Help please - water ingress problem (1 Viewer)

[Twogirls]

Our 2005 elddis autoquest has no damp problems except for a major one! The floir of the cupboard next to the fridge is almost constantly wet, making cupboard unusable. The water seems to be coming up from below, and has caused "bubbling" on the wood panel which sits adjacent to the fridge but only at the bottom of the next to the flooring, no bubbling higher up. There's no leaks or water running from the top of the cupboard downwards, it's purely the cupboard floor which can be sopping wet at times. I've looked underneath the van and there is clearly a large damp patch directly under the cupboard floor and it's visible on the inside of the rear nearside of the van. There doesn't appear to be any sealant between the cupboard floor and its side walls, I can seal it but still don't understand where on earth the water is coming from. Does anyone have any idea? Here are photos which might assist including photos taken from underneath the van showing the damp patch under the cupboard. No sign of rot or damp on the exterior bodywork where the damp is on the inside.

 

[MC 55 FUN]

Could the fridge be leaking ?

 

[Twogirls]

Well we did wonder. But how can we find out, does the fridge pull out?

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[DangerMousy]

Could it be the overflow bit from the fridge? Sorry not sure what the exact name is, but there's a tube that leads to a tray to collect condensation water from the fridge - I can see ours if I take the lower vent off. Its supposed to collect in the tray and evaporate but I guess if there's too much condensation it can overflow before it gets a chance to evaporate (we had this problem with our wine cooler in our kitchen). If you've got this arrangement then you should be able to extend the condensation tube to bypass the collection tray and vent directly to the outside (our vent cover actually has a little clip that looks to be designed for this exact purpose!)

 

[MC 55 FUN]

Well we did wonder. But how can we find out, does the fridge pull out?

If it's gas powered as well as electric I doubt if you can just pull it out due to the gas connections, but eliminating the fridge as a possible cause of the leak would be my first step.

 

[TheBig1]

it may well be water leaking into the rear panel from the light then running down the wires. i take it you have checked the sink waste? this , if it leaks inside the cupboard will run to a corner or the nearest vent hole to run out. the photos show it is quite a substantial leak

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[tonyidle]

Are the fridge vents fitted upside down? It wouldn't be the first time.

 

[suavecarve]

In picture number 1 there appears to be a waste pipe for water.
With that amount of water my guess would be a leak in the pipe or the connection. Is it the waste pipe from the sink ?
If so dry the pipe. fill sink up with water and let it run down then test the outside of the pipe to see if it is damp or not. If damp that is the cause and probably then the connection to the sinkhole.

 

[chaser]

We have a similar van to yours but probably adifferent layout but we had a damp floor and it was moving across from the shower.

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[Twogirls]

Thanks all for your advice. I've ruled out the waste pipe as there are no leaks in it and it doesn't get wet at all (it's not the sink waste, it runs under the van and right across to the bathroom side so I assume it's the shower waste pipe?). I'll check the vent and light casing as suggested.

 

[suavecarve]

The cubby hole that we can see is to the right of the fridge and the shower is to the right of the cubby hole ?
If so is there a toilet in there and sink in there as well ?
Presumably no damp in the shower area that can be seen ?
And therefore the presumption is that the water is coming from under the shower ?

 

[Just smiffy]

First elimination is outside or inside..?
Dry it all and put some kitchen roll down in the cupboard then hose Down the outside and underneath if the kitchen roll is dry then start eliminating inside, first sink...dry.? Shower..dry? Then fridge... it's time consuming but it's important to know so you can deal with it.... good luck

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[suavecarve]

Have you got the model number so we can take a look at the plans on the internet, and rice might be worth throwing down overnight to soak some of it up

 

[jtp890]

Above the salad tray at the rear, is their a collecting trough. If so check that the drain hole leading from it isnt blocked. On household fridges, if this blocks water will drain through door on to floor.

 

[GWAYGWAY]

It looks like an internal leak to me it might be travelling from somewhere. dry it out and drain everything down then add water to various things watching when it start to appear. Get some desiccant blocks to dry it first.

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[pappajohn]

personally i would remove the black trim strip on the outside in pic 2 and check there is sealant all the way along it.
the front end cap appears to be out of line with the strip which points to the strip not being sealed.
behind the strip will be the floor to wall joint, the white panel below is only a plastic trim skirt.

 

[Minxy]

Looking at picture 2 the area in question is the nearside rear corner area, with the rear kitchen area next to the habitation door.

Have a look at the vertical corner capping trim that runs up to the roof as it's not uncommon for these to need resealing - if there's the slightest gap water can easily run down the back of the trim and into the base of the interior/floor area and cause the damp from wicking which is what I think is happening ... looking at the pattern of the damp and the way it has 'wiggled' this is the most likely cause. It may be the horizontal 'bump' strip but I doubt it.

 

[suavecarve]

Looking at picture 2 the area in question is the nearside rear corner area, with the rear kitchen area next to the habitation door.

Have a look at the vertical corner capping trim that runs up to the roof as it's not uncommon for these to need resealing - if there's the slightest gap water can easily run down the back of the trim and into the base of the interior/floor area and cause the damp from wicking which is what I think is happening ... looking at the pattern of the damp and the way it has 'wiggled' this is the most likely cause. It may be the horizontal 'bump' strip but I doubt it.

That makes a bit of sense as picture 7 of the closed cupboard door shows the entrance to habitation door open. So on that basis, the kitchen is at the rear. then loking at the exterior of the van photo that appears to be nearside rear. If you look at that photo the vertical capping trim at the join of the horizontal has a gap. Has there been a recent minor knock ?
Also underneath the horizontal there cold be a minor gap where the next vertical goes down.

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[old-mo]

Not some one a bit heavy handed round the outside fridge vent`s when hosing/washing down is it... ?