Forum Discussion

Ramblin__Ralph's avatar
Jan 23, 2019

Possible cause of leak?

Went out to my off-the-truck camper to get some tools. Reached way back into the compartment under the fridge and grabbed the cardboard box. Yikes, it's soggy. :( First water I've found inside my camper in the 13 years I've owned it.

Took a look outside and found a possible culprit. I know where the water ends up is not necessarily right below where the leak is, but it can be. The culprit looks like the external fridge compartment. The "floor" putty caulking has separated by about 1/4" from the enclosure plastic framing. I did take a look at the caulking on the edge of the roof and at the bottom of the side panel in the leak area. Don't see any obvious problem.

Not sure how the water got into the fridge compartment through the cover louvers, but we've had a few inches of rain recently with sometimes strong winds.

Take a look at the pics and let me know what you think. I'm going to fill the gap and hope that's the cause. In the pic of the leak area, the propane plastic box is what is at the left. In the pic of the fridge compartment, the box ends about where the the vertical "tab" on the left side of plastic frame is. So, to the left of the tab is compartment with the leak damage.





Thanks,

10 Replies

  • Got about 3 inches of rain over the last week and NO evidence of a leak!! Yay!

    Very Happy Ralph
  • I recaulked the wide gap in the exterior fridge compartment. After doing that, I rechecked the caulking at the bottom of the camper side panel. Saw some discoloration in an area about 4" long. When I pressed the panel, it separated from the bottom trim. Resealed it. I think this area is much more likely to be the problem, as rain would definitely get directly on it (vs passing through the louvers of the fridge compartment to the large gap).

    Also, as recommended here, I ran a small electric heater for a while inside the interior compartment. Most of the discoloration on the wood panel (evident in the original picture) disappeared.

    The next rain will tell if I really found the problem. :)

    Thanks for the suggestions.

    Ralph
  • Thanks for your suggestions. I'm going to fill that gap in the fridge compartment and wait for the next rain. Will leave the inside compartment empty with paper towels on the floor for leak detectors. :)

    Ralph
  • The seam in your picture certainly looks like a good candidate for a leak. The gap looks like it may have widened for some reason, not just the aged sealant.

    I have looked at pictures of the 845 online, and the LPG compartment is below the fridge compartment, right? In that case, look at the frame of the LPG compartment door, if the seal around it is in good order, and if it the inside lower edge is sealed well or if the sealant looks similar to the fridge compartment you pictured. The "floor" of both compartments was dry?

    You might also remove a screw or two from the lower outside edge molding below the LPG door and see what they look like and if they appear to be wet or dry.
  • Do a seal test to be positive. There are some home made seal test setups if you dont want tompay to going rate.
  • That would be my plan too. Reseal that gap and also run a small space heater in that area to dry it out.
    Doesn't look like much if any damage or soft rot. You must have caught it early on.

    I'd also spray some bleach on the black and discolored areas to kill any mold that may have started.

    Good luck with it.