Forum Discussion

rgstarnes's avatar
rgstarnes
Explorer
Oct 24, 2015

water leak around ac unit

My 5'er is about 1.5 years old, and on the trip to Yellowstone, when we left a campground in NC Mtns, the front Ac unit started leaking water when it rained. It rained hard several days before leaving the campground, and no leaks.
I tool it to Camping world and they tightened the 4 bolts on the unit and it quit. It rained several times on the 9000 mile trip and no leaks.
I returned back through the NC Mtns on the way home, stayed at the same CG, where it rained before we left with no leaks. When I pulled into the next campground after leaving, it was raining, and the unit was leaking again.
The NC Mtn CG had several steep and sharp turns, so i am wondering if that could cause the unit to shift and the seal to start leaking.
I have not tried to tighten the bolts again, but now that I am home in Fl, looking for suggestions on how to properly fix the leak. Should I losses all four bolts and then retighten, or just take it to a service shop and let them replace the seal?
Thanks in advance.
  • Any relationship between leakage and usage? Condensation drainage from the coils can clog and cause leakage into all sort sorts of surprising places. I've mainly encountered this with residential systems but am thinking an RV is no different.
  • The 4 bolts only need to be 'snug'(finger tightened then just snugged up.....actual torque value is 40 INCH-pounds)

    Roof gasket is 1" thick foam and when installed it should be compressed to 1/2 of thickness.

    IF the 4 bolts were OVER tightened (More than likely!!) it would seal for a while but gasket is crushed.distorted.

    Remove ceiling grill/vent cover
    Check the 4 bolts
    Also measure distance between roof and A/C pan inside the area where you see controls/evap coil.
    Less than 1/2" .........replace roof gasket. And don't OVER tighten the 4 bolts. After new gasket.,,,,check bolts couple times for snugness