# Damp in overcab



## Steamairy

Oh, woe is us! Our latest habitation check showed up damp in the overcab on both sides. 8O 
Luckily we are still within the Elddis warranty time.............just......having bought the motorhome three years ago.
Elddis have agreed to pay some of the bill but not all.
It's a Compass Avantgarde 140. I just wondered if damp is a common problem on a relatively new motorhome, or if we have been unlucky


----------



## WingPete

*Liability*

I fail to understand why Eldiss won't honour their warranty for the water ingress. Surely they cannot pick and choose which part of a warranty applies like this ! Unless you caused damage by collision or similar, it's their problem top deal with, at their full cost. Trading Standards can point you in the right direction for a full settlement.


----------



## DiscoDave

Problem is that damp as it is measured in a hab check can be caused either by:

water coming in through the joints between body and roof

or 

condensation build up from the ocupants.

we sleep in the over cab bed, luckily ours has heating duct round it, which helps a quite a bit, but simple things like making sure it's got plenty of air circulating, open the windows in a morning for an hour or so will help.

may just be a case of bad luck, but at lest you'll get some help with the repairs.


----------



## Mick757

The few times weve slept in our OC weve had the window open for air up there. Id bet a fair bit of condensation would build up over time in cold weather.

I cant understand why only part of a warranty would be honoured? I mean, does it gradualy 'fade' to nothing as the term expires or not? Id say you are either within the timescale, and therefore covered fully, or not at all. Its a bit like proclaiming someone is a 'bit' pregnant, and a nonsense what Elldis are saying.


----------



## Steamairy

Thanks for your comments so far...........

Our "problem" is that during the period of three years we only had two habitation checks, so do not completely fulfil the warranty requirements as laid out in their booklet.

Has anyone else out there had similar damp so soon? :?


----------



## Mick757

Steamairy said:


> Thanks for your comments so far...........
> 
> Our "problem" is that during the period of three years we only had two habitation checks, so do not completely fulfil the warranty requirements as laid out in their booklet.
> 
> Has anyone else out there had similar damp so soon? :?


So, are you not coming up to the third hab check on three years? Or have you somehow skipped one? In which case, im surprised the company havent used this to wash their hands of you altogether. Doesnt make sense, either way.


----------



## bowlty

hi
they found damp on my auto roller 700 it,s a november 58 damp on garage door, and both side walls just behind cab doors where it steps out very disappointed still waiting for parts, 1st check 
bowlty


----------



## Rosbotham

What a co-incidence...we've got a 2 yr old 140 and have just had a warranty claim for damp approved. Had been intending to post to ask if we were very unlucky, or these things happen frequently. Our's isn't in the overcab, though, it's down the nearside rear. I _hope_ it's fully covered - not been any mention of partially so. At what point in the claim process did they say they'd only partially payout for you rather than meeting the costs in full?

I know that to submit our claim, we needed the receipts/copies of damp reports from the hab services at Eldiss-approved dealers, and our's _were _done bang on time. I guess if you couldn't do that or the hab service wasn't on time, it'd provide wriggle room. Only other difference I can think of is I guess the internal condensation build-up could be greater in the confined space of the over-cab : however some would say a 3 year warranty is a 3 year warranty. Is your van just under or just over 3 years old?

One thing that caught me by surprise is how difficult it actually is to get these things fixed - we've 3 chains with an Elddis franchise around here, but none is able to assist short term because they're swamped with habitation work. We've ended up using the local caravan body repair shop (Crossleys).

Paul


----------



## gm6vxb

Quote :One thing that caught me by surprise is how difficult it actually is to get these things fixed - we've 3 chains with an Elddis franchise around here, but none is able to assist short term because they're swamped with habitation work.

Does this mean that Eldiss's have a known habitation problem, or are there just too many vehicles for local dealers to handle. Either way if it were a problem with a car I would imagine you would be more than annoyed, I know I would.

I have a Lunar, also has damp but in hatch doors, six months on still waiting. Suspect another six months will still be waiting !.

Martin, GM6VXB


----------



## Autoquest

A very timely post - I have just discovered damp in our three year old Autoquest 115 in the first locker behind the passenger seat. It looks like there is a problem with the seal between roof and wall and it happens to be right under the roof strip that joins the GRP front bit to the aluminium roof bit - I thought the day I bought it that that strip was a leak in waiting.... 

Our early warranty issues with our dealer were somewhat disappointing and I ended up doing any remedial work myself (tidying up their work in the process)

We suspected that the Explorer Group warranty wasn't worth the paper it was written on and didn't fancy paying £300 a year just to find out so we're not covered at all either and even if we were, we shudder at the potential for disaster that they could inflict upon our van whilst attempting a fix

We will open the wall up a bit so that it can breathe and hopefully dry out (the patch is A5 sized with 90% damp at the top down to 30% at the bottom) We have foil taped the seams for now and will try and identify the ingress point throughout the summer - If we need to strip everything out and remove the entire wall this winter then that's what we will do...

For all you owners of 115s, 120s, 130s, 140s etc check out your leaf springs. Ours were flat as a pancake with no temper left in the springs whatsoever (resting on the bumpstops) and my rear right spring has had a crack in it for some considerable period of time (judging by the rust) the crack had totally split the spring right across its width and occurred near the top of the rear hangar.

New springs are £200 each.... and mine isn't the first report of cracked springs on these forums. Have a look and see.


----------



## Spacerunner

My 3 year old Chausson had a roof leak where the sidewall joins the roof, the side capping had moved a bit.
Although the three year warranty was out of date it has a five year water ingress warranty.
The nice people at Highbridge fixed it in under a day and on production of proof of habitation servicing there was no charge. They even supplied a courtesy car for us to amuse ourselves for the day.
They were insistent about the annual habitation servicing and I *had* to show them the documentation, they also asked me to supply a copy of further servicing for their records to keep the five year warranty going.


----------



## Rosbotham

gm6vxb said:


> Does this mean that Eldiss's have a known habitation problem, or are there just too many vehicles for local dealers to handle. Either way if it were a problem with a car I would imagine you would be more than annoyed, I know I would.


No, not at all. The 3 dealers around here with an Elddis franchise are Marquis, Campbells and Discover. All of them are main dealers for other marques, as well as dealing caravans as well. Mar/April/May is peak time for habitation services as well as peak time for purchases (which also need a habitation before dispatch), result being they're all fully booked for 4-6 weeks. Arguably there are too many vehicles for local dealers to handle, but I'd say this area (Preston) has probably the greatest density of dealers in the country...as well as the above Elddis franchisees there's Todds, Brownhill/Hymer and Stewart Longton within a 5 mile distance.

I'm fairly sanguine about the situation now...Crossley's has had my warranty claim approved (now awaiting parts as it'll need a new roof-wall trim..Autoquest you might want to keep that in mind), so if there's any further deterioration while awaiting repair it's their issue to put right.

Ta for the info on springs Autoquest, I have my vehicle service next week so will ask them to check it...in fairness the Elddis/Compass models use a standard X250 chassis, so if there's an issue it's a generic Peugeot/Fiat one rather than Elddis.

Paul


----------



## Steamairy

Thanks Spacerunner............as I said our "problem" was missing a habitation check - so we think Elddis are being quite fair covering the major part of our claim but thanks for reminding me that water ingress has a five year warranty............we'll certainly remember the checks and paperwork in future!  

Is there anything we should / could have done to help prevent this? i.e. background heating and ventilation during the winter.


----------



## Autoquest

It depends if its condensation or ingress... The van will get damp in the lockers throughout the winter months if they are kept shut so best to keep everything open, we keep the windows on half latch as well to aid ventilation - ingress is a different matter, water will get past seals and soften all the wood in the local area, a good way to check if you don't have a meter is simply tap and feel inside all the lockers right at the top where the wall meets the roof; anything soggy will sound deadened compared to the dry stuff and will feel soft below the board - Dimples are another sign of damp - Have a look at the wallboard around your wheel arches in your bottom locker or cupboard, a favourite area....

The problem with ingress is finding the original leak which can be a bit needle and haystack so once it has been 'repaired' I would monitor it monthly


----------



## Steamairy

Thanks Autoquest - the problem has arisen due to water ingress through the seals.........so I guess I shall just have to keep checking after the work has been done.

It's going in next week, so at least it is being dealt with quickly


----------



## Rosbotham

Just one proviso on that. The guy from Crossleys may have been BSing me, but given (as you'll see from their site) such repairs are their bread and butter, I can't see why he would.

I was asking about certification and he said that they couldn't provide a certificate that it would be damp-free once they've done the work as residual dampness will remain...it'll dry out over time but day one there'll still be a bit there.

So be aware if he's right, obsessing about short term readings may not be the way to go. Although I can be more relaxed on that, because I'm only at year 2 and if there's any dampness at next year's service, they'll just have to repair again as it'll still be well in warranty.

Note that mine's definitely come from outside rather than it being the overhead locker...it goes half way down the back corner rather than being confined to where the locker is. May be co-incidental, but the black rubbing strip that runs above the back window is about quarter of an inch out, so it overlaps the vertical trim on offside, and has a gap between it and the trim on the nearside. My guess is the moisture's got in there.

Paul


----------



## Marrabone

*Elddis water ingress*

Oh dear, l am awaiting delivery of an Autoquest 140 and dismayed to read these reports. Still, forewarned is forearmed as they say.
I notice that they are now giving a six year warranty for water ingress but of course that's not much use if they try every possible way to wriggle out of it.


----------



## Rosbotham

I wouldn't say they wriggle...just have your habitation services done by one of their franchisees, on time, and make sure you keep the receipts/damp reports. As an aside, they weren't interested in the stamped up habitation service book...waste of paper.


----------



## Autoquest

*Re: Elddis water ingress*



Marrabone said:


> Oh dear, l am awaiting delivery of an Autoquest 140 and dismayed to read these reports. Still, forewarned is forearmed as they say.
> I notice that they are now giving a six year warranty for water ingress but of course that's not much use if they try every possible way to wriggle out of it.


The 140 is one of my favourite vans, I actually went to the dealers to buy one when, in a 'Little Britain' moment my wife said "I don't want that one, I want that one"... So I said goodbye to the largest double bed on the market (the one at the back), goodbye to all that upfront storage and the killer blow (which I didn't realise at the time) was goodbye to 200kgs of ear axle load - ouch! The old 400 had about 720kg of payload which was impressive - I think the new one has a fair bit less, nice van though  You'll love it


----------



## Mick757

Can i ask if there is anything to suggest the older 400's have a better build quality over the 'new breed'? Im only asking as ive recently bought one - and it _seems_ water-tight as far as i can tell.

As for future hab. checks; i bought mine from Discover York, and have no confidence whatsoever in their efficiency to do these checks to any standard. Ditto their van servicing.

Only this weekend i found two separate water leaks in the shower room - one undisputedly having been there a very long time, and missed during the hab. check it supposedly had done prior to collection.

Add to this three separate problems on the van side, now sorted at my end, but should never have left their premises with them.


----------



## Marrabone

Thanks Autoquest, that's made me feel much better. Its my first MH and l will be traveling mostly on my own, a complete beginner, its a really big step for me. Any advice gratefully received.


----------



## Autoquest

Try and not bump your head on the shelf when you jump into the driver seat from the back... Have a go at dropping the spare wheel from the carrier and getting the jack in the right place - practice makes perfect, and keep the spare wheel drop mechanism well greased or it will get a bit cantankerous. The electric step might start to dip and twist on one side over time, if its the same as mine it will need beefing up. I think the new ones come with a Whale water filler which is a backward step IMHO, you might need to buy a suitable water container.

Put a bung on the fresh water overflow or you'll have no water left on arrival (and you only started with 45 litres anyway)

Make sure you have a water catcher fitted over the engine plus an engine cover before you buy it.

Just PM if you have any other worries - I think I've seen them all by now on mine


----------



## Rosbotham

Have never understood how folk smash their head on that shelf unless (strangely) they're very short so sit close to the wheel.

Only other thing you've not mentioned is to check the pipe across top of engine has been modified. In absence of modification, it can fracture and pour coolant over the engine. Was a safety recall, so should have been done and if not should be covered by PDI.

Plus my gripe that the design of the sink tap is too easy to turn on by raising the sink chincilla lid, meaning it pumps water over the work surface.

Paul


----------



## Autoquest

Sorry, posted a link to another forum which is comprehensively blocked - I'll PM


----------



## Steamairy

Just a comment for "Marrabone"..............(sorry haven't found out how to "quote" yet!) ..........Rosbotham is right, as long as you have the annual habitation checks carried out and keep the paperwork, you'll be fine with the warranty from Elddis. Don't be like us and learn the hard way!

...........and Autoquest I agree with you the 140 is a great motorhome - huge bed and comfy lounging area and loads of storage. Hope you enjoy yours when it arrives Marrabone.


----------



## Marrabone

Thank you all for the advice, it seems as though l made a reasonable choice after all, despite being a complete novice.

I can just see what you mean about the sink tap Rosbotham, l would certainly have fallen foul of that one without your warning, l will try to remember to avoid it.

I'll definitely make sure that all the checks are done on time too.

Marrabone


----------

