Remove the rain seal on the awning?

[John E Davies]

I just threw mine in the trash. All it does is catch junk and it is extremely hard to clean behind.

 

After cleaning the gelcoat (wow it was nasty!) I think the trailer looks way better without it. I don't think I will mind it being gone since it never rains around here long enough for me to worry about spending time under a deployed awning while it was coming down ..... I do plan to add a gutter over the side and back windows this winter.

 

BTW, mine came off in one pull in about five seconds, leaving no glue residue behind, but it had only been on there four months....

 

Has anybody else intentionally removed it? Any regrets?

 

I think this should be a no charge option, to just leave it off during the build..... and to also leave off the permanent ink guidelines the tech drew on the fiberglass as an installation aid! Maybe polishing compound will get them off. ;(

 

John Davies

 

Spokane WA

[Mike and Carol]

I still have mine and have thought about removing it.  I'm not sure it does much good. It does collect debris and is hard to clean. Will be interested in what others have experienced. Mike

[bugeyedriver]

Mine was removed several years ago . . . no regrets . . . wish I had done it sooner.

[KarenLukens]

We spend a lot of time on the Pacific Coast where rainforests abound :) We camp in severe rain like the 1/2" drops coming down for days on end in the winter and set the awning out to keep dry. Unfortunately, with the seal gone, you will no longer have a dry spot outside unless you have a Clam or another tent. We can use the awning as a dry entry and keep totally dry with the seal. But without the seal, depending on where you are... sand and water will blow and pour off the roof, splash off of the door seal, the fridge and window seals and there will be no clean dry place to sit without that seal in place. Wet blowing sand is the worst... One of the reasons that we sold our Casita was because it was only sealed by me half way across. Seals are simple to add back on if you ever find the need. I sit outside under the awning with the fire going with it raining all around and keep dry and comfortable with no leaks behind me dripping down my neck...

 

If you don't camp in the rain then the seal is not a big deal.

[DavePhelps]

I also removed mine. It was just a major dirt, moss, pine needle, and mildew trap. It also came off easily with gentle pulling. I think the trailer looks so much better without it on there. Cleaning and waxing the trailer is now so much easier and thorough. No regrets. I haven't had the awning out in the pouring rain like Reed and Karen, but I can't imagine all that much water will be pouring down the trailer wall. Compared to the tarps I have hunkered down under over the years, this is still a way better (more comfortable) situation. YMMV.

 

Dave

[John E Davies]

No seal:

 

 

We haven't been rained on yet but I still like it. If it rains really hard we will just stay indoors. My wife has no opinion on the seal....

 

John Davies

 

Spokane WA

[mdernier]

I'm resurrecting this thread because I just picked up my rig (on 04-11-2019) and see that water pools behind the awning when the seal is in place (see pic #1, IMG_6248).  Although I like the idea of preventing rain from running down the entire side of the rig, I don't like 2-3 inches of water pooling back there.  The water pools around the awning brackets and much of the bracket is submerged.  I suspect that the holes for the bracket bolts go all the way through the outer shell, thereby presenting 8 potential leak points.  There is evidence of sealant on only some of the mounting brackets and bolts, so I would assume a steady diet of pooled water would find its way into the rig up there.   I'm trying an alternative to removing the seal altogether, which is to slide in a small drain tube in each "pool basin" (see pic #2, IMG 6250).  We'll see.

[Corcomi]

I’m in the Reed camp. The seal keeps out the water when it’s raining and let’s me be out of the trailer under the awning. As for the junk that collects up there, I once

 

a month go up with a water pressure wand clean it all up.

[Overland]

Interesting - your bracket design is new.  Mine doesn't have the vertical stiffener, and that looks like why yours is holding so much water.  I wonder what's the reason behind changing the bracket, and I'm thinking that no one in the design process realized they were building a small dam.

[mdernier]

I agree with you, Overland.  That design is just a non-starter for me.

[Mike and Carol]

Interesting – your bracket design is different than mine. Mine doesn’t have the vertical stiffener, and that looks like why yours is holding so much water. I wonder what’s the reason behind changing the bracket.

 

At some point they change awning vendors and quit using the Fiama awnings and went to another brand.  Maybe the brackets changed then.  I pulled my seal off after a couple of years, it was starting to crack in a few places, didn’t look good and was a big collector of pine needles, leaves, dirt and other gunk.  I guess it’s a personal preference thing.  Mike

[John E Davies]

The folks that assemble these trailers do not always think about drainage. The cabin steps trap lots of water when folded and need some holes. My suggestion before you remove the rubber seal is to drill a couple of 1/4” or larger drain holes as indicated.

 

 

They need to be large enough so that tree droppings won’t plug them up. In winter that may not be enough. If you store it outside the seal should be removed entirely or you will get a large ice dam.

 

Since I started this thread I have had no regrets about taking it off. Well, one regret. The tech who installed it used a permanent blue ink pen to lay out some guide lines and they won’t come off!

 

Have you alerted the factory about this issue? It is not something minor and they need to know.

 

John Davies

 

Spokane WA

[SeaDawg]

Ours is pretty much a long strip of some kind of rubber tubing. It's over ten years old, keeps the rain off my "patio", and, I do travel and live with a lot of rain. 34 inches annual average in my area, and the trailer lives outside 24/7/365. We run a hose up when we can, and wash out the detritis.

 

However. we don't have to deal with a lot of clogging junk..no pines, sticky cottonwood, etc, on a regular basis, at home, or on our camping property in North Carolina. Just leaves. When mine dies, I will replace it.

I prefer the gutter to the rainfall in my patio. I think it depends a lot on your region, and where you camp. Each situation is different.

Abd, we do have the fiamma awning. Perhaps that also makes a difference.

Sherry

[mdernier]

John, thanks for the idea.  I may wind up doing that in the long run.  I kind of like the idea of removing the seal altogether, except for over the door and as many of the windows as possible.   I plan on informing the factory but have not yet done so.

[Overland]

Ideally, they'd add a 1" or so spacer between the mount and awning.  Then they could lower the awning back down to meet the roof with a seal, just 1" further forward, and there wouldn't be any obstruction from the mounts at all.  Even though I don't have the vertical dam on mine, it's still the mounts that collect the garbage.  I think a clean, unobstructed seal would collect far less gunk, and be much easier to spray out with a hose. I also think that they could use a stiffer and easier to clean L-shaped gutter rather than trying to seal it with the soft gasket.

[BackofBeyond]

I agree the seal really holds an inordinate amount of trash behind the awning, as do the mounting brackets (as JD shows), but I think I'm going to live with ours for awhile. I'll just hit the area with a good strong water blast when Ollie gets a bath. At some point it may become history, but for n0w, not.

 

At some point, I've got to just use the Oliver, and stop re-engineering stuff...…… well, that and buying more chairs....and, and, and...

 

RB

[mdernier]

Well, John, I opted to drill drain holes through the bracket webs as you suggested.  See attached pic (sorry, but the Forum software always seems to turn my pics 90 degrees).  I went with a 5/16 diameter drill bit.  I'm sure that debris will clog the holes from time to time, but I'll just have to keep after them (along with the other 1,000 items that I'm keeping after).  I'll let everyone know how/if it works.

[mdernier]

John,

 

Thanks for the idea - which I implemented.  (See attached pic.)

 

I used a 3/8 drill bit on about half of them until it broke, then completed the rest with a 5/16.  A hose test just after completing the drilling process passed with flying colors.  But that test was sterile, i.e., there was no "gunk" from overhanging trees on the roof which would flow and lodge within the holes.   Alas, it's spring, so I've allowed said gunk to build - and indeed it gets lodged at the entrance to each hole.  Yet, the water still drains off, albeit a bit slower than when the holes are completely clear.  So, keeping up with the debris on the roof is (another) maintenance item.

 

P.S.  I plan to apply some Dicor lap sealant to the bracket as water will obviously get behind the bracket (and do bad things, especially in the winter).  In fact, I've applied Dicor to all of the roof components.

[Trainman]

I just washed or new trailer and the awing where the seal was and it was full of pine needles and other various things including dirt, the trailer is 10 days old.  I cleaned it all out and said this isn't going to work, plus the water from washing the trailer roof dripped for two hours. So the seal will be removed as soon as the outside temp goes down, it's going to be 100 degrees today.  Our awing is the new Dometic one, so I'm I hope the seal is just stuck down lake the trailers with the older design awing. If someone knows of it being different please let me know, thanks.

 

 

 

trainman

[Mike and Carol]

So the seal will be removed as soon as the outside temp goes down, it’s going to be 100 degrees today.

 

trainman

 

 

It should come off easier in this hot Texas weather.

[John E Davies]

Bump an old thread.

John Davies

Spokane WA

[Steph and Dud B]

Will be interesting to see what the new Girard awnings have for a seal.

[Jps190]

The Girard awnings have the same type of seal.  I removed mine today.  It left some residue behind that I removed with an auto trim removal tool.  

[VBistro]

On 3/3/2022 at 12:50 PM, Steph and Dud B said:

Will be interesting to see what the new Girard awnings have for a seal.

Not a good one, so far.  🙂 

We picked up VellOllie last November and she's been under wraps until yesterday.  When we took the cover off, we noted that about two feet of the seal on the rear street-side was hanging loose, as well as about a foot on the front curb-side. 

We're going to attempt to re-attach today with some alien tape (unless someone has a better suggestion).  We get lots of afternoon showers where we camp, so having a dry patio/entry is one of our favorite things -- and one of those things we missed dearly with our awning-less sprinter van.

[topgun2]

Since you are still under warranty, I'd email, call or submit a Service ticket and see what they recommend for reattaching that seal.

Bill