Sealing Bigfoot

[DwayneR]

I am inclined to use butyl tape on both windows, doors,& belly seal moulding but the local RV place says use the other crumbly stuff, & then top it off with a bead of Kop-R-Lastic. I think use Butyl and then a Kop-R-Lasic bead.

[Raya]

In my opinion, whatever you use should be put beneath whatever it is you are going to seal, not on top or on the edge. In other words, for a window, the sealant goes beneath the flange, before you install it. Prep both surfaces properly, of course.

A "top it off" bead does not do anything for the seal (if it did, all those windows that people try to re-seal by just putting a bead on top would never leak again - and we know how well that works), but does create a dirt trap.

I like the butyl tape (superior to the non-butyl tape), but there are other decent sealants (just not silicone!).

Raya

[Frederick L. Simson]

I think use Butyl and then a [b]Kop-R-Lastic bead.

I had not heard of Kop-R-Lastic before. I had to google it.

[BobB]

Duane R,

I was wondering if the Bigfoot people were successful in re-opening to do repairs on Bigfoot RVs in Armstrong, BC. Mark Holmes has a website set up to ask questions as to how their RVs were put together and what their sources were. Anyone contacted them recently?

As far as I know, the window manufacturer is still in business and might be a source of information as to how the windows should be sealed. I was under the impression that they used a gasket, but I've never removed one of my windows.

One of the mainstream procedures is to use butyl caulk tape under the flange of vents, etc and then seal the exposed edges of the butyl caulk with elastomeric caulk. Eternabond tape is is relatively new product which I haven't used.