Water Leak

[bzdqkq]

Hi, I noticed a severe water leak that the mice generously gave my RV. This leak got a large area under the RV wet. It is the area between the floor and insulation. I found the large hole the mice ate, but had to gain access to the pipe from underneath. I had to cut a hole in that tough black plastic sheet covering the insulation from under. All of the insulation is soaking wet. My question is, should I cut out all of that black plastic stuff and remove the insulation or will the insulation eventually dry? It appears the water leaks right through that black stuff, which may be good (means it's not air tight and can somewhat breath). This would be a lot of work replacing all the insulation under the RV and tacking up some more of that black plastic sheet. I want to fix this right. Any thoughts? Damn rodents!

 

[Karl]

What a bummer! :-[

Sorry, but the best thing to do is remove all the damp stuff and replace with dry. If you don't, it may mold and mildew up on you, and you may never get rid of the smell and potential health problems. It's also the only way you can assess and repair any water damaged flooring, etc. Best to bite the bullet now and do it right. It'll pay off in the long run.

 

[John From Detroit]

As he said, get rid of the wet, put in new dry, oh yes, and INSTALL CAT

 

[bzdqkq]

Thanks for the replies. A buddy of mine had a similar problem and he had a leaky pipe in his fiver basement and ended up punching some holes in that black stuff w/a phillips head screwdriver to drain the water. This was about 2 years ago and has no problems w/odor or dampness and hopefully no mold/mildew, but who knows. Also, I got the new fittings from an RV store and asked them about my problem and the guy told me that it will dry and try to run a fan in there to help. So, here is what I plan to do. Repair the line, leave the access hole I cut exposed for a few weeks and pipe a fan in the hole. After a few weeks, I will cut some small holes in the black stuff to check for dampness. If no dampness, tape over holes....all is good. If dampness, remove it all and totally re-do all the plumbing, so this doesn't happen ever again. What a terrible design, running the plumbing between the bottom of this fiver and that black stuff. I hope all mfg. don't do this. Also, what it CAT? Thanks.

 

[Tom]

...what it CAT?

Since you mentioned that mice caused the damage, I believe John was suggesting you keep a cat (animal) on board to keep mice away.