Damp !

[carthorse]

First service today 40% damp found just behind driver's seat.Year old van not good enough really fed up will get it fixed then goodbye Autotrail.

 

[chaser]

First service today 40% damp found just behind driver's seat.Year old van not good enough really fed up will get it fixed then goodbye Autotrail.

You havnt left the window open in some rain have you or door not fully shut.
Otherwise a strange place to be damp.

 

[Sunlovers]

Ooh, what an odd place for the damp to show up? Did something spill perhaps? Or has the blue water tank got a little weep in it that has tracked across to that area? Was the damp in the floor board or the carpet do you know?

 

[mikebeaches]

Must say, that's disappointing.

Hope you get it sorted under warranty OK.

 

[TCG]

First service today 40% damp found just behind driver's seat.Year old van not good enough really fed up will get it fixed then goodbye Autotrail.

oh dear.. that is bad... let them repair under warranty and then have a good think... dont jump out of the frying pan into the fire, this could have happened with any brand.

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[carthorse]

Damp is in the wallboard at floor level.
When i say behind the driver's seat it's the wall
underneath the table ,haven't had chance to have a look myself (mrs. C was with the engineer)will have a look tomorrow.
Van is a T720 this is the latest in a long list of faults will be glad to see the back of it.?

 

[Hollyberry]

That’s not a good experience for your first motorhome ( I think)
I can only suggest that it’s fixed under warranty and get everything that’s said/done by Autotrail in writing. And take photos, before and after.
I hope it’s all fixed to your satisfaction.

 

[Sunlovers]

Sorry to hear the news there Carthorse, that really does sound disappointing. We've just experienced a damp ceiling week in our Rapido, but our rig is almost 13 years old on the assembly stakes. To give you some heart though, we went from 51% to around 15% in 9 days once we halted the water ingress and started the drying out process.

 

[tonka]

Sorry but it's NOT an unusual place, especially on an Autotrail.

My 700 had problems in that area over several years. From posts on Autotrail groups it really is one of the common areas.. Mine went back 3 times to the factory for them to try and resolve the issue. One suggested issue by those who have had problems is that the wallboards sit in a U aluminium channel. They dont seal this very well and condensation forms to then creep up the wooden frame and internal wall boards. Also seen pictures posted where the end of the channel is either open or wood has rotted to allow road spray in.

The Autotrail warranty will cover it either at the dealers or go direct to the factory. You wont get anything in writing. I asked several times and nothing ever came.

Good luck with it all.. Many on here will know it was a standing joke about my previous van. 6 out of 7 hab checks it had damp issues.

This is from 2017 and plenty of reports of issues in same area.

Auto Trail - Water Ingress

I am trying to establish the extent of water ingress problems involving Auto Trail motorhomes. Our 2014 Chieftain revealed extensive damp problems after its second habitation service in March 2016 involving the bed box behind the driver’s seat and the rear garage space. Our dealer...

www.caravanclub.co.uk

 

[Delboyarapaho]

I had an Arapaho with damp in exactly the same place by the sound of it. Just at the front end of the dinette behind the driver's seat on the wall at floor level. My theory was that the outside locker was damaging the sealant on the outside when it was opened as the locker hit the body and acted like a knife. If the same it is a poor design fault

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[Pausim]

We had a 3 month water ingress check on our Carthago yesterday, this involves a thorough drenching with damp testing. No issues found but aimed at spotting any problems early and fixing them before there is any serious structural damage. All motorhomes have joints, seams and seals; and all motorhomes flex when in use. In many ways it makes sense that if a seam is going to fail it is quite likely to do so during early use as things settle in, even if the vehicle was watertight when it left the factory. Understandable that you are fed up carthorse .

 

[M-J]

Another Auto-Fail on the damp check, hope you get it sorted.

 

[Vipar]

Good luck with the repairs. Think twice about changing it you might lose a lot of dosh and then develop problems with the new van at least you have a come back if it happens again you can refer to the list of problems that you have had. After all you chose the van after much deliberation so the layout and front end must suit you. Count to 1 million before you do anything. I will start you off 1 2 3 4 5 bugger I have fell asleep ????

 

[Blue Knight]

As tonka has already mentioned above, this is a very common place for damp in an Autotrail. If you join the Autotrail Unhappy Owners Club on Facebook then you'll find a load of people out there who have had the same problem, besides many other serious damp issues too.

There's a guy on the AUOC who specialises in rejecting vans back to the dealer so it's a good idea to join (for reference purposes if nothing else).

Good luck with the repair.

 

[carthorse]

Thanks for all your kind words of support I'm contacting my dealer (who i have confidence in after other repairs carried out) tomorrow to start a warranty claim.
Now I've got over the shock we'll see how the repairs turnout before deciding about getting rid of the van.

Thanks

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[HandyAndy]

First service today 40% damp found just behind driver's seat.Year old van not good enough really fed up will get it fixed then goodbye Autotrail.

Incontinence pads sprung a leak??

 

[Blue Knight]

Thanks for all your kind words of support I'm contacting my dealer (who i have confidence in after other repairs carried out) tomorrow to start a warranty claim.
Now I've got over the shock we'll see how the repairs turnout before deciding about getting rid of the van.

Thanks

Repair it and get rid. There's a reason why there are so many nearly new Autotrails on the various forecourts.

God luck.

 

[Campervan_man]

Autotrail's have john guest speed fit type semi-flexible plastic pipes with a micro-switched pump. I have seen a few Auto-trails pipes that blow apart with the water pressure. The pump micro-switch then kicks in and all the water in the motor home water tank will leak in to the van.
If I had an Auto-trail I would tape any water pipe joints up with gaffer tape to stop them from coming undone. eg, T joints, Y joints, straight joints etc

 

[Minxy]

Could it have anything to do with the electric lead inlet being there? Perhaps the seal isn't sufficient to stop water getting past it?

 

[Blue Knight]

Could it have anything to do with the electric lead inlet being there? Perhaps the seal isn't sufficient to stop water getting past it?

That's a very good point Mel but the three main problem areas which result in damp behind an Autotrail drivers seat are:

1. Front leaky window.
2. Poor join-integrity between floor and wall (very common).
3. Failed vertical seal between cab and conversion (also very common).

There have been many dozens of reported damp issues behind Autotrail drivers seats but the underlying issue is down to the poor build quality of the conversion.

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[Minxy]

That's a very good point Mel but the three main problem areas which result in damp behind an Autotrail drivers seat are:

1. Front leaky window.
2. Poor join-integrity between floor and wall (very common).
3. Failed vertical seal between cab and conversion (also very common).

There have been many dozens of reported damp issues behind Autotrail drivers seats but the underlying issue is down to the poor build quality of the conversion.

I read the other replies so didn't state them again but no-one mentioned the electric point, hence my suggestion.

Whatever it is I hope it's sorted quickly and permanently so it doesn't re-occur ...

 

[tonka]

Could it have anything to do with the electric lead inlet being there? Perhaps the seal isn't sufficient to stop water getting past it?

In some cases yes...
I think it was the 3rd visit for me the guy who bought the van out the factory mentioned they had replaced the fitting. Maybe a precaution.

 

[Sunlovers]

Having been following this thread and reading other similar plights, knowing what we have suffered this past month on our own van I for one am going to be a tad more vigilant on looking at seams, joints, fittings and internal cubby hole corners moving forward. I think I had become a bit complacent (the old familiarity breeding contempt issue) and wasn't looking for wet issues. That's going to be changed now!

 

[GMLS]

Our AT Scout had damp in that area on 2 occasions before we got rid and we were told by the dealer that it was a common issue in that particular place. Weak design compounded by poor workmanship and exactly as Tonka described.

5 out of 5 damp tests needed warranty work and annual service ended up being stressful each time. Got rid after 6 years and just had the first damp check on the Burstner and no issues whatsoever.

 

[carthorse]

Been down to the storeage this morning to see what the damage is.
The wallboard has about a 6 inch square black mark down at floor level behind the driver's seat,
on the outside directly behind this is a joint strip (see pic) looks like it' could be the culprit .

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[Martin Stacey]

Autotrail's have john guest speed fit type semi-flexible plastic pipes with a micro-switched pump. I have seen a few Auto-trails pipes that blow apart with the water pressure. The pump micro-switch then kicks in and all the water in the motor home water tank will leak in to the van.
If I had an Auto-trail I would tape any water pipe joints up with gaffer tape to stop them from coming undone. eg, T joints, Y joints, straight joints etc

You can get clips to go on the joints to stop them vibrating apart. Done all mine. Think they are called colletts

 

[Basildog]

Buy a HYMER they are complete piles of junk ?

 

[Raybreck]

You can get clips to go on the joints to stop them vibrating apart. Done all mine. Think they are called colletts

Hi Martin
We have an Autotrail no real problems as yet but can you let me know where you got them from and a photo if possible.
Regards Ray

 

[Martin Stacey]

Hi Martin
We have an Autotrail no real problems as yet but can you let me know where you got them from and a photo if possible.
Regards Ray

john guest collet clips.

Plumbing Supplies | Plumbing Materials | Plumbing Superstore®

Plumbing Superstore is one of the UK's leading online plumbing suppliers, offering John Guest Speedfit, Armacell, Pegler Yorkshire and more.

www.jtmplumbing.co.uk

 

[POH]

Hi , we have just got ours back from dealer after some warranty work and they did a hab service while there got damp in rear locker door 36% and the next high reading is somewhere near the same place as op but looking at the diagram it seems to be in the same area under front bench seat with a reading of 21% will have to keep an eye on it and the joint in his picture , might put some silicone around it to see if it has any effect. imala730

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