Quick softopper question with pic

For those that have leaking...is it this much? I have it on both sides along the top seams during long continuous rains. Applied seam sealer as you can see.

Asked softopper and they are sending me some heavy duty sealant, they said to let them know how it goes.

Anyone ever tried using waterproof tent/fabric repair gear aid tape? The stuff is ultra sticky/waterproof/and infinitely flexible. Running a band of it all the way along the seam?

Thanks for any insight/experience.

 

Living in Arizona, I obviously won’t have that issue. But it’ll be interesting to see what happens and what others say.

 

@tonered and @dilbert live in the pnw. Maybe they have some beta.

 

Mine doesn't leak and rains all the time in South Georgia. Never put the seam sealer on.

 

Yeah. Zero problems here. I hit both sides of the seam with the sealer just once. Under the seam flap and the visible part.

I've camped and seen torrential rain. No leaks.

 

You'll want to wait until warm and dry to apply the new sealant. When did you apply the sealer that's on there now? Was it cool/damp?

Not sure where you're at but I'd wait until it's been dry for 24hours at least and about 60-70 degrees (with no scientific basis for those numbers, by the way) (and will be dry for the next ~24 hours and remain warm). Unfortunately might be a while but at least that way you'll give it the best shot at working.

I only had mine set up for a few weeks for a road trip, I never saw that kind of leakage but I think I had one, maybe two days of any rain, not snow/snow melt either.

 

That's a lot of leakage for rain. With snow sitting on top and slowly melting I could see getting that type of leakage through the sewn seams. The seam sealer should get you set up.

Slightly off topic but it looks like you have your softopper installed way forward without much or any overhang of the rear flap over the tailgate. Do you get any leakage down the back inside the tailgate?

 

No leaks on mine. I put on two thick coats of the seam sealer when it was new and haven't had to redo it yet almost 4 years later.

This is the best picture I have showing a seam sealed area.

 

The SB version has a curved rear bar, so that pic might be a bit deceptive?

Also, the forward alignment pic in the instructions shows a 2nd Gen which doesn't have the header rail.

 

Yeah it had snowed the day before....though I had cleared the accumulation off every 6 hours or so. The next day was a constant rain. Perhaps the snow/rain one two punch caused the leaking. It never ran down into the bed or anything, but it still gave me enough pause to email softopper.

For instance...it's been raining now since the morning and its just after lunchtime, no leaking.

And yes the topper is set close to the cab. No leaking or problems down the back panel, even during the snowstorm and following 24 hour rain.

 

Could over a weekend heat up garage until high temp and completely dry to touch and apply? They give you a decent bit of sealer. May be worth a shot if your worried. I had to leave truck in garage for 2 days before applying 303 because of rain. Even used a heat gun in areas still a bit damp, not a recommendation just what I used.

 

Have You tried using some 303 cleaner to seal it ? Or you can use other products that clean soft tops and they seal pretty well.

 

No 303, just the included sealer. I'll apply the heavy duty sealer when the weather permits. To answer a question above, the sealer was applied when it was about 50 degrees out on a dry top. The top was snapped back down after a couple hours.

 

I sealed mine from inside the truck bed fully installed and snapped in place. Use a chip brush and a disposable cup for the sealer (it works better than the built in applicator for applying it upside down.) I also wore a headlamp to make sure I got it on thick and even.

I can only imagine what the neighbors thought.

 

If the Taco is a-rockin' . . .