Travel Star Sport 191CK front bunk leaking

Camper1092 wrote:
Where did you get the bottom double bulb seal from and do you remember the model/product # for it?

Not sure if you still need this, but this is the seal - http://edmontonrv.wsiefusion.net/Catalogue-2014.pdf - FR99 0130. I have used it for my 2003 Travel Star and it was an exact fit. You should be able to get your local RV shop to order it for you. One word of caution, it's not cheap :) I think I paid somewhere around $80 CAD for it.

It also doesn't solve the leakage issue, as some people pointed out, the hinge designed is flawed. It's all good when the trailer is stationary, however towing it in the rain forces water into the camper under pressure. What I did was buy a garage door foam gasket from Homedepot and used it to close off the holes on the bottom corners. Although this doesn't fully address the issue, the amount of water getting in is significantly reduced. I just know to soak it up from the front storage compartment when we arrive at our destination.

Good luck!
Slav

Where did you get the bottom double bulb seal from and do you remember the model/product # for it?

I had a 2008 TS Sport 21RBH I never had any of these leaks, but did have condensation caused delamn on the bunkdoor. It would lift up and then re seat based on heat. Worst issues were of course in late fall and early spring. Same issues occur on roofs and a ton of laminated trailers out there.

The design flaw I mentioned was that the hinge allows water to collect inside the unit. Mine does not drain from the hinge very well and water stays in the tray area since it is not sloped forward. When they replaced the seal around the bunk they did not extend it past the opening in the hinge. The original seal also didn't extend past the seal. The picture of the new hinge design looks better to me. I have recaulked that lower seal area before since I assumed the water was possibly getting in that way. I will add more and possibly look for a better way to seal it. Does anyone know what is used under the hinge where the door is screwed onto the front wall. I was thinking water might possibly be getting in under that as well if the tape wasn't well installed or has failed. I don't want to have to pull it off if that's not necessary. I also received an email from StarCraft years ago that showed a diagram of a double bulb seal with a flap at the bottom of the bunk door. When I questioned why mine was different I got no response. The recommended part the dealer advised is for the double bulb like is currently working on it. I appreciate everyone's input and help. I will say a 10 year old trailer isn't that old. I had a Coleman pop up that lasted over 20 years without any issues. I check and recaulk regularly.

bikendan wrote:

aclovelace wrote:
Yes, I did replace the bulb seal along the hinge as well as the old one was rusted where the metal is in the seal. Please do share any images and the quote that you received. I'm wondering if the reason Starcraft won't respond is because it was a complete design flaw.

in the 15 years i've been on the Hybrid forum here, i've never seen any claim that Starcraft hybrids had a design flaw in their bunk ends.
in fact, they had probably had the lowest bunk issues of all the hybrid brands.

i think that Starcraft's lack of response is because, from their viewpoint, it's a 10 year old trailer, that didn't have regular maintenance and you aren't the original owner.

not trying to be harsh, just realistic.

Multiple things here, since you arebeing harsh, assuming multiple things you do not know, and are not being helpful in any way, the original owners were my aunt & uncle. I was with them when they bought it. It has been regularly maintained, I'm not sure where you got that information. It was a 6 year old trailer when I reached out Starcraft. The door had 2 screws in it holding the entire thing to the camper and came from the dealer that way. And companies that want return business and service business shouldn't ignore customers because of the age of the trailer.

Not a direct Starcraft issue, but it is a design issue. The bunk door assembly on that year was made by Kinro, later they were acquired by Lippert. This type of bunk door (kinro/Lippert) is used by all hybrid manufacturers except Forest River Rockwood/Flagstaff and Palomino. It has evolved over the years. Sometime around 2010 they changed the hinge from the piano hinge as shown in your picture, to a continuous hinge. By design the whole hinge assembly is designed to be self draining. They expect water to get inside that hinge, and its supposed to then drain from the ends.

I believe what you have happening is a compromised caulk joint at the black arrow. Its a known and common issue. It may look fine but trust me its probably leaking. Clean and recaulk that joint. You have to do it yearly because over time from opening and closing the door it will eventually split. They do not have enough of a lip on that extrusion to caulk it properly and there is no backup seal, such as butyl tape inside that aluminum extrusion.

Water gets in that joint, then it's inside the door itself, it then drains out the bottom screws that go from the hinge up into the door panel. Pull those screws and check for rust. I would bet the inner and outer plywood is now soft and compromised on the door panel itself. Also the seal where I put the yellow arrow should have been extended down so it ended below the hinge pin. That's so that any water the runs down the outer edge of that seal drips off and goes down the front of the trailer and not back into the hinge assembly. I had two other hybrids with these doors, one a 2011 and the other a 2013. Its still a much better design that the Forest River design on our 2017 Rockwood Roo. Ours have not leaked on the 2017 but the hinge assembly is pop riveted together and they are all starting to pull through on both doors.




In the pic below (if you save it and zoom in) you can see how the hinge itself was changed to eliminate the holes at the hinge pin, you can also see the new caulk in that joint which bacame a yearly maintenance item. Thats a 2011 which was manufactured in April of 2010.



You may as well forget about Starcraft being of any help, just like any other manufacturer. Its hard if not impossible to get any help or service even if its just technical advice, even when a unit is in warranty let alone out of it.

aclovelace wrote:
Yes, I did replace the bulb seal along the hinge as well as the old one was rusted where the metal is in the seal. Please do share any images and the quote that you received. I'm wondering if the reason Starcraft won't respond is because it was a complete design flaw.

in the 15 years i've been on the Hybrid forum here, i've never seen any claim that Starcraft hybrids had a design flaw in their bunk ends.
in fact, they had probably had the lowest bunk issues of all the hybrid brands.

i think that Starcraft's lack of response is because, from their viewpoint, it's a 10 year old trailer, that didn't have regular maintenance and you aren't the original owner.

not trying to be harsh, just realistic.

Yes, I did replace the bulb seal along the hinge as well as the old one was rusted where the metal is in the seal. Please do share any images and the quote that you received. I'm wondering if the reason Starcraft won't respond is because it was a complete design flaw.

Did you also change out the bottom bulb seal? I had an RV place change out the seal around the door and thought it took care of the issue. It unfortunately didn't and I now have water damage in the storage compartment that is under the bunk door. Water is constantly getting into the black tray where the bunk folds up and I'm assuming stays there until it somehow works it's way into the door and down the front wall. I will post some pics this weekend. Canvas in my unit looked exactly like yours. It keeps getting wet when the bunk was closed. I did get a quote for a new bunk door I can share with you once I find it again. It appears to be a bad design the way the front hinge is on the door. StarCraft and dealer have not been much help.

I did end up replacing the seal around the bunk door, which appears to have helped, however, the damage was already done and from the hinge up about 10" of the door is soft and will need to eventually be replaced, so I am trying to find out how to order a door, but cannot get anyone from the Starcraft services nearby to respond to me. It is still usable. Do you have any photos you could share of yours?