Tearing in to the underbelly

[MaxwellD]

Dear Forum:

What are the best ways to tear into the underbelly and then patch it up after repairs? Are there specific tapes, glues or techniques anyone could recommend? No issue right now, but looking for advice if it becomes necessary (now that my warranty is out).

Thanks,
Max

[jsb5717]

I've used wide Gorilla Tape. Works great

[MARK A]

Just take the fasteners out and drop it down. They come out fairly easily. Then replace with stainless screws and washers or I have re-used some of their fasteners.


Mark

[RoadRunnerTR21]

Pop out the rivets to take the coroplast off and use 3/8" screws with a thin wide washer to put the coroplast back in place. That's what I do.

[Wicked1]

Originally Posted by RoadRunnerTR21

Pop out the rivets to take the coroplast off and use 3/8" screws with a thin wide washer to put the coroplast back in place. That's what I do.

By chance where did you get those particular screws? I would not mind having them on standby in case I have the need to remove the coroplast

[simplyrob]

Originally Posted by RoadRunnerTR21

Pop out the rivets to take the coroplast off and use 3/8" screws with a thin wide washer to put the coroplast back in place. That's what I do.

Can you explain specifically how to "Pop Out" the existing fasteners? It looks like the factory used the equivalent of a Hilti Gun to shoot the fasteners in. The tip looks like a nail, do you hammer the pointed tip down and out?

[beeje]

I have not seen these shot in pins on RVs but since being a commercial carpenter for 35+ years I suppose one could pound them out from the top if you can get to them. I have shoot many a nail into steel. I would simply use a pry bar of some sort to tightly grasp the nails and pull them out.

The bean counter that thought of that idea should be shot. No easy access to the underside of your RV for maintenance. WTF

[simplyrob]

I totally agree. The factory shot one side on the inside of the I- beam, and another side on the outside of the I-Beam. Not sure what they were thinking when they did this as it makes it more difficult to remove the side that you cannot access the tip to hammer them down and out. I possibly have a small hydraulic leak I need to chase down which is why I may need to drop the covering toward the very rear of the 5th wheel.

[PSFORD99]

Originally Posted by simplyrob

I totally agree. The factory shot one side on the inside of the I- beam, and another side on the outside of the I-Beam. Not sure what they were thinking when they did this as it makes it more difficult to remove the side that you cannot access the tip to hammer them down and out. I possibly have a small hydraulic leak I need to chase down which is why I may need to drop the covering toward the very rear of the 5th wheel.

No fun chasing those hydraulic leaks, they can run down the hose, and drip out anywhere. I had a pin hole in one that was dripping off the underbelly three or four feet from the front, turned out the pinhole was inside the front compartment, not far from the hydraulic pump . Ran down the hose out thru the hole the hoses ran thru, and finally dripped off a low spot in the hose .Then found a spot to drip off the underbelly.

The next leak, I nearly tore off all the underbelly chasing the leak, at that point , I removed all the hoses except for the one I replaced previously , and replaced them all. Had enough of those cheap hydraulic hoses. Of course the worst part was tearing off the underbelly ,and putting it back on. Mine is screwed on ,so it was pretty easy getting it lined back up, and a couple screw back in.

A suggestion on hoses, I shopped around locally for them, prices to have them made up were outrageous in price. I found an online vendor Discount Hydraulic Hoses, prices were very reasonable compared to locally.

To avoid "me" making a mistake , and selecting the wrong fitting, there are many that are similar, it turned I guessed right, but I still cut off one, and sent it to them after talking to them on the phone. Fittings were the same on both ends , measured the lengths, and ordered . Great customer service, and prompt shipping , no running around getting them replaced .

[barryn]

Originally Posted by simplyrob

Can you explain specifically how to "Pop Out" the existing fasteners? It looks like the factory used the equivalent of a Hilti Gun to shoot the fasteners in. The tip looks like a nail, do you hammer the pointed tip down and out?

Vice Grips, then pulldown and twist.

[paul01]

Flex seal tape put it on and don’t worry about it any more. I tried the underbelly tape that is sold at rv centers for this and it did not hold any longer than it took to put it om.

[waynemoore]

DO NOT cut. take out the fasteners and do it right. Had mobile service guy tale a knife to my rig and cut two hydraulic lines. Yep $1,00.00 to fix it.

[Montana Man]

X2 ^^^^

[mtlakejim]

If you want to do it right: Drill/pry out the factory fasteners and replace with self tapping screws and fender washers. The wide fender washers greatly reduce the chance of the screws ripping thru the corplast. Anything you can do to keep a good seal with the underbelly will help reduce the rodents that love to wreak havoc under the rig. I speak of experience, never let anyone take a knife to the corplast and then tape it up!!

[rohrmann]

Absolutely do not cut into the belly coroplast. You will just be making more work for yourself and as was said, you risk unknown damage to hydraulic and electric that will be laying on the coroplast. They build these rigs upside down when installing things in the belly, then flip it over, hoping to never see it again. This is a photo of all the hydraulics and electric that had been laying on the coroplast and ultimately ended up hanging way down once the coroplast was removed. I installed hangers and cable tied all this up prior to repairing a crack in the grey tank.

[MaxwellD]

Wow - that could have been an expensive! Nice job!

[Theunz]

If you're capable of doing any repairs under the coroplast than you're capable of removing the coroplast and reattaching as so many have advised. It's just not that hard. The only reason to cut it is laziness, or you're over paying someone to work on it by the hour! If you're intent on cutting it than at least be careful and just barely cut through it with a razor knife, even that could still cause damage Make your U shaped cut so that the opening faces the rear in order to help avoid airflow trying to open the flap. DON'T BE LAZY!

[beeje]

For the most part I agree not to cut into it if you don't have to. However, I unfastened/removed as much as possible on my unit so I could clean up and paint the badly rusted up frame. It would have been near impossible to remove it entirely since the drain lines and propane lines etc. are going through it. Some times you will have no choice but to cut it open which I did to assess the galley tank valve for replacement. Just cut 3 sides leaving the uncut side towards the front of the trailer to act as a hinge so you can fold it back into place and tape it up. As mentioned, Gorilla tape works good if you clean up the area with alcohol.

[MaxwellD]

Thank you all for the great information!

[Texan]

I just dropped my coroplast to change a gray tank seals. You usually only need to drop about 3 feet of coroplast to work on your tank valves. Reinstalling the coroplast is not a big deal as many think it is. Just don't drop more coroplast than you need.