roof air conditioner gasket

Topic: roof air conditioner gasket (Read 1013 times) previous topic - next topic

roof air conditioner gasket

July 15, 2013, 09:14:23 pm

Are all roof air conditioner gaskets the same size and shape? Where's the best place to order one on the internet? I have a Coleman 6799 I think (?) or it might be a 6798. It's been leaking condensate around the gasket. I can see the condensate leaking around the inside of the gasket but I can't get it to stop even after repeatedly tightening the bolts a little more each day. It doesn't leak when it rains, only when the air conditioner is running on a humid day.

Scott

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #1 – July 15, 2013, 09:24:17 pm

Scott,

No leak from rain but leak from condensate would suggest a clogged condenser drain. Yes, the 14"X14" A/C gaskets are pretty much the same and particularly with two people very quick and easy to change, you might also access the evaporator and clean it with any commercial condenser cleaner from a HVAC store or box store. You would be amazed what comes off the coils and also the drip tray.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #2 – July 15, 2013, 09:49:40 pm

Yes, I would also suspect a clogged drain. Just remove the top cover and clean the coil drip tray and drain. You need to remove some sheet metal, but nothing difficult.

Had this problem on mine right after purchase. Of course, when I had everything exposed it started to rain.

Also on mine it would only leak when the coach was not level.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #3 – July 15, 2013, 11:36:34 pm

The condensate would be under the evaporator, not the condenser. I already opened it up and looked around in there. I don't see any drain to plug up. I can see the condensate coming in around the gasket. There's condensate on the roof around the unit on a humid day so I know it's draining okay. It mostly leaks in when the coach isn't perfectly level. When I tighten down the bolts and compress the gasket more it leaks less, but I have the gasket almost completely compressed now and it's still leaking a little bit so I need to get a new gasket. Where's the best place to order one on the internet? Are the gaskets always 14x14 or are some air conditioners different? I want to have the correct gasket before I do this.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #4 – July 16, 2013, 10:03:49 am

Quote from: RRadio – July 15, 2013, 11:36:34 pm

Where's the best place to order one on the internet? Are the gaskets always 14x14 or are some air conditioners different? I want to have the correct gasket before I do this.

For installing RV roof air conditioners. Contains one self-adhesive picture frame gasket and two self-adhesive 1-7/16" x 18" leveling pads (5/16" and 7/8" thick foam) for a universal fit. 14 x 14
Coleman Dometic AC Air Conditioner Universal Roof Gasket Seal - $.. $15.99

Coleman Roof A/C Air Conditioner Gasket 14 x16
http://www.anyrvparts.com/ProductDetail.asp?PID=7351&SID=35&DID=58&CID=71&BID=

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #5 – July 16, 2013, 04:29:40 pm

Roof gaskets are not the same size, 14"x14" is one size, another size Coleman uses is 14"x16".

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #6 – July 16, 2013, 10:47:30 pm

Well that figures, I just ordered a 14x14 so I sure hope that's the size it takes. I haven't been able to find any information on my air conditioners. I'm not even sure which model they are. I'll have to measure the gasket if I can't find out any other way. It's been raining hard today and I just noticed there's a small leak even with the air conditioner off all day, so apparently it does leak a little bit when it rains.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #7 – July 17, 2013, 06:34:43 am

Scott, please post how this goes. I have the same vintage coach as yours and will probably need to replace my A/C gaskets at some point.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #8 – July 17, 2013, 07:24:15 am

we just replaced a gasket as you noted that was just flat. new gasket did the trick

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #9 – July 21, 2013, 01:53:30 pm

The gasket apparently was a 14x14" and the gasket change part of this exercise wasn't too difficult. Take down the ceiling unit, remove the bolts, carefully pry up the roof unit and stand it up on its side if you don't have anyone to help you lift it, scrape and clean the old gasket, peel and stick the new gasket, squirt some caulk around the bottom of the gasket on the roof if you want to but it's not in the official instructions, get the roof unit as straight as you can, might as well clean the condenser and straighten any bent fins before you put the cover back on, go inside and make final adjustments to the gasket position, tighten the bolts to compress the gasket about halfway, might as well clean the filters before you put the ceiling unit back on, let the unit sit right side up for a few hours so the oil goes back to where it's supposed to be, start it up and ...it leaks worse than before!

Today I took the crummy old thing apart again and looked at all the corrosion and rust holes, but none of them are inside the gasket area, they're in the condenser area. I got a glass of water and poured it on the evaporator. It filled up the condensate pan and immediately ran out the drain onto the roof. I went inside and looked around with a flashlight but didn't see any water coming in. The water is still on the roof and none of it is in the condensate pan. I tightened the bolts a little more. We'll see what happens this afternoon when I turn the unit on again.

There's been a crack in the roof between the rear air conditioner and the shower skylight since before I bought the coach. I inspected it carefully and the previous owner assured me it didn't leak. I took it to Foretravel and they inspected it and also said it probably didn't leak. When I was up there changing the air conditioner gasket yesterday it was obvious that the crack is leaking now, over a year and 15,000 miles later. It split way apart for some reason, maybe a change in temperature or weather or something? I bought an "Instant Rubber Roof Repair" kit from Cofair Products Inc. I cleaned the area around the crack with alcohol and a clean rag several times, let it dry completely, peeled the wax paper backing, stuck the patch on the roof over the crack, and smoothed it out. It's bright white and matches the roof well. It looks very professional and I'd say it's at least as rugged as the actual roof material. It's made of EDPM rubber with a super strong adhesive on the back. You have to peel off the wax paper and stick the patch on immediately without touching the sticky part. I doubt you could ever get the patch off the roof so be sure it's in the right position before you stick it down. The patch kit I bought is a 6x24" roll and I only used about half of it so I should have enough for another repair in the future. It doesn't say it has any expiration date. The patch kit cost about $20 as I recall. It appears to be well worth the time and money if you've got a bad spot on your roof that you think is leaking or will start leaking. Figure about half an hour at least to do this repair. You can't do this repair in the rain because the surface has to be dry, so put a bucket under the leak for now.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #10 – July 21, 2013, 01:59:37 pm

...moderators may want to split the roof repair kit into a new topic?

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #11 – July 21, 2013, 02:22:33 pm

Quote from: RRadio – July 21, 2013, 01:59:37 pm

...moderators may want to split the roof repair kit into a new topic?

Scott, You can copy the third paragraph on the roof crack, start a new topic paste it into the new topic.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #12 – July 21, 2013, 04:25:38 pm

The air conditioner has been running for a few hours now and I don't see any condensate leaking yet. I left the ceiling cover off this time so I can see the gasket with a flashlight. Unfortunately that means there's no filter on the evaporator right now, but hey, I was about to buy a new air conditioner if I can't get this one to stop leaking. It's possible the leakage yesterday was trapped water that I freed up when I took the air conditioner off and put the new gasket in (?) ...Maybe it's just my imagination but the air conditioner seems to have a huge increase in airflow and cooling power without the cover and filters, kinda noisy though.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #13 – July 21, 2013, 06:41:48 pm

Scott, I'm thinking you need to disconnect the 120 V wiring to fit the gasket, correct?

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #14 – July 21, 2013, 07:41:02 pm

I probably should have, but I just set the ceiling unit on the little dresser stand in the bedroom instead and left it hanging by the wire... cuz I'm kinda lazy.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #15 – July 21, 2013, 08:13:17 pm

If and when you lift up the AC again, set it aside and build up the mounting area at least 1/2", solved my leak problem, water runs away now.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #16 – July 23, 2013, 04:19:08 pm

Quote from: RRadio – July 21, 2013, 01:53:30 pm

There's been a crack in the roof between the rear air conditioner and the shower skylight since before I bought the coach. I inspected it carefully and the previous owner assured me it didn't leak. I took it to Foretravel and they inspected it and also said it probably didn't leak. When I was up there changing the air conditioner gasket yesterday it was obvious that the crack is leaking now, over a year and 15,000 miles later. It split way apart for some reason, maybe a change in temperature or weather or something? I bought an "Instant Rubber Roof Repair" kit from Cofair Products Inc. I cleaned the area around the crack with alcohol and a clean rag several times, let it dry completely, peeled the wax paper backing, stuck the patch on the roof over the crack, and smoothed it out. It's bright white and matches the roof well. It looks very professional and I'd say it's at least as rugged as the actual roof material. It's made of EDPM rubber with a super strong adhesive on the back. You have to peel off the wax paper and stick the patch on immediately without touching the sticky part. I doubt you could ever get the patch off the roof so be sure it's in the right position before you stick it down. The patch kit I bought is a 6x24" roll and I only used about half of it so I should have enough for another repair in the future. It doesn't say it has any expiration date. The patch kit cost about $20 as I recall. It appears to be well worth the time and money if you've got a bad spot on your roof that you think is leaking or will start leaking. Figure about half an hour at least to do this repair. You can't do this repair in the rain because the surface has to be dry, so put a bucket under the leak for now.

Scott,
4" wide Eternabond tape would have worked nice here

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #17 – July 23, 2013, 06:18:15 pm

I think I might have gotten it to stop leaking. I've been tightening the gasket down a little more each day. Both air conditioners are 22 years old and rusted out, but they still work fine. The front one has a fan motor that nearly got fried in a thunderstorm a few weeks ago and now it only runs on the medium speed. The back one is the one that's leaking condensate into the coach. If I can't get it to stop leaking I'll swap the fan motors so the front one has the good fan motor and isn't leaking, and I'll probably buy a new air conditioner for the back... I hate to throw away an air conditioner that still has a good compressor and runs great, but I'm not gonna spend any money on it either because it's got big rust holes in the bottom and the aluminum condenser fins are corroded and turning to dust... but hey, it still works great even after 22 years!

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #18 – July 23, 2013, 08:10:36 pm

Hi Scott,

There is a rumor that the new air conditioners are less efficient and noisier. You might want to decide where you want it.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #19 – July 23, 2013, 08:57:43 pm

That's a very believable rumor based on my experience... Does anyone know if Advent is a good air conditioner? I think I can order one for less than $600 with shipping included. Why does my Foretravel have low profile air conditioners on it if it's only 10'6" at the highest point? Low profile air conditioners appear to cost almost twice as much as standard air conditioners. I'm not gonna buy a new air conditioner until one of my current air conditioners can no longer be used. I'm sitting here typing this with both of them running right now, which is pretty rare cuz I normally only run one at a time. They're both doing great at the moment.

Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #20 – July 24, 2013, 07:04:16 pm

Quote

Hi Scott,

There is a rumor that the new air conditioners are less efficient and noisier. You might want to decide where you want it.
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Re: roof air conditioner gasket

Reply #21 – July 24, 2013, 07:57:24 pm

While on the road last summer I was faced with a seized compressor on the front unit. I started making the rounds of the local RV Shops looking for options. Bingo, seems there's group out there that replaces their AC Units every so often even if they work fine. Well for $50.00 got to choose from a stack of runners, all needed was to lube the fan motor, without best Coleman 13k a guy could want.

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