Leak! Water draining out above side door.

Maintenance of the body of the camper
User avatar
Kentuckian
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 346
Joined: Sun Sep 30, 2012 3:52 pm
B190 Year: 1993
WBCCI: 0
Location: Kentucky, USA

Re: Leak! Water draining out above side door.

Post by Kentuckian »

Fmedina771 wrote:... the stationary glass that does not slide seems to have a bad seal. What keeps that glass in place on the frame?
I have a 1993 B190. The Hehr windows in our B190 uses a thin double sided tape to bond the stationary glass to the window frame. From memory, it seems like it is around 1/16" thick and less than a 1/4" wide. I recently rebuilt several of our windows. I went to a local glass window repair shop and bought some of that double sided tape from them. The fixed window uses that double sided tape to "bond" the fixed window glass to the aluminum window frame. That double sided tape is very important as that is really your water seal to the outside world. The rubber seals around the perimeter of the window panes, just act as dust shields and to shed the majority of the water. The windows are designed so that the small amount of water that makes it past the rubber seals drains out of the drain holes on the bottom edge of the window frame.
1993 Airstream B190
Fmedina771
Newbie
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2018 5:39 pm
B190 Year: 1994
WBCCI: 0
Location: New Jersey

Re: Leak! Water draining out above side door.

Post by Fmedina771 »

Kentuckian wrote: The fixed window uses that double sided tape to "bond" the fixed window glass to the aluminum window frame. That double sided tape is very important as that is really your water seal to the outside world. The rubber seals around the perimeter of the window panes, just act as dust shields and to shed the majority of the water. The windows are designed so that the small amount of water that makes it past the rubber seals drains out of the drain holes on the bottom edge of the window frame.
Thanks for all of this useful information. I was thinking it was butyl that seals/bonds that fixed window but I think I am going to do the same thing you did and head over to a local glass shop unless anyone has a link to where I can purchase on amazon or online. I wish I knew there was a seal there before removing the entire window but hey, at least I wont have to do this again for a while and its actually done the right way.

Cheers 8)
User avatar
Kentuckian
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 346
Joined: Sun Sep 30, 2012 3:52 pm
B190 Year: 1993
WBCCI: 0
Location: Kentucky, USA

Re: Leak! Water draining out above side door.

Post by Kentuckian »

Fmedina771,
Be aware that the rubber seal, for the fixed glass window that fits around the perimeter of the aluminum frame, relies on the gap between the outside edge of the glass and the aluminum frame to achieve proper snap of the rubber to hold the rubber seal in place. So be careful to get the window exactly centered in the frame when you install the fixed window. The goal is for the rubber seal to have the exact same gap to fit into all the way around the perimeter of the window. if you don't achieve this, you risk the rubber seal not being able to be held in place where the gap gets too large.

I was able to fit the window, without the double sided tape, and make some shims that I attached to the aluminum frame that helped center the position the glass. Then I applied the double sided tape to the aluminum frame and fit the glass in place using the shims to help with the alignment. Unfortunately, the double sided tape only gives you one shot at this step!

I attached the double sided tape to the surface of the aluminum frame that would be in contact with the glass. Then I pushed the glass into contact with the already applied tape. Also, I recommend to use something like acetone to degrease the surface of the glass to make sure that you get great adhesion with the tape.
1993 Airstream B190
Fmedina771
Newbie
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2018 5:39 pm
B190 Year: 1994
WBCCI: 0
Location: New Jersey

Re: Leak! Water draining out above side door.

Post by Fmedina771 »

Thanks a bunch for your insight Kentuckian it is going to be raining all week so till then I wish have it under a tarp! Working on the new wall panels, photos to come soon!
Fmedina771
Newbie
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2018 5:39 pm
B190 Year: 1994
WBCCI: 0
Location: New Jersey

Re: Leak! Water draining out above side door.

Post by Fmedina771 »

Hey friends. Newbie question, whats the purpose of the inner window braket thing that screws in from the interior to the window. Is it just to cover up the seam from the panel and hold the window in place or does it sandwich the window to the frame to help prevent leaks?
User avatar
Kentuckian
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 346
Joined: Sun Sep 30, 2012 3:52 pm
B190 Year: 1993
WBCCI: 0
Location: Kentucky, USA

Re: Leak! Water draining out above side door.

Post by Kentuckian »

Not quite sure what you are referring to. If you could post a photo, it would help.
1993 Airstream B190
Fmedina771
Newbie
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2018 5:39 pm
B190 Year: 1994
WBCCI: 0
Location: New Jersey

Re: Leak! Water draining out above side door.

Post by Fmedina771 »

Kentuckian wrote:Not quite sure what you are referring to. If you could post a photo, it would help.

Sorry about my terrible explanation :P Ive attached this photo for reference, not from the actual van of course. Im referring to the bottom piece that screws into the window frame.
Image
User avatar
Kentuckian
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 346
Joined: Sun Sep 30, 2012 3:52 pm
B190 Year: 1993
WBCCI: 0
Location: Kentucky, USA

Re: Leak! Water draining out above side door.

Post by Kentuckian »

Fmedina771 wrote:Is it just to cover up the seam from the panel and hold the window in place or does it sandwich the window to the frame to help prevent leaks?
Thanks for posting the photo. It does both things that you mention above. There is not a sealing material for the aluminum trim ring that goes on the inside of the camper shell. All the sealing action is handled by the aluminum window frame that is installed from outside the camper shell. However that inner aluminum window trim ring helps to stabilize the window and provides a clamping force to help the outer aluminum window frame seal the window.

You might want to head over to Youtube.com. There are several videos on removing and resealing Hehr windows that you might find helpful.
1993 Airstream B190
Post Reply