Leakage around roof vent + do wind up legs exist?

[Wildmax]

Has anyone had problems with LEAKAGE THROUGH THE ROOF HATCHES?

I have a Canning delivered new in September last year, and have been travelling in Queensland for the past few months (that's the Sunshine State, where it does nothing but rain!!).

Twice during heavy falls there has been substantial leakage in through the rear hatch - the first time waking us up with very wet feet and bedding during the night, the second time when driven and parked during the day after which we opened the camper up to discover a sodden mattress under the hatch.

In both cases the roof lining surrounding the hatch was also damp, and water seemed to have entered the gutter which holds the wiring over the foot of the bed - some moisture has also got inside the two rear light fittings.

I think I've solved the problem by applying silicone sealant around the outside of the flange on the top of both hatches.

It seems a bit odd to me that this sealing wasn't done during manufacture, as the rear hatch sits in a sort of well in the roofline, which means that any heavy rainfalls will cause pooling and the seal that was installed obviously allowed a couple of access points for moisture.

Anyone else had this problem or any other suggestions for protective action I should take?

Secondly, has anyone come up with a design and/or supplier for WIND UP LEGS for the TVan floor - an alternative to having to adjust them by the current method which seems to slip very easily?

Regards
Wildmax

[The Hueys]

If the hatch is leaking then the best course of action is to pull it out and reseal under it. Track no longer put sealant around the outside as the silicone and polyurethane do not really stick to the plastic and come away over time. As such this will only be a temp repair at best. The hatches are installed with a bead of butyl which if done properly should not leak for many years.

Many wind up legs have been tried over the years, most left a lot to be desired as far as easy operation is concerned. The best ones I've seen with special threads to reduce the winding required cost over $100 each to make so that rules them out too for most owners.

[Wildmax]

Thanks for that Craig. If you have a really good memory you may recall that I dealt with you when I took delivery last September (must have been just before you moved on). You discovered on handover that one hatch cover was cracked, therefore had it replaced before I drove away. It is this one that leaked, so it's possible that in view of time constraints the seal may not have bedded down properly.
I'll book the van in for a service at Bayswater at the end of this trip (currently heading up the Cape), and will ask if the hatch can be re-sealed under warranty. In the meantime, hope either it doesn't rain much, or the temporary repair I've made protects us from wet feet in the meantime.
Bummer about the wind up legs - do you know who it was who made up the $100 each versions?
Cheers
Wildmax

[peterjantvan]

Hi

Track now have legs that have holes and a pin - see this link for them.

http://www.tracktrailer.com.au/Enewsletter/2012/Service/VicServiceEmail.pdf

Quote Track - They have improved the DECK LEG! This is the simplest and easiest way to set the height on your Tvan's
Deck. The leg itself has 8 points of adjustment, the T-piece has another 3 points meaning there are 24
individual height settings, 1 for every possible setup!
The pin features a sprung ball bearing to prevent the pin from disengaging accidentally,
and is extremely easy to use.


I have ordered some to be here early August.
Hope this helps
Peter

[astoops]

Hi Wildmax,

I had a leak in the hatch from a Tvan picked up in Nov 2011. Returned under warranty and fixed I hope - I garage the Tvan; the Patrol sits in the rain.

Regards,

Alan

[Wildmax]

Great, thanks astoops and peterjantvan - I'll follow both those options up when I book in for service in September after we gete back from the Cape.
Cheers
Wildmax

[The Hueys]

From memory we only replaced the cracked lid which should not affect the seal between the roof and the body of the hatch. Whatever the cause making the booking to get it redone is the best course of action.

I don't recall who made the legs I saw (it was a Tvan owner who brought one in for us to look at) but it was machine grade stainless (he made bakery machinery from memory) with a special thread cut to make operation faster and smoother with a captive floating foot (the big issue we found with  most basic screw type legs was how slow they were to adjust between extreme heights although I have seen some made by owners with bolt heads to allow adjustment with a cordless drill and the fact that the foot ground into the surface due to the turning of the shaft). It was something like a large G clamp arrangement.

The pin type mentioned above have been in the pipeline for a while with a number of different prototypes tried and tested over the past year or two and trace their basic idea back to the original Traveller prototype. It's funny how some of the simplest things can be the most difficult to improve on, I'm glad to see a new design has come to fruition after all the work that has been put in by many people over such a relatively long time.

[VaniT]

Thanks for that Craig. If you have a really good memory you may recall that I dealt with you when I took delivery last September (must have been just before you moved on). You discovered on handover that one hatch cover was cracked, therefore had it replaced before I drove away. It is this one that leaked, so it's possible that in view of time constraints the seal may not have bedded down properly.
I'll book the van in for a service at Bayswater at the end of this trip (currently heading up the Cape), and will ask if the hatch can be re-sealed under warranty. In the meantime, hope either it doesn't rain much, or the temporary repair I've made protects us from wet feet in the meantime.
Bummer about the wind up legs - do you know who it was who made up the $100 each versions?
Cheers
Wildmax