Help! Have I got a Kon-leaky?

[Jimmad]

Hi all

Sorry to ask for help again but I am worried about our Kon-tiki which we bought last August.

I had heard the rumours about Kon tiki's and their nickname 'Kon leakies', but I had thought that affected the talbot express pre 95 versions and ours is a Boxer, 1996 which I was told was not prone to the leaks!!

We have finally saved up enough to get the re-upholstery done, it's in birmingham at Tappers as we speak due to be collect on Saturday with a lovely new interior, we can't wait!

However the upholsterer called me up and said there was a pool of water inside the van, as we had heavy rain last night. Apparently he believes it is coming through the light fitting in the lounge (centre) of the van.

I am really concerned as we have not seen signs of a leak before, however our driveway slopes off to one side at home and water runs off very easily. So I am not sure how long the leak has been there for, or where it could be coming in from.

Has anyone have any experience of these Kon tiki's and leaks, or advice on where I should be looking for the leak? I plan to get up on the roof ASAP this weekend to seal it up, but can't imagine that it is the light itself as the screws are only short. It must be coming in from somewhere else?
Any thoughts or advice much appreciated!!

 

[Wind Dancer]

Oh that's no good! Sorry to hear about your leak, and sorry I can't offer any advice.
I am however an owner of a '93 talbot express :scared: I didn't know that rumour

Hope you get yours sorted quickly.

:drive:

 

[kimbowbill]

Oh dear, really sorry to hear about that and i hate to be the bearer of bad news, but........... i have the Eldiss Monarch, talbot Express 1990 had leaky roof for long while now, done some repairs myself but then gave up and took it in for professional repair, £1500 later and the roof still leaks, they've had it back 3 times and cant find where its coming in, the problem with mine is, (not saying this could be same as yours) if on the flat the weight of the water sags the roof and water seeps through, so............... i park on my little yellow ramps, problem solved, lol, well not really but it does help, my next move is, and i know you will all laugh but i'm going to put pondliner on my roof, a few fish up there and i've got a mobile fishing lake, may take her up to RH and start a fishing war :lol-053: must admit tho, i've not heard the term kon leakys, what the repair dudes did was to strip out the inside and then they could see all the tiny little holes, they reboarded inside, new lights etc and sealed the roof with fibre glass paint, obviously not good enough,

Jen xx

 

[Viktor]

I think there is a white flat roof repair paint available but I might be mistaken, but pond liner should do the job.

 

[kimbowbill]

I think there is a white flat roof repair paint available but I might be mistaken, but pond liner should do the job.

Well, this is if my van dunt get written off, you can have first shout on fishing tickets :lol-053:

 

[Viktor]

Yes it's rather worrying because all the interior fittings are likely to be stressed, cracked and loosened never mind what damage is hidden behind that you cannot see....this was one of my biggest worries when I was buying the camper in England and bringing it back to NI....it's also why I chose Wellhouse who have a full backup parts operation as well as building the interior themselves....ok I might have to go back to England with it...but they say that can supply everything for replacement to a competent local MH repairer if the damage is bad enough.

 

[Jimmad]

Very doubtful to be the light unless you have recently fitted it with too long screws.
It can be coming in from anywhere and will always run downwards, but possibly along on a downward slope.
Check everything in the immediate area, such as roof vents, ant wires going through, and sealed joints.
never heard Kon-leaky, but have heard of Leaky Kontiky

Thanks for the quick replies!

Like the idea of a fish pond too!

Definately short screws in the light (1/2 inch if that) as I fitted it ages ago. The roof is much thicker than that. Looks like I'll have to just try sealing anything that looks suspect, although reading some of your posts not sure how successful it will be if the professionals can't get it right!

The dealer said it was a good roof as a one piece GRP, but obviously not that good. Although we have a warranty that doesn't apply to water ingress on vans over 10 years old...

 

[Channa]

We had 4 or 5 mobiles leak last summer when it rained and sadly unless it is something obvious, cure can be painstakingly slow look around all the seals. the pool in the van is no indicator of where the ingress is.

If you have the time, I would systematically re seal everything to effect a cure..............tbh if it works then great and odds are you will be no wiser to where the ingresswas

Channa

 

[Canalsman]

I have a minor leak along the roof edge of my 1999 Elddis. I have purchased some Capt Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure, which I hope will seek out the weak spot and fix it. I'll report back in due course once the weather's a bit warmer and drier and I've applied it.

The info on their web site Capt. Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure is encouraging, as are a number of reports on the web.

This is phase 2 of work that I've done on the roof. I had leaks along two cross roof seams, and around the roof light, which appear to have been fixed by using flashband and bitumastic sealant.

I too had water coming down through one of the light fittings - the only reason for that is because that's where there's an aperture cut through the headlining.

 

[Jimmad]

I have a minor leak along the roof edge of my 1999 Elddis. I have purchased some Capt Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure, which I hope will seek out the weak spot and fix it. I'll report back in due course once the weather's a bit warmer and drier and I've applied it.

The info on their web site Capt. Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure is encouraging, as are a number of reports on the web.

This is phase 2 of work that I've done on the roof. I had leaks along two cross roof seams, and around the roof light, which appear to have been fixed by using flashband and bitumastic sealant.

I too had water coming down through one of the light fittings - the only reason for that is because that's where there's an aperture cut through the headlining.

I think(?) that the kontiki roof is a one piece roof made of GRP. Maybe someone knows. However if that is the case, hopefully the only places water could get in are - the aerial, flue, or the join to the front top bed,bit.

I'm picking up the van (all re-upholstered!) tomorrow and 2 tubes of sikaflex, so I'll let you all know how I get on!

 

[Canalsman]

Good luck, and if you're stuck - ask!

Regards

Chris

 

[kellyjohn]

i have a 1994 kontiki and have been on roof def one piece the only seam is above cab area i would check there first as suggested prevoiusly good luck cheers john

 

[kimbowbill]

Yes they were known as leaky Kon - Tikis !!!! Now we gone and got one ! Ours is the STEALTH type ! Only problem is it is now a greedy Kon - Tiki eats the batteries big time !

yeah, you have got a big one havn't you :cool1:

 

[Jimmad]

i have a 1994 kontiki and have been on roof def one piece the only seam is above cab area i would check there first as suggested prevoiusly good luck cheers john

Thought so, thanks for confirming!

Hopefully shouldn't be too bad then.

Unfortunately the re-upholstery was not finished today as hoped, so it'll be next weekend before I get a chance to go up on the roof. The new interior does look good though, will post some 'before and after' pictures soon!

 

[Billy Ruffian]

Oh dear, really sorry to hear about that and i hate to be the bearer of bad news, but........... i have the Eldiss Monarch, talbot Express 1990 had leaky roof for long while now, done some repairs myself but then gave up and took it in for professional repair, £1500 later and the roof still leaks, they've had it back 3 times and cant find where its coming in, the problem with mine is, (not saying this could be same as yours) if on the flat the weight of the water sags the roof and water seeps through, so............... i park on my little yellow ramps, problem solved, lol, well not really but it does help, my next move is, and i know you will all laugh but i'm going to put pondliner on my roof, a few fish up there and i've got a mobile fishing lake, may take her up to RH and start a fishing war :lol-053: must admit tho, i've not heard the term kon leakys, what the repair dudes did was to strip out the inside and then they could see all the tiny little holes, they reboarded inside, new lights etc and sealed the roof with fibre glass paint, obviously not good enough,

Jen xx

Sounds like you need a king post to push the roof up/stop it from drooping. They get in the way though sometimes. Or a rafter inserted shaped to push the roof up a little in the middle.