Towing in the rain and the bed became wet.

Bee

We recently spent a day driving through powerful mid-west storms. When we stopped for the night, we discovered that the bed was soaked. Water had obviously come through under the door on the left side of our t@g. A wet bed (my side, of couse) was not the way to end a stressful day of travel. Has anyone else had this experience? The seal around the door is not cracked or loose so we are unsure what to do to remedy the situation.

Bee

We also have the 5x7 side tent. It rained two nghts while we were camping and both nights the tent took on standing water enough that there were puddles of water and the floor rug was completely wet. We know that the rain did not come in through the screen panels but must have seeped up through the floor even though we had put down a tarp. Has anyone else experienced this? We tent camped for many years and never had water seepage in our Kelty or Coleman tents and are very dismayed that this expensive side tent gets wet!

tanda62

We drove in some powerful rain on our first trip out and both sides of the bed got wet - not soaked but wet. It hasn't happened in light to moderate rain so I just think when it is raining intensely the water gets in. Not sure what to do about it other than stop during hard rain.

mgreen2

It happened to us once and I think it was because the comforter was caught in the bottom of the door. Have driven in heavy rain before and since with no problems

BBsGarage

check the gasket around the door, some of them have been installed upside down or have moved not allowing proper sealing. Also check that the door is not twisted a bit, usually from just pulling it from the top when it is clicked into clip that holds it open.

Bee

@mgreen2 said:
It happened to us once and I think it was because the comforter was caught in the bottom of the door. Have driven in heavy rain before and since with no problems

Thank you for your response. The first time it happened I also thought the comforter had been caught in the bottom of the door, so I was very careful the next day when we packed up to be sure that comforter was out-of-the-way and then it happened again.

Bee

@BBsGarage said:
check the gasket around the door, some of them have been installed upside down or have moved not allowing proper sealing. Also check that the door is not twisted a bit, usually from just pulling it from the top when it is clicked into clip that holds it open.

Thanks for your reply. We checked the gasket, but didn’t think to see if it was upside down. I’ll have to check that out. I didn’t grab the door at the top so I will also check to see if it is twisted a bit. I sure hope not!

TennTim

Not sure if this was your case but here are some tent setup tips. Since you said you often camped before, it probably wasn’t your problem.

Tarps under tents are to protect the tent floor, not for rain. They should also not extend beyond the perimeter (i.e. you shouldn’t see it) as this would collect the rain shedding off of the tent and channel it under the tent and could hold it there.

Ideally it would also be placed in an area water wouldn’t try to flow through or collect but options are much more limited when you’re trying to connect it to the trailer.

Michigan_Mike

@Bee said:
We recently spent a day driving through powerful mid-west storms. When we stopped for the night, we discovered that the bed was soaked. Water had obviously come through under the door on the left side of our t@g. A wet bed (my side, of couse) was not the way to end a stressful day of travel. Has anyone else had this experience? The seal around the door is not cracked or loose so we are unsure what to do to remedy the situation.

There are various reasons this could take place. In some instances it is created by owners when comforters are added to the trailer, bedding is tucked in between the mattress and door, etc. Another area t consider and look at is the window since the above issues and subsequent pressure against it can loosen the glass panes, allowing water to seep in and get things wet.

Here is a video that explains the window and how to adjust tension.

https://youtu.be/1m_2Nd_lieY?t=5

@Bee said:
We also have the 5x7 side tent. It rained two nghts while we were camping and both nights the tent took on standing water enough that there were puddles of water and the floor rug was completely wet. We know that the rain did not come in through the screen panels but must have seeped up through the floor even though we had put down a tarp. Has anyone else experienced this? We tent camped for many years and never had water seepage in our Kelty or Coleman tents and are very dismayed that this expensive side tent gets wet!

Did you have the rain fly secured tightly and in place over the top of your trailer? If you only had the entry shroud attached to the side without the rain fly this is most likely your issue.

Bee

Thanks, Tim and Mike.

The first time the bed got wet, we thought it might be because of the comforter, so I was careful from then on to pull the bedding out of the way before shutting the door. That’s why I was very surprised when the bed was wet the second time after I had been so careful. Our tag XL has the little round window on the door and does not have the window shown in the video. None of the walls were wet, the ceiling/fan were not wet, and the storage compartment under the bed was not wet, so we concluded that the rain had to be coming in at the bottom of the door. The seal appears to be correctly installed.

As to the side tent, we use the rain fly and had it securely attached with bungee cords. It really has us flummoxed since we have camped since the early’70s and have never had a tent floor let in water.

A trip to the dealership may be in our future.

Michigan_Mike

What you might also try is to spray a garden hose around the door area, experiment some and try to find out how water is entering that area.

I'd also give Paha Que' a call and see if they have any recommendations. They might suggest spraying some water sealant along the seams or something along those lines.

TennTim

As I camped this weekend I thought about this as I looked at the door. With the channel that the tent connects to around the door, water ingress would seem to be difficult. I agree with Mike, get inside and have someone hit it with the hose simulating rain while driving. Maybe you will see where and how it is getting in.

kevineso1

I spent the afternoon yesterday at a dealer looking at a handful of Tags and I noticed on more than one of the units that the doors don't seat fully closed against the seal. you can actually see through to the threshold, and I remembered reading about this post. has anyone figured out a way to remedy this?? I couldn't see a way to adjust the door closing. Maybe that's something the dealer would fix prior to delivery.... but, the problem I mention was on the bottom corner of the door (not on the hinged side, but the bottom corner closest to the wheel and fenders.

Michigan_Mike

@kevineso1 said:
I spent the afternoon yesterday at a dealer looking at a handful of Tags and I noticed on more than one of the units that the doors don't seat fully closed against the seal. you can actually see through to the threshold, and I remembered reading about this post. has anyone figured out a way to remedy this?? I couldn't see a way to adjust the door closing. Maybe that's something the dealer would fix prior to delivery.... but, the problem I mention was on the bottom corner of the door (not on the hinged side, but the bottom corner closest to the wheel and fenders.

The doors should seal up tightly, and if there was or is a gap they certainly can fix the issue.

kevineso1

Thanks Mike, I was pretty sure that would be a fix by the dealer. I was surprised to see the gap in more than one unit. some over 1/8th of an inch. I was looking to see if there was some sort of an obvious door adjustment that could fix it, I could figure it out, but I guess that's what their service dept. is for...

Suzcrowel

Hi Bee, we have both the 5x7 tent and the 10x10 tent and water seems to come up through the floor. It is much worse with the 5x7 then the 10x10. It happens every time it rains no matter whether is a shower or a down pour, the carpet is soaked! This last weekend it didn’t rain but there was a heavy frost and sure enough the bottom of the tent and the bottom of the carpet were wet. You are not alone in this very annoying considering the cost of these tents.

Jay

We have a 2019 T&G 6W, we drove through some torrential downfalls this summer. Rained so hard, we couldn't see 25 feet in front of us and we pulled over for safety. We had no leaks at all. Sorry to hear you are having some issues with water.