Help!!! Leaking windows

[Creamowheat]

I own a Fiberstream. I have removed, cleaned, butal tape exterior side and interior side, reinstalled the window and it still leaks. I have not caulked around the window as of yet. I really want to insure the leak is fixed before starting the interior remodel. Thanks I advance. Please provide your fix

[John in Michigan]

If you have slider type windows, next things to check using a garden hose:

- check whether you used ENOUGH butyl tape, i.e., no water is passing between the frame and the trailer body

- clean out the weep holes with flexible wire, flush out with water, repeat until water drains well out the weep holes

- check whether water is passing between each glass pane and sash frame. If it is, remove, re-seal and re-install pane(s)

- check whether water is passing through window frame factory seams. If it is, re-seal seam(s)

[John in Michigan]

My suggestions above are based window leaks I found on my Boler 17 as we removed, re-sealed and re-installed all of the windows. Yep, I found ALL of the above types of leaks

[k0wtz]

I have used a small drill bit to clean out those drain slits when it rains and I when I go check I see where they are draining but where is that water coming from nothing going to the inside!

With the seals on the windows it would appear the rain water is sliding right over them. Or is the water gathering on the frame and running out?

The only window I am having problems with is that wind out kitchen window on the Scamp?

bob

Originally Posted by John in Michigan

My suggestions above are based window leaks I found on my Boler 17 as we removed, re-sealed and re-installed all of the windows. Yep, I found ALL of the above types of leaks

[J Ron]

Lived on a boat a few years. leaking windows are a problem there also. Cap'n Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure often worked very well. we bought it at boating stores, in a small round bottle. It's a thin clear liquid. Put it along the top of the window seal and let a little run in and cure and repeat until no leak. It's a thin glue that will find the cracks. put a little on a verticle surface so it runs out thin and see how long it takes to cure, will not take very long. It is also good to glue loose chair rounds, it runs in without the need for disassembly.

[k0wtz]

Originally Posted by J Ron

Lived on a boat a few years. leaking windows are a problem there also. Cap'n Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure often worked very well. we bought it at boating stores, in a small round bottle. It's a thin clear liquid. Put it along the top of the window seal and let a little run in and cure and repeat until no leak. It's a thin glue that will find the cracks. put a little on a verticle surface so it runs out thin and see how long it takes to cure, will not take very long. It is also good to glue loose chair rounds, it runs in without the need for disassembly.

I will look this product up makes sense. so far no water in the trailer so far but I look. its a 98 scamper by the way.

thanks

bob

[k corbin]

Originally Posted by Creamowheat

I own a Fiberstream. I have removed, cleaned, butal tape exterior side and interior side, reinstalled the window and it still leaks. I have not caulked around the window as of yet. I really want to insure the leak is fixed before starting the interior remodel. Thanks I advance. Please provide your fix

maybe it needs new seals. There are lots of them on sliding windows, the vertical ones in the middle and the ones in the track and the ones around the outside. Plus the seal inside the track that the glass sits in. If you are getting too much water into the track from the exterior because your seals are not snug enough it can easily over run over the top of the track and spill over to the inside. The weep holes can only let out just so much water at any one time. Depending on the material the gasket inside the track is made of it might be clogged and not allowing the water to escape into the track and out through the weep holes.

So there is more to it for keeping old windows from leaking than just having new butyl tape. Window seals seal out drafts and also excess water infiltration. I had to take out the windows in my 1971 Trailswest Campster and put in new seals inside the tracks, also the vertical seals and the exterior seals as well. They were all bad due to age, UV degration with makes vinyl seals shrink, the "felt run seal" that was inside the track was rusted and the fabric of it had pretty much fallen to pieces. Not a fun job to do but an essential one.

[OR335d]

There are a couple critical issues with Fiber Stream windows. First, from what you said, you put butyl tape on the inside. You can only use the tape on the outside, as the assembly will continue to squish and move, causing leaks. Second, if the windows originally clamped around the wood paneling on the inside and you’ve removed this, you will need to add a spacer at the inside of the frame to compensate for the reduced wall thickness, or it won’t clamp tight. Thirdly, in our Fiber Stream, the factory did a poor job cutting out the window holes, and the window barely covered the opening. You need to ensure the window is perfectly placed, or fiberglass in the extra space if you have this problem.

The windows only have a joint on the side, so as long as the weeps aren’t plugged, none of the gaskets should cause leaking as the water will just drain out. Well, maybe the screw holes from the vertical mullion at the bottom could use a sealant check.

Hope this helps,
Randy and Ranae