Dust under shower area on Escape 19

[Escapist]

We have a 2018 Escape 19. Delivery was January 31 2018 and we headed to Quartzsite. On a visit it Kofa NWR we found sawdust and dust coming out under the moulding below the shower door. Later that year we arranged a warranty visit to Escape Industries in Chilliwack, we live in BC. The major item on our list was the dust issue. Staff inspected the two penetrations for the shower and shower stall sink drains and saw no issues...

The dust issue was not resolved. In late 2019 I carefully sawed around the plumbing fittings 3/4" above the fibreglas hull and found 3 small areas where foam was not where it should have been. I filled the voids with "Big Stretch" flexible caulk.

We returned Wednesday from a fly fishing trip in the BC South Cariboo region which involved 33 km on a gravel and dirt forestry road, there was quite a bit of washboard road surface and I kept my speed down. It had rained a day before we travelled there and there was minimal dust. On arrival at our destination we found more dust than previously under the shower pan area floor mouldings. The same on our return to the highway. The dust was not even 20% of what we created going into Kofa NWR for comparison.

Today I removed the foam and caulk I had placed down to the fibreglas surface on both drain penetrations (the caulk had not failed). There was no more missing foam than I originally found. I now plan:to refoam the penetrations.

The caulking for nearby electrical and gas openings in the trailer hull appear to be sound. As is the gas furnace exterior caulking. Some dust in back of the fridge, as expected.

Has any Escape owner had this issue? I am wondering if I should tear out the Black tank penetration, would dust move under the black tank area into the shower pan area?

Any other Members with a solution?

[wackyburggeezer]

We too have sawdust which reappears after every roadtrip. Either it leaks from under the wetbath or out of the bathroom door. .....Asked the wife if she'd mind spending a few hundred miles lying on the trailer floor to determine the source. She said bad words to me.
The decision has been made to just live with it.

[skiman]

The first couple times we ran our air conditioner we got a coating of white dust over the inside of the trailer. Assume left from the build.

[WillyB]

My friend's 2018 stickie still has sawdust droppings after a handful of 2000+ miles/2 month adventures.

They have made it into "a thing". If there's no dust then their adventure hasn't been long enough.

[Centex]

FYI here's pics of the pipe-penetration's under the shower of my August 2021 5.0 build. From the outside we see foam 'sealant', but when viewed from the inside we see it's a tad inadequate, there's several gaps-to-daylight evidenced (and yes probing with a soft wire proves there are actually through-and-through gaps in the foam).

YMMV, mine will be DIY remediated, no worries. And yes, I've vacuumed an impressive amount of sawdust, dropped fasteners, and wire shards out of the deeply hidden spaces in my trailer.

Please note I'm not 'dumping' on ETI or complaining about quality - my somewhat extreme explorations into the depths of my trailer have, for me, revealed that 99% of the construction is impressively executed and very robust. Yes, I am finding a few things things I'll address to assuage my (perhaps OCD) preferences, but again, no worries (they're all details that would likely serve for years as-delivered with no adverse effect).

Nope, it's not perfect (what is?) but I've no regrets whatsoever about my purchase; if anything I'm feeling even better about it the deeper I dig.

[skyfree]

Maybe this is another good reason to get the spray foam insulation? It's not clear to me where these gaps are looking at the pics but I've never seen any dust issues with our 17B which has spray foam.

[rjreeves]

Originally Posted by skiman

The first couple times we ran our air conditioner we got a coating of white dust over the inside of the trailer. Assume left from the build.

I've purchased new a few trailers built by Forest Floor. Which is what the nooks and crannies in them looked like at delivery. My Escape was NASA-level clean when delivered compared to those pieces of mulch.