Sealing Bolts after the fact

[lfhoward]

When I bolted the walls down to the trailer frame I sealed the wall/floor and the bolt holes with silicone. Big mistake, which I corrected later in the build and used urethane based sealers for everything from then on.

When towing in heavy rain this week, I had water come up through one of the bolt holes at the front of the trailer and make a minor pool on the interior floor. Since it is too late to change the sealer I used (and the trailer body cannot be detached from the trailer deck anymore), I am thinking of using something to cover the bottom of the bolts and washers under the trailer to seal the leak. What would you use?

Rubberized undercoating?
Sikaflex caulk?
PL Premium?
Something else?

Thanks for your advice and experiences.
Lauren

[KCStudly]

IIRC you built your walls directly on the steel trailer deck. Are you sure it came up through the bolt hole and not under a gap between the wall and trailer deck?

Unless you did a water fording I find it hard to conceive any significant amount of water being wind driven up thru a partially sealed bolt hole. Rain running down a front wall and being wind driven under the edge of the wall, or just finding the top of the deck and seeping in seems more likely.

So assuming that is true, did you seal the seam between the wall and deck or did you just lay a bead on top of the deck and set the wall on it? If the later, I would lay a bead along the outside seam.

[halfdome, Danny]

Lauren, It's a little messy but I put sealant around the bolts before they go into the floor.
I also have had great results spraying Flexseal to areas that need extra attention.
It's so easy to coat things that are under the teardrop with a spray can of the stuff.
Danny

[lfhoward]

Thanks KC and Danny! Sorry for the belated reply but I just got back from a couple of weeks of camping without regular internet access.

KC, you are right in remembering that the walls are bolted to a metal floor. The wall sills have a layer of silicone sealer between the wood and the metal, and some more urethane sealer outside of that, followed by a bead of Sikaflex. I can't see any holes on the outside front seam using visual inspection, but it is possible if the silicone has detached from the surface and water was blown in by interstate speeds.

I'm going to try the Flexseal on the bolts under the trailer to rule that out first, then if that doesn't do the trick, another bead of Silaflex across the front and maybe an aluminum drip edge over the seam. I had a torrential rainstorm today and no leaks, so I think that horizontal pressure of driving is necessary for the leak.