Starcraft21SSO
Atlanta, Ga.
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Joined: 10/18/2011
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History: Our 2001 Starcraft SSO spent it's first few years outside under a cover and developed a few leaks. A little under the forward floor, the roof got un-smooth in places,and the fiberglass delaminated from the plywood at the rear bottom. We fixed the floor (dry and epoxy soak) then got aggressive with a hard cover, scrape and re-caulk, etc. All visible the water damage is now "crispy" and any wood substrate I have seen is dry so I think we fixed it.
The problem: Starting about two years ago a funky odor began to develop around the roof vent. It's sweet and nasty, not earthy like mold, acrid like ammonia, or "dead" like propane. The best way I can describe it is soap burning in a hot pan. Or perhaps clothes not taken out of the washer and "soured", the soaked in soapy water but not actually washed. On a calm day, it drifts across the backyard. I asked the guy at the hardware store to smell my fingers (yes, he looked at me strange) and he said it smelled to him like handsoap. But it was 3:00pm and I hadn't washed my hands since early that morning when I started working.
I had always guessed it was mold vapors escaping between the EPDM and the plywood, but it started (and got progressively worse) long after the roof should have been bone dry.
Last year, I began smelling it around the fridge. A sniff check, placed it at the edges of the fridge where the trim meets the compartment. I knocked out the paneling to access the hollow above the fridge and that compartment reeked of it. I put my shop hairdryer in there in case there was moisture (found no signs) and to air it out. The odor is so "sticky" that after just 20 min the hairdryer still reeks of it a year later.
This year, it's starting to take over the inside so I got determined to kill it. Pulled the fridge and crawled up in there. I find that the odor is predominantly in the top where the fridge cavity vents and the hollow above the refer. Off comes the vent cover, fridge and compartment gets wiped down with bleach, new automotive rubber stripping on the refer edges, and all cracks from fridge cavity into cabin sealed with fireproof expanding foam. The hollow above the fridge is dead space, So I paint the interior with kilz, add a board to separate it from the fridge "chimney" and seal with an entire can of spray foam. This leaves only two places for air to migrate, the refer access panel or the roof vent.
While in there, I notice that the roof penetration isn't sealed at the edges like all other penetrations. i.e. I can see wood/foam/wood plain as day. I also notice that on one edge, the epdm is has a slit that extends beyond the opening (a "whoops" at manufacturer), but it's all under the vent cover and the wood is dry. So, I make a rectangular plywood tube out of luan, paint it with Kilz, and push it into the opening. From the inside I force foam into the 1/8" gap between the "tube" and the opening and foam the perimeter. This completely seals the interior from the roof "guts". On top, I trim off the excess foam flush with the roof and Dicor the "tube" to the roof as I would any roof penetration. With this done, the "guts" of the roof are now safely sealed between the epdm and the interior "wallpaper" on the ceiling.
So here is where it gets a little strange. With the roof vent removed, I prepped the epdm for roof vent reattachment. There was just a thin film of dust/dirt, but I wanted it gone for good adhesion. So I cleaned with Windex, then water, then acetone before reapplying the roof vent. When I cleaned, I used a cotton towel to "mop up" the water, dirt, soap between each step. That towel was tossed in my garage waste bin, and the next morning the whole garage stunk of the strange odor. And the odor was definitely noticeable in the laundry room where I deposited the clothes I was wearing. Very potent stuff.
The next two days there was no odor outside the camper (Yea!). But on day 3-4 while caulking some other seams, I started to notice it again. And once again my nose leads me to underneath the refer vent cap. I pulled the cap and NOTHING looks abnormal, but the odor is definitely collecting there.
What is this %$#!@ odor? I have a 1.5" pvc pipe ending under the vent cap (grey vent I assume), but I stuck my nose in it while the cap was off, no odor there. After replacing the refer and airing out the interior, it no longer smells inside, And the roof interior is completely sealed off from the outside at that penetration point.
Sorry for the long post, but I am at a loss. If I can just keep it out of the camper, I'm happy. But it certainly would be nice not to walk by the camper and smell what I can only describe as a bar of soap roasting over an open fire...
2002 Starcraft TravelStar (21SSO) Hybrid TT
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RVnRobin
Can't remember being a
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"Starcraft SSO", I was not familiar with it so I looked it up. If it has the pull-out beds, with the tent like material over the beds, there is something I wonder if could be the cause of your odor. I remember years ago during my tent camping days, that as tents age they developed a smell that seems similar to what you are describing. The older they got the stronger the odor. And, that smell got into everything. I was told it was the natural aging of the vinyl, or nylon, or canvas, or waterproofing chemical, or some material used in the construction. It sounds a lot like what you are describing...
Our RV is our home for nealy eight years.
I think I finally qualify as a full-timer.
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Starcraft21SSO
Atlanta, Ga.
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Joined: 10/18/2011
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I know what you're describing, and it's definitely not that. This is coming from the area above the refer, below the roof vent cover.
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RoyB
King George, VA
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Joined: 04/13/2008
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What is the refrigent used with the fridge. I guess it may an ammonia type smell - seems like your description is around this area ? I know my large round and finned heat up tank for the fridge is in this area... Maybe a small leak has developed here ???.
There really isnt alot of smells to deal with in trailers - dead rats-propane-ammonia-wet tarps smell-heater dust-musty cushons etc...
Ammonia mixed in with water could be a bad combo...
I'm at a loss too on what that smell might be... No chance you are smelling battery acid coming from an over charged battery - that sort of fits your description of the smell... Check the water level in the battery - may be all boiled out now. The fix for this is to replace your converter to a "smart mode" converter/charger.
I dont know what a Starcraft SSO is either will have to take a look. Just checked the term SSO and it turns out to be just a Hybrid Trailer made by Starcraft....
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bikendan
Napa, Cal.
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Joined: 11/21/2005
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the OP has a Starcraft 21SSO, the SSO standing for super slide out. one of the most popular hybrid floorplans that Starcraft had when they were independent of Jayco.
Dan- Firefighter , Shawn- Musician/Entrepreneur , Zoe- Faithful Golden Retriever , 2007 Chevrolet Avalanche LS, 2007 Rockwood Roo 23SS w/Equalizer and Prodigy, and 5 Mtn. bikes and 2 Road bikes
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Starcraft21SSO
Atlanta, Ga.
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Joined: 10/18/2011
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RoyB wrote:
What is the refrigent used with the fridge. I guess it may an ammonia type smell - seems like your description is around this area ? I know my large round and finned heat up tank for the fridge is in this area... Maybe a small leak has developed here ???.
There really isnt alot of smells to deal with in trailers - dead rats-propane-ammonia-wet tarps smell-heater dust-musty cushons etc...
Ammonia mixed in with water could be a bad combo...
It's a tri-mode fridge, so I'm thinking it must use ammonia. I guess it could be ammonia and water, but I'm imagining that smelling like ammonia based cleaners or ammonia "smelling salts" capsules? If so, it doesn't smell like that at all. That's part of why I'm so stumped. It doesn't smell musty or earthy like mold/mildew. It doesn't smell "dead". It doesn't smell like sewage (tank odors, propane).
This weekend for the very first time I did not smell it outside the camper. I did catch a faint whiff or two, and sniffed it back to the edges of the refer where the weatherstripping meets the cabinet frame. And only at the top 12" or so.
RoyB wrote:
I'm at a loss too on what that smell might be... No chance you are smelling battery acid coming from an over charged battery - that sort of fits your description of the smell... Check the water level in the battery - may be all boiled out now. The fix for this is to replace your converter to a "smart mode" converter/charger.
Definitely not that. The battery is in a box up on the hitch and that box has zero odor inside.
RoyB wrote:
I dont know what a Starcraft SSO is either will have to take a look. Just checked the term SSO and it turns out to be just a Hybrid Trailer made by Starcraft....
Sorry, as the other poster said it's just a hybrid travel trailer. The super slide out is a wall length slide that includes dinette and couch. What I love about it is that when the slide is out, the main aisle is 4-5ft wide for the length of the camper. Very handy when you take the whole family and the dogs.
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bikendan
Napa, Cal.
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Starcraft21SSO, i don't think your fridge is a 3-way one, unless a previous owner changed it out.
every hybrid i know about or seen, has the basic 2-way propane/electric fridge freezer.
about the only RVs that still have 3-way, are popups. they have to be small so the 12v choice can cool it. any bigger and it can't.
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Starcraft21SSO
Atlanta, Ga.
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Joined: 10/18/2011
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Now that you say that, I'm sure you're right. It's a standard RV refer (with freezer) and about 4ft high. I was thinking it was three way because it runs without shore power and that requires DC power. But after reading your post (and actually thinking about it) the refer is running off propane and only using DC for ignition.
* This post was
edited 10/24/11 06:49am by Starcraft21SSO *
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Jayco25E
PA
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It sounds like the oder is coming from the roof material. Maybe as it ages it gets an oder as well like the tent ends.
Days Camped 2009 = 17
Days Camped 2010 = 20
Days Camped 2011 = 20
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tpbotsford
Heathsville, VA
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Joined: 02/03/2012
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I have the exact same problem and it's driving me nuts! Have you found a solution yet?
We have a 2006 26 or 27' Dutchman. (this is the 2012 version but ours is exactly layed out like this: http://dutchmen-rv.com/index.php?p=floorplans&model=275BH)
The smell started the end of August 2011. I went through every compartment and every space I could find. It seemed to be strongest by the wall that's between the bathroom and the refrig. Then I noticed a couple of wasps. I went outside and figured out that they were coming and going where the power cord goes into the camper which goes under the sink in the bathroom in an enclosed area.
I took the cabinet apart and found a wasp nest the size of a football! I sprayed the heck out of it with some wasp killer and left it until the following weekend. It looked like all the wasps were dead so I started taking it apart. I was so worried about finding a live wasp that I didn't think to smell it. I just put the whole thing in the campfire. The smell was still there in the camper!
The following weekend I checked and it smelled just as bad as before! So I looked further and there is about a 4" space between the wall in the bathroom and the refrig. I put holes in the wall and found another wasp nest around the pipes that go from the bathroom, under the refrig and to the sink in the kitchen. I sprayed it and removed it. I used mirrors to look in all the spaces I could and I think I've removed all the wasps' nests. BUT THE SMELL IS STILL THERE!
The rounded skylight over the shower/tub broke early last year from a tree branch falling on it. It took us a while to replace it (we had to order a new one from the manufacturer) and though my husband put some plastic over it, the wind blew it off and I thought maybe we had some water damage and/or leaves that were stuck in there that my husband didn't notice when he fixed it. I took it apart from the inside and it looks fine. There's some water stains, but no smell and nothing bad.
Starcraft21SSO, your description is perfect! It's sort of a sweet, almost chemical smell that won't go away. I've been a boater and camper all my life and I've smelled propane, messed up hot water tanks, gray and black water tanks, dead animals that have crawled in a compartment and died and it it nothing like any of those smells.
But just to be sure, I've run water with a lot of bleach through both tanks (which I don't use water in this camper, we basically use it as a spare bedroom every weekend for the past 2-3 years).
I filed a claim and our Progressive Insurance Claims agent came out to try and figure it out and he could barely smell it. I had someone from SERVEPRO who is an expert in mold, vermin, water and fire damage do through everything with me and though he could definitely smell it, he couldn't figure out what it was.
Last weekend I went on top of the roof and removed the vent over the refrig. There were leaves and dirt all around it. I cleaned it up hoping that maybe the air just wasn't circulating enough. But no, it still smells.
We can't sleep in it! The smell won't go a way.
I don't know what else to do.
Starcraft21SSO, I would love to talk to you about this. Can you email me your phone number? terri@parrow.com
Desperate in Virginia,
Terri
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