Aghhh, Discovered A Water Leak

[Quick Step]

After watching a video of a unit being assembled at a Jayco plant, speed seemed to be more important than quality because there is money to be made. That said I had a corner gasket of the leaking window that did not seal well was the problem and obviously it had been leaking since day one. Now it is sealed tight with butyl tape. There is no reason for them to leak for right off the assembly floor now it makes me wonder what kind of quality control staff they have and how many windows in units are picked and removed at random for a seal check. I bought a Jayco for qaulity assurance

[RVhiker]

From the pictures, it looks like your trailer is aluminum sided, which has the advantage of being easier to fix damage from a leak than a "fiberglas" sided trailer.

1) From looking at the pictures of the window, it looks to me like the foam gasket is pushed up against the side "sill" of the window, instead of flat against the flange of the window.

2) Did it seem that the window was centered in the cut out hole? From looking at the top side of the window at the gasket, it appears to me that it was not. I think the line of "dirt" on the seal defines where the window flange was making contact with the side of the trailer.

I wonder if 1) and 2) are manufacturing defects causing damage that Jayco should be responsible for, with or without application of a caulk cap as explained in the manual.

Was there some additional sealing to keep out water? How could a flat flange and a thin foam gasket seal against the "wavy" aluminum?

[Quick Step]

There was no other sealant just the gasket and it was flattened at the two upper corners causing the leak. And the problem is, where is the owner going to apply a cap seal if the flange is against the side,. To me if you break the seal under warranty to do the maintenance then if it leaks will Jayco still honor the warranty. It took three try's with different layers to get a seal with the butyl tape. I put strips in the cup of the siding then layered 2 more strips over that to get a seal, after the third try we screwed the window in and the sealant finally oozed out the sides of the window flange. I am also under the opinion as you and most owners are that Jayco should be held responsible for poor quality control. It is ridiculous we all spend our hard earned money to fill the coffer's of the company and you get a product with a defect that can and should be corrected. To me the window gaskets are installed because it is quick and easy and gets the product thru the line and out the door

[Jagiven]

I wonder if something like 3M Automotive caulk would work good to seal for the window.

[Denise]

Originally Posted by Quick Step

Yes I do agree, the sealant should last longer than a few years especially something new and under warranty which mine did expire in August but it never hurts to try. Another thing, when resealing on the roof do you remove old sealant or cover up bad area with new sealant I am new to this and any info is greatly appreciated

We found this video and it helped me to know what to look for and how to patch any cracking showing up in our roof seals. I wash the roof bi-annually, and check the seals several times a year. (Credit to Crabman and Rustic Eagle for walking me through the first time I had to fill in those little cracks. The Dicor self-leveling sealant works great ) Hope this helps
[video=youtube;PzAjZbCEbLU]

[Denise]

Here's another video that could be of help regarding a "how-to" for others curious about changing out the seals/resetting windows

When looking to buy what wound up being the Jayco a few years back, we learned from others at rvnet that no matter what rv you wind up purchasing, to check the window seals several times a year (there were many threads back then of unhappy people with different non-Jayco rv's who had window seal issues, so window seal failure issues can be an issue for any brand rv). Some folks even went as far as saying that no matter what rv you own, to change out the seals within the first year of ownership. We didn't, but still just check the seals each time we camp or when washing the tt

[video=youtube;Y3cotw1F8Ww]

[Quick Step]

The video above and is what I used to reseal this time. Here is what took place today. I was able to cut out all the bad stuff with my new Oscillating too (always wanted one of those) after running a fan and drying things out last night I was able to get all the bad things out of the way. New floor patch and wall studs and for me, I feel the worst part is over also new paneling coming in next week. Dealer said it would match so we will see.

[Doug]

Looks good. Great progress.

[exjay1]

Looking good and solid there. Makes me want to go out right now and check my seals

[RVhiker]

That's a good repair, probably it will be better than when it was new. Looks like you will soon have a strong and watertight trailer.

[RightYouAreKen]

Nice work. Thanks for sharing the pics and progress with us!

[Cruzinfools]

Great Job Hope the new paneling matches and no one will know that it was fixed.

[Panhead]

What exactly is a "cap seal"? Does that mean to seal around the top and sides of the outside frame?

Steve

[TCNashville]

My camper has a smooth fiberglass finish. I checked my window seals and they seem all tight. Do you think they seal better against fiberglass than against a tiered metal side?

[Doug]

I would think they would seal better against the smooth fiberglass sides. That's what I have too.
Like the AC seal though, it could get compressed and loose. I am going to check tightness of inside bolts and make sure the caulking is done once/year.

Doug

[Quick Step]

What I have learned from this incident is, no matter what type of siding we may have we all have to remember that it is a man made product built on a speedy assembly line. I found another window gasket that was not sealed well and there was beginning indications of a very very slight leak (corner of window gasket) but no damage. I have also seen the pics of fiberglass sided RV's and TT's showing where the window gasket didn't seal at the corners. We have finished removing and resealing our windows with butyl and even checked the roof today and sealed a couple of caulk cracks on vents and seams. I will be very vigilant from now on

[OnTheGo]

I'm glad to hear you fixed your problem, and most likely prevented some others. I think we will all be more "vigilant" now. Good thread, thank you.

[amabee]

I am already planning to reseal all my windows, have a roll of butyl tape ready to go. Looks like an easy project, I'd rather do it now than wait for a leak to appear.

[OnTheGo]

Originally Posted by amabee

I am already planning to reseal all my windows, have a roll of butyl tape ready to go. Looks like an easy project, I'd rather do it now than wait for a leak to appear.

amabee, Because I have the same TT, and the same plan, I hope you will share the details of that project.

I'm going to do the roof first. I don't think I have any bad spots. But there are some places that look about due for another application.

[Derek700]

Good job on the repair!! With the amount of rot it would seem that it has been leaking for a long time probably from the dealer or shortly thereafter. It is unfortunate that we all see repairs like this as normal part of RV ownership. They should be built better than that, now I am going to take a very good look at mine.