prevent door breaking by slide out movement

[jfaberna]

I know I'm not the first to do this, but now I'm looking for a way to avoid it in the future. During PDI, they talked about the critical need to make sure all doors, tables and chair anywhere around slide outs be in the right place with doors closed before bring the slides in. However, I didn't realize that some of these doors that are hidden by the slide out when it's in could open during travel and then be caught be the slide out and broken when opening the slide out.

So how do you make sure those critical doors stay shut. Tie-wraps? Duck tape? Child safety latches?

[mainer]

We use the velcro ties, you can buy them anywhere. Have the smooth side facing in so the handles do not get damaged. We have done this for 7 years and never had a cabinet open on us.

Of course I still look around really, really, careful before I hit the button for the slides!

[Rondo]

We used the Velcro ties until we found some 4"and 6" small bungie cords and we now use them and they work very well.

[HOOK]

The latches are adjustable. The male part must be centered in the two rollers of the female part. The diamond shaped end of the male part can be reshaped larger with a screwdriver. The male part should extend passed the two rollers. Most times the parts have to be moved to new locations because of holes in wood. Properly adjusted they work well, even in transit. Learned this from one of our techs.

[pineranch]

Agree with Hook, properly adjusted doors will not open under normal driving conditions. However, some interstates are far from normal and a good inspection prior to opening/closing slides is good practice.
Mike

[HOOK]

I agree with Mike. I 95 in SC is a great place to test your adjustments.

[Overlord]

I don't do anything special about securing doors and drawers for travel, other than making sure that they are firmly closed.

Generally, I don't have much of a problem with cabinet doors or drawers coming open during transit, unless I have encountered some unusually rough roads and bumps.

It is just part of my regular practice that I visually check that everything is still where it is supposed to be before I open the slides, including that no small objects have slid off of a counter-top (I have yet to train my wife as to what a "road-ready" configuration actually is!) and are laying on the floor where the slide fascia comes in contact with the walls, including that all cats are present & accounted for and not hiding under the bed slide-out. Squished kitties are a bad thing!

Of course, this may not be a practical option for some floor-plans, but I can access all areas of my 5er when the slides are in, so that is just a part of my regular routine before ever moving the slides in or out.

[jfaberna]

The 3402RL does have some cabinets that can't be seen until the slide outs are extended. So I will definitely get something to secure them as well as the pantry doors. I'm now working with the dealer to secure another door panel. I think my cabinet maker friend can glue what I have back together. It will be ugly but functional, until the new door comes in.

[1retired06]

We have never done anything other than a visual inspection to make sure all doors closed; never had a problem.

[Art-n-Marge]

Mostly same as 1retired06. Years ago, we lost the desk chair (next to the living room fireplace) in our floorplan, some years ago when my BIL opening the slides kept them moving even as the crunching sound occurred. The chair had gotten caught on a carpet seam during slide movement. We no longer let anyone else do any slide movement so if something goes wrong we can only blame ourselves. A visual inspection does wonders.

We never did replace the chair, and under the desk makes a great place to store our doggie's crate and supplies. One of these days we will replace it. Our RV modification/repair/replacement list is long and a desk chair is low priority.

[Carl n Susan]

Velcro, large rubber bands, gear ties (plastic cords) or child proof latches are you best defense against a cabinet door popping open. Even the best adjusted latch as provided by Montana can open up given some of our fine roads and inconsiderate drivers.

Our model has numerous hidden areas. Hidden doors, pepper mills, cutting boards, and a half gallon of olive oil have all suffered from the power of hydraulic slides.

[jcurtis934]

The wife bought some foam covered "Twist-tie" things that are about 3/8 of an inch in diameter at Target...she believes...and we use these to secure doors on all cabinets as cheap insurance. We have had cabinets come open in travel from our wonderful roads. John

[mhs4771]

Really amazing the power of those hydraulic rams, takes more than just a little door to stop them.

[DonandBonnie]

We use Wally World bags to tie double doors shut. They are plentiful and free. Also when we open our slides we stop as soon as we can squeeze past and visually inspect both ends of the slides for any obstructions before we fully extend. Not all slide obstructions come from the overhead cabinets.

[bncinwv]

quote:Originally posted by Carl n Susan


and a half gallon of olive oil have all suffered from the power of hydraulic slides.

Betcha that slide has not needed lubed in a while!!

We use velcro straps from the ever popular Harbor Freight!!

Bingo

[drknapp]

We always check our doors before we extend our slides. (we can get to ours with the slides in). Didn't think of looking at the fan for blades that may have become loose. The slides do a job on them too.

Edit: Actually that happened when putting the slides in.

[JandC]

We use the little bungie cords on all our cabinets when traveling. I have never found that any have started to open after a day on the road, but I haven't experienced any really bad roads yet or ever made a panic stop either. I just feel better having them secured when going down the road.

[dsprik]

Velcro strips. Wife wraps it around ALL cupboard doors. It makes an horrible sound when ones of those doors are ripping off when extending the slides...

[Mynabird]

Little black bungee cords with the balls.

And I have noticed with them on, we still have some doors trying to open. . So glad we use them.

[akf15e]

Like most everyone else, we secure the doors we can't see with velcro. Unfortunately, we learned this the hard way. After 3 seasons with nary a door popping open, we had a false sense of security. The 4th season while opening the left living room slide from outside, I noticed a slight hesitation, then the right side slide opened (I assumed some air in the line messed up sequencing - bad assumption), followed by right side slide continuing, followed by a loud "bang". Went inside to find that the cabinet door over the island had popped open, been caught by the edge of the slide out. It eventually snapped the door, but not before shifting the entire cabinet off its base by about 2 inches. So now I had a busted door and a crooked cabinet. Luckily DS and I were able to slowly push the cabinet back to 99% straight, refit the trim, and recaulk it to look good. New door and new hinges were required too. Now we use bright red velcro straps on any door that could pop open and be caught by a slideout. No slide moves without a visual confirmation of red! Live an learn I guess.