Trillium 1974 water leak

[wysiwyg]

Hey guys,

This is my first post on the forum! I bought a Trillium 1974 recently. In the last few days it has being raining alot and I discovered some leakage on the back seat (driver side) at the jonction of the insulation and the fiberglass.



At this point, I'm not sure if the water is coming from the driver back side window since all the interior wood frame is covered with the former insulation. I read on some threads that adding caulking outside on the jalousie window is not necessary but since I would prefer to use the trailer instead of unmounting the windows, I tried to add some mono ultra outside and see the result (back seat driver window only). There is still some leakage happening.

The water appears on the junction of the insulation and the fiberglass on the seat. Waters comes from the rear of the insulation which makes it hard to see the starting point:


And then leaking in the box:


Windows from outside:


Caulking:


Any hint on what to do next? Could the water be coming from the middle junction of the trailer. There is caulking on top:


But not on the underside:



Any help will be greatly appreciated. If it comes to removing the windows and redo the butyl tape, ill do it but before that, I wanna make sure I'm not missing something. Thanks alot!

[agreco]

I would be willing to say belly band is your problem. Is the caulking around the belly band. Is it in good shape or rough with pin holes in it? If there is I would peel it off with a scraper and reapply. Or if you wanna overhaul it remove belly band clean out crevice re apply fibreglass and sand and re rivet aluminum belly band on again

[thrifty bill]

With a trailer over 40 years old, unless you know the windows have been resealed recently, they are due. Belly band on Trilliums is a known leak source as well. Pretty involved repair on that one. Resealing windows is not a big job until you find rotten wood (likely) around the frame. It will have to be replaced. Need a covered and dry work area to do the work.

The good news is the repairs will last you a long time and a Trillium is a great trailer.

Endless threads out there on belly band repair and windows.

[mszabo]

What about the screws above the window?
That's where I found my leaks.

[MAP 56]

On mine same problem i removed the window cleaned the putty off put new putty on .end of leek. after many years the putty drys out and cracks .so then i did the rest.Happy Trails

[John in Michigan]

I agree with all of the above possibilities. We've isolated and fixed the following types of leaks in our Trillium 4500, after doing systematic "garden hose" testing:

- Belly band leaking through the rivets required sealing both above the aluminum trim and around the head of each rivet (by first removing the vinyl insert). The more permanent solution is to remove the aluminum molding, then grind smooth and repair the fiberglass middle seam.
- Leaking associated with the city water fill, fresh water tank fill and grey water drain fittings. Fixed by replacing all of these fittings.
- Windows leaking around edges and through screws. We have done some spot sealing, but the more permanent solution is to remove, re-seal and re-install the windows.

We haven't gotten around to doing some of the more permanent solutions, but instead have chosen to address more pressing issues with the camper, with other things going on in our lives, and most importantly with camping!

[getaway1]

Hi as an owner of a 1976 13' Trillium I would bet your windows are in need of new wood frames all around. Mine were bad and judging by the color of the water in your photo under the bench I would say that it has to be stained from the rotten wood. If it was just a rain water leak most likely the water would be clearer. Re-doing the wood is not that difficult. Hopefully if you want to do that, one frame will be good enough for pattern piece. Take one out at a time and take lots of pictures too as you go. Note that the front & rear top & bottom frame pieces are over 4' long. You will need a table saw to rip the pieces needed. Peeling back the Ensolite covering is the worst part. I replaced all my wood in 2 days working alone. Try and remove one of the screws in the frame and no doubt you will see it has no thread on it. they rust away and don't hold in the wet wood frame. I used wood clear preservative on the replacements. Hoping they will last longer! The original frames are 3/4" fir plywood I think. Use 3/4" butyl tape to seal the edges on the outside, Apply it to the frame after cleaning it well to get to old stuff off. Spray contact cement the ensolite back in place. Good Luck ! & enjoy your new toy! Cheers, Duane

[wysiwyg]

Hey guys,

Thanks you so much for all the time you took to answer my questions, this was really helpful. I will read again your answers later and come back to you.

Thanks again,

[Randy J.]

The belly band on my '76 'Tril has been just fine. All the windows however required/require rebuild of the wooden frames. You can determine if it's the window or the belly band by pulling back the liner beside the window top corners and looking for moisture. Check the wood also for rot. The front and back were worst on mine so I've done them first. I've been able to postpone doing the two smaller ones by first tightening the screws and then using a high end silicone. That got us out camping! This year's been too busy but the little windows are still dry! Maybe this fall...

The steps for rebuilding the windows are well covered in other posts so I won't repeat them here except for the following:

Check when you remove the front and back window to see if the old screws were actually catching the fiberglass at the ends (there will be holes). Both mine had had the opening cut a little too long and so while the top and bottom had fiberglass sandwiched between aluminum and wood as it should be, the ends did not. I built in both front and back edges by about a quarter of an inch to get a good tight fit.

[wysiwyg]

Thanks alot for the advises! Im planning on resealing and cleaning them, one at a time :-). I may have ordered my butyl tape too quickly (3/4" per 1/8"). Now I regret and maybe should have ordered 1" wide. Anyone used the 3/4" one? Will it work just fine? Thanks alot again for the great advices.

[MAP 56]

I use the 1' putty when you reinstall the window and phe putty squrts out a little you have i winner . Happy Trails

[getaway1]

Hi again , most RV outlets carry the buytl tape, so If you are near one check to see if they may have 1" wide in stock. If any squeezes out around the frames just scrape off with a putty knife. I found the best way to apply it was to put in on the frame even with the edge, not the trailer body. Most of the old butyl was 3/4" on my Trillium. Good luck with your job. Duane