Leaky bed end roof at side panels 78 Ranger

[wanderso]

Hi - New owner of a 78 ranger.  Over the labor day weekend, we took it out for the 2nd time and encountered a lot of rain.  In short, the a leak started on the rear of the trailer, door side, dripping down from the ceiling panel of the bed end just past the road cover on the left side.  Another leak began on the right side.  Finally, I see evidence of water intrusion on the panel to the right side of the window.   The bed area nearest the tongue does not exhibit any of these problems.  There are no cracks that I can see at this time.

Of interest in this storm is that this actually was NOT on the weather exposed side of the trailer (meaning that the brunt of the storm was striking the front bed area by the tongue that was not leaking)

As I investigated during the storm, I see that the water runs from the road cover's aluminum surround and exits in a constant stream on either corner with water pouring on the INSIDE of the surround right at the corner.  You can see this with a flashlight when you stand up at the bed and peer into the corner at the road cover.  As I inspect the road cover in this area, there is enough of a gap that water can escape along this location.  This seems ok though as it is about 1/2" away from where the bed walls attach.

What I am asking I guess is:

>Does the seal that is under the metal frame on the road cover help prevent these types of leaks?  Is it worth it to repair (a pain to do due to old rusty screws).  Wouldn't I have this issue anyway even if I do replace it?

>What seals should I be concerned with on the bed end cap area?  The side walls (that slide in) seals appear to be fine/functioning as expected.  I anticipate that the seal where the main panels hinge (window portion of bed end cap and bed end cap roof) could be failing, which would explain water running down the inside wall, as could failed window seals.  The window seals were replaced by the previous owner and look to be in good shape.

>Any recommendations for easily removing the wood interior panels attached to the ABS to perform this investigation? 

>Any other tips to assure a 'leak free' Apache.

Love this Apache - just needing to work out solving these leaks due to the rain reality of camping in the northwest.  In my case, I scrambled to a home depot 90 minutes away to arrive at 6 AM opening and purchase a tarp to cover the roof area for the remainder of our adventure.

Thanks in advance!

[79Ramada]

>Does the seal that is under the metal frame on the road cover help prevent these types of leaks?  Is it worth it to repair (a pain to do due to old rusty screws).  Wouldn't I have this issue anyway even if I do replace it?

The seal under the metal trim of the road cover is important and should be setup properly. Here is the only picture I can find in the gallery that shows correctly setup. The seal should be sticking out under the road cover metal trim, and on top of the bed end roof. What ever is not cover in the corner will be cover by the telescoping cover. BTW the seal can be removed without taking the metal trip off. Also it is not too bad to remove the rusty screws, but not necessary to replace the seal.

[79Ramada]

I anticipate that the seal where the main panels hinge (window portion of bed end cap and bed end cap roof) could be failing, which would explain water running down the inside wall, .....

I'm not certain, but I believe this hinge between the bed end roof (top part in the picture) and the window panel (bottom part) is extruded aluminum. There should be a rectangular piece of rubber that seals out the area. As you can see in the picture, the aluminum and ABS roof panel create a nice valley and all the water would channel into this end. Also notice there is reminance of double stick tape that used to hold a piece of foam to seal out bugs also.

[aaronanalog]

Hey 79Ramada, is that what is called a bag awning ? Know any places to get one for my 79 Ramada at a decent price ?

[79Ramada]

Yes that is a bag awning. That picture belongs to Ramada74. I got a similar awning and was lucky to get one on Craigslist locally.

[FitzFolly]

Finally, I see evidence of water intrusion on the panel to the right side of the window.   
As I investigated during the storm, I see that the water runs from the road cover's aluminum surround and exits in a constant stream on either corner with water pouring on the INSIDE of the surround right at the corner. 
What I am asking I guess is:

>Does the seal that is under the metal frame on the road cover help prevent these types of leaks?  Is it worth it to repair (a pain to do due to old rusty screws).  Wouldn't I have this issue anyway even if I do replace it?

>What seals should I be concerned with on the bed end cap area?  The side walls (that slide in) seals appear to be fine/functioning as expected.  I anticipate that the seal where the main panels hinge (window portion of bed end cap and bed end cap roof) could be failing, which would explain water running down the inside wall, as could failed window seals.  The window seals were replaced by the previous owner and look to be in good shape.

>Any recommendations for easily removing the wood interior panels attached to the ABS to perform this investigation? 

>Any other tips to assure a 'leak free' Apache.

Love this Apache - just needing to work out solving these leaks due to the rain reality of camping in the northwest.  In my case, I scrambled to a home depot 90 minutes away to arrive at 6 AM opening and purchase a tarp to cover the roof area for the remainder of our adventure.

Thanks in advance!

Hi, where are you located in OR? I'm in Salem and would be glad to share some tips with you in person if you are close.
It's normal for some water to drain off the road cover at the inside of the corner. The trim metal corner is more square than the road cover corner. As 79Ramada said, the corner covers should prevent it from coming inside the trailer. If you got water inside from the corner draining then you may not have had the corner covers installed properly. You are right in thinking that you might still have the same drainage occurring if you replaced the weather strip foam under the trim metal.

79Ramada already showed you how the bed end seal should be positioned and he showed you the little rubber flap at the roof to endwall hinge edge. You need to confirm that the bed end seal on the problem end is intact and positioned correctly at set up. It can't direct water out onto the bedend roof if it is dried up and broken off in places.

It is common for the bedroom ABS window frame flange to have cracks that you can't see until you pull out the window. To remove the inside panels just remove the screws that attach the inside window trim metal, remove the trim metal and work out the panels, small ones above and below the window first, then to the sides. BEFORE you actually pull out the panels you should be able to see the ABS flange from the inside and spot cracks. The panels can be difficult to remove and I'd hate for you to risk damaging them if it turned out unnecessary to remove them.

With the bed pulled out and the roof and endwall setup in an inverted V on the sidewalls, inspect the molded sections of the roof and endwall that the sidewalls seat into. Look them over closely for cracks that would allow water to wick inside.

I have a 78 and have done a lot of maintenance on it so I'm glad to help.
Take care,
Mike

[kanega]

I did two things for the bed end water leaks.  First, I had some exterior window shades from fiberglass roof center pieces and added 1 1/2 aluminum strips on both windows end covering the crack of the window to the frame, but keep the bottom open for drainage.  I just bolted on the aluminum strips to the window frame on the outside.

The exterior cover is 48" wide green, and cut to fit the top of the window above the frame while fitting inside next to the ABS bed end wall.  All corner are rounded and sanded for safety.  I rivit on aluminum 3/4" U shape pieces to at both end at top of the cover.  Now the covers just slides on from one end.  A small stretchy is used in the midde running down to the window frame base.  Wind resistant, but not proof, rolling rain away from the window.  All parts were purchased from Home Depot.

[medicmike5969]

Wanderso,
Some pictures would be great to see.

Kanega,
Please give us some pictures of your project so we can see that too?


Mike