Rain water in pass through basement storage

lukeysh

Member
We've had a couple of bad thunderstorms with heavy rain and high winds. Each time I've found a puddle of water in the center of the storage bay. Most obvious leak path is door gaskets. But they look good. Also took everything out and looked for a trail of water ingress, but found nothing. It's as if a cup of water was spilled. So just a puddle in the middle with no signs of water trail. Thoughts? BTW it's not a plumbing leak, I checked that.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
Hi lukeysh,

It's strange that there's just a puddle in the middle with no water on the ceiling or walls, or along the floor. But maybe another owner has some ideas.

Btw, since this seems to be about the pass through storage, I changed the subject line so that you don't get advice that has to do with the sealed underbelly.
 

hoefler

Well-known member
Check for a drain pipe for the washer, sink, shower, etc.. It could be your vent stack on the roof leaking and the water is running down the pipe.
 

JohnDar

Prolifically Gabby Member
My last plumbing leak was the lavatory faucet. The flimsy plastic innards were leaking at a seal and it ran back down the supply and dripped on the basement floor, behind the wall and ran out under it. Replaced the faucet with an all-metal residential one and problem solved.

On a different note, the cargo door seals are not 100% effective in some cases.


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lukeysh

Member
My last plumbing leak was the lavatory faucet. The flimsy plastic innards were leaking at a seal and it ran back down the supply and dripped on the basement floor, behind the wall and ran out under it. Replaced the faucet with an all-metal residential one and problem solved.

On a different note, the cargo door seals are not 100% effective in some cases.


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It's definitely not a plumbing leak. My Arlington has no exposed pipes in the storage bay. I've checked behind bay panel and all water lines tight. Only happens in downpours with rain. Weird thing is not finding a trail to origin.
 

NTXNEWBIES

Member
It's definitely not a plumbing leak. My Arlington has no exposed pipes in the storage bay. I've checked behind bay panel and all water lines tight. Only happens in downpours with rain. Weird thing is not finding a trail to origin.
I too have found water in our pass thru after pulling thru some rain. Ours appears to be coming from the driver side door or behind the UCB area. There are no signs of leaks from the piping at all and the door seal looks good but maybe looks are deceiving? Any thoughts?
 

JohnDar

Prolifically Gabby Member
A driving or even just a steady rain can allow water to collect on the top of the door panel and bottom of the door frame. From there, it may seep past the seal if there is any gap at all. Over time, it destroyed my two large cargo doors and is starting to swell the two smaller ones. The perimeter seal of the door panel is a joke and the "weep" holes on the bottom of it allow accumulated water to wick into the panel rather than drain from it. Add freeze/thaw, and you have swelled and cracked panels.

If your door seals were leaking, however, the area directly below the opening should be wet.


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John T Bettencourt

Well-known member
lukeysh, had the same problem with my Landmark. What was happening is the seam behind the compartment gasket was not sealed properly. You have to pull the gasket away to see it. You will see where the two pieces come together,that seam needs to be chalked. Then apply a new gasket in place after pulling the old one off. The leak will be on the bottom of the compartment track. If you want to find out for sure before you pull things apart, put a towel along the inside edge and wait for a rain storm. Mine was driving me crazy for a long time as the water was always in a puddle in the middle of storage area.
 

rod_s

Member
We had the same symptoms on our 2015 Bighorn shortly after taking delivery. After a lot of head scratching I determined that water was pooling in front of the gasket on the doors where the frame is held in with screws. In this case water was getting past the screws and running onto the compartment floor. I removed the screws along the bottom and sides, filled the holes with caulk and replaced the screws. That was a year and a half ago and no water on the compartment floor since. Good luck.
 

NTXNEWBIES

Member
lukeysh, had the same problem with my Landmark. What was happening is the seam behind the compartment gasket was not sealed properly. You have to pull the gasket away to see it. You will see where the two pieces come together,that seam needs to be chalked. Then apply a new gasket in place after pulling the old one off. The leak will be on the bottom of the compartment track. If you want to find out for sure before you pull things apart, put a towel along the inside edge and wait for a rain storm. Mine was driving me crazy for a long time as the water was always in a puddle in the middle of storage area.
I had read that some the bays were actually coming apart around the edges and I believe I may have one of those. I will begin my inquiry this coming week and keep this thread informed. Thanks to all.
 

Garypowell

Well-known member
Same thing as Rod_S above. For ours it was coming through the striker plates of one of the door latches. Took it out and sealed under it and no more water in the middle of the basement.
 

mlpeloquin

Well-known member
It's definitely not a plumbing leak. My Arlington has no exposed pipes in the storage bay. I've checked behind bay panel and all water lines tight. Only happens in downpours with rain. Weird thing is not finding a trail to origin.


My Big Born has black plastic cover over the pipe and water lines feeding the bathroom sink and one covering the shower drain. We had water in the center of the bay as well. It turns out it was one of the water supply lines inside the plastic cover leaking. The water ran to the end, flowed back to the center, and dripped down from there. When checking for a leak the water on the outside of the cover had dried up. I removed the cover and ran the water full on and off quickly many times. Well the leak showed up and I replace the plastic PEX fitting with a Shark Bite fitting.
 

Mburtsvt

Well-known member
I'm standing by as well to see if anyone knows. I have a 2016 Madison and I thought it was my doors as well. I'm going to spray water at the doors this weekend to see if I get the puddle.
 

gsandoe

Member
I have the 2016 Madison and the cargo bay on the passenger side leaks when we encounter moderate to heavy rain. I put a towel on the floor at the door opening and find it wet when it rains. I have ordered a new gasket. The driver side door does not have this problem.
 

lukeysh

Member
Update on repairs,,,,gasket of door had about 1/2" gap at bottom where they cut too short. HL has new gasketimg on order. Filled in with putty till it arrives. Took screws out of door frame and added silicone to holes and rescrewed. Did same to door latch plates. Finally, caulked around back of frame by removing felt like pad on back and caulked seams. Had bad storm last night and no standing water this morning. Had one slight damp spot and it was a screw that I didn't get. So, it appears that standing water in bottom flange of door frame was leaking by all the screws and latches.


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Clark2262

Member
I have a 2017 Madison (30 days old) with a leaking storage door on passenger side. At first, there was a LOT of water in the basement. My friend noticed the gasket was a bit out of place. That seemed to stop the water in the basement. But now, when I open the door, water pours out of the latch. I removed the latch and applied a small bead of silicone before re-installing it - that had no effect. Any suggestions?

Thank you,
Clark
 

NHCelt

Well-known member
It sounds to me like rain is coming in from above and leaking onto the storage area ceiling....traveling to a low spot and dripping. I would try to check it during a heavy rain....looking at the ceiling of the storage area to trace the path backward. Like a house roof leak, water can travel a long way.
 

rdgt67

Active Member
My key west had the same issue and i did the same thing rod_s did. Removed the screws filled with silicone and reinstalled screws. Problem fixed....
 

Clark2262

Member
My key west had the same issue and i did the same thing rod_s did. Removed the screws filled with silicone and reinstalled screws. Problem fixed....

This is what it looks like. I'll hit the screws with some silicone this weekend. Thanks for the tip.
 

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