Best sealant for DIY

[Dustydog]

The Wyoming failed a couple of damp checks this morning. Nothing serious but some attention is needed to the door frame and a couple of three panels joints. My engineer said thoroughly clean all the areas, mask up and carefully apply the sealant along all the joint edges , overlapping.
I‘m happy to do this myself.
Which is the better of the two sealants?
Soudaseal RV61 or Sikaflex 512? Or another?
All views appreciated.

 

[Jcloughie]

The Wyoming failed a couple of damp checks this morning. Nothing serious but some attention is needed to the door frame and a couple of three panels joints. My engineer said thoroughly clean all the areas, mask up and carefully apply the sealant along all the joint edges , overlapping.
I‘m happy to do this myself.
Which is the better of the two sealants?
Soudaseal RV61 or Sikaflex 512? Or another?
All views appreciated.

IMO, applying sealant in such a superficial manner is just a temporary fix.

John

 

[Dustydog]

The problem John is the ”weep,” point is tiny. The trim that would have to be removed to remake the entire joint as brand new is no longer available. The Wyoming is 12 years old, can’t believe we have had it that long. Sadly with the lack of parts my engineers suggestion is the only way forward. He says providing all the surfaces are thoroughly clean and new applied beyond the normal edge it should be ok. 🤞🤞🤞

 

[Jcloughie]

Can’t the trim be loosened, prised apart, then sealant inserted in order to have it squeezed into the joint. I once did this with an awning channel. The van was less than 5 years old. I was shocked to see how empty it was behind the channel, and that was from new. That was about 9 years ago, a friend still has that van and he has had to do more sealing elsewhere, but mine part is holding OK.

John

 

[Damian]

Oversealing can only be viewed as a very temporary measure as it does not work very well for any length of time.
If there is no other alternative you must remove as much of the old sealant as you can to make a clean void into which the new sealant is gunned into place.
Then wipe the whole area with White Spirit followed by Methylated Spirit to ensure a perfectly clean sealing surface.

New sealant will not stick to old and the idea of taking the sealant overlapping the area is simply wrong and will look awful when done.

RV 61 or Soudall Fixall is the sealant of choice that I use and have never had any problems or had problems reported after using them.

I have found that Sikaflex tends to be too runny and difficult to get a really good finish.

 

[Dustydog]

My real problem Damian is that the roof strap and front awning rails are no longer available. The ingress is minimal but we are at a stitch in time, hence the patchwork approach. The door frame seal has failed. The frame complete with door is not available. If it was, new price circa £2k.
So I have now moved full circle to keeping an antique on the road. Obviously different tactics needed but none I see are insurmountable

 

[Damian]

Dusty, you now mention the roofstrap, which is the most likely ingress point on a Bailey rather than awning rail, and as such is not as bad as it could be.

The roofstrap should be screwed to the roof with a herzim strip covering the screws, so it is a relatively easy job to remove the screws, remove the strap, clean both roof and strip of old mastic and replace, using new stainless steel screws and a good bead of Soudall Fixall, with a smear over the top of each screw, then replace the herzim strip.

 

[Dustydog]

Thanks Damian
. The ingress point is where the three panels meet, right at the end of the roof strap. So far no damage but attention needed.

 

[Damian]

Yes, that is always the weak point and special attention must be taken to thoroughly clean the old mastic away where you can get to it at the ends, prep the area with a good clean with White Spirit and then with Meths, then make sure you give the ends in particular a really good seal with sealant.

With the actual roofstrap you need to have enough sealant so that when you screw down it squeezes out along the length of the strip then tool to leave a good neat clean finish that water will not collect along.

 

[WILF0001]

Soudal Fix All has been quoted by a few members as a good sealant but I see there are several variants - which is the best, normal or High Tack?

 

[Damian]

They are both equally good.
High Tack is more for sticking items to vertical surfaces without any mechanical fixings.

 

[WILF0001]

Thank for your response Damian. Does the HIgh Tack go off fairly quickly?

 

[Damian]

It depends on how warm it is, the warmer the weather, the quicker it sets.
It skins, generally in20 minutes, full set in 12 hours

 

[WILF0001]

Thanks again Damian