Awning leak

[Alex_and_Tee]

Would I be correct in assuming you are NOT supposed to get rain water leaking between the awning and the coach?

Just had a pretty torrential downpour of rain and half the awning was leaking water. There was water coming in to the basement storage section closest to the entry door and water coming in around the outside furnace panel which seeped under the hvac distribution box under the fridge then on to the living room floor.

Looks like the maiden voyage blues continue.

[Alex_and_Tee]

Yes. The La Mesa tech came out today and spoke with Tiffin. The approved him to put sealant along the rail to prevent leakage. Tiffin told him that they don’t do that because the awning may need to be replaced at some point.

He also sealed the furnace access door. There was moisture in that area and he has seen that area leak before. He also adjusted a drawer that was really mounted crooked and fixed our windshield wiper.

The gas problem appears to be a faulty regulator that needs to be replaced. He was going to check their existing stock before ordering one.

[dougrainer]

Alex and Tee wrote:
We have the Girard awning and it is side mounted not roof mounted. The rain was running behind the rail and down the side of the coach. The front storage bay was leaking from an area where there are electrical lines running through the top of the bay. The living room leak may have emanated elsewhere but it is right in line with the furnace and rear refrigerator access.

Girard PATIO awnings do not use a Awning rail to mount the box. They have 3 to 4 brackets mounted to the sidewall. Girrard SLIDE COVERS also use brackets to mount to the sidewall. Please explain if you have 3 awnings on the Pass side. 2 slide covers and a large Patio awning. Look at the picture in the link under Premium paint system Is THAT what your awnings look like? Doug

https://tiffinmotorhomes.com/class-a/open-road-allegro

[schlep1967]

If water can get through behind the rail, it is not sealed. Since it is not sealed the water is also following the screws into the interior. The rail needs to be removed and sealed. And it should have been done when mounted. Do what you can with a tarp to keep the water out of there until the dealer or someone else can fix it.

I would be in touch with the manufacturer. You now have water in places it should never be and may have already devalued your investment.

[Alex_and_Tee]

Some pics of the situation

[Alex_and_Tee]

We have the Girard awning and it is side mounted not roof mounted. The rain was running behind the rail and down the side of the coach. The front storage bay was leaking from an area where there are electrical lines running through the top of the bay. The living room leak may have emanated elsewhere but it is right in line with the furnace and rear refrigerator access.

[way2roll]

I hate to see new owners go through these kinds of issues. Hopefully it's nothing major and it can be sorted out easily with Tiffin's warranty department. Water intrusion is not something that can be put off. You'll end up with serious damage if it continues. When you do take it in, make sure they investigate the interior of the walls and sub floor to see if there is any extensive damage. Sub floor is not water friendly and you could end up with a mold problem as well.

[dougrainer]

Your main awning is the Girrard on TOP the Motorhome. NO AWNING RAIL. Now, you have slide covers that have awning rails. BUT, they are secures to the slide room and the upper Awning rail of the motorhome and IF the awning rail on the motorhome was leaking the water would not come all the way down to the storage doors or the furnace vent. You could have a slide room seal problem that is leaking the water down. Is the furnace in the slide room? Every Tiffin model and floorplan is different. Doug

[dougrainer]

You have 3 problems.
1. Water should NOT leak between the awning rail mount to the upper sidewall roof. I doubt it is leaking BEHIND the awning rail. The roof material over laps the top corner and they do use Butyl sealant behind the awning rail. The usual cause of leak at the awning rail mount is the area where the awning rail is spliced. The awning rails rarely are 1 piece and there are 2 sections. I hope the awning WAS retracted in that torrential downpour.
2. The outside doors and partitions and covers should NEVER leak. Your compartment door should not
3. The furnace vent should NOT leak. Are you POSITIVE the water came in thru the furnace outside vent? Is there a Refer access door in the vicinity of that furnace vent? Was the rain blowing into the side of the RV where that furnace vent is located? IF SO, I can see where it would leak. Take the refer outside access door off and see if the area behind the refer is wet if on same side as the furnace vent. Doug

PS I just looked and saw you have a new Tiffin. WHICH awning do you have the Girrard or Carefree.

[schlep1967]

My guess would be the rail that the awning material slides into was not sealed behind it. It should have butyl tape under the whole length of it so it seals all of the screws that go through it. What you are thinking is water getting past the door seals is likely water leaking through the screw holes and running down the inside of the wall. It then exits the wall at the opening cut for the door.
Curious. Did you have the awning adjusted so it sloped away from the trailer? Or did you have the front front edge of it adjusted up high making the water run towards the trailer.

Another item to check is the rain gutter. It should be sealed the same as the awning rail or you will get the same effect.

[chuckftboy]

The bigger issue is water coming in around a closed basement door and the furnace panel. That shouldn't happen no matter how hard it rains

[Dutch_12078]

You are correct, there should not be any leaking there. Last year I found a couple of spots where our 20 year old awning was leaking a bit along the stitching at the coach rail, but a liberal application of seam sealer sold for tents and tarps took care of it. I wouldn't accept that in a new RV though.