Delamination question

[Dwntwn]

I have a 2006 Sunline T299SR Solaris and on the front outside wall the wall covering is kinda rippling or separated but it’s not wet,what would cause this and can it be repaired?

 

[JohnGB]

Hi Dwntwn,

I'm assuming your camper has the smooth fiberglass siding and not the corrugated aluminum? Since you used the wording, delamination, I'm going on the assumption you have the smooth fiberglass.

What you are describing does sound like water damage in the front wall. Pictures of inside and out help as well as the caulk up on the front roof seam to the front wall siding termination really help so we can see what you are up against. Consider posting them. We may be able to see something that you may not to help better.

Also look at the front left and right corner moldings, there is a putty tape sealant between molding and the siding. It may be all black from dirt mold, but look for cracks/splits in that sealing tape.

Another place to look is the bottom of the front wall outside. There will be a molding and screws across the entire front wall at the very bottom. There may be a vinyl screw cover on this left to right molding or not. Sunline may have used a flat cap molding or a screw cover flat molding. Remove the vinyl cover if needed, look at the hex screw heads, are they rusted? Take pics of the heads if they are and where they are across the wall. If no rust, on the heads, then remove each screw one at a time and look at the threads. No leaks mean the screw threads are pristine silver like new almost. Moisture in the wood breaks down the screw coating and rusting starts. The longer and more rusted threads, the larger and longer the water damage has been there. Wet goo on the threads is very wet wood.

If you want to know for sure you have water damage, and if damage has spread to the left or right side wall, consider buying a moisture meter for about $46. See here https://www.sunlineclub.com/forums/f71/moisture-meters-for-inspecting-a-camper-17613.html

On your camper with the meter you can scan the front wall from the inside and the outside and it will pick up wet wood and insulation. While the inside may not feel wet, the vinyl coated wallpaper blocks a lot of the wet from coming into the living space until the wet gets so bad, it has rotted out the 1/8" luan wall board and there is nothing left. See the link above on the meter and some on how to use it. This can also scan the ceiling for a water infection on the inside and in many cases from the roof down too.

Yes, the front wall damage can be fixed. If you caught the damage early enough, and only the front wall is damaged, this can be easier to correct. You want to do this all from the outside of the camper, not the inside. We want to leave the inside intact. If the damage has spread deep into the left and right side wall, the repair gets more complex depending on how far it has spread. Again the moisture meter can tell you how bad or not all this is and not take anything apart. Once you know how good or bad it is, we can help explain the repair process and if that is something you want to take on or not. If you have time, common wood tools and the will to want to do this, a minimally infected front wall repair can be done without too much issue. The side walls of the fiberglass sided camper gets more involved pending how far down the wall the damage goes.

Since winter is coming and you may not have time to deal with this until spring, consider covering the camper for the winter. If you have a leak now, going all the way until spring will make everything a lot worse.

We are glad to help as much or as little as you need.

Hope this helps

John