Leak from Nautilus box and outdoor shower box while driving T@B 320S in heavy rain.

riseandshine

We just experience two water leaks similar to what MonicaNOCO described in the post linked below, but apparently with different causes. While I've fixed one of the leaks (hopefully), the solution may cause unanticipated problems down the road. Link: https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/comment/139126#Comment_139126

After driving our T@B 320S in heavy rain we noticed water in several places across the inside floor. The water was dirtiest and most prevalent around the Nautilus box under the driver side seats, but dirty water made its way under all four seats to varying degrees. No water was found behind/under the kitchen cabinet area, likely because the floor rugs we have absorbed it before reaching that area. The dirty water was only on the floor and made it no higher to any other parts of the trailer. Total volume was maybe a few cups, but it was hard to measure.

There was also a smaller amount of cleaner water on the bottom of the storage area under the rear drivers side seat, near the inside of the housing for the outdoor shower. There were also a few drops on the shower hose there. This water was not on the flat part of the floor but on the rounded part toward the back of the trailer.

We inspected the nautilus box and saw lots of very dirty water and debris all over the inside surfaces of the box, including the top. It looked like dirty water got blasted into the Nautilus box with force. The door of the Nautilus box was securely closed and latched and the gasket is intact and feels as though it seals when the door is latched. While sticking my head inside the Nautilus box (yes, it fits), I noticed several uncaulked seams or gaps between the box and the inside wall of the trailer, with dirty water near and inside these gaps. I also noticed that the back side of the drivers side trailer tire (which has no mud flap) is directly below the hose port for the Nautilus box. Even though the plastic port cover was completely closed, the fit is loose with small gaps and it's easy to imagine that tire splashing road water with enough force to splatter all over the inside of the box, then into the gaps, then into the trailer. 

The outdoor shower box was also wet inside all over, but the water was less dirty. There's no gasket on this door and the fit is loose. It looks like water simply ran down the outside wall of the trailer and flowed into the shower box. Some amount of the water hit the shower hose and then simply dripped into the interior.

So to fix the Nautilus box leak, I sealed all the open seams with non-silicon marine caulking and made a foam plug to fit tightly inside the hose port (photos below). I tried to fix the outdoor shower box leak by putting a thin gasket around the shower box, but the door is so thin and flexible that it will not create a seal. Attempts to reinforce the door with various metal braces failed as there's very little room to attach anything to the inside of the door without pressing against the shower head and/or the door clasp.

Does anyone see any problems completely blocking the Nautilus box host port? If there's a small leak from inside the Nautilus box, it would have no way to drain out now, which is a concern. Has anyone found a way to make the outdoor shower door water tight?

jkjenn

I know dust gets in the Nautilus box and I have thought about doing something similar to keep the box clean.

Basil48192

I would caulk around the bottom of the drain valves as well.  I found the water from inside the Nautilus box made its way into my 2021 320S as well.  I'm not crazy about the way the bottom of those hoses are tangent to the bottom of the Nautilus.  As your photo above shows, they are not very easy to caulk and it provides a direct route to the inside of the camper.

Woodlets

I have water damage on the inside outer wall of the ALDE-Nautilus wall. It is the worst from the Alde vent back to where the bottom starts to slope up.
My nautilus box was sealed against the large gap at the bottom against the Azdel panels; but when I took a close look at the outer nautilus exterior black door, I could see dirt and water leakage up at the top inner bottom edge. I removed the nautilus exterior black door. The factory had over cut the height of the rectangular hole in the Azdel panel to mount it. When they slapped it in place with sealant and screwed it in with the self-drilling #8 sheet metal screws, one screw was so low it made no contact at all. I cleaned everything up and sealed it with butyl tape, centered it and remounted it. I also sealed the horizontal gaps 80% up from the bottom of the Nautilus box and inside of the  Azdel panel with sealant.
The foam stopper looks like a great idea and I'll add one to out 2021 TAB 400 Boonedock.
I would note that every car I've ever owned over the past 55 years has had a check valve style drain, or removable rubber grommet seal in the bottom of the trunk areas in case of trunk rain intrusion or spills.
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Why doesn't nuCamp have a drain in the bottom of the ALDE-Nautilus compartment for all of the leaks that I have read about on this wonderful and informative forum?
This would prevent the rotting wood on the lower interior sidewalls and wood structure below the linoleum making the bottom of the trailer bed.
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rfuss928

This is our second season with our UT ( think CSS ) and every time we have driven in rain we have had a flooded kitchen floor.  It was back to NuCamp Service Center in May and nothing was found or suggested.  It was really bad yesterday after driving in and out of rain for five hours at interstate speeds.
Frustrated with this soaking everything on the CS kitchen floor (not as much as my bride!) and the damage to the trailer, I'm determined to find the cause.  
I agree with riseandshine that the water blast from the left trailer tire is filling the Nautilus box as I also found it full of dirt and water.  Furthermore a hose blast into the open box immediately resulted in water in the kitchen sink cabinet and rear floor corner.  The same area which is showing the most evidence of water damage.
I think the foam plug in the hose port or something similar would make a big difference.  Additional caulking seems prudent also.
Has anyone made similar changes and seen results from their efforts.  I'd like to resolve this before our next trip.

riseandshine

After making the following three changes that all caused leaks, we have not seen any leaks caused by driving in the rain over the last two seasons:

1. Foam plug in Nautilus port, plus making inside of Nautilus water-tight from trailer interior as much as possible.
2. Adding a larger foam weather seal strip under the door that fits snug with the door frame floor when closed.
3. Removing the outside shower plumbing entirely and sealing off the housing's interior with foam so it's water-tight from trailer interior.

nbrandt

While there is water getting to places where it shouldn't be - and that needs to be addressed as it seems you are doing.  I am also wondering if a mudflap would also help mitigate some of the volume of water aimed at that area while driving.

riseandshine

Mud flaps should help for sure - just a matter of attaching them, which is probably not hard to do. 

rfuss928

Mud flaps were one of the first accessories I added.  Didn't seem to help my situation...  I was even wondering if they somehow made things worse.
I think if the hose port is sealed and the door seal is tight the box doesn't really need to be sealed from the interior.  None the less, I'll be sealing mine in addition to the hose port plug.  My Nautilus P3 includes a shower outlet so I don't have that other box and door to deal with.