Trim separating under right side storage door

[Pace & JoAnn Mimms]

I have a 2020 3781. Noticed under the right side ( side which has the door to the unit ) storage compartment that the trim had a seam which was caulked. Did not think much of it - but a few days ago going thru South Carolina traveling over the "smooth" roads on I-95 that the trim separated where it once had been caulked. The trim has separated about a 1/4 of an inch allowing water to be behind. I went to the dealer yesterday and looked at the new ( 2021 ) models and all had the same seam only on the new models the seam was overlapping and did not have to be caulked. ( found out that it takes a month and a half to get appointment for warranty review at the Richmond Camper World ), then if approved they will order the part - lord only knows how long that will take. Question: are there others out there with similar problem and if so - did the dealer replace the trim or just re-caulk the seam? Thanks

[Mikendebbie]

Not sure what "seam" you are talking about.
I found the pic below on the web and marked it up with two possibilities...is it the seam at
"A" which would be where the lower body panel (or J-panel) fits into a rubber gasket at the top...or is
"B" - the frame around one of the storage compartments?

[Mikendebbie]

If it is the ("A") horizontal seam where the J-mold is (see pic below) - this panel popped out on my roadside J-panel a while back. It is pretty easy to pop it back in. We had pulled into a Walmart to do some shopping and I noticed the panel was loose. DW and I popped it back in and I put a bead of silicone on it, and it has been fine ever since. I think this happens to lots of folks.

[Pace & JoAnn Mimms]

Originally Posted by Mikendebbie

Not sure what "seam" you are talking about.
I found the pic below on the web and marked it up with two possibilities...is it the seam at
"A" which would be where the lower body panel (or J-panel) fits into a rubber gasket at the top...or is
"B" - the frame around one of the storage compartments?

It's the seam under the large storage compartment door - right dead in the middle of the door, under the door frame. Starts at the door frame and runs under the unit ( towards the other side ) for the length of the molding

[Mikendebbie]

I went out and looked at mine - I had no idea there was a seam there. Here is a pic of mine showing a self-tapping screw (that I should probably tighten!) and sealant only on the radius portion of the joint. The front J-panel overlaps the rear panel - so water would not easily leak into the joint while traveling, and I don't see any obvious path for water to get into that joint while parked. The close-up view shows it better - including just how dirty mine is right now.

[phillyg]

If it's the seam shown by mikendebbie, I wouldn't take it to the dealer. Remove the screw, separate the pieces and thoroughly clean the existing caulk off it. Put a bead of marine 5200 on it, screw back in, and it will never come apart again.