Water leak...

[g_man1146]

Hi John,

On my '99 LXi,the cowling or shroud you are speaking of is just a
trim to aerodynamically end the front of the rail. There is no
ssealant needed between the bottom edge of the shroud and the roof.
The only sealing needed is for the mounting screws on the shroud and
for the end of the rail/brackets under the shroud. The water flows
freely under mine and does not leak into the coach. Your model may
be different but looking at the pictures on the Vintage Birds
History page, they appeay similar. Obviously your test shows that
yours does leak so I would suspect something under the shroud.
Anyone have further insight? Personally, I would choose a special
purpose sealant as I'm not a fan of silicone caulk. Again, someone
with more knowledge can hopefully add to this for you.

Rich D. '99LXi43' CT


--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "John"
wrote:
>
> 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
>