Water leak...

[John]

We finally got some much needed rain here in central TX yesterday. I
just happened to be out in our bird getting things ready for our
upcomming trip and I noticed a wet spot on the capret on top of the
dash just in front of the co-pilot's seat. After opening up some
panels in the front overhead cabinets and removing the speaker above
the entry door I think I got the area where water was coming in pretty
well narrowed down. I thought it was where the awning rail was screwed
down. After it stopped raining and had dried out, I used a water
bottle to wet the area around the awning rail...no water insde...then
I noticed the plastic/fiberglass cowling at the front end of the rails
that run the length of the roof looked cracked in a couple places and
like the cowling might be lifting up a little. I wet that area and
presto....there was water inside again. If I get a chance today I am
going to pull that cowling off and clean off the old silicone and
re-seal everything.
Would it be ok to use an exterior silicone adhesive caulk from home
depot or should I use something more specialized for up on the roof? I
think part of the cover is on the steel part of the roof and part is
over the fiberglass cap. Also, since the covers are starting to crack,
I am worried that when I screw them back down they might crack further
or break...any ideas other than washers to help distribute the force?
I'm sure it would be expensive to replace them as they are painted. I
thought about applying some resin or something around the cracks then
redrilling the holes. The cracks are only around the screw holes.
Sorry for the long post...Would appreciate any tips.

John C.
98 Wanderlodge LX