2012 Sundance exterior walls

jmoench

Member
I have a 2012 Sundance and I have noticed the exterior wall on the driver's side front bedroom has developed what appears to be a blister or delamination on the skin. Is anyone else having this kind of problem and is it something that will get worse?
Thx
 

danemayer

Well-known member
Hi jmoench,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum.

Delamination is usually caused by water intrusion. It can be hard to find where the water is getting in, but you should carefully check the caulking on the roof, around the vents and fans, marker lights, front cap, etc. If you don't find the water leak it will definitely get worse.

The trailer manual recommends checking caulk several time a year and maintaining as necessary.
 

jmoench

Member
Thanks for the reply. I have inspected the exterior and there are no apparent leaks. I bought the Sundance because it was advertised to have a very solid roof and exterior. Much to the annoyance of the salesman, I carefully looked at the quality of the roof and , from what I could see, it seemed to live up to the hype. I don't relish the idea of tearing the roof and sidewall off to see where the delamination started. Thanks again for the info.
 

Bob&Patty

Founders of SoCal Chapter
Several times a year you need inspect ever inch of caulking. Roof, all seams, around windows, etc,etc and repair as needed.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
I don't relish the idea of tearing the roof and sidewall off to see where the delamination started.
Tearing off the roof is a very big job. Never heard of anyone tearing off the sidewall.

Might be better to find a body shop experienced in fiberglass work.

Finding a place that does leak testing would also be helpful. Here's a link to Sealtech.
 

jmoench

Member
The roof overlaps the sidewalls so the only way to get at the problem is to open it like a can o' peas and fix it. I went over the seals, lights, fittings, joints and anywhere else water could get in with a fine-tooth comb and it appears to be watertight. If is covered w/fiberglass or sealed without finding the source/reason for the delamination it will continue to deteriorate.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
It's not uncommon to replace a torn roof membrane and the luan under the EPDM material. But I've never heard of anyone removing the entire roof structure the way you're describing. Who's going to do this for you?
 

TravelTiger

Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
We have a few "spots" I'll call them where it's a single point that is raised on the sidewall slightly. Have not in 5 years seen them get worse. I don't know the cause, but I don't worry about it as long as it doesn't get worse.

IMG_5847 3.jpg

That said, we did have a delamination issue that Heartland examined and helped us with repair when it was determined NOT to be a result of water damage. You might consider taking pics and contacting them directly.
 

jmoench

Member
That's good to know. The bubbles in my Sundance have not seemed to have gotten larger in the past several months so it may be wiser to just keep an eye on them and not tear the wall apart. I did contact Heartland and they told me I only had one year warranty on the unit so I'm on my own. Thanks for the info.
 

caissiel

Senior Member
Mine is 6 years old and in worst shape then my neighbors 40 year old unit. Our previous unit we owned for 15 years was a much better unit. I feel they are build to sell, the wall system is downed to fail. and for me the attachment of the trim pieces is not done right.

I have replaced all the screws since day one and I can still see some delamination at places. Caulking just covers the surface the wall rots from moiture absorbed at the screw holes because all my screws rusted from day one. In the past the trim pieces were all installed with tape putty that my unit did not have an inch other then the some windows and door.
I had the rebuild the rear wall and now I will need to do the kitchen and bedroom slides outside walls that are puffing. Off course they are not build by Heartland but still they are just a result of cheat manufacturing.

Now my front frame is craked and failing so need to talk to the company for possible repair.
And I tow my unit with a smooth riding F250, can't think of towing my unit with a DRW truck.
I am glad I have not a painted unit because I can see the sight of all these repairs done to different areas.

On the inside its been a great performer, and we are very happy with the choice of layout we chose but the outside is a complete mess.
 

jmoench

Member
I agree that these units are built to sell from the inside out. Most of the material is medium or low quality. The major reasons I purchased this new were the roof and the 16" wheels. My last 5th wheel was a 2003 Laredo that I bought used and had for seven years. The major problems I had with the Laredo were (you guessed it) the roof and the wheels. I had to replace the front half of the roof and went through a set of tires every 7k miles on the Laredo. I liked the layout of the Sundance because I have 10 year old triplets and the back bedroom was perfect for them. My wife tore out the carpet and intalled laminate because camping and carpet are not good combinations. Also the Sundance had room for me to install an apartment sized washer dryer combination. The gas dryer is on top of the washer and works perfectly for us; no paying five bucks for a load of clothes at RV parks.
I am disappointed with the delamination and the tires. I am on my 4th set of tires! I do a lot of summer travel and I do carry a lot of weight, but I was hoping to get more than 6k on the tires. I also pull it faster than I ought to with my 2006 dually diesel 3500 Silverado. A friend of mine gave me a tip on camper tires and it seems to be working. I put LT (Light Truck) instead of ST (towing) tires on the Sundance and they hardly wore at all this summer traveling about 8k miles! I have no idea what is causing the delamination; I'm thinking the sidewall paneling is just poor quality. I say this because I've inspected very closely the seams, lights and other joints where water could possibly get in and they seem to be tight. I store the unit under cover and haven't been in that much rain. If the bubbles continue to grow I will tear it apart and try to solve the mystery.
 

caissiel

Senior Member
I had similar problem with ST tires. A cheap set of LTs lasted over 50k miles and after 7 years of use without any problem I traded the unit with them on. I have Chinese LTs on this unit now that are also 7 years old also with now issues.
 

JohnD

Moved on to the next thing...
I had similar problem with ST tires. A cheap set of LTs lasted over 50k miles and after 7 years of use without any problem I traded the unit with them on. I have Chinese LTs on this unit now that are also 7 years old also with now issues.

Interestingly enough . . . we had the BlowMax tires on our previous 2013 Heartland Trail Runner.

Had just under 5000 miles on that trailer and tires, but it wasn't the tires that let us down, but the under-rated axles and springs from the factory that did!

I just sold those tires and wheels a couple of weeks ago . . . they will live on for utility trailer use!

Wheels4sale1-P1000283.jpg Wheels4sale2-P1000284.jpg Wheels4sale3-P1000285.jpg

These are the photos I used on Craigslist to sell them!
 

jmoench

Member
Ain't that something? I wish someone would have told me about camper tires vs light truck tires before I went through as many as I did. I also used to have bad blow outs (at least five) on my campers. I rebuilt all four fenders and wheel wells on my Laredo and my Sundance because of them. I once spent several hours unwrapping an ST tire from around my axle and rewiring the trailer brakes before I could even put on the spare. I know it is partly my fault for pulling as fast as I do (65-70), but I'd rather spend my time camping than on the road. When I drive from FL to AK I always carry at least two spares.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
A I know it is partly my fault for pulling as fast as I do (65-70), but I'd rather spend my time camping than on the road. When I drive from FL to AK I always carry at least two spares.

ST tires almost all are rated for a maximum speed of 65 mph. The tire flexes as it rolls down the road and the flexing builds up heat. The faster you go, the more heat you get. When you exceed the max speed rating, the tire can't dissipate the heat as fast as it builds up. That allows the internal temperature to increase to the point where internal fibers get damaged. The damage is cumulative and can never be undone. Eventually - not necessarily the same day - boom! The damage is already done and the blowout could occur at any speed.

If you're slightly under inflated or slightly overloaded, there's more flex which causes even more heat build up.

If you want to drive faster than 65, get a tire that's rated for 75 mph.
 
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