Anyone else have a 2011 Zinger with rotted floor spot??

IQRaceworks · 06-09-2016, 11:43 AM

I recently picked up a nice 2011 Crossroads Zinger 19RDS TT. Before I bought it I walked around on the floor checking for any soft spots, checked the inside and outside of all the walls, looked in every storage area and checked for signs of water, inspected the roof for any bad spots, checked all of the caulked joints and seals on the outside of the trailer…..and aside from a little waviness of the front outer “hung wall” on the nose of the trailer, everything looked great! The previous owners took really good care of it ….and never really used it much.

Fast forward to last night…..I pulled out the rear bench/couch in order for my wife to get to some areas that she wanted to paint. And what do I find? The rear corner of the TT that was covered by the bench, was spongy…and after cutting out a piece of linoleum to inspect, is completely rotted out. At least it’s in a spot I can easily get to in order to make the repair. It should be an easy fix, I’ve done this type of work before.

There are two things that boggle my mind……1.) Where did this water come from? All the seals look great, the roof looks great, no delamination of the fiberglass walls on the outside of the trailer, and there is nothing in that area on the outside of the TT that would lead me to think water was getting in. 2.) This thing is only 5 years old……are these TT’s really put together so badly that only after 5 years, they leak bad enough to have a part of the floor rotted out!! I can’t imagine what I would have been in for if I would have bought a TT that was 10-15 years old.

woodwalker · 06-09-2016, 03:21 PM

Of water is getting in and not dried in Less than a year the wood will be rotten. They may have repaired the trailer where the water came in but did not repair the problems it caused

**mark5w** · 06-09-2016, 05:57 PM

One of the best places for water to leak is around the running lights and scare lights that are on the RV. I removed the lights, found a 1" hole for a 1/8" wire. I filled the hole in around the wire, reinstalled the light and caulked around the top and sides of the lights.
The other point is the seams on the roof and any other object that has sealant around it. For seams I use Eternabond tape, self leveling caulk for the rest.

hippy45 · 06-09-2016, 05:59 PM

Check your clearance lights. I had an intermittent leak in a front storage compartment. Drove me crazy. Took off the side marker, and it was not sealed behind. The water was running along the siding seam and landing by the door frame for the storage area.

IQRaceworks · 06-09-2016, 07:43 PM

Well, I pulled out everything in the rear of the trailer....and started pulling up the linoleum to see how bad the floor really was. The only soft spot was in the corner.....but the more linoleum I pulled up....the more bad floor I found. Pretty much the entire 4x8 sheet of plywood at the rear of the camper needs replaced. The insulation was soaking wet....I'm sure that didn't help things.

I was able to get the entire section of plywood out, now I'm going to put a fan on it to let it dry out...and then start cleaning up all of the wood around the edges. Install my new bracing, new insulation, new resin coated plywood piece, and then new vinyl flooring on top.

I still wasn't able to find any areas on the trailer were water could have gotten in. Once I get everything cleaned up and dry....I'm going to have my wife start spraying up under the wheel wells, and on every window, light, and sealed up place on the outside of the trailer with a garden hose...and I'm going to stay inside with a flashlight and see if I can see any water getting in anywhere. If it all check out..time for the new floor.

Here are some pics......I never would have though that I was getting into this when I bought this 2011 "well taken care of" trailer.

Would the gaps in the seals on the outside windows let water in? Or does it just run out of the little drain holes on the bottom of the window frame?

The caulk around the outside of the window frame looks very good.

Burgy · 06-09-2016, 07:48 PM

Are the walls wet?

IQRaceworks · 06-09-2016, 08:03 PM

Nope...the walls are all solid..inside and out.

Burgy · 06-09-2016, 08:38 PM

Is that the rear of the trailer? Is there a faucet or drain near by? Could something have leaked from underneath and it wicked up?

IQRaceworks · 06-09-2016, 09:12 PM

Yes, its the very rear of the trailer. It might be coming from the windows in the back....but I actually think that it might be coming from where the plastic wheel wells come through the floor.....I will know after inlet everything dry out really good, and then start spraying the outside and under the wheel wells of the camper with a hose.

If it is coming from the wheel wells...that would explain why the walls are not wet.....the water probably comes in through the bottom..soaks the insulation...and just sits there.

I got up under the camper tonight to get a better look at everything.....to say these campers are put together as fast, cheap, and sloppy as possible would be an understatement.

IQRaceworks · 06-10-2016, 08:24 AM

So are those gaps in the black rubber window frame seals a concern, or is that just for cosmetics? I'm assuming that when water gets in those seals, it just runs out of the window frame drain holes?

Burgy · 06-10-2016, 10:18 AM

Not sure on the window gaps.

Can you see day light through the rear of the camper?

IQRaceworks · 06-10-2016, 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burgy

Not sure on the window gaps.

Can you see day light through the rear of the camper?

Nope, I haven't been able to find any spots where daylight is coming through. Hopefully I will find something when I hit the trailer with a water hose.

IQRaceworks · 06-13-2016, 08:17 PM

Well, after digging around in and under the camper.....I think I found the problem. It looks like at one time there was a huge gap between the wheelwell and the floor where water must have been getting in. The previous owner filled the gap with expandable foam. I could see the foam on the top side of the wheelwell under the sink area, and it was coming through the bottom side of the camper also. It must have been a big gap.

After I got all of the bad wood and insulation out, and dried everything out....I sprayed water up under the wheelwells...every everywhere else around the camper......no leaks. I think I'm going to do a pressure test anyways...just to be sure,but I'm pretty sure the think is water tight now

I have the new supports in, the new insulation in, and the new plywood in..I just need to finish up a little more calking around the edges, and put some new vinyl flooring down...and it's all ready to go

markandkim · 06-14-2016, 03:50 AM

I have found on my Zinger, that where the slide rams come through the frame over the wheels is a good place for water to get inside the membrane. Why don't these things have wheel wells or tubs to prevent this. I have already had to seal a electrical box just rear of the wheels that was filling with water when I drove in the rain.

travelin texans · 06-14-2016, 09:58 AM

Nice job! Had to do the same several years ago, not much room in them to work!!

Monarch · 05-31-2020, 05:25 PM

I have the same year and model as you. I have found 2 soft spots. One is near the rear of the trailer in line with the rear window. And I was wondering why the table was wobbling. There is a soft spot where the leg post rings' screws became lose. I wonder how much it would cost to have a RV repair shop fix it.

You may also like: