water leak

[herb]

has anyone had water entering the cab and wetting the floor mats near the wheel arch?think its comin in at the top of the guards where it meets the body,cause i run masking tape along there and it seem to fix it ,wat does anyone recommend to use ,can i seal between the top of the guard&the body?thanks in advance all.

[Jeff]

This always seems to be a problem area.
I seal up the join with translucent silicone, which is not a fix for the existing rust, but is better than nothing.
Some of the water may possibly be entering from the wiper spindles though.

[BusyKiwi]

put the hose on the van, point it around the gutters, screen and door window.

Check and reseal roof (where roof joins in the gutters)
seal screen with windscreen sealer (and/or fix rust)
check door rubbers and put plastic behind door card (even taped with masking tape will do for a while, windscreen sealer is best)

apart from water coming in from behind the door card (very common), all the other methods of water getting in would be from rust, again check gutter sealer as this is usually the first place it comes in but rusts out other spots so you think it's there instead.

[atk1]

In the back I get water sitting in some of those channels where the floor meets the side panel. I know its not from water running down the window area. Ive seen it happen in windowless vans as well. Im wondering if it could be those vertical panel joins? Hey Busy, Novus has taken my windscreen out about 4 times trying to seal/reseal/urethane/new rubber & it still leaks. Do you think it might be the roof/gutter seal? When I look up there it "looks" good? What kind of seal do you use for that? Ive just brought a cover to help for now. Cheers

[BusyKiwi]

If your getting water in the bottom bits while driving it could be rust in the arches but if the water is there from sitting it will be coming in from the top.

atk1, I'd check the main parts first, front doors, tail lights, back doors, side door, petrol filler if none of them are leaking move on to top of front guards and gutters

Condensation is common if there is no interior.
Sometimes the van has to be parked on a special angle (1 degree difference can make it leak), put some toilet paper around the inside gutter and put the hose on the roof (or get someone to point the hose up so the water lands on the roof/gutters like rain) and go round and round until you get the slightest bit of water on the paper, then you know the area to look at. But remember water can travel uphill and the roof gutters are 3 bits of steel joined so could be coming under one but travelling along and out somewhere else.

I remember years ago fixing this water leak no one could find, the front passenger carpet was always wet .. I spent ages on it and finally found out  it was the tail light leaking, the angle they parked the car at nights allowed the water to travel under the plastics and stuff and only surface at the front (lowest point)

To check your front doors, just get someone to hold the hose on the door glass, sit in your seat and wait, if it's leaking you'll see the water dribble out under the door card, adding plastic will fix this.

[atk1]

Cheers Busy,

the main parts you mention are good & my arches don't have rust. It leaks just sitting & yes angles do play a big part. There is no sign of water running down the open walls into the channels so Im assuming its sneaking down a join. It doesn't suffer from condensation as well. The channel in front of the rear passenger side wheel (behind the side cargo door) & the middle channel on the drivers side got pretty full with the last heavy rain. I will try the toilet paper trick. Thanks