The Slide Out On My RV Leaks When It Rains

by Linda Gallop
(Norfolk , Va.)

II have a Salem Limited by Forest River. If the slide out is out when it rains water drips off the ceiling and down the wall in the middle of the slideout. How can I pinpoint the leak and what can I do about it?

ANSWER: Greetings Linda thanks for submitting your question on our Ask An RV Question Page.

I am sorry that you are going through all of this. Let me give you some suggestions on what you can do to resolve this problem with your Travel Trailer. I believe that the problem is going to end up being with your slide out's weather seals. Just follow the steps below to narrow it down.

1. The first thing I would do is make sure that the trailer is level. If you are too far off of level, water could bypass a bad seal on the slide out and leak into the interior of the trailer.

2. With the slide out open inspect the seals where the slide out closes into the side of the Travel Trailer. You are looking for any cracks, gaps or dry rotting of the seals. If the seals are dry brittle or have gaps, the slide out seals will have to be replaced.

The weather seals on slide outs get damaged and cracked due to excessive exposure to heat, ultra violet rays and freezing temperatures. This could allow moisture to enter into the living quarters of your travel trailer causing damage to its contents. This could be an even bigger problem if the travel trailer is not completely level. Which reminds me if you are not already doing so you need to use some Slide Out Rubber Seal Conditioner once every two months to treat the slide out seals to prevent them from cracking and degrading prematurely.

3. I don't know if your Travel Trailer is equipped with a Slide Topper Awning or not, but if it isn't I would suggest that you get them installed on all of your slide outs. These awnings prevent excessive dirt, debris and rain water from accumulating on the top of the slide out. When you have excessive debris on the top of your slide out it can damage the slide out seals as well as bring all of that dirt and debris into the RV when you close the slide out.

Hopefully the above information has been useful to you.

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Happy RVing

RVing Al

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