How to track down a water leak?

Shane826 · 04-17-2016, 02:48 PM

Just opened up my 2007 3326 King for the first time of the year. Found the incandescent lamp over the couch on the door side not working. Popped the cover off the lamp and it had water in it... Not a lot, but any is more than it should be! No other water intrusion is apparent anywhere, including the lamp that is right next to the one with water in it.

What's the best way to find my leak? My first guess is it's coming in through the seam that runs down the middle of the roof. But that's JUST a guess. and I would think if that's the case the lamp that butts up against the wet lamp would have water in it too. Anyone have thoughts how to track down my leak? Thanks!

-Shane

**commodor47** · 04-17-2016, 04:54 PM

Shane,

Tracking down a roof leak can be a challenge. In most cases the infiltration occurs at one of the skylights. I discovered the source of my leak was the center skylight, the one with the small black switch that powers the two under cabinet lights. In your case, if the leak in fact originates at the center skylight, it may have followed the wiring of the fixture cover that had the small amount of water. One way to be sure is to remove the center wire channel cover. But - that cover can be a bear to replace. I would suggest using small pieces of tape to carefully align the wires (keep them parallel and right up against the ceiling channel) before attempting to replace the channel cover. Given the length of the channel cover it would be very helpful to have an assistant - or two.

Dick

Shane826 · 04-17-2016, 05:02 PM

Interesting... And that's a great picture as well! Thanks so much! I'll pull that wiring trim down tomorrow and take a look for any other moisture in there.

04-17-2016, 07:22 PM

My leak was caused by the center-line down the roof. Check to see if the calking has separated. I had to pull up the trim by carefully using a putty knife. Then I used the same putty knife to separate the center seam back as far as I could take it. I used clear silicon to reseal the seam. You might have to put some weight on the seam until the silicon dries. Then I put a bead of silicon down each side of the trim. Start the screw on the front end and place the trim over the seam.

scrubjaysnest · 04-18-2016, 04:18 AM

Haven't had any success chasing a similar leak, it runs under the Styrofoam, between it and the inside aluminum. Sometimes comes out the Fantastic vent, sometimes the the next vent forward. Striped and re-caulked all the outside seams and hasn't helped. On rare occasions it comes out the end of the center cable tray so I'm thinking it's somewhere around the A/C unit. Worse it only happens with a misting rain not a down pour.

Shane826 · 04-23-2016, 01:53 PM

I pulled down the overhead wiring garnish that runs down the middle of the ceiling. It was wet in there as well. It starts showing signs of water intrusion about a foot forward of the roof vents and is bone dry further back towards th A/C. So I'm thinking this is gonna be a center roof seam leak, as I ALWAYS park the TM with the front higher than the rear to allow the rain to run off... I guess resealing the center seam (I'll probably try and do the vents and antenna as well while I'm at it) is in my future.

**Bill** · 04-23-2016, 02:01 PM

I'm also thinking the TV antenna is a possibility. Check the caulking around the base plate. If water enters here, it could go anywhere inside the roof structure.

In addition, Dick (Commodor47) clued me in to the fact that the antenna's crank stem, going up through the center of the housing, has a couple seals that are supposed to be oiled occasionally. Check the instruction manual.

On my TM, I got a small leak around the antenna crank, and Dick's clue about oiling the seals fixed it. If you are getting water around the crank, this is the suspect. On the other hand, if the crank is dry, it is more likely to be the base plate caulking.

Bill

Shane826 · 04-23-2016, 03:22 PM

Hahaha instruction manual... That's funny! The antenna crank is dry. The only place there's water is in the wiring channel and door side lamp between the sofa and vents... But I'll check it out!

**Kidkraz** · 04-23-2016, 04:38 PM

I always refer to those documents as a destruction manual...mainly cause I've probably destroyed what ever it was supposed to be before I get to reading the manual. Sometimes looking at the pretty pictures just doesn't give you enough info on how something works.
Good luck with your leak.

Shane826 · 04-23-2016, 05:10 PM

Haha I meant more because my TM didn't come with its blue binder. I need to wrangle up the various manuals. I started to do so over the winter, then realized it was kinda guessing until I could get in and see what was what so I got the correct manuals. Now I have a list going of makes & models.