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garymunson's avatar
garymunson
Explorer
Sep 20, 2014

Front wind noise.

I think this will apply to many coaches beyond just Fleetwood products. After insulating the underside of my Fleetwood Flair class A doghouse with a dyna-mat type material, The lessened engine and fan noise made wind noise an issue. At first, I though the racket was the wind blowing around the mirrors but using some plastic tubing as a 'stethescope', I determined it was coming from the front side windows. Fleetwood (I cured a friend's Southwind with this solution, too!) uses an aluminum extrusion for the window frame that, along the bottom edge, has holes punched to allow water to drain from the bottom of the track. The windows I'm addressing have a fixed front panel and sliding rear one. The holes in the frame are under both glass panels. Since the front one is fixed in a rubber gasket, drain holes aren't really needed under it. The sliding window, however, does need them as it is set towards the inside of the coach and rain can collect under it. The holes under the sliding panel make very little noise as when the glass is closed, it sits directly above the holes and muffles the noise. The front panel, however, as it is set to the outside of the frame, does not cover the area of the holes. To stop the noise, I simply covered the holes under the front panel on the outside of the coach with a strip of tape. HUGE difference in noise level. There should be no problem with water buildup as the rear holes are still open and that is where the water would enter. Take a look to see if you have the same issue with the drain holes and try this tape trick. After a few rainy days, if there is no problem with water buildup, I'll plug the front holes with sealant! The track runs, unobstructed, from front to rear so water is free to drain to the back.