Black Streaking anyone?

[wdw0528]

After a recent job of cleaning and waxing followed by a rain I am noticing some "fairly minor" black streaking from the rubber gaskets behind the exterior lights. It seems to wipe off pretty easily so far (since I am catching it early) - wonder if anyone else is having an issue with streaking and if so, what are you doing to prevent it or correct it?

 

I was told when I asked about streaking problems during our delivery that we might want to apply a bead of clear RTV sealant around those seals/gaskets in order to better seal and prevent any streaking. Has anyone done this and do you have any advice about whether to do it or not?

[mountainoliver]

Another owner told me about “Captain Tolley’s Creeping Crack Cure”. This a sealer that is as thin as water and able to wick into very small cracks. If you clean the gasket edge and apply the sealer with a small artist brush the streaking will stop. It’s about the color of milk but dries clear. I have applied the sealer a couple of times over the past year. Because water naturally drips around the light fixture edges, you’ll still have some dirt streaks that can be seen but these wash off much easier.

[mossemi]

This seems be a old problem with a variety of solutions.  Search for “porch light” from the forums page and you will find several posts on this subject. Dave Phelps post “Porch Light reseal and silicone removal” is a very thorough how to guide on correcting this issue.

 

I also had this problem as well as a water leak at the dinette window.  The leak was my motivation to tackle the problem.  I have Hull #193 and my lights are different than Dave’s, but the solution is the same.

 

I removed the light fixture above the dinette window and found the fixture is made by an American company named ITC.  I thought that’s cool, I’ll just send them an email requesting help with this issue.  I think that was in January and I am still waiting for a reply.  Not being Mr. Patience’s, the next day I moved on using some of Dave’s procedure.  I did not have to remove any silicone because none is used with the ITC fixtures.  I removed the gasket and used butyl tape between the light fixture and the hull instead.  I then used Starbrite marine silicone to seal the screw holes and the perimeter of the fixture.

 

After several rains, there hasn’t been any streaks or leaks and I have removed the gaskets from the remaining fixtures and now I can concentrate on cleaning up bird poop?

 

Mike

 

 

[topgun2]

Yep - Mossemi and Moutainoliver have you on the right trail.  After you take care of the Major cause of the "problem" any minor streaks and dirt can be easily wiped off with exterior auto detailer.  This stuff is available in a bunch of different brands and can be found at most auto parts stores and Walmart.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-A3316-Quik-Detailer-Mist/dp/B0009IQX90/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1522251646&sr=8-5&keywords=auto+detailer

 

Bill

 

p.s.  this detailer is not a substitute for a good coat of wax.  But, between waxings it is very easy to use and leaves a nice finish.

[mossemi]

Protect All works great inside and out and it works on everything.

[Mike and Carol]

http://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/rubber-gaskets-around-porch-lights/

 

Lots of discussion about this at the link above. Mike

[ShallowGal]

http://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/rubber-gaskets-around-porch-lights/

Lots of discussion about this at the link above. Mike

 

Arrgh! So here we are, one year later, and the black streaking is still an issue on brand new $65k+/- campers. Capt Tolley's has been ordered but annoyed I have to fix this.

 

 

 

Rant over.

[topgun2]

Chris & Duke -

 

Put the Tolley's on with a small (artist's) brush. This will cure virtually the streaking problem. Take your time applying it, but, the entire job should only take about 15 minutes. I agree that this should not happen and I've noticed that similar gaskets on my car and motorcycle don't do this, but this is an easy fix.

Bill

[ScubaRx]

I’ve never had a single streak.

[mossemi]

You may have a different light fixture or at least a different gasket.

[ScubaRx]

You may have a different light fixture or at least a different gasket.

 

No, just like yours and everyone else. I don't have an explanation, just an observation.

[Corcomi]

Well I decided to look at my outdoor lights and surprisingly I found that one of the was loose. It seems that when the silver plastic that is the cover for the light was screwd too tightly and broke the plastic that grips the screw to the gasket. So they ‘fixed” it by putting silicone to hold the screw in place. Now that it got loose that fix doesn’t work.

So I am waiting for a replacement cover that should solve the problem.