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Staying dry

9Abuilder

Member
Getting ready to take a cross country trip to the Midwest. Curious to know what others do to keep the rain out of your RV when parked outside at night. Are you sealing the empennage fairing at fuse and HS connections? Any special tricks to keep water out of the cabin or do you just plan on bringing plenty of towels to soak up the wet?:confused:
 
The only place I have a water concern is where the sliding canopy hits the roll-bar. I usually get a few drips there in rain.

So, if I expect the airplane to see serious rain, I use either electrical tape or painter's tape (both come off pretty easily) to cover the seam.
 
Getting ready to take a cross country trip to the Midwest. Curious to know what others do to keep the rain out of your RV when parked outside at night. Are you sealing the empennage fairing at fuse and HS connections? Any special tricks to keep water out of the cabin or do you just plan on bringing plenty of towels to soak up the wet?:confused:

Bruce’s Covers
https://aircraftcovers.com/
 

here’s a second vote for Bruce’s covers - we have one for all our low-wing airplanes, and though pricey, they are well worth it. Even so - our tip-up -6 can get water through the hinge slots if it really rains (we used to live on the Gulf Coast - we know “really rains....), so we use the vinyl electric bundling tape (2” wide) to cover those and the seam at the forward end of the tipper, as well as the NACA vents before we put the cover on if we think it is going to rain much.
 
Thank you for the feedback. It sounds like no worries about rain coming in at the tail section fairing on the A models.Great info. Thanks, again.;)
 
Paul,
Thanks for your help. I just don’t wish to see water leaking into and out the bottom of my 9A after sitting out in the rain.
 
On my RV-7A, I'm happy to see water dripping out of the fuselage after sitting in rain. That means my drain holes just aft of each fuselage bulkhead are open and doing their job. Look under any small production airplane and you will see fuselage drain holes in similar locations.

Off course, taildraggers would have drain holes forward of the fuselage bulkheads because water runs downhill.
 
I have my magnetic compass module mounted under the empennage fairing and had endured a week of heavy rain at Murray Field in Eureka, Ca. It got ruined. The replacement is in the same location but has an oversized piece of clear acrylic Velcro’s to the top as a very effective “roof”. Has worked very well for at least ten years now.
 
On my RV-7A, I'm happy to see water dripping out of the fuselage after sitting in rain. That means my drain holes just aft of each fuselage bulkhead are open and doing their job.

Agree. Water will get in so drains are important not just in fuselage.

Getting ready to take a cross country trip to the Midwest. Curious to know what others do to keep the rain out of your RV when parked outside at night. Are you sealing the empennage fairing at fuse and HS connections? Any special tricks to keep water out of the cabin or do you just plan on bringing plenty of towels to soak up the wet?:confused:

One year at OSH a storm came through. (or is that every year). It was first year I had my RV there. Worried about water in bottom of rudder, one place I had not put a drain hole. Went to flymart and bought drill and bit and let out quit a bit of water. Sure don’t want extra weight in a control surface.
 
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Thanks, again, for your feedback. On my 9A, the bottom of the fuselage runs downhill from the tail to the cabin. This seems to be a considerable concern as the water would pool under the seat portion of the cabin. How large of a hole, or how many holes, would be considered acceptable under your airplane?
Wonder what Van’s has to say about this?
 
I have the vans lightweight cover. My 6A was in pouring rain for 3 solid days with the cover on. Interior was bone dry. Without the cover, I do get a leak at the slider roll bar as well, but that is about it. You are going to get some in other places, just make sure you have drain holes.
 
Water tight

My relatively new -8 has been to OSH 3 times, and it rained quite a bit on one trip. Since I have always hangared my baby, I had not quite acquired all the necessary "outside, overnight" equipment...namely, cowl plugs.
On departure day, my engine would not start; it just cranked and cranked without firing. I got towed to the "Pit stop", (God bless those boys working there...), where I drained pints of water from my sump. Cleaned my plugs, and was 'good to go"!
So...Bruce's Covers will help with the canopy and storage door, but don't forget cowl plugs and pitot covers.
Happy Motoring!
 
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