Slideout damage caused by poor workmanship

Loco

Well-known member
Well here I go again having to fix the troubles cause by poor workman ship from Heartland. I was doing some cleaning and other work like sealing the shower doors with new sealer. and working on my bed room slideout.I saw some of the screws lose along the lower trim and on the under side of the slide. So I was going to tighten them up. Well they would not pull up. So I looked closer. The wood under the slide was very soft. So I pull the lower trim off and OH MY GOD! The bottom wood that is 1 inch thick was rotting out. The factory did not seal behind the trim. They just seal along the under side. The only thing keeping water from getting in was the LITTLE LINE OF sealer on the outer edge of the trim. I have put new sealer along this every year. But it always open up a little with heating and cooling of the sliding. Well the sealer tape they put along the bottom just trap water in and well the pictures I attach tell the rest of the story. I am making repairs now and will put pictures on here as I go. But everyone who has a Cyclone BETTER CHECK THEIR BEDROOM SLIDE NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!! Look close at my pictures. If I had not found it I would be buying a new slide before long.:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:
 

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StevieWonder

Well-known member
Looks pretty nasty.

I'm interested in what Heartland will do since the warranty period seems to have likely expired. My guess is they'll stand behind the product and get the necessary repairs done at their expense.

GOOD catch ...
 

mike3fan

Well-known member
The factory did not seal behind the trim. They just seal along the under side. The only thing keeping water from getting in was the LITTLE LINE OF sealer on the outer edge of the trim.

Are you talking about the exterior trim on the face of the slide out?

If I understand correctly you feel the rain runs down the face of the slide out and behind the trim?
 

cookie

Administrator
Staff member
Loco, sorry to hear about your br slide. Looks ugly. It seems this problem is not uniqe to Heartland. My dealer who sells sobs warned me this could happen if I didn't keep an eye on and maintain that caulk line. He had seen it on sobs. I had no idea it could get that bad. I hope everyone takes note to check that caukling.
Good luck with your repair.
Peace
Dave
 

Loco

Well-known member
Stevie,
I talked to Heartland today my rig is out of warranty it is on my back now. So I have already started repairs as soon as I found it. That is why everyone should check their slides if they are like the one I have on our rig. I bet you anything they are sealed the same way.
 

Loco

Well-known member
Start of repairs to slide!

Well I have cut out all of the rotted wood and started the repairs to my slide bottom. I removed my bed frame and starting make the new bottom by making a 1 inch thick bottom plate to replace the cut out. I had to start by gluing two 1/2 inch pieces of hard wood ply wood together to make one 1 inch thick plate.I made the tie plate the old fashion way by coating the two pieces with exterior wood glue and screwing and placing about 200 lbs of bricks and anything heavy I could find. I have started gluing and screwing the tie plates inside of the slide bottom under the bed. I had to allow for the bed frame so I could not cut just one piece of 3/4 hard wood ply. I am having to place it in with cut to fit pieces. The tie plates on top will tie the new bottom plate to the old one.I am gluing and screwing it all to make it one piece again.
I will get everyone up to date as I go along.
 

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StevieWonder

Well-known member
I'm curious about the caulk line you mentioned. What kind of caulk did you seal it with? You mentioned cracks that came/went with temperature changes but I would think that a flexible siliconized caulk should have enough flex to deal with that without creating an opening for water to enter.

I thought you guys were having a drought in Georgia !!! Looks like a LOT of water was around this rig.
 

Pulltab

Well-known member
That is ugly, scary thing is this most likely applies to ALL slides and not just the cyclone I bet. A great tech tip for everyone with no matter who's rv they own!

Looks like you got a good plan for fixing it. Good luck
 

jbeletti

Well-known member
Loco,

Sorry that you are going through this with your coach. While not pretty, your pictures do a great job of telling the story.

I just sent you an email. Check it out - make the call.

Thanks,

Jim
 

jmgratz

Original Owners Club Member
While repairing the rollers on my 07 Landmark the dealer making the repairs had to remove the bedroom slide. When they did they found there was not a "dam" to keep water from getting into the underneath of the slide. They made one and took care of the problem before any damage could occur. Once again it pays to keep an eye on your slides (underneath) and anywhere else water damage could occur. Remember when it comes to water, it seeks the lowest level and will go through the smallest cracks.
 

Uncle Rog

Well-known member
Mr Loco, good job once again of:
1 Good maintenance / inspection program
2 Identifying / isolating an issue
3 Putting together a program to "git 'er done"
With my new improved work / compensation program I have a lot more time to work on the small grove in the early hours and mess with the horn as the day heats up..
I will DEFINATELY spend some time this week inspecting the slides and other areas where moisture intrusion could be an issue. I have already re-caulked around lights, receptacle fixtures, hatches etc where the bottoms were left wide open, taking care to leave some voids for condensation drainage and ventilation.
In retrospect, from seeing your other work, even if HL did step up to the plate for repairs you would probably do a better job yourself!
 

Loco

Well-known member
Heartland has step up on this one. They have not gone as far to say they will pay to fix it. But they did tell me if I needed anything to fix it with just call them. I must say they do care more than Scott did back when I had my first troubles when it was new. I think they really care now. They also said from looking at my pictures that the aluminum extrusion trim should have had silicone sealer behind it not just along the siding face seal.I will keep everyone one up to speed on this one as I make my repairs. Hope to have it back together today.
For stevie. It was not that the sealer did not flex. There was not enough of a line along trim to make a good seal. I will take some more pictures to show you what I mean.If you put to much sealer along the line it looked bad. so if you made it thin enough to look good it would not stick to the siding good. And with out any sealer behind the extrusion water would get in.
 

Luckyhat12

Active Member
where do you get the screws that heartland uses? I have about 3 that the heads have broken off and need to replace them. I also need to go get some type of ease out for screws to get the rest of the body out.

Thanks,
Chris
 

mountainlovers76

Mississippi Chapter Leaders
I have a fear I am about to encounter the same thing on my Bighorn, only it is the front overhang (under the bedroom and front closet area) instead of the bedroom slide. I noticed the bottom trim on one side had dropped down and pulled completely away from the bead of sealant, so I tried to tighten the screws and they just spun around. I removed them and the ends were starting to rust. There was only a small line of sealant on the outer edge and nothing behind the trim itself. After doing some more checking I found I could push up on the underside of the overhang all around the pin box and hear water...LOTS OF WATER. I dropped the front of the coach down as far as the landing legs would let it go, removed the sealant at the lowest front corner where the front cap connects and water poured out. I caught over a gallon in a 5 gallon bucket in a matter of 5 minutes. It continued a steady fast drip for the next 2 days and increased to almost 2 gallons. This was last week and it has just now stopped dripping completely. Naturally I find this just as we are about to hit the road for several fall and holiday trips starting this weekend through New Year's weekend. I have no idea of the damage but do know that even using two inch long screws it still does not pull the trim up. Will not catch even using that length. Will put some silicone on it good until I can carry it somewhere after the first of the year. And since both Heartland dealers within 150 miles of me have gone out of business this year I do not know where that will be. :(
 

Toy1Ton

Toy 1 Ton
this has happend to a friend of mine on his 09 3400re when he would hook up he would have water running out of the light thats under the over hang after three repair attempts they had to pull the front cap off to repair the leak
 

Retyred

Active Member
Leaky Roof

I would suggest that if you are able get on your roof and check all of the caulking joints especially at the front and rear cap. See the attachments of the road side cap area. The person who caulked the cap must have been slacking off or new on the job as it appears to have been done by an amateur. I wondered why I had water in the front cap overhang. There was also some caulking cracking at the rear cap. I made the repairs and will check it out in the spring. Walk very lightly on the roof as it is very thin.

Retyred
 

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DW_Gray

Well-known member
Oh I'm glad I found this info. I just checked my bedroom slide and I see I have some work to do to prevent any damage. (I'm hoping there isn't any already.)
 

SilverRhino

Well-known member
After seeing this...it seems to me that it will be worth while to remove the metal angle on the slides and seal up the joint at the edge of the plywood.

When replacing the molding...I will lay a bead of silicone down in the angle and along the flat surfaces.

Shouldn't have to do this...but it appears that they may not have been properly sealed so the maintenance will prevent major problems in the long run.
 
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