Infuriating water leak!

[83bagged]

i have to say that the seam on the back of the cab wall has a pinhole somewhere. but man thats a toughy... i wouldnt even know where to start! but great demonstration dude.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

i got that seam taped up down to where if it was leaking, i should be able to see the water entering inside the truck. i also had the gap between bed and cab taped up yesterday so a minimum amount of water could get to that seam and it didnt slow the leak.

its like its osmosis-ing right through the metal

 

[83bagged]

ROFL! i promise it aint comin through the metal, hahahaha

well it seems like youve covered every area, but the water migh not be coming straight from the leak, it could be routed a small way. but from where....

that is the question

 

[Totalled]

I looked at a '96 standard cab that had it's headliner out in the junkyard yesterday... the cab is double walled around the outside edges... you wouldn't be able to get to the seam from the outside anyway...

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

the cab is double walled around the outside edges... you wouldn't be able to get to the seam from the outside anyway...

thanks for the info totalled...i was kind of wondering about that. thats the problem im running into is the leak is behind the first layer of metal somewhere so i cant physically see where its entering the cab.

 

[rickcdewitt]

so that wasn't getting in the sun roof at all?

if i was you i'de start at the bottom of the rear window careful not to get water up higher and watch for the leak to progress while you go up a few inches at a time.

don't get any water on the exposed cab seam(you should be able to seal it pretty well with the tape),roof or door to rule them out.if no agua then try the other areas one at a time.

you probably missed it just go slower and try and test one area at a time


from the vid its got to be coming from window level or higher

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

i stopped by and visited a buddy of mine that works in a body shop today and he gave me the same suggestion you just did. starting with a low flow of water, start low and work your way up. with this method, i made progress!

refering back to my edited picture on page one, the leak in the middle is indeed coming from that body seam, where the corner and back of the cab meet, below the level of the bed:

its sort of hard to see, but there are two little bubbles in the body sealer along the seam and water is slowly seeping in right there. im hoping that will be an easy fix by simply smashing some RTV into the holes from the inside (i may lay a bead along the entire length of the seam while im at it, just in case).

im still not 100% on the big leak on the right (the one that drips constantly), but i have it narrowed down to the top half of this body seam:

it is definitely not the rear window and definitely not anything inside the door jam (although that might be leaking too, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it). im going to take ricks advice and use urethane seam sealer along the entire length of that seam, then touch it up with touch up paint. ill keep you guys posted if my repaires have any effect!

 

[RobbieD]

Definite progress- keep beating on it!

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

i did have one but i managed to break it to a million little peices not too long ago (hint, dont run one over) its on my list of things to get

 

[Mark_88]

Hopefully you find it in that seam...that would be my guess too...just wondering if you could use something like a dental pick (the kind dentists use) to clean out the seam first...spreading gunk on top of the existing sealer usually doesn't work as good as cleaning it out and running a fresh bead...

I was thinking of going over mine after removing all the crap the previous owner put on and around every seam, so I'm interested in how this turns out...

 

[rickcdewitt]

i stopped by and visited a buddy of mine that works in a body shop today and he gave me the same suggestion you just did. starting with a low flow of water, start low and work your way up. with this method, i made progress!

you wouldn't see it by looking at my truck but thats where i learned it.Gawd my boss hated my truck,lol!

found leaks people swore were impossible with just a hose,flashlight and locking myself in their trunk

mask it ,sand it,apply anti corrosion metal etch primer,apply urethane seam sealer(it goes on primer not steel),clean up/smooth up with prep-sol(or similar solvent),touch up

wicked you can get better touch up made at a good bodyshop if by chance the factory stuff is way off or you can't get any.and get a new set of hobby brushes for it with a good fine tip small one for finishing touches and rock chips

think about leaving as much seam as is still intact

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

the paint on my truck is so faded and oxydized i dont think it would do me any good to get actual color matched touch up paint. i think ill just get some black paint and try to work with as small of an area as i can to make the repair as unnoticeable as possible. for now i might even just tape over the seam to keep the water out until i have some income again and can get the proper paints to repair it "properly".

ill let you guys know how it goes once i get there though. i plan on sealing the rear cab seam with silicone today, im hoping thats and easy enough repair since i can get to it from the inside.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

well sealing the rear of the cab from the inside with silicone seams to have fixed that leak. right now, i have black tape (ghetto! but at least its not perminent) sealing the top cab corner seam.

i ripped my rain gutter off because it kept dripping on me and i had a feeling thats where my 3rd leak was. while it was off, i masked the area and applied a fresh layer of paint just to ensure i have minimal rust problems (i could see some exposed metal where the gutter had rubbed through the paint). it looks to me like the only sealer used on it was a little bit of butyl in 3 small spots, so how should i go about re-sealing this gutter? should i just silicone it too? i dont see how butyl could be placed in such a way as to seal the gutter against the body but also allow the gutter to be fully installed (butyl takes up space).

 

[83bagged]

well good to hear that your narrowing it down, i knew that one of those leaks had to come from the back, it was to far near the center of the cab...

keep at it!

 

[IRKillroy]

i did have one but i managed to break it to a million little peices not too long ago (hint, dont run one over) its on my list of things to get

don't buy that!!!

get one of those new high speed 300 dollar LCD monitored pin cameras for mechanics and construction/plumber/repair person in general.

Milwaukee makes one... pretty nice.

and you can check your cylinders for wear and what not if you pull your plugs... neat little thing.