Not sure when it was I mentioned it before, but water had got into our bedroom slide and damaged the floor. There was a gap in silicone between the wall and the trim piece, about 5 inches, and it was enough to cause some rot to develop in the floor.
This is our largest repair to date, and hopefully it keeps that title for a LONG time – preferably for always!
To answer the most obvious question, “what were the symptoms?”, how did we know something was wrong? I have will show you a few pics.
As you can see when comparing – the top pic shows the floor pushing up where the floor roller sits when the slide is in. This is because the wood is rotted.
Next trim pieces were removed
This marks the end of day one. Bill worked on it for about 3 1/2 hours.
Day 2:
Now that the old floor is ready to remove the inside needs to be taken apart.
Someone told Bill that the water damage you find is always WAY WORSE than you think it is. By the time you find it, major damage has been done. Much easier to prevent than to repair!
Next, the new floor had to be cut to fit.
Next, Bill cut the unused new floor pieces. He installed them over over the lap joint on the inside.
Next we put the inside of the rig back together. This marks the end of the second day, it took about 8 hours.
Day 3: finishing up!
This was the end of day 3 and the repair is finished! Day 3 was a short one at 3 1/2 hours. Total repair time was 14
hours. This includes about 2 hours of trying to raise the floor off the rollers to replace the whole floor. So the
repair was done in about 12 hours. This doesn’t count shopping for supplies and uncrating the floor. Bill also spent
quite a bit of time formulating the repair plan and contingencies. According to Bill, if a person has enough skill to
build a nice playhouse or garden shed from scratch, they would be skilled enough to tackle this repair.
Now for the back story:
Three years ago, Bill noticed the slide was dragging on the rug a bit, after we owned the rig for about 6 months. It
appeared to be gradually getting worse. Since we were traveling to IN anyway, to the new Heartland Service
Center, for some minor warranty repairs, we decided to have them look at the slide. They didn’t know why it was
dragging as the slide was operating and properly adjusted. So, they simply raised the trim board to eliminate the
interference. Bill now believes the slide floor was already starting to sink into the rollers, causing that
interference. Had they researched to and the root cause then, it would have been fairly simple repair.
Fast forward 6 months and we are in FL having our first annual sealant inspection at LaMesa RV. An annual sealant
inspection is required by Heartland to be preformed at an authorized Service Center. Two RV techs spent and
hour inspecting the roof and window seals and found no issues. Bill even received a compliment for the sealant job
on the solar system components on the roof.
So, when Bill found the missing sealant on the slide in February of this year, he put the pieces together and
determined the soft floor under the wheels was from water intruding where the sealant was missing. After many
conversations, with different levels of management at Heartland, he finally got to the head of Warranty repairs, an
actual decision maker! After reviewing the pictures Bill sent him and the fact that many people, other than us,
people with proper training, missed the issue – the missing bit of silicone, they agreed to supply and ship the new
floor to us free of charge! This is where Bill had hoped the negotiations would end up, as he was thought it was
fair. He explained he takes partial responsibility for not finding the missing sealant himself sooner.
At the end of the day, the repair materials cost less that $50. Bill spoke with several techs working in the
campground, and was told the repair would cost between $2500 – $3500! Bill showed the repair to the more
experienced tech and he was really impressed with how solid the repair was and agreed it was actually better that
new! We felt lucky we were able to get it properly fixed for a small investment in money and time.
Hopefully that we be the first and last major issue we with our rig.
Lesson learned here?
INSPECT YOUR SEALANT OFTEN!!
This includes the roof, around all windows, and all trim! If you are the not sure how to do it, find out or hire
someone competent to do it for you. It is the least expensive option!
Amazing job! You are lucky to have someone who keeps a sharp eye on your rig! You really did save yourselves a lot of money doing it yourself. Great job!
Thanks! Bill is my handy man for sure!
Can bill come help me fix mine
Unfortunately, Bill keeps very busy with solar installing, but if you have any specific questions we may be able to help with, please send an email to: bkamericanodyssey@gmail.com
Bill and Kelly,
You are lucky to have the skills to do your own repairs. Cindy and I have had to learn to fix things too. There is a certain pride that comes from doing it yourself. Your work looks better then the professionals may have done.
You are echoing our thoughts exactly – and we saved a bunch of $$$ in the process!
First off, Bill is amazing. I guess we all have known that for awhile though! But what a project! Hope that takes cere of that issue, Kelly!
It’s all good! Bill is definitely the man!
I’m still not understanding the reason you needed to lift the slide off the rollers. That section of the floor wasn’t under any tension was it?
We originally wanted to replace the whole floor and would have needed to lift the weight off the rollers, when that proves impossible, there was no longer a need to lift the floor up.
Awesome job !
I had just found I have the same issue on my bedroom closet slide on my Heartland Sundance and was wondering what would be the best way to repair it. I knew I had a leak but kept looking at slide seals. finally found it was coming in as yours was but on the edge and wetting the slide floor down that side and working it’s way inside.
I will attempt to repair mine in the same way that you done yours. I cant thank you enough for all the time and effort you put into documenting this repair.
Good luck in your repair – glad we could help!
Nice job!! I pray I never need to refer to this article for personal use. This is why we do a good walk around with clear caulk twice a year. Another excellent article, Kelly and Bill!!
Thanks Tina! We also hope you never need to use this as a fix it guide!
Great job. We already planned to replace all our caulking next year.
Thanks! I’m not sure if full replacement of the sealants would be necessary, but probably can’t hurt, to insure your knowing it was done properly.
Outstanding work! Great detail and excellent craftsmanship!
This issue is exactly what happened on our bedroom slide on our first 5th wheel by NuWa. They gave us an estimate of over $8G for a new slide without taking anything apart. Cannot imagine what it really would have cost. In the end we felt it was not worth the cost of the repair on an 7 year old rig even though the rig was in great shape everywhere else. We traded that rig for our first Montana.
Bill can teach those Techs a thing or two!
Thanks Les! Before he even got in the phone with Heartland, he had all contingencies worked out in his head! I agree – he could totally teach at least some techs a thing or two!
Excellent repair and documentation of it.
Thanks Jim!
Incredible! We did eternabond tape on the roof and have no slides but water damage will always find a way in😩😩😩😩 I need to double check windows
Seems that keeping up with inspecting everything is the best prevention for problems! Ask us how we know!
Awesome blog entry. Great detail and explanation of your repair. The RV World needs more folks like you and Bill. It amazes me at the number of folks we have met workamping this summer that pay little or NO attention to their RV’s. Since ours is our full time home we conduct regular inspections.
One of the reasons we have been loyal Heartland owners is the reasonable folks in the warranty department.
Great repair job and fantastic documentation.
Thanks Susan! We love our Heartland!
You have amazing skills, Bill and a great helper. I have been a contractor for 30 years and your approach is spot on. I am doing a remodel on a Newmar Kountry Aire 5er and realize that instead of checking and doing spot repairs to the caulk, given the age of it, I will replace it ALL. Disappointed that Heartland only spent $50 for their part in this. None of it would have happened if they had done their job correctly in the first place. With what that unit cost originally, we all would expect that it would have been delivered done correctly, and when the discovery of missing caulk from their manufacturing process and QC process was documeneted, they should have stepped up more. But now we all know that Heartland has gaps in their processes, as this experience shows 2 coached with the same issue. It also was interesting to see that the framing running the 13′ length of the slide was not a complete solid framing member. Those filler blocks in the center are likely more of the reason why that slide is sagging some. Your repair will help that. Nice choice using the lap joint and adhesive and screws, esp the splices inside. Well done!!
Thanks! I think you misunderstood – our outlay was $50 – Heartland sent us the floor free of charge – we suspect it would have cost +/- $800 if we had to pay for it out of pocket.
How did they ship your wood to you, I’ve got a 14’ slide floor in my solitude I need to replace and, whom did you deal with at the manufacturer to get the wood at no charge
Hi Raymond! The wood was shipped through an LTL carrier. It was in a box that looked like it was built just for it. We called Heartland direct and Bill spoke to someone in their warranty department, I’m thinking you have to call Grand Design.
Excellent repair job bill!
Thanks!
Great job, Bill! Great job Kelly documenting the whole process so that anyone who might need to tackle this has a good reference.
Thanks Laurie!
Awesome job Bill! I admire those that are willing to tackle such a complicated repair into the unknown.
Thanks Steve! It took Bill a lot of hours of considering all possibilities, watching YouTube videos, talking to RV techs, etc before he decided to tackle this! He never had any doubts he could do it – but armed himself with all info he could find before the first screw was removed!
Nice job on the repair! We had a leak in out Bedroom Accu-slide in our Titanium. We had about the same damage. I was not brave enough to take on that project. They pulled the slide out of the trailer. Our leak came in from the top of the box.
Thanks Shawn! That’s probably what they would have done if we had brought it in to be fixed.
That was a great job and Glad you were able to get it done at minimal cost. Please check the edge of the main slides under the trim. This is where I am having serious issues with my camper will have to replace large sections of on each end of both slides. As well as installing a trim piece that will mitigate the issue.
Thanks for the heads up! Will check that for sure!
I will be son tackling a similar problem with my bedroom slide on my 40′ Raptor. I was worried about how to tackle it.
Do you think it would be better or easier to take the bed out and bring the slide in the bedroom to work on instead of from a ladder. Mine is rather high up.
Mine is a bit high as well, I can walk under without hitting my head. I found that the easiest way in my situation was to complete the job with the slide all the way out. Most of the work is done on the outside. The inside work on my layout was mostly just pulling the carpet and vapor barrier back that was under the cabinetry and bed. I only had to remove the access panel at the front of the bed to gain access to the floor. Yours may be laid out differently. Take the time to get your game plan together with contingencies is case things don’t go according to plan. Good luck!!
I’m surprised that marine grade plywood is not used in
the floor. I wonder if having a vapour barrier on top and a plastic sheet on the bottom that a double vapour barrier is formed and any water is trapped in between the two.
The marine grade plywood would have helped. It would have also helped if they just sealed the cut edges of the floor. You are absolutely correct in the fact the plastic floor bottom and vapor trapped the water! It’s a great system IF all the sealant is in place at the factory!
Ok really appreciate you guys sharing this. My wife and I have our first camper that is already a major project and we have no idea where to get replacement panels due to the water damage. I know we have to repair the slide roof and such first and go from there tho. It’s gonna be a rough go but you guys have motivated me! Thanks so much!
Glad to be of help! Let me know how it goes!
Great job we need to tal 😉
Thanks! Reach out any time!
Great job we need talk 🙂
Any idea how Tn remove the facia on a bedroom slide wardrobe cabinet ? Floor is bad I derneth I need to remove the slide one way or another
Good works folks
Send me an email with pics to bkamericanodyssey@gmail.com. I’ll have Bill look and see if he can help.
What did you put on the outside of your new plywood?
Hi Gary! Thanks for reading! Heartland sent us the floor and it already had a type of plastic sheeting glued to it.
Thank-you so much …I have been looking for something on how to fix our floor..I love this ,lots of pictures and it’s not a video..our bedroom slide is at the doorway and it seems to be moving over into the wall so we can only get it out about 12 inches right now thinking we may need to lift it up a bit and put something between the slide and roller to get it to come straight out …I’m sure we’ll figure it out ..anyway thank you so much – same problem silicone missing ..
Glad to be of help! Good luck with your repair! Let us know how it goes!
Fantastic job, and pics. I’m about to tackle the same job on my road warrior. My two main slides both have rotten floors. I’m actually going to replace them with marine grade plywood. Where do you get that pice of wood, I can only find 4×8 sheets. I have one slide that is just under 12 ft. Keeping my fingers crossed and a lot of praying. Well, once again, great job and thank you so much for the detailed documentation, you have helped me figure out a couple work arounds. Feel free to check us out. http://WWW.ourcalvaryroad.com
Thanks for reading Ray! So happy you found our post helpful! The actual floor (piece of wood) was sent to us by Heartland. Bill did consider using marine grade plywood, that was the back-up plan if Heartland didn’t send what they did. Good luck with your repair – let us know how it comes out!
Great job. Where did you find 1″ plywood for the replacement floor? I assume you set the saw depth to 11/16″ to allow for both the bottom and sub-floors? If it wasn’t 1″ plywood, what material did you use?
Thanks,
Larry
We used the floor Heartland sent, which was a little thicker than 1”. Bill says it may have been 1 1/16” – he’s not totally sure any more. If Heartland hasn’t sent us the floor Bill was going to use 2 pieces of plywood, glued and screwed together.
Did you two happen to video Bill fixing the slide out floor? Just found your pictures and it’s exactly what my husband is repairing. Same thought. Thank you.
Sorry but we did not do a video of the repair. Hope the pics helped. Good luck with your repair!