The Miracle of Sealtech

We knew we had a leak in the bedroom slideout, and we wanted to have Venture checked for any other hidden leaks too. Water is definitely the #1 enemy of RVs. It insidiously finds its way into any tiny opening, and often the damage is hidden until it has gotten really advanced, resulting in rot and mold. The difficulty is in finding such hidden leaks. The Sealtech system works by pumping air into the RV, creating positive outward air pressure, and then applying a soapy water solution and watching for bubbles, which form immediately at any leak.

Machine that creates air pressure goes through a vent inside the RV where a fan has been temporarily removed.

Tell-tale bubbles show where leaks have developed.

Venture turned out to have several poorly sealed areas, including the tape along the outside edge of the bedroom slideout. We are hopeful that the repairs done today by TC-RV technician, Larry, will effectively fix the leak in the bedroom and prevent future problems. Larry also removed the tape along the juncture between the rubber roof and the front end cap, which has been peeling back in the passenger corner since a couple days after it was applied last year. Removing the old tape is a laborious job, involving heating a scraper with a blow torch. That adhesive is really strong!

While we were waiting in the showroom, Ken struck up a conversation with another customer, named Steve. After chatting a while, they discovered that Steve is the "kayak guy" at Bentsen Palm Village and remembered my kayak trip from last January. Small world. He and his wife live here but spend winters in Texas. They plan to arrive December 1 this year, as do we.

At the end of the day, the Service Manager, Dean, said that it would be best if the new seals had some time to cure before being subjected to the rigors of travel, so we're spending another night in the parking lot.

We found a PBS station on broadcast TV and watched the Newshour and Nova and Nova Science Now, which included a segment on H.M. and memory titled The Man Who Couldn't Remember. It was rather poignant to hear H.M.'s voice speaking of his gladness about helping other people through the research being done on him. He died last December and left a final gift: his brain to be dissected and studied.