Storage door hyd. cyl.

[maximo]

Opened the big right side storage door today and all the wood screws that hold the plate for the hyd. cyl. lift pulled out of the door. Is there a simple fix for this, dealer is 40 miles away.

Frank

[Art-n-Marge]

There are two possible causes. The pneumatic rod is too high of a rating that it pulled the weaker fasteners out of their places, or the rod failed and seized and will essentially to the same thing to the fasteners.

First, test the rod by trying to expand and contract it manually. If it does not move at all or it's very hard to move, then get a new one. I don't think you are having the other failure where the rod fails and remains so loose it doesn't hold anything. See if you can remove it and take to to a hardware or automotive store for a matching replacement. But...

Replacing the hardware is gonna be more difficult especially if where it's attached is weak wood or not thick enough to hold the screws in place when the rod fails. This might require some rebuilding of the area with thicker stronger wood, heftier mollies and screws or something like that. For this reason if you can't use the original position you might need a different length of rod to make the fit. The rod dealer should be able to determine the rating, then find the proper length to meet the need.

I have seen three of these rods fail over the years. Twice they were automotive applications for an overhead van and SUV door (my vehicles) and once was the failure you describe for a friends storage door but where it attaches to the trailer, not at the door like you describe. In the latter case, my friend rebuilt some wood framing to support the screws, then used beefier screws with the new rod. The friend was quite handy and the fix was impressive. The friend eventually sold the rig so I don't know how the repair is holding up.

I think the door will be limited to heftier mollies and screws and maybe an additional plate or adhesive. I'd sure be interested of reading how you fix this.

[HOOK]

Fill the screw holes with fast drying epoxy and reinstall the hardware and screws. Let it set up and dry. Should be stronger than new. Larry

[CATCRAW]

The same thing happened to our new Montana and luckily it happened while we we picking it up. The struts were too heavy they had 80lb and should have been 60lb. They removed all the screws and used rivets and it seems to be holding very well.

[mainer]

That has happened to us too. We are headed to the rally and have an appointment with Keystone. If you like, I will tell you how they fixed ours.

From what I have read on this forum, this has happened to quite a few people.

[sola123]

We had the same problem..reinstalled the hyd cylinder by increasing the mounted plate by 1/2 inch longer stroke..have had no more problems...and yes all of mine are 80 lb cyclinders....I have even installed cylinders on the front door of the basement and love how it works...easy to do...

[belldog]

Same thing happened to me.I went to Wallie World picked up wood putty and larger screws.

[seahunter]

Depending on the size of the screw holes remaining and the damage, I like to fill the hole with a piece of dowel glued in, then pre-drill and then screw in hardware.

[maximo]

I was at Camping World today and talked to a service tech who said this happens a lot. He told me to put a little silicone on the mounting plate then use pop rivets.

Frank