Interior
Water Damage Restoration
In short: Water damage in an RV is found late by definition, because the wall cavity holds it out of sight for a year or more before anything shows on the inside, which is why the repair is usually structural rather than cosmetic.
- Typical range
- $750 to $25,000+
- Labor hours
- 4 to 120 hours
- Updated
Water damage is the most expensive thing that happens to recreational vehicles and it is found late in essentially every case. That is not carelessness on the part of owners. It is a consequence of how these vehicles are built.
A wall cavity is closed on both sides. Water entering at the top travels down inside it, soaking framing and substrate for months, before anything appears on the interior panel. By the time there is a stain to look at, the damage has a head start measured in seasons.
Where it comes from
Almost always a penetration rather than a material failure:
- Roof penetrations. Vents, fans, air conditioner, skylights, antenna and solar mounts. The single largest category. Covered under roof repair.
- Windows and frames. Sealant that has cracked, or a frame that shifted in an impact.
- Slide-out seals. Hardened seals, or a room sitting out of square. See slide-out seal replacement.
- Slide room roofs. Where the topper has failed and water sits on the room, then gets dragged inside at the leading edge.
- Compartment doors and marker lights. Small, numerous, and routinely overlooked.
- Plumbing. Fittings, tanks, water heater connections. Faster and more obvious than the others, and therefore less damaging.
- Anything screwed into the body by a previous owner without proper sealing.
What it does
Water in a wall or floor cavity attacks in a sequence. The substrate swells and loses strength. Adhesive bonds fail, which produces delamination. Framing rots, at which point the structure is compromised. Insulation compacts and stops insulating while retaining water against the framing. Metal fasteners and brackets corrode. Wiring in the cavity corrodes at terminations, which is a fire risk. And mould establishes itself in a warm, dark, wet, cellulose-rich environment.
How the repair runs
Find the leak. Nothing else matters if the source is still open. Water travels far from its entry point, so this means tracing rather than guessing.
Map the extent. Moisture meter across walls, ceiling and floor, well beyond the visible area. Flooring lifted at the suspect zone. Walls opened where readings warrant it.
Remove everything compromised. Wet insulation, delaminated substrate, rotted framing, contaminated panels. This is the step where the job gets bigger than the owner expected, and cutting it short is how the repair fails.
Dry the structure. To a verified moisture content, measured rather than assumed. Air movement and dehumidification, and it takes days rather than hours on a saturated structure.
Treat. Anti-microbial on sound material that was exposed. Contaminated material is removed, not treated.
Rebuild. Framing, subfloor, insulation, substrate, interior panels, flooring.
Seal the source properly and water test.
What it costs
| Extent | Typical range | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Localised, caught early, dry framing | $750 to $3,000 | 4 to 16 |
| Floor section with subfloor replacement | $3,000 to $9,000 | 16 to 45 |
| Wall and floor with framing involvement | $9,000 to $18,000 | 45 to 85 |
| Extensive multi-area with sidewall rebuild | $18,000 to $25,000+ | 85 to 120+ |
Body and structural labor is $210 per hour, mechanical and electrical $260. See the pricing page.
The single variable driving that range is elapsed time. There is no version of this problem that improves by waiting.
The insurance question
This is the most common coverage dispute in RV ownership, and it turns on cause rather than on damage.
Damage from a covered event, a collision opening a seam, hail puncturing a roof, a storm, a burst supply line, is generally covered. Damage from gradual intrusion through a seal that was never maintained is generally excluded as wear.
The practical implication: after any event that could plausibly have opened the envelope, get it assessed and documented promptly. An assessment three weeks after a hailstorm supports a claim. The same damage discovered two years later, when the connection to any event has become unprovable, usually does not. Our insurance section covers the arguments in more detail.
Catching it early
Twice a year, and after any storm:
- Get on the roof and press every seal at every penetration
- Look at the ceiling around vents, the air conditioner and skylights for discolouration
- Walk the floor barefoot feeling for soft spots, particularly at slide openings and along the perimeter
- Open every cabinet and press the back wall
- Check under the mattress and inside storage bays for damp
- Smell it. A closed coach that smells musty is telling you something before anything is visible
A moisture meter costs less than an hour of shop labor and it will find things a hand cannot. On a coach stored outdoors in California it is the single best tool an owner can own.
Estimates are $150 and credited back against an authorized repair. Where the extent is unclear, a hidden damage assessment is the right starting point.