Water coming in, from where?

[drewkaree]

I tried the weather stripping and it allowed water to pass through albeit at a much slower rate than if there was nothing there. It was not neoprene, perhaps that is the ticket.

It’s interesting that there is sealant below the clean out tray from the factory, the shop manual shows applying the sealant after the tray is installed. I’ve been using silicone on the outside, but that removable caulking sounds like the way to go! I’ve sorta have a system and I get the tray off and back on in about a hour…but it’s a pita with all the scraping and cleaning.

I want to get back in there and attach a 1/2” radiator flush fitting to the suction side of my raw water wash down system so I can flush that tiny bit of remaining lake water out with the hose, or with air during the shoulder seasons when overnight lows are below freezing.

The majority of the screws have been upsized as the oem screws strip out, once that happens with the larger screws I’ll be epoxying the holes shut and redoing them. I’m thinking when that happens I might just glue / epoxy some threaded pieces of aluminum underneath and use threaded screws going forward. Once I’ve done that I’m sure I wont need to get back in there any more lol!

According to Amazon, this is the weatherstripping I used: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WTRK3LX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 As you can see, it's 1/4" thick, and is stated to be waterproof, although it won't keep out anything that it can't seal off. At that thickness, it should be sealing everything, but like I said, that bend in the middle really wasn't needed, and probably isn't giving the same pressure surrounding that bend. To add to it, there's two spots on either side of the cleanout tray, thanks to that design. If you have a flat cleanout tray, I'm certain this would work great for you.

I don't have my shop manual here at home, but I'll try to remember to take a look at it. I'm guessing the sealant underneath the tray, like everything that seems to show up as a problem, is/was a time-saving step. Slap some on there, tighten (and overtighten) the screws holding down the tray, and call it a day. Putting it on afterwards, for the factory, adds one more step - tooling the sealant along the edge of the tray. It's also a very tight squeeze along some of the sections, so I'm betting that's why mine (and others) was done the way it was by the factory.

The threaded pieces of aluminum may work for you, but on mine, the outer edges were a bear to try to get the 4200'd pieces in place around the cleanout port tubes. Not sure if the epoxy would have similar adhesion issues either, but I've decided I'll be finding out if I can tap the epoxy itself and see if that will work, while making it a bit easier in the long run to deal with. @VitaminSea pointed out that Marine Tex, and it seems like it'd be sufficient for that area.

 

[drewkaree]

I used this weatherstripping on my 2021 model and it has been working great. No more leaks for that area https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B085WLTJYF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

So from what I know about high density foam (waterproofing and insulating a basement with the stuff), it works as its own vapor barrier when thickness is sufficient (I know 2" is good, but 1" is not), and the stuff DOES do fairly well at keeping casual water (for lack of a better term) out of the area, but over time, I don't believe that's the best material. Time will tell, and there's no way to speed up the process, but it's something I would keep an eye on. I don't believe it will leak, per se, but from my reading, it would seem like it would begin to act as a sponge with water build-up over time. If it works over time, that's great - just something to be aware of. If you're interested on the info, look for Joseph Lstiburek and his ideas/research, but here's a long, dry read packed with pertinent info: https://www.buildingscience.com/documents/digests/bsd-106-understanding-vapor-barriers

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

According to Amazon, this is the weatherstripping I used: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WTRK3LX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 As you can see, it's 1/4" thick, and is stated to be waterproof, although it won't keep out anything that it can't seal off. At that thickness, it should be sealing everything, but like I said, that bend in the middle really wasn't needed, and probably isn't giving the same pressure surrounding that bend. To add to it, there's two spots on either side of the cleanout tray, thanks to that design. If you have a flat cleanout tray, I'm certain this would work great for you.

I don't have my shop manual here at home, but I'll try to remember to take a look at it. I'm guessing the sealant underneath the tray, like everything that seems to show up as a problem, is/was a time-saving step. Slap some on there, tighten (and overtighten) the screws holding down the tray, and call it a day. Putting it on afterwards, for the factory, adds one more step - tooling the sealant along the edge of the tray. It's also a very tight squeeze along some of the sections, so I'm betting that's why mine (and others) was done the way it was by the factory.

The threaded pieces of aluminum may work for you, but on mine, the outer edges were a bear to try to get the 4200'd pieces in place around the cleanout port tubes. Not sure if the epoxy would have similar adhesion issues either, but I've decided I'll be finding out if I can tap the epoxy itself and see if that will work, while making it a bit easier in the long run to deal with. @VitaminSea pointed out that Marine Tex, and it seems like it'd be sufficient for that area.

Totally agree with you why it is not sealed on the outside at the factory…it is a bit of work to seal on the outside without making a mess. I use the blue masking tape and mask off the area so when I apply the silicone then smooth it with a finger the spooge goes onto the tape and then comes off with the tape leaving a relatively clean looking finished product. A quick run with a J knife around the tray and the base makes for quick removal.

Thanks for the link to the neoprene weatherstripping!