2013 Seneca 37FS Bunk Slide Leak

[flexdog1]

Jayco Friends,

We have owned our 37FS for almost a year now. Last fall, we got in the coach to get something out of it and there was a lake on our wood floor (which obviously started to delaminate). The warranty replaced the floor and the dealer said they fixed the leak on the seals on the bunk slide. Slide was in when the leak caused all the damage.

HOWEVER, with a steady rain today, the leak is back! Floor is pooled again!

The coach is sitting with the low end at the driver's side. This time the slide was extended! Leak from the same slide. Coming off the front driver's side of slide.

I am thinking of taking it back to the factory for repair this time (not the dealer) as we live in Indiana (I think they are made in northern Indiana).

This slide has the side mount aluminum cog slide extenders (can't remember the manufacturer.)

Anyone else experience this? Are there such experts as slide leak geniuses?

We have just a couple weeks until our warranty is up (Whew).

Thanks,
-scott

[Rustic Eagle]

While your waiting for responses I would be calling your RV dealership so your on his schedule for a warranty service claim (before warranty slips by), then get into a discussion about the possibility of having the factory take a look at it.

Bob

[flexdog1]

Thanks Bob, already created a video and sent it to the dealer and Jayco. Appreciate it.

[GuidoDoc]

Wow, sounds like we have the same problem:

I have a Jayco Seneca 37FS which is only 1 year old and therefore still under the 2 year Jayco factory warranty. We have a leak of rain water somewhere on the roof, likely through a penetration point. The rig spent 4 months on two separate visits to the dealer for repair of this issue. They changed and tightened the front AC seal and recaulked the satellite wires as their two solutions. They claim to have tested it in the rain and of course saw no leaks. As part of the leak resolution the wood floor had to be replaced. I just got it back 2 months ago.

Today I went to check on it and start prepping for this season. Of course I found more evidence of new water and some mold spots that all are in the same area of origin.

Here is my question. Do I 1)bring it back to the dealer again given that I have no faith in what they will do, 2) try to get Jayco to do something, 3) sort it out myself since I am handy and actually care to solve the problem.

Are these kind of leaks common?

[flexdog1]

GuidoDoc,
Yes, exact same problem. Roger at the factory told me yesterday that they thought they had identified the issue as the SAT coax cables as the penetration point. Are you saying that they fixed that, and then you still had a water issue?

We had our floor replaced already too.

I am dropping mine at a private repair shop this weekend in Elkhart, Indiana where they do Jayco warranty work. This guy knows his stuff had knows all the folks at the factory.

I will private message you to discuss over the phone.

Also, here is my note I sent to dealers and repair shop, with video Link included:
**********************************************
I am writing to clarify that this leak is present both when the slide is open or closed. We have had it closed at our storage facility (outside) and we continue to get rain into the RV.

I am including the video I recorded as we returned from spring break.

http://youtu.be/os6tLlaAGGk

Whatever the source or cause of this leak, the dealer has tried to fix it once and has had to replace the floor already once because of water damage. Now we have water damage again, and the carpet under the slide has been soaking in standing water too. I am concerned about floor delamination.

I don’t think this is major structural damage, but this issue requires someone very skilled in finding "hard to find" leaks, something I don't believe the dealer is skilled at. From our observations, to recreate this issue requires a steady rain for an extended period of time (hours) leading me to believe water is somehow traveling "in and through" the slide, not just getting around the seals. I say this because in the cases where we have been present while it is leaking, the rain has been slow and steady with little wind. Couple that with the fact that it is happening both with the slide open and closed, and we have a unique situation.
************************************************** **************

[flexdog1]

Just checked mine again today after a long rain last night and the carpet and towel I put there was all soaked.

Still leaking - but mine has not been fixed.

GuidoDoc, when you said "evidence of water new water and some mold spots", did you mean you found that AFTER they said they fixed it? And, was it actually wet, or do you think there was water there and then it dried up?

Thanks,
-scott

[flexdog1]

For those readers out there, it appears both GuidoDoc and I have the exact same leak issues. Our units were made very close to each other in date. So far, all signs are good that Jayco will be working on our units to get to the bottom of the issues.

[RiskyBizness]

I put a deposit on a 2014 seneca ts and that I'm supposed to pick up next week. Is there any area in particular that I should look for when doing my walk through to make sure this problem is not present.

Sorry to hear about your issues - that's hard to swallow considering the price tag on these items.

[flexdog1]

RiskyBizness,
Neither of us have any proof of what the issue is. We suspect a weak link in the manufacturing process because our units were made pretty close to each other. We also suspect (we are not experts) that it might be around the weather-proofing of the windows. If this is the case, the water is coming in around the windows on the slide, and then running inside the walls, under some other "wrapping" under the slide, and then out into the coach. It takes time for this water to travel all this way, so unless you want to stand there with a hose for an hour or so, there is no way to test for it. - and, we are guessing at this point.

Mine is in a shop up in northern Indiana near Jayco and they started on it last week. I don't know anything yet.

Good luck, they drive great and are a fun unit, just complex when you have this much gear and technology - and this is only the 2nd year on this platform for Jayco.

[Shultz01]

Hello.

I have a deposit on a 2014 37FS. I can tell it's an early build for the 2014 model year because it doesn't have the pull out counter extension or the counter inserts over the stove.

What are build dates on your two 37FS's?

[flexdog1]

Shultz01 - mine was 04/04/2013. Uploading pics soon.

[flexdog1]

Sorry everyone for the long delay in giving the answer to our leak issue.

We have had many rainy nights in Michigan and ALL DRY inside!

The solution was on the bunk slide bottom trim.





The water was running down the outside wall of the slide and coming in the top of that large bottom piece of trim. It would get in behind there, and find its way into the camper underneath the slide room. It was very intermittent because of the angle of the camper, amount of rain in the sidewall, etc.

When the factory built it, the "T" molding was only screwed in from the bottom (see picture.) this caused the molding to flex and the top piece wa separating from the sidewall allowing the water in. The solution was to screw the face of the molding into the frame of the slide and then they also screwed the bottom (underside) again.

I don't like having those screws on the outside of my nice new Rig, but having a dry inside is worth it.

Besides having to do all of the driving and dropping off, Jayco took care of this completely and Bontrager RV Service was awesome too (Goshen, IN).

[Lipsb0ly]

Did you ever get the leak fixed?

[Lipsb0ly]

Did the leak ever comeback, or did that do it?

[Robbbyr]

Although I have a 2014 Seneca TS, this thread caused me to carefully examine my slideout trim pieces. I had not noticed any leaks (yet), but I thought I would rather be "safe than sorry". Wouldn't you know I discovered my rear right-side slide (the bed slide) that the caulking where the lower trim piece meets the slide sidewall was "pulled away" along about half of its length. This would have been a perfect place for water to run down the slide side and enter the unit. Lord knows where it might have shown up.

I took it to my local dealer and they discovered several broken screws securing the trim piece to the slide. They removed the remains of the broken screws, replaced them, and added even more to ensure the piece "stays put". They then re-caulked the seam with clear silicone. It looks good to my amateur's eye. Let's hope it holds, I know I will regularly check all these seams from now on.

[Mr.Oz]

We had the exact same leak. The dealer in Middlebury adjusted the slide which did nothing. I took it back to the factory and told them about it. They knew exactly where the leak was coming from and resealed the outer lower trim. No more leaks

[Robbbyr]

Wouldn't it make simple sense for Jayco to issue "Technical Service Bulletins" to their dealers for known issues? And have a way their servicing dealers could easily search them? Maybe they do and I am just unaware.

Seems like quite a few of the problems that people talk about here don't seem to be limited to just one unit, and oftentimes the factory is "aware" of the issue and the proper fix. It would certainly help many of us if the dealers were "clued in" and able to fix a problem correctly the first time we complain!

[AaronM]

We just got the first hard rain on our 2014 37FS and ended up with a soaking wet spot right under the bunk slide. I remembered reading this post earlier and, sure enough, I had the exact same problem.

The bottom trim on my bunk slide was pulled away a good 1/16" on one side and, as a test, I poured a little water in the gap and it quickly started dripping off of the trim screws in the bottom. During the rain storm I had the slides in and the motorhome was not leveled so the water just flowed along the bottom of the slide right into the motorhome instead of dripping off of the screws.

The problem looks like it was caused when Jayco installed the sealant too far out on the bottom trim. The factory butyl putty was installed outside (relative to the corner of the trim) of the screw holes. If the putty was installed on the inside corner of the screw holes or even over the top of the screw holes there would be no leak.

We are a long way from a dealer so I decided I would tackle this repair myself.

I don't really like the exposed screws that Jayco used in the post above so I decided to use a little butyl putty along the top seam of the trim to keep the rain from ever even getting behind that trim. To make room for the putty I just removed all of the screws along the bottom side of the trim and slowly and gently pulled the trim out enough to make room for the butyl (1/4"-3/8").

I stuffed as much in there as I could get in the crack and let the sun soften it enough that I could push the trim back in place and run the screws back in the original holes. The screws kept pressure on the trim and the rest of the day the butyl oozed out of the crack until the trim pulled up tight against the side. What a mess- but I know the seam will be completely sealed now. I started off using some masking tape to help with cleanup but abandoned the idea after a while. I wish I would have left it there because getting the butyl off the side of the motorhome is a lot of work. If I do the other side I will try the masking tape idea again.

Anyway... I still have some cleanup left to do but it is looking better already and no leaks anymore!! Total time spent was roughly 2 hours (not including the ongoing cleanup to make the seam meet the wife's quality control standards )


I hope this helps someone searching for this problem later on like it did for me. I would have never found the problem without this post.

[jsimonson]

I have a 2012 37FS with a leak in the bedroom slide as the wood floor has completely failed on the center track guide at the exterior wall with no wood left. What is the cost of replacing the floor and I too do not want my local Jayco dealer to make this repair? Will the factory make the repair or is there a shop competent to make this repair? Is anyone noticing the floor squeaking near the mirror/table as mine started doing so on our last trip. The only time our coach is exposed to rain is when we take it out of covered storage to use it as it is stored in arid Southern CA away from the ocean. Has anyone asked Jayco why are they not installing welded aluminum deck in the Seneca as two of their competitors are doing using the same chassis making delamination and rot a non issue?

[RyRoRyan]

So it looks like Jayco has not fixed this from the factory yet as I have a week old 2016 37FS and after reading this thread I decided to go out and look at mine. I have the same issue. It rained the night before but good thing I had the slides out. I looked under the slide where the trim is screwed in and low and behold it is wet and the screws are already starting to rust. Got an appointment on the 9th for the dealer to fix a few other things so this will be one more thing to add. Thanks for letting everyone know about this...I would have not caught it otherwise.