Or are these REAL problems??We just bought our first trailer (23ft Trail Cruiser by R-Vision), finished 2 great trips and now we are trying to figure out if 'THE SKY IS FALLING' or if we just need to maintain this thing properly ... so here goes the delemas:1. Tiny bubbles, front and rear panels ... delamination? You can only see the slight waves in certain light (thanks to my very good eyesight). For example, other people can't see the waves at all, but I can (sometimes). Just starting to delam?? Everything looks to be caulked up really well. No problem ... Start of problem or Panic time?2. Roof material: Coming up on the side rails. Not cracking or peeling but it is separating up from the ply-wood roof on the edges/rails. Upon touch, it leaves a chalky substance on my fingers. Is this the roof material failing or left over gunk from prior sealent/care? Should the material coming up / chalky stuff cause panic and expensive rubber roof replacement? Or can someone suggest a product to coat / seal and UV protect?3. Soft spot in the floor running from the sink to dinette seat (6 inches by 3 feet). Yes, I've seen the floor issues in forum searching ... Can this be a small problem that will stay put or will the soft spot grow into a monster?Right now, there are no leaks or signs of leaks inside or underneath. However, I don't want to think everything is AOK if we can prevent future problems.We've looked over the woes of R-Vision and still feel good about spending $6800 on a 2005 trailer where 'everything works' and looks really nice. Or maybe the sky IS falling ... hmmm.Thx for helping!!zul2005 Trail Cruiser QB23

I am no expert but here goes1. Sounds normal2. Chalking is normal oxidation if it is a rubber roof. I would only clean twice a year and no treatment. I cleaned and treated with Protect All and my roof was showing black and had to be coated in 8 years, I think the treating may have accelerated the aging. It sure didn't help.3. Needs to be addressed as soon as possible. It will not go away. I would take something like a screw driver handle and tap the floor to see if it is rotted or just a normal sub structure issue. Normal should give you a sharp solid sound and a good bounce. If rotted it will be a soft thud. Find the leak and fix it. Remove and replace rotted wood or coat with "git rot" if still somewhat solid. Dry rot doesn't need much of a moisture content to continue to spread. Search "fleetwood wheel well" on this site if you want see my little floor project. It can be done just takes a lot of labor.

I don't know if the sky is falling, but if it were mine, I would definitely address the issues. Not sure what to say about the potential delamination, it's pretty hard for us to say just from a verbal description. You might have a reputable repair shop look at it and give their opinion.As for the floor being soft, that is a problem, and you need to find where the water is coming from. Is it a leak where rainwater is getting in ? Is it from a plumbing leak ? Or has the under belly been very wet to the point it has rotted thru from the bottom ? What ever it is, the source of the water needs to be figured out and solved, then the floor repair done.I would inspect the roof very carefully.... inch by inch to see if there are places where it is allowing water in.

You will never know if water is going where it shouldn't be without a pressurized leak test. Not all problems are either benign or terminal, there are many that are easy to resolve. In my little universe, there are none that can't be fixed.If you can take the time to get some pictures of the suspect spots onto the Forum, you will get better guidance.

Don't overlook clearance lights as potential leak spots.Barney

Thanks for the replys ... It does look like one of the clearence lights is the culprit for the beginnings of the rear panel delam. Is there a type of caulk that is suggested?The rooftop seems pretty well caulked in most areas like around the vents and antennas. Cannot see under the AC unit, no way of telling what that looks like but clean from what I can see.The roof top where it meets the front end cap has been caulked including the screw heads. If there was some delam happening to the front end cap and the previous owner cualked it tight, does that end the problem considering that the delam bubble is so minimal??I'll attempt to put up a pic, not sure if I can ...

Travel Trailer showing signs of potential problems ...

zul
Explorer
Aug 20, 2013
Thanks for the replys ... It does look like one of the clearence lights is the culprit for the beginnings of the rear panel delam. Is there a type of caulk that is suggested?

The rooftop seems pretty well caulked in most areas like around the vents and antennas. Cannot see under the AC unit, no way of telling what that looks like but clean from what I can see.

The roof top where it meets the front end cap has been caulked including the screw heads. If there was some delam happening to the front end cap and the previous owner cualked it tight, does that end the problem considering that the delam bubble is so minimal??

I'll attempt to put up a pic, not sure if I can ...
BarneyS
Explorer III
Aug 19, 2013
Don't overlook clearance lights as potential leak spots.
Barney
westend
Explorer
Aug 19, 2013
You will never know if water is going where it shouldn't be without a pressurized leak test.
Not all problems are either benign or terminal, there are many that are easy to resolve. In my little universe, there are none that can't be fixed.

If you can take the time to get some pictures of the suspect spots onto the Forum, you will get better guidance.
gmw_photos
Explorer
Aug 19, 2013
I don't know if the sky is falling, but if it were mine, I would definitely address the issues. Not sure what to say about the potential delamination, it's pretty hard for us to say just from a verbal description. You might have a reputable repair shop look at it and give their opinion.
As for the floor being soft, that is a problem, and you need to find where the water is coming from. Is it a leak where rainwater is getting in ? Is it from a plumbing leak ? Or has the under belly been very wet to the point it has rotted thru from the bottom ? What ever it is, the source of the water needs to be figured out and solved, then the floor repair done.
I would inspect the roof very carefully.... inch by inch to see if there are places where it is allowing water in.
Double_Haul
Explorer
Aug 19, 2013
I am no expert but here goes
1. Sounds normal
2. Chalking is normal oxidation if it is a rubber roof. I would only clean twice a year and no treatment. I cleaned and treated with Protect All and my roof was showing black and had to be coated in 8 years, I think the treating may have accelerated the aging. It sure didn't help.
3. Needs to be addressed as soon as possible. It will not go away. I would take something like a screw driver handle and tap the floor to see if it is rotted or just a normal sub structure issue. Normal should give you a sharp solid sound and a good bounce. If rotted it will be a soft thud. Find the leak and fix it. Remove and replace rotted wood or coat with "git rot" if still somewhat solid. Dry rot doesn't need much of a moisture content to continue to spread. Search "fleetwood wheel well" on this site if you want see my little floor project. It can be done just takes a lot of labor.

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