SOB water damage need advice

Ahkhira · 04-07-2014, 09:48 AM

Hi all,
Helping a friend open his seasonal yesterday, and we got a nasty surprise. The 5th wheel section is a leaky mess. I can only see damage on one side, but the whole bed section is wetuploadfromtaptalk1396885593952.jpg

I'm doing my best to get the photos attached. Please let me know if you have any advice.

uploadfromtaptalk1396885687383.jpg

**JohnB** · 04-07-2014, 08:32 PM

The front corner on the 5th wheel can be like the top front corner of the TT's.

Water runs off the roof, down the wall and plasters the front seams. This was part of my reasons for adding down spouts to get the directed water away from those seams from the roof gutters. I also caulked the seams early to help seal the front corners. The putty tapes dries up, creates a crack in the putty and allows water to get in.

In your friends case it looks like the siding pulled away. Must be Wildwood does not make folded over corners like Sunline did. Now we see the value in doing the folded corner siding.

They can take that corner apart and the siding off and see the entire issue. Pending the damage, they may be able to fix it from the outside.

Hope this helps and good luck to them.

John

Ahkhira · 04-08-2014, 01:46 AM

Thanks for the reply. In my experience, this looks really bad, like tear th siding off and replace rot damage. If it helps, this is a 2000 Wildwood 5th wheel. I know how to fix, but the trailer is insured. I'm just worried that the insurance company will total this mes, and my friend is rather screwed. He was hoping to live in this unit or the greater part of the summer. Looks like it's time for me to bust out some tools. We're staying in the trailer this week to care for the site, so any more advice is welcome.

ihsolutions · 04-08-2014, 05:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ahkhira

I know how to fix, but the trailer is insured. I'm just worried that the insurance company will total this mes,

I would be surprised if this is covered by his insurance.

That leak looks like it's been going on for quite a while, long enough for the wood behind the siding to swell up and push out the siding even further. I would also expect there is some damage to the overhang, below where the leak is. That water had to go somewhere.

jim44646 · 04-08-2014, 05:42 AM

If it is covered by insurance the age of the unit would mean they would total it. If that be the case he could take the money and do a buy back and the use leftover funds help with repairs. That's a big if!!!
What is the condition of the floor? Is it soft or solid?

FiveORacing · 04-08-2014, 06:02 AM

Here's the thread of my repairs last summer. Probably similar to yours.

http://www.sunlineclub.com/forums/f7...ade-14995.html

Ahkhira · 04-08-2014, 10:45 AM

Thanks all. I think we'll attempt repairs ourselves. The floor is actually quite solid. The only soft spot is in the wall behind the bed. I stayed in this unit just before seasonal closing last October, and I did not see any signs of this then. I know that this is a bad leak, and I have no idea how it escaped notice for so long. FiveORacing, thanks for the link.

jim44646 · 04-08-2014, 02:51 PM

you may luck out and find it not to bad rot wise. the insulation may have got soaked and with this hard winter froze, expanded and blew the side out.

**JohnB** · 04-08-2014, 07:05 PM

Once you pull the 1st lower siding panel off, that will give you a real quick big picture of, oh boy or oh not so bad. Gotta have hope...

The good part of this, a camper of this vintage is all repairable. A labor of love for sure but if one is handy with wood tools and has some time, it is all fixable.

Ahkhira · 05-07-2014, 07:15 PM

Quick update... Just spent the last week working on this mess... The entire 5th wheel section WAS soaked and has suffered a bit of damage. I looked and looked and looked some more, but could find NO hole, leak, gap, whatever in the roof. Finally, I gave up and proceeded to clean out the gutters. Then, I found the hole. It was just at the tip of the rain gutter where it started to slope downward at the front. it was maybe an inch and a half long.

It wasn't a big hole, but it MUST have been the culprit. Since the weather was all sorts of nasty and cold, and a storm was coming. I ran down to the local RV place, got a hunk of butyl tape, and plugged that hole as far as I could stuff it. As far as I was concerned, the hole was plugged, and we wrestled a tarp over it in 20 mph wind.

Lucky for us, the tarp held for a week or so. (We had to leave the seasonal and head back home.) Got a call saying the tarp blew off, but all looked well, so we took our time getting back.

Much to my surprise, once we got back (about 2 weeks later), the camper was DRY. Yes, there is quite a bit of damage, but there is no more wet. There is also precious little signs of mold.

Total damage assessment looks like just the 5th wheel section is compromised, and we got it early on. Floors are good, walls are not. I will add photos when my supposed smart phone decides to be smart enough to cooperate.

TL;DR: Moral of this story is it isn't always the roof, and if you're permanently mounted in a seasonal, CLEAN THE DAGGONE GUTTERS!!!!