I had a small hard to find leak on my 2004, looked everywhere. It would show up after a heavy rain. Turned out that the drain slots at the bottom of the window were stopped up forcing water back into the trailer. Maybe this will give you another place to look if you haven't already.

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