I recently replaced the wing root seals on my Arrow 180 due to a water leak in the cabin when it rained, resulting in a slight water build up around the rear spar carry through right under the back seat.
After replacing the seals, I'm still having the same issue. I verified with a spray bottle and borescope that water is indeed still intruding around the spar box on the pilot side. With the borescope under the back seat, I can see drips where the spar attaches to the spar carry through after spraying around that area at the top of the wing.
My technique when installing the seals was to cut the bulb around the spar (still leaving some of the bulb, but enough to get the bulb to lay flat against the outer seal) and get as tight of a fit on each side as I could, and used the black 3M weatherstrip sealant on that spot to try to create a seal.
Can anyone offer what the the best long term fix for this is? I was thinking about using some flowable silicone to fill in the gaps around where I cut the bulb on the wing root seal to better block the water. Or should I attempt more 3M Weatherstrip Sealant? Or was my technique installing the wing root seals completely wrong? Something else?
After replacing the seals, I'm still having the same issue. I verified with a spray bottle and borescope that water is indeed still intruding around the spar box on the pilot side. With the borescope under the back seat, I can see drips where the spar attaches to the spar carry through after spraying around that area at the top of the wing.
My technique when installing the seals was to cut the bulb around the spar (still leaving some of the bulb, but enough to get the bulb to lay flat against the outer seal) and get as tight of a fit on each side as I could, and used the black 3M weatherstrip sealant on that spot to try to create a seal.
Can anyone offer what the the best long term fix for this is? I was thinking about using some flowable silicone to fill in the gaps around where I cut the bulb on the wing root seal to better block the water. Or should I attempt more 3M Weatherstrip Sealant? Or was my technique installing the wing root seals completely wrong? Something else?
