Possible Slide Leak When Retracted?

[TerribleTim68]

Hey guys, I've got a 2008 Cyclone 4012. We've owned it for a few years now and have not had a problem with the slides...yet.
We had it parked most of this winter, along side our house like always, with all three slides retracted. We've always stored it with the slides retracted like that and never had a problem.
Last night we went out to mount a new smart tv in the console and after running the slides out we noticed the carpet that the couch slide was covering was damp. The slide itself seems fine, but the carpet that the slide was "over" was damp. Not super wet, just damp. Wondering if this could be a leaking seal or a condensation issue. How can one go about determining if the seal is failing?
It does rain a lot here (Pacific Northwest) and we had a pretty hard driving rain for a couple days over the weekend. But it has rained plenty the previous winters and even snowed pretty good and we didn't have this problem before.
We keep a small space heater in the unit over the winter, just to keep anything from freezing, and we have a small dehumidifier (Davis industries air dryer 500) that we leave in there as well.

We got this RV used and it was long past any warrantee period when we got it, so I'm not looking for a free fix, I'm looking for "how do I sleuth out the real problem here and determine a course of action?"

Thanks.

 

[TerribleTim68]

I guess I should also ask, should we be storing it with the slides in or out?

 

[wdk450]

Store with slides in, check slide sealing tight against trailer walls (slideouts may need mechanical adjustment - look in forum library under "Tools" at top of page to find adjustment procedure, or search You Tube).

Only good home leak check I can think of is a garden hose outside spraying around sealing areas, observer inside looking for leaks. The other way to test is a professional service that air pressurizes the interior of the RV and then applies bubble soap solution to the RV exterior looking for air leaks, indication probable water leaks paths. See: https://www.sealtechleaktesting.com/

 

[david-steph2018]

Sounds like a seal did not work. I would think that one of the seals had a gap in it when closed, allowing some water. It could also be a sealant issue on the slide-out itself. Check the slide-out to see if there is anything that shows missing/loose sealant.

 

[wdk450]

The D shaped seals on the trailer wall contacting the slides seal them when the slide is in. These can get stuck to the slideout mating edges due to rubber deterioration, and tear the D seal.

 

[TerribleTim68]

Thanks guys, I'll look for these issues and report back.

 

[tank1949]

Hey guys, I've got a 2008 Cyclone 4012. We've owned it for a few years now and have not had a problem with the slides...yet.
We had it parked most of this winter, along side our house like always, with all three slides retracted. We've always stored it with the slides retracted like that and never had a problem.
Last night we went out to mount a new smart tv in the console and after running the slides out we noticed the carpet that the couch slide was covering was damp. The slide itself seems fine, but the carpet that the slide was "over" was damp. Not super wet, just damp. Wondering if this could be a leaking seal or a condensation issue. How can one go about determining if the seal is failing?
It does rain a lot here (Pacific Northwest) and we had a pretty hard driving rain for a couple days over the weekend. But it has rained plenty the previous winters and even snowed pretty good and we didn't have this problem before.
We keep a small space heater in the unit over the winter, just to keep anything from freezing, and we have a small dehumidifier (Davis industries air dryer 500) that we leave in there as well.

We got this RV used and it was long past any warrantee period when we got it, so I'm not looking for a free fix, I'm looking for "how do I sleuth out the real problem here and determine a course of action?"

Thanks.

any chance rain might be coming in through backup camera mounts?

 

[tank1949]

Sounds like a seal did not work. I would think that one of the seals had a gap in it when closed, allowing some water. It could also be a sealant issue on the slide-out itself. Check the slide-out to see if there is anything that shows missing/loose sealant.

Possible foliage debris became trapped?

 

[TerribleTim68]

any chance rain might be coming in through backup camera mounts?

I have no cameras mounted on this unit.

 

[TerribleTim68]

Okay, just a quick update on this. I got a chance to get up there and take a look. Appears there was a big clump of pine needles and such wedged in the outer seal. We had slid the slide out and that clump was basically keeping the remaining section of seal flipped the wrong way. I cleared the debris and it had a big wobble in the seal, I'm hoping this flattens out over time -



Also, these seals are a solid 14 years old. I'm assuming by looking at them that they can be easily replaced. It appears they simply clip on to a channel that is mounted to the body, right? Is there a place where I can buy bulk seals to replace them myself? It doesn't appear to be a terribly difficult job. Anyone know what the correct seal material is? Or a link to where I can buy replacements?

It is supposed to rain today, so I'll check it again this evening to see if the floor is still getting damp. But we discussed it and replacement seals would be a good idea.

 

[jmarnell]

Check out Steele Rubber Products, steelerubber.com. They have about every type of seal for RV's. I've ordered from them a couple of times.

 

[david-steph2018]

TerribleTime 68 you may be able to use a hair dryer and heat the seal to get it to level out. But just use a low temp setting on it, no high heat, you do not want to damage the seal.

 

[wdk450]

The flap seal is for guiding runoff water away from the slideout gap WHEN THE SLIDE IS OUT. The rounded rubber seal is compressed by the slide side flat edges to seal rainwater from getting in to the slide gap WHEN THE SLIDE IS IN.

 

[TerribleTim68]

The flap seal is for guiding runoff water away from the slideout gap WHEN THE SLIDE IS OUT. The rounded rubber seal is compressed by the slide side flat edges to seal rainwater from getting in to the slide gap WHEN THE SLIDE IS IN.

Yeah, makes sense. I'm still unsure exactly how the seals mount. I didn't want to poke at them too much without having something ready to replace them with, just because there's a chance I could mess them up more than they already are. It appears they mount in some sort of channel. Are the wiper part and bulb part two separate seals, or is it a single seal that does both? I'm trying to find replacements but I'm also not 100% sure what I'm looking for. People have said "check with this site" but nobody has said what I'm looking for so I'm kind of poking around on said site blindly.

 

[david-steph2018]

Yeah, makes sense. I'm still unsure exactly how the seals mount. I didn't want to poke at them too much without having something ready to replace them with, just because there's a chance I could mess them up more than they already are. It appears they mount in some sort of channel. Are the wiper part and bulb part two separate seals, or is it a single seal that does both? I'm trying to find replacements but I'm also not 100% sure what I'm looking for. People have said "check with this site" but nobody has said what I'm looking for so I'm kind of poking around on said site blindly.

You will need to look at the end view of the seal. Once you see the seal, you can be able to find the replacement. Take a picture of the end view of the seal, then you will have a reference to start looking.

 

[Roller4tan]

some seals have a screw on the very end, usually the vertical ones. Once removed it will slide off/out. Horizontal ones I add a dab of caulk to the ends to keep them in place.

 

[wdk450]

Some You Tube videos on the subject here: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=RV+trailer+slideout+seals+replacement