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303RLS Schwintek Slide Leak

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  • 303RLS Schwintek Slide Leak

    We brought our 2022 303RLS home 6 days ago and it's been sitting in our driveway as we start to load it up and prepare for our first trip this coming weekend. Last night we had a considerable amount of rain which continued into the morning. I decided to go out and thoroughly inspect the rig for leaks as this was the first actual rain (we had mist but no actual rain) since we brought it home. I am glad that I did because I spotted a slight leak coming in from the bottom of the schwintek slide, running down the wall onto the bathroom floor. It was not gushing water in, but enough to be concerned about.

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    After some detailed examination of the bulb seal and the wiper seals, it looked like everything was good there but water was pooling into the little plastic gutter at the bottom rear corner of the slide and getting in between that hard plastic corner piece and the long plastic piece that runs the length of the bottom of the slide opening. There appear to be some gray plumbers type putty in between the corner piece and the long plastic piece, and the putty was not put in to cover the full length of that seam; there was probably 1/2" of unsealed seam between the 2 pieces of gutter.

    (This pic is the front side of the slide where the putty was good, not the back corner where it was leaking. Pictures were really difficult to take in this crevice so I couldn't get a shot of the rear putty gap. That gray stuff is putty in between the 2 pieces of plastic and runs the full length on the front of the slide pictured here, just for reference)

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    We confirmed this was the point of leak by using an old turkey baster and intentionally putting water into the gutter, and watched it flow in. Successful diagnosis!


    First fix attempt was to slightly back out the screw holding down that plastic with a small 90 degree ratcheting screwdriver, and then with the downwards pressure released, mold the putty into the gap all the way across the gap. We basted the camper again (lol) to test and found this didn't work, so we moved onto attempt #2. This time we took some clear Waterproof Patch and Seal Gorilla Tape and cut a small piece roughly 4" by 3", rounded the corners, dried the area with a towel and heat gun, then applied the tape. I applied pressure to the tape for 2-3 minutes and we basted again but with more delicious results this time. We had a really good seal that only leaked 1 small drop even though we were directly soaking the outside gutter. Since we soaked it with way more water than it should ever get hit with and we only leaked a drop, I'm reasonably confident we are good for now.

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    It appears we have a temporary fix. Knock on wood. We have plenty more rain in the forecast so I'll be keeping an eye on this, the seal tape ready, and will report back if there ends up being more to this tale.
    Attached Files
    David and Deana
    2022 GMC Sierra 3500 AT4, CC, SRW, 6.6L L8T Gas, MYD 6-Speed
    2022 Reflection 303RLS w/ Gen-Y Executive Gooseneck Hitch

  • #2
    Also check the top of the slide rail and the groove in the side to make sure that there is a foam piece in the groove. No water should be able to get on the slide rails and run towards the camper.

    Good find and fix solution.

    Brian
    Brian & Michelle
    2018 Reflection 29RS
    2022 Chevy 3500HD

    Comment


    • #3
      WondersAwait -- not sure if you saw this picture that's been posted previously. I believe the line and arrow I've drawn on it is where you had the water penetration?

      Thanks for the great write-up!

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      Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

      2017 Ford F-350 DRW, '19 315RLTSPlus

      Comment


      • #4
        Just trying to help in case someone else runs into a similar issue.

        Country Campers It looks like I have the foam and I don't see water along the slide rails. Glad to check on that though, thanks!


        howson I had not seen that image, it's a good one. The area is correct but the red arrow is not the exact spot I had a leak. In the image below I added some marks; I was missing the gray sealant above the green line, and water got into the gap where the blue arrow is pointing.

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        David and Deana
        2022 GMC Sierra 3500 AT4, CC, SRW, 6.6L L8T Gas, MYD 6-Speed
        2022 Reflection 303RLS w/ Gen-Y Executive Gooseneck Hitch

        Comment


        • #5
          The gray sealant will be butyl tape used for sealing under things where there are screw penetrations so it seals around the screw, ( supposed to anyhow).

          Brian
          Brian & Michelle
          2018 Reflection 29RS
          2022 Chevy 3500HD

          Comment


          • #6
            I had the exact same leak on our 303. Exact same side. They said they inspected and found nothing, but check the rails for drain holes. there should be one closest to the seals that should be open to allow water running down the side of the slide to continue down. There is also a note I read somewhere to check the external side of the seal that the drain from the drip tray is clear.
            Joseph
            Tow
            Vehicle: 2024 GMC K3500 Denali Ultimate Diesel
            Coach: 303RLS Delivered March 5, 2021
            South of Houston Texas

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by WondersAwait View Post
              It appears we have a temporary fix. Knock on wood. We have plenty more rain in the forecast so I'll be keeping an eye on this, the seal tape ready, and will report back if there ends up being more to this tale.
              Well I spoke too soon on it being fixed, but spot on with having to share more with the additional rain. The leak continued after the added sealant tape we put on, but it was slowed down significantly. We took it into the dealership and I have to say that I was super impressed with them. I'm not sure if it's practice here to specifically name dealerships when bringing up good/bad experiences but mine was pretty awesome. They got us in within a week because the unit was so newly purchased. The service advisor was excellent and they had the work done and our rig was back to us within 4 days. I know better than to expect that kind of treatment every time, but it was certainly nice to get this time. They hyper-extended the slide and added a lot of silicone in multiple places where they saw it was missing/low, including where I pointed out the lack of butyl tape but also another spot they saw it should have been sealed but wasn't.

              After we got it back we thankfully had rain the following couple days, which allowed us to see how well the repair worked. Unfortunately we still had the same slow drip leak. Ugh, this was so frustrating to deal with on a couple week old rig. My wife wanted to take it back in to the dealership immediately but I decided to play detective instead.

              I did more looking at the slide and all seal surrounding it, and I must have completely missed this atrocious seal job on that very corner of the slide.

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              That seems like the culprit! I took a sharp razor to the silicone, removing it all and cleaning the area. Then I put a new layer of silicone on that spot and all the way around the exterior of the bulb seals for the slide.


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              I added that over the weekend and over the past 24 hours we have had some significant rain with not a single drop inside the rig. Great success! I know this won't be the last time I have to hunt down a frustrating issue but it feels good to have come to what I hope is the end of this saga. I'm earning the "I am the warranty" shirt we all wear.
              David and Deana
              2022 GMC Sierra 3500 AT4, CC, SRW, 6.6L L8T Gas, MYD 6-Speed
              2022 Reflection 303RLS w/ Gen-Y Executive Gooseneck Hitch

              Comment


              • #8
                WondersAwait I can't thank you so much for posts/fixes. We just bought our 303RLS on 9/20/22. I have washed it once and I'm ashamed to say, did not check for leaks. However, today I had all the slides out as we are leaving for Mena Arkansas in the morning and it rained today. I have a leak in the exact same spot near the shower as you do. It was getting dark so I couldn't do the investigating I needed but I noticed I did have water under the slide in that same area you photographed. It was dry on the left side (under the window and two drawers). The forecast for here and Mena doesn't show rain, but I'm going to be working on this.

                On a side note, I've never heard of "I am the warranty." But I am believer now. I think I'll get a t-shirt made. I already found and repaired a bad pex connection behind the Nautilus directly beneath the shower drain. I wouldn't have found it were it not for being nosy and removing the felt wall to "look at the guts" of the unit.

                So....is this indicative of Grand Design products? I've always heard they were built better.
                Last edited by jbt816; 10-16-2022, 10:59 PM.
                Bruce and Michelle - and Callie (GSD)
                2019 Ram 2500 Laramie 6.4L HEMI
                2023 Reflection 303RLS (purchased 9/2022)

                Comment


                • #9
                  WondersAwait

                  Have you had any more issues with this slide leak since May 2022? I am trying to decide whether to tackle this job myself or let the service center handle it first.
                  Bruce and Michelle - and Callie (GSD)
                  2019 Ram 2500 Laramie 6.4L HEMI
                  2023 Reflection 303RLS (purchased 9/2022)

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    jbt816

                    Previously (at the start of this thread) we had a leak regardless of the slide being in/out but since re-doing the seals we no longer have the leak at all when the slide is in. However we do still have a slight leak if the slide is extended and the rain is significant (light rain won't be enough for the leak to show up). We have just been dealing with this short term because we have been using the unit and didn't want it sitting in a service lot. We watch the weather and retract the slide in if we look to be getting a large rainstorm since we can function almost normally with the slide in.

                    With the season coming to an end we were considering having this looked at again to see if our dealer or GD can do something about it... and then wouldn't you know it, we just had a failure of our schwintek slide motor/mechanism. We have been religious about the operating the slide properly and not getting the motors out of sync, but we had a slight out of sync issue followed immediately by a massive and horrific grinding and popping noise when we operate the slide at all. This happened 1300 miles from home so thankfully we were able to get our clothing out of the wardrobe and the slide all the way in. Well mostly in, one corner is out about 1" and the other 3 are all the way in. We stopped trying to operate to finish our road trip and get back home. Thankfully we have had no leak issues while this has happened, even with some torrential downpours, but it would be nice to have a functioning slide again. I've done some basic troubleshooting but since the entire unit is 6 months old I want to have a tech look at it. I am guessing the slide is not square which caused the initial leak and then possibly the motor to jump the track; but I'll wait until a professional can look at to draw any more conclusions. I'm slammed busy with other things right now so I don't have more of an update than that and not sure when I will, but hopefully soon.
                    David and Deana
                    2022 GMC Sierra 3500 AT4, CC, SRW, 6.6L L8T Gas, MYD 6-Speed
                    2022 Reflection 303RLS w/ Gen-Y Executive Gooseneck Hitch

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Update on our rig: we finally got it back from the dealer after about 6 weeks of warranty work. I'm going to choose to remain as positive as I can, so I'll say that this entire situation was frustrating and try to leave the negativity at that.

                      The good news is that we have her back and it should be fixed. It turns out the schwintek slide was originally installed significantly out of alignment which caused our leak (the initial reason for this thread) and using it while it was out of alignment for several months then caused the schwintek mechanism to break. The service tech told me ours was almost 1.5" out of alignment and they were surprised it even worked; I believe specs from LCI/GD are within 1/4" to 1/8". They pulled the slide and replaced the whole assembly with new parts, and then reinstalled it all with proper alignment. I haven't tested the leak since I've had it back for a day and it's snowing here in Illinois, but they claim to have tested it in the shop and said it was not leaking after they got everything buttoned up. I ran the slide in and out several times before leaving the service lot, having my wife run the controls while I watched closely from multiple angles. It all looks great so fingers crossed they did a good job with reassembly and this entire headache is behind us.

                      I would advise anyone that is having a leak (on a recently purchased unit) the way I originally described, that they talk to their dealer service team to see if they can check the slide alignment as a potential cause of the leak. I am thankful that my slide broke while still under warranty. It's possible that if the alignment was not as bad that it would have taken slightly longer to chew up the system and break down, making this an even bigger headache. In hindsight I should have pressed them more when the leak was present at the time of purchase and all the time spent working on the seals still did not resolve the issue. Oh well, lessons learned!
                      David and Deana
                      2022 GMC Sierra 3500 AT4, CC, SRW, 6.6L L8T Gas, MYD 6-Speed
                      2022 Reflection 303RLS w/ Gen-Y Executive Gooseneck Hitch

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        We have taken the unit to the dealer twice and they told us the slide was not out of alignment.

                        They've added caulk a couple of times.

                        We've not taken as many trips and have not had it out in the rain. Today we are preparing to leave tomorrow and it just rained. The leak is still there and I can't seem to trace it's exact point of entrance. I can tell that it is also leaking under the black tape too (3rd pic - inside bathroom)

                        So frustrating.
                        Last edited by jbt816; 01-18-2023, 12:34 PM.
                        Bruce and Michelle - and Callie (GSD)
                        2019 Ram 2500 Laramie 6.4L HEMI
                        2023 Reflection 303RLS (purchased 9/2022)

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          jbt816

                          Water will run down the vertical side seal . . . trying to control the point of entrance is almost impossible. What you can control is having this water exit to the outside. There is (or, at least there should be) a cup at the bottom of the vertical seals that is there to catch this water. Some cups are simply tipped out (or are supposed to be) and some have a drain hole. If yours are glued into place but tipped the wrong way, drilling an outboard drain hole might solve the problem.

                          Rob
                          Cate & Rob
                          (with Border Collies Molly & Angel + Kitties Hazel & Elsie)
                          2015 Reflection 303RLS
                          2022 F350 Diesel CC SB SRW Lariat
                          Bayham, Ontario, Canada

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Cate&Rob View Post
                            jbt816

                            Water will run down the vertical side seal . . . trying to control the point of entrance is almost impossible. What you can control is having this water exit to the outside. There is (or, at least there should be) a cup at the bottom of the vertical seals that is there to catch this water. Some cups are simply tipped out (or are supposed to be) and some have a drain hole. If yours are glued into place but tipped the wrong way, drilling an outboard drain hole might solve the problem.

                            Rob
                            Interestingly, the left side of the slide (behind the sweeps) is dry from top to bottom -- and there are notches in the sweep to accommodate the slide rails. However, there are water droplets, behind the sweeps, all down the right side of the slide. The cup or trough at the bottom which is visible from the inside and outside is relatively dry. A tiny amount of water. BUT, when looking on the inside, the water is between the trough and the eternabond.
                            Attached Files
                            Bruce and Michelle - and Callie (GSD)
                            2019 Ram 2500 Laramie 6.4L HEMI
                            2023 Reflection 303RLS (purchased 9/2022)

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              I took a Lippert schwintek online course just to get more info on the system. I am surprised the dealer did not do the measurements outlined by Lippert to check to see if slide box is in alignment or not. Here are the notes about the visual inspection for anyone wanting to check.

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                              Vivian
                              2018 Reflection 303rls
                              Ford F-350 diesel long bed 4 x 4 SRW
                              Demco Recon

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