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Old 01-09-2023, 10:03 AM   #1
montyfishing
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Water Puddle

Happy New year everyone I have kind of an odd problem.
I have a 2019 3791RD, we are seasonal campers at one of the camp grounds in Ma. On at least 2 occasions when I walk into my trailer and up the 2 steps to the bedroom I have found a rather large puddle of what appears to be clean water. There are no stains on the walls or ceiling anywhere I can see them. If the water was leaking from the roof I would expect to see some type of debrief in the water like pine needles or such. There is absolutely nothing in the water. I did a quick check on the roof could not see anything that might explain the leak, all the seams looked intact. We did notice some dampness of the rug on the back corner of the bedroom rug, I went and made sure the seals were sitting correctly could this be the cause?

The first time it happened we had a heavy rain storm, I thought nothing of it took a quick look did not notice anything out of the ordinary. Then I closed the camper for the long winter nap and went back in to leave our linens in there for the winter and once again came upon the same puddle…very clean again. All the slides were closed this time. Since the campground was closing I went and bought a very large tarp and covered the camper, and since have I have been back in the camper twice with many rain storms…and there was no puddle. Any guidance on how to find/fix this issue?
 
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Old 01-09-2023, 11:00 AM   #2
jimcol
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Is there by chance an air conditioning vent in the ceiling directly above the puddle? Another thing to consider is the over the air antennae right above it? Both have been identified on this forum as sources of moisture.
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Old 01-09-2023, 01:00 PM   #3
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Just guessing and thinking out loud- but when I look at your floor plan, the first spots I would check out is the toilet connections and the sink connections.

If your puddle is at location A - nothing else is nearby that might leak.
First check for leaks around toilet B and sink C. If you have a plumbing vent pipe thru the roof for the sink - check the sealant around the boot on the roof. If you have an air relief vent under the sink - then there will not be a vent thru the roof.

You also mentioned damp carpet in the "far corner" of bedroom. That sounds to me like location E, and the damp carpet would be on the slide floor + vertical edge of the slide. Dampness at either of these locations would likely NOT be related to Puddle A, and I would suspect water got past the slide seals.

There has been a couple of recent threads about leaks in slideout windows. Is the carpet damp below either of the windows?

In my sketch below I show the approximate locations for the air conditioner, the antenna and the shower skylight. I am doubtful of a leak from those but other folks may have some ideas for you.
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Old 01-09-2023, 02:07 PM   #4
montyfishing
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Thanks MikenDebbie

That might explain the first time this happened with the toilet or sink but the second time it happened there was not water to the Trailer and it happened after I winterized it, so I do not think that could cause it. The rug on the slide was under a window but only one and I was thinking it got past the seal. As far as I can recall there is no AC vent in that "hallway" outside the bathroom.

I did put a tie down on the awning a couple of times because we were going to be having some pretty heavy thunderstorms. I did not crank it down very much more just to keep it in place, could that have pulled the awning and broke the seal between the awning and the camper?
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Old 01-09-2023, 02:39 PM   #5
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These awnings do not like the wind! and by "wind" - I mean just a tad more than a cough. Just kidding. I only put mine out when the wind is low. I do not have confidence that securing them to the ground is a good idea. These are not like the old school manual awnings I had on my RVs for years. Lots of stories here in this forum about those who lost the battle of the wind and the awning! You might need to get up on a ladder or climb on the roof and check to see if the awnings are secure to the RV wall. I have seen some recent threads on suspected leaks thru the awning screw holes and awning that was damaged by wind. Try searching this forum.

Window leaks can be sneaky. You might consider laying a bead of sealant around the perimeter of the slideout window frames. If the dampness persist then you will need to remove the suspect window and install new butyl seal tape under the outer frame. Try searching that subject also.
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Old 01-10-2023, 03:52 AM   #6
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One thing you might also check is the black tank flush vacuum breaker under the bathroom sink. When mine leaked, water showed up both where you describe and in the basement below.
I ended up cutting the pex and just coupling it below the bathroom in the underbelly. Then I put a backflow preventer on the hose inlet in the wet bay.
We also have a Fantastic Fan in the bathroom near 'A' in Mike's diagram above. Check that it is closed and leak free.
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Old 01-10-2023, 09:49 AM   #7
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Does this only happen when connected to shore water? If so, disconnect shore, wait a bit and inspect all the fittings in the bathroom, including toilet. As a precaution, suggest turning off shore water supply whenever you leave your trailer.
Does it happen after a rainstorm? If so, look for water ingress from ceilimg and wall joints and seal them.
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Old 01-10-2023, 12:20 PM   #8
montyfishing
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Camp CA
Since I stay at this campground seasonally I am always connected to "city water". The second time this happened was after it was already closed up and that water lines blown out with air and the antifreeze put in the system so there was no chance there was any water left anywhere for it to leak.



There is no sign of water penetration on any walls or ceilings and again the water if perfectly clear with no crap from outside in it at all.
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Old 01-10-2023, 06:47 PM   #9
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On my 2018 3791 there's a long window right where you say the water is I would put my money on that window.
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Old 01-10-2023, 07:11 PM   #10
Mikendebbie
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Quote:
Originally Posted by goingwest View Post
On my 2018 3791 there's a long window right where you say the water is I would put my money on that window.
Yep - I agree…however I am not familiar enough with these frameless windows to know how to check them for leaks. Maybe someone else can describe it.
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Old 01-11-2023, 04:30 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mikendebbie View Post
Yep - I agree…however I am not familiar enough with these frameless windows to know how to check them for leaks. Maybe someone else can describe it.
Hmmm...That must have changed from 2018 to 2019. I don't have a window there.
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Old 01-11-2023, 05:22 AM   #12
montyfishing
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I agree I do not have that Window either so that's not the cause.
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Old 01-11-2023, 10:24 AM   #13
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Glad to hear the tarp mitigate the water puddle. Might remove the tarp and perform a stepwise water penetration test by spraying a full stream of water on the sides and windows then inspect for a leak..........same procedure we use to find leak points on a boat.
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Old 01-11-2023, 10:32 AM   #14
montyfishing
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Thank this is going to have to wait until the spring since the water is off and the CG is closed until May 1st. I just find it weird that there are no sings of water on the ceilings or the walls anywhere. I was just in the camper this past weekend to make sure it was still water tight and still no signs of penetration points.


Thanks for the input.
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Old 01-15-2023, 01:30 PM   #15
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The carpet dampness could be caused by the absence of caulking at the bottom of the slide. I had two instances when the carpet on either side of the bed got damp. Both happened when the slide was extended and the rain came down in buckets. It never leaked with the slide retracted. On both sides of the slide, at the bottom was an aluminum "L" bracket that was screwed to the bottom of the slide. No caulking was used where the vertical part of the "L" bracket up against the outside of the slide. Water cascading off the roof of the slide got behind the bracket and made its way to the carpet. 20 minutes of very careful caulking solved the problem.
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Old 01-15-2023, 03:08 PM   #16
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We had a similar issue with the wet carpet in the bedroom. We also have a 2015 3791RD. We had a repair company come out and determined that the corner seal in the shower door. The caulking came out and water was draining from the door slides out into the bathroom and through the wall and was making the carpet wet into the other room. We recaulked it and has not leaked again. Depending on level of your trailer it would be that?
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Old 01-15-2023, 04:02 PM   #17
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I don't think anyone mentioned it but, if I was you, I would be up on the roof ASAP crawling around to inspect every square inch of the roof for any signs of possible water entry.
It has to be some kind of water entry from rain since you stated it is winterized.

Do NOT let it just sit for the winter and address it in the spring. If water is getting in, it WILL cause unforeseen problems such as mold/wood rot etc.
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Old 01-15-2023, 04:04 PM   #18
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I have a 2017 3790RD and had a similar leak last winter. It drove me crazy trying to find it. It formed a puddle at the foot of the stairs. After a lot of head scratching I discovered the roof vent for the toilet had a screw in the top of the cover that had been sealed with silicone. The silicone had hardened and failed. Water entered this screw hole traveled down the side of the vent pipe inside the wall behind the toilet exiting at the base of the cabinet at the bottom of the stairs. This only happened with heave rain storms. I am not sure this is where your leak is from but shows that a leak in one location can show up in another.
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Old 01-16-2023, 05:47 AM   #19
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Check to make sure there is no debris in the bedroom slide seal. Even a pine needle will cause water intrusion. The main reason I had slide toppers installed on my ‘19 3791RD. I also had a water leak due to a manufacturer defect that cause delaminating in the first year of ownership. This winter I had to return the trailer back to the dealer to repair the original bodywork for the delamination. We’ll see how long this repair lasts.
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Old 01-16-2023, 07:17 AM   #20
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get on your roof.... like us you are experiencing a slow drip coming from the molding strip in the ceiling directly above your water puddle. We have been chasing this water leak for months. The most likely culprit is the fan in the bathroom as was ours. also the solar panel wires entering the trailer had faulty caulk. It doesn,t take a big hole to get a small drip inside.
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