Oh No! It leaks!

[lhanna]

Well, sad to say, my "new" 1978 Trillium leaks. We had a horrible storm last night and there is water, not a whole bunch, but enough, running along the top where my cushions sit. Thank goodness the bottoms of the cushions are vinyl. Is there anyone in the Edmonton, Alberta area, who is has space and the knowledge to reinstall/reseal the windows? Or can anyone recommend some place that won't cost too much? Thank you, any help would be appreciated. My little high from purchasing my little darlin' has dropped significantly.

[Brian Tin]

Don't let a little leak get you down, they are easy to fix and the beauty of a FG trailer is you don't have to worry about all the damage from rot and mold etc. I'm sure there's someone close to you on here that can help

[Ray N]

My brand new EggCamper had a leaking window and a leaking tail light. It's upsetting with a brand-new unit, but they were both easily fixed. The window did take a couple of hours to fix - mainly because I had never done it before and was very cautious and hesitant with every step. Turned out to be a lot easier job than I thought it would - something I can't usually say.

[peterh]

Originally Posted by lhanna

Is there anyone in the Edmonton, Alberta area, who is has space and the knowledge to reinstall/reseal the windows?

Our little trailers are built a lot like fiberglass boats, so chances are a boat repair shop could do the job for you. If your trailer has been updated to modern windows, it's an easy job, if you have the older jalousie windows there's more troubleshooting involved.

[HikeSticks]

Hi ihanna,
Don't fret too much. It will work out. My '72 Trillium was leaking through a front window when the wind blew a certain way or when I was driving into a driving rain. The problem was the window slats wouldn't remain tight. Mine didn't have a rock guard so I made one and now the rain doesn't touch the windows and no more leaking. Because the leaking was minor anyway, before the rock guard I just moved the front cushion whenever I was traveling in rain or parked in the rain and just wiped up the water before replacing the cushion.
Enjoy!
Barrie

[Ken C]

"you don't have to worry about all the damage from rot and mold"
I disagree, if you have a wood subfloor, you do have to worry about rot.

Ray, in what way manner did your window leak and how did you go about fixing it? thanks.

[lhanna]

Thank you everyone. I do have the window guard so I guess that is a good thing. I know I have to remove the windows, I just don't have the nerve to do it, never mind a place to do it. I guess one of my biggest fears is that if I try to do it and mess up I'll have a much bigger problem as a result. If I actually tackle this, as soon as the window is off, the weather will change and pour, generally my luck. Assuming I don't have to replace wood, is the process as simple as carefully removing the screws, pulling the window, putting butyl tape around the opening (and where? around the actual cut opening against the fiberglass? and putting the window back over top? You use the same holes but use new stainless steel screws? kSame size screws or slightly larger? When I screw the window back in, my understanding is the BT will ooze out after I tighten the screws, do I trim is back or leave it? The black trim covering the screws is old and brittle, I'll have to replace that too. Do RV shops still carry this? Also, will I need to pull back the lensolite inside? If I had an enclosed area to do this I probably wouldn't worry so much, but the lil darlin' won't fit in the garage. I've seen a couple of posts whereby people have made special little wheels, ingenious, but not an option for me. Thanks again.

Originally Posted by Barrie Bochoff

Hi ihanna,
Don't fret too much. It will work out. My '72 Trillium was leaking through a front window when the wind blew a certain way or when I was driving into a driving rain. The problem was the window slats wouldn't remain tight. Mine didn't have a rock guard so I made one and now the rain doesn't touch the windows and no more leaking. Because the leaking was minor anyway, before the rock guard I just moved the front cushion whenever I was traveling in rain or parked in the rain and just wiped up the water before replacing the cushion.
Enjoy!
Barrie

[lhanna]

Now about this sub floor. I've seen pictures of trillium 1300 that have fiberglass floors. Looks exactly like the forms for the benches, kitchen etc.
The flooring in my trailer has been covered with cork laminate. Are you saying there is wood under that or would I find fiberglass. I've read that bolers have a "glassed in" subfloor and that the trilliums were all fiberglass - is this the case or just on some models? The amount of water getting in is minimal, no where near the floor but want to be sure. Probably the only way to be sure is to pull up the laminate.......not this year.

Originally Posted by Ken C

"you don't have to worry about all the damage from rot and mold"
I disagree, if you have a wood subfloor, you do have to worry about rot.

Ray, in what way manner did your window leak and how did you go about fixing it? thanks.

[Ray N]

Originally Posted by Ken C

"Ray, in what way manner did your window leak and how did you go about fixing it? thanks.

The emergency window had a leak. I pulled the window and saw a spot at the top where the original caulk/butyl didn't quite come together. I stripped out all the old caulk and put in new butyl tape. That fixed the problem.

[Ken C]

Yes, some Bolers have no wood floor but it depends on what year they were made. Casita has the fiberglass floor you describe. If you pull back the laminate you see fiberglass, but under is wood. It's common for water to run inside the interior wall down to the wood sub floor. Out of sight, behind the ratfur, behind vinyl. Members have reported spongy or soft floor when you walk is the only unfortunate detection some get. Good luck.

[freddie b]

You will find a fibreglass floor underneath the cork.

[freddie b]

Pull the window and clean off all the old butyl.

Peel the Ensolite back just enough to see if the wood is rotten. If it is, or if the screw holes are too loose, it is not a big deal to replace the wood if you can get it cut by someone from a sample.

Stick the butyl tape around on the window flange, overlapping on the corners, then screw it all back together using SS #8 screws.

Trim off the butyl squeeze out with something like a plastic knife that won't cut into the fibreglass. You might have to do this a couple of times as it may continue to ooze a bit.

The plastic screw cover trim is readily available in 6 ft lengths.

Remember, no guts no glory
Fred

[Rick G]

Originally Posted by lhanna

Thank you everyone. I do have the window guard so I guess that is a good thing. I know I have to remove the windows, I just don't have the nerve to do it, never mind a place to do it. I guess one of my biggest fears is that if I try to do it and mess up I'll have a much bigger problem as a result. If I actually tackle this, as soon as the window is off, the weather will change and pour, generally my luck. Assuming I don't have to replace wood, is the process as simple as carefully removing the screws, pulling the window, putting butyl tape around the opening (and where? around the actual cut opening against the fiberglass? and putting the window back over top? You use the same holes but use new stainless steel screws? kSame size screws or slightly larger? When I screw the window back in, my understanding is the BT will ooze out after I tighten the screws, do I trim is back or leave it? The black trim covering the screws is old and brittle, I'll have to replace that too. Do RV shops still carry this? Also, will I need to pull back the lensolite inside? If I had an enclosed area to do this I probably wouldn't worry so much, but the lil darlin' won't fit in the garage. I've seen a couple of posts whereby people have made special little wheels, ingenious, but not an option for me. Thanks again.

Hi,
You didn’t say which window was leaking. You did say that you don’t have a place to work on the trailer, and also lack the nerve because of a lack of experience. Fair enough, we are not all mechanics.

Unfortunately, having to go to an RV shop will mean expense, no matter what, but if you do, I know that Edmonton RV Service on Argyll Rd. used to rent the Outback (the 13 foot Trillium currently made in Calgary) and had one at their property a couple of years ago, and they have a picture of one in their Yellow pages ad. Presumably they know something about them. I have only bought a few items from them, and don’t know about their service approach or value.

I have had the best luck finding stuff from R.V. Country off the Yellowhead near 66 St., and especially ArrKann RV in the east end. They both seem to have knowledgeable and friendly staff, but both I think have not worked much, if at all, on fibreglass trailers. You would have to ask them about it but, as noted by other posters, a leaky window is a fairly minor repair and I know that both sell butyl tape so presumably they would know what they are doing. I can’t recommend anyone in particular for doing repairs, because I try to do all my own repairs myself, but you could check those companies out.

Hope that helps,
Rick G

[lhanna]

Soooooo Rick..........you do all your repairs yourself? And you live in Edmonton? A hop, skip and a jump from me...... How much do you charge per hour?!!! LOL Thank you for your info. We recently had a horrible service experience with Arrkann unfortunately. They used to carry the trillium line and I was hoping they would be able to do the work, but my confidence in their ability to help with a leak issue isn't great. The back window, the one with the emergency hatch and the front I believe are my bad boys. Of course it couldn't be a little one! I'm going to try the hose trick to see exactly where the water is coming in but from everything I have read windows are a safe bet. I have bought the butyl tape so my courage is increasing!

Originally Posted by Rick G

Hi,
You didn’t say which window was leaking. You did say that you don’t have a place to work on the trailer, and also lack the nerve because of a lack of experience. Fair enough, we are not all mechanics.

Unfortunately, having to go to an RV shop will mean expense, no matter what, but if you do, I know that Edmonton RV Service on Argyll Rd. used to rent the Outback (the 13 foot Trillium currently made in Calgary) and had one at their property a couple of years ago, and they have a picture of one in their Yellow pages ad. Presumably they know something about them. I have only bought a few items from them, and don’t know about their service approach or value.

I have had the best luck finding stuff from R.V. Country off the Yellowhead near 66 St., and especially ArrKann RV in the east end. They both seem to have knowledgeable and friendly staff, but both I think have not worked much, if at all, on fibreglass trailers. You would have to ask them about it but, as noted by other posters, a leaky window is a fairly minor repair and I know that both sell butyl tape so presumably they would know what they are doing. I can’t recommend anyone in particular for doing repairs, because I try to do all my own repairs myself, but you could check those companies out.

Hope that helps,
Rick G

[lhanna]

Okey dokey Freddie - I have the butyl tape. Now, pulling back the ensolite - isn't the wood in the inside part of the metal frame, the part inside the trailer? Also, dumb newbie question - the flange - what is that? Is it just the opening? Okay, you can stop laughing now. In future, if you need a giggle, picture me actually doing this. Thank you so much for your help.

Originally Posted by freddie b

Pull the window and clean off all the old butyl.

Peel the Ensolite back just enough to see if the wood is rotten. If it is, or if the screw holes are too loose, it is not a big deal to replace the wood if you can get it cut by someone from a sample.

Stick the butyl tape around on the window flange, overlapping on the corners, then screw it all back together using SS #8 screws.

Trim off the butyl squeeze out with something like a plastic knife that won't cut into the fibreglass. You might have to do this a couple of times as it may continue to ooze a bit.

The plastic screw cover trim is readily available in 6 ft lengths.

Remember, no guts no glory
Fred

[Meghan]

I just found out my play pac window leaks also. I am hoping it is because the outside trim , caulk, whatever, is missing. The stuff that seals the window into the window frame. I will be following this thread closely!

[lhanna]

Just another question to throw out there guys - Does anyone have a link, or video, i.e utube - showing the window reseal? I'm pretty sure I've got it down, but would feel so much more confident seeing it done first. Thanks again. I don't know if I will have the ability to video my first window, but will try to do it for the next.

[freddie b]

The wood is inside the trailer behind the ensolite. The fibreglass of the trailer is sandwiched between the window frame and the wood, which is what actually holds the window in.

The flange is the flat part of the aluminum window frame where the screws go through into the wood.

On the front you will also have to remove the rock guard to access the top row of screws.

Nobody is laughing, we've all been there. Keep us posted.

[lhanna]

Thank you Freddie - starting off small. Got under the storage bench and found out the new LED lights were not sealed. Can see quite easily where some water is getting in. Also, the little @#$! didn't fill in the old holes properly, looks like he just filled it with bondo and painted over. I literally pushed the little patch right out. As a quick fix for that I'm just going to fill with RV sealant. Not at the fiberglass patching stage yet. So I'll seal the lights with butyl tape first and then tackle "a" window. I'm going to double check them all one by one with the hose (ever so lightly) just to make sure I'm not fixing it if it ain't broke. I know they probably all need redoing eventually, but time and money are not on my side. Courage is also diminishing as I head out with my handy dandy screwdriver!

Originally Posted by freddie b

The wood is inside the trailer behind the ensolite. The fibreglass of the trailer is sandwiched between the window frame and the wood, which is what actually holds the window in.

The flange is the flat part of the aluminum window frame where the screws go through into the wood.

On the front you will also have to remove the rock guard to access the top row of screws.

Nobody is laughing, we've all been there. Keep us posted.

[lhanna]

ok, so that didn't go very well. Can't get the light off. Something my electrician husband will have to do. Once I was in there it looked like they had put butyl in with the screws so the search continues. Took the trim off the little window above the stove. Once I got over the 20 or so little spiders that came out of a little egg sack (eek!) I saw that the two side of the window are riveted while the top and bottom are screws. Definately rusted in the corner and loose so water in there for sure. How do I remove the rivets and once done can I just replace them with screws? Also, the inside of this window does not have the frame on the inside. ????????? suggestions?,