Leaking Rear Window

2011 Bighorn 3610 leaks around the rear window when it rains. Customer service told me it is owners responsibility to check/ repair the caulk every 3 months above every window.

Doubleringer said:

2011 Bighorn 3610 leaks around the rear window when it rains. Customer service told me it is owners responsibility to check/ repair the caulk every 3 months above every window.

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Well, simply quoting warranty specs, he may be correct but in my experience any reputable dealer would probably look and fix a 2011 rig. Do you have any warranty time left? Definitely worth a call to Heartland Customer Service.

Best Wishes!

I agree with SJH. Is the trailer still in warranty? Even so, re-caulking a window is easy enough. Are you in MI or south for the winter? What does your dealer say?
Another thing to look at are the drain slots in the lower frame of the window. Make sure they are open. I guess if it were mine, I'd go to a local RV dealer, buy a tube of caulk and get it done.

Yes! You are supposed to spend all of your free time caulking and sealing. It says so in the book in BIG LETTERS that it is our responsibility. That is why I use permanent marine grade caulk and only do it once. The caulk they use in the factory is just supposed to last until you get home the first time. Some people take a water hose and spray down their rigs weekly so that they can find the leaks and recaulk on sunny days.

traveler44 said:

The caulk they use in the factory is just supposed to last until you get home the first time.

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Actually, Heartland is using Sikaflex sealants similar to THIS. Sika makes great sealants. I don't believe it is the type of sealant that factories use but rather how it is applied. Everyone has their preferred products and there are many available that will do the job. My preference is for a Polyurethene based sealant. The one I am currently using is Tremco specifically the 650 and 626 depending on color needed. Both of these are designed for the transportation industry and suitable for "underwater" use an important plus here in the Pacific Northwest!

Best Wishes!

If you have a larger gap between your window frame and the wall of the rig, I've heard of some folks using butyl tape instead of caulk.

I had a rear window leak on our previous trailer that lasted for years. I calked it everytime it rained. Took it apart and reinstalled it properly and here is what I found.


The water was running down from the roof and finding its way out at the window.

The rear roof section of the trailer at the top had not been installed properly and the rubber roof membrane had been cut to short and fixed with caulking. Though I recalked the roof for years thinking I was doing it right the trim and roof fell short. The result of this leak ruined the rear end of my roof that I had to replace the rear 4 feet of the roof and add more rubber roof membrane, It resulted in a fixed roof that lasted 5 years until traded the unit.

I would not have located the bad roof if I did not had damaged the wall with a flat tire that I had the strip the wall from bottom to the top to do the repairs. Before that I blamed the roof caulking for the winfdow leak. But the complete roof and wall was rotting for 10 years due to the manufacturing defect that caulking never realy solved the problem but just temporarly fixed the leaks. And it only leaked after long distance travels.

So dig a bit deeper to solve the problem as I have never had a leaking window in the 15 years other then that incidence.

And that is also the main reason we bought the BC with the flat back and without the molded rear panel as I felt the simple roof desiggn will not cause me some maintenance problem. I do check that area often as well as it also depends on proper calking at the rear seam.

I had called customer service because my RV is still under warranty. That is when the customer service rep told me it was the owners responsibility to check the caulking every 3 months. I just wanted to know if this was a problem that had been reported by other Hartland owners. Fine! Wish I had known Hartland RVs were so "tender" before trading. I have seen on other peoples RVs what a big problem a little water leak can cause if not taken care of as soon as possible. I just was not expecting that kind of answer from Hartland customer service. I check my whole RV every chance I get. Just so everyone knows, I have had a lot of good times with this 5th wheel during the past 10309 miles.

Doubleringer said:

Just so everyone knows, I have had a lot of good times with this 5th wheel during the past 10309 miles.

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That's an awesome amount of miles on a rig barely a year old. Congratulations! I wish we could have put that many miles on ours.

Doubleringer said:

I had called customer service because my RV is still under warranty. That is when the customer service rep told me it was the owners responsibility to check the caulking every 3 months. I just wanted to know if this was a problem that had been reported by other Hartland owners. Fine! Wish I had known Hartland RVs were so "tender" before trading. I have seen on other peoples RVs what a big problem a little water leak can cause if not taken care of as soon as possible. I just was not expecting that kind of answer from Hartland customer service. I check my whole RV every chance I get. Just so everyone knows, I have had a lot of good times with this 5th wheel during the past 10309 miles.

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Hmmmm, How do they know that poor caulking caused the leak? I think they need to let you have it looked at more closely by a tech (remove the window and check to see if it was installed properly) before dismissing the issue. Can you call back and ask for a supervisor, and explain your situation? I would explain that you have enjoyed your coach for many miles and want to continue to do so... and you have been taking care of it the best you know how, but you want peace of mind that the rig was constructed correctly. Caulking over and over will not solve a defective install. Even if you have to pay for the tech to look at it, I would hope that Heartland would pony-up if a tech determines there is a defect.

Erika