In the process of working on a skylight leak over the shower, I went into my underbed storage to retrieve my toolbag, only to find it soaking wet on the bottom. I had also cut a piece of that thin grey trunk liner to cover the vinyl floor in the storage area and it too was soaked. My jack boards had wicked water about 3" up (they are 1/2" plywood and were standing vertical). The canvas chair on the bottom of the stack was soaked. A few cardboard boxes were mush.So I emptied out the storage, put stuff out in the shed to dry, and dried the vinyl floor. It may look a a little wet in the pics, I had just toweled it off.The storage area in question is under the queen bed in the front of the trailer, with pass-thru hatches on either side.So the TT has a one piece fiberglas front cap, and the seam at the top was just inspected in late summer. I had put eternabond over that seam a few years ago so it was in good shape.Looking at the front wall (with the lights on it in the pic) there is no wetness or staining on the wall. Those light marks you see I think are scuffs in the wallpaper from loading stuff, they are dry to the touch. Same with the walls up above in the bedroom wardrobe cabinets, so I don't think the water is coming from the top.I had also just replaced the weather stripping on the two pass-thru hatches this summer, so I don't think it's coming in there....DW was questioning if anything had spilled etc, and I don't store any liquids in there. The carpet dripped clean water into a bucket, and there is no odor, mold or anything else to indicate that was/is an ongoing problem. Last camping trip was about a month ago and all was fine.The storage has been open and airing like this for a few days now, and it's dry as a bone even though it's been raining.What am I missing here???? Where did all the water come from???

Did you tow it while raining? You would be amaized at hoe they can leak "up" when wind is pushingthe water in.

Just a couple thoughts. How far is that bath sky light from the storage compartment?Has the TT been in storage for a while & was it level or did you have it tongue down for water run purposes?

check your vent pipes on the roof

Bath is in the rear of the trailer and the vent pipes are mid-ships over the galley. It's not in storage, just in the yard and sits pretty level.Schlep, I had the same thought. I did tow in some rain, but not really heavy rain. Wondering how I could test for this...maybe have to get the garden hose out, but I hate to spray up, these trailers are sealed that good on the bottom.

My first thoughts would be the two largest openings in the wall to the storage area. Those are the compartment doors. These have questionable seals at best and rain under pressure from wind or travel could permit a lot of water into the compartment. Replace or bolster those door seals.

Need Help with Mystery Leak | Good Sam Community

15 Replies

2012Coleman
Explorer II
Dec 11, 2014
Why wait for a rainstorm? Get in there with a flashlight and have someone spray water at the door. Good luck finding the leak.
Gene_Ginny
Explorer
Dec 11, 2014
I had a similar wet area next to a compartment door. Found out it was the latch that was lose so the door did not close tight.

One thing you could try on a dry night. Put a large light inside the area at night and then go outside in the dark a see if you see light shining out.
Paul_D_
Explorer
Dec 11, 2014
Consider taping/ covering the doors for a while then checking after a rain to see if it is wet in there again. Had a front roof seam and bad seal over the roof rain gutters send water into the basement before we purchased the rig. Front cap was not screwed into framing, just the underlayment so once that got wet it was game over and the water ran right down the inner face of the front cap, delamb oh joy , and then into the basement. I noticed water will still pocket in the lower frame of the access doors after a good rain but can no longer get into the storage area.
rwess
Explorer
Dec 10, 2014
I had the same problem with the front storage area of my Open Range 337 RLS. I sealed the top of the gap above the storage compartment door with RV Proflex sealant and I think that has solved my problem. I don't think the door was sealed properly with butyl tape when it was built.
ksg5000
Explorer
Dec 10, 2014
You might consider temporarily covering the floor with some newspaper or other water absorbing material that may give better clue as to entry point into the storage area - if it's the doors it should be readily apparent.
Lynnmor
Explorer
Dec 10, 2014
The doors are my guess as well. On my KZ, one storage door had only one screw holding, the rest were either stripped, missing or not fastened to the frame.
newman_fulltime
Explorer II
Dec 10, 2014
in the third pic the wall looks like it has been wet at the front of the door frame
BurbMan
Explorer II
Dec 10, 2014
handye9 wrote:
Had one of those hard to find leaks in a previous trailer, and, it was in my pass through storage. I even had it in the dealers shop (twice). They couldn't find it either.

I waited for a hard rain and crawled into the storage area with a flashlight. The water was coming in around the frame of the storage door.

When I pulled out the door, frame and all, I found there was no putty used around the frame, when the door was originally installed.

Thinking this might be it...Camped up by Lake Erie in OH in early October, and although it didn't rain on the drive up or the drive home,. we got blasted with weather the 3 days we were up there. Like a firehose with the wind driving it at the street side of the trailer.

Come to think of it, those chairs haven't been out since then...

I think you guys may have found my problem. I can't get to it right away, but i'll pull those storage doors, frames and all, and see what we got.

Thanks!
handye9
Explorer II
Dec 10, 2014
Had one of those hard to find leaks in a previous trailer, and, it was in my pass through storage. I even had it in the dealers shop (twice). They couldn't find it either.

I waited for a hard rain and crawled into the storage area with a flashlight. The water was coming in around the frame of the storage door.

When I pulled out the door, frame and all, I found there was no putty used around the frame, when the door was originally installed.
rbtglove
Explorer
Dec 10, 2014
You might want to check the A/C especially if you havn't tightened the bolts for awhile, don't over torgue it ruins the gasket. Water travels and can end up in strange places. Had water from the A/C end up in our rear bath about 10 ft away.

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Need Help with Mystery Leak

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