Can't retract my ripped awning!!

[GrnEyz]

Hi All Well I left my 2022 Keystone Springdale at my campsite yesterday and it was sunny and warm. Went to my daughters for a Christmas party and by the time I was leaving it was starting to rain so I spent the night. Came back this morning and apparently there was a "hurricane" only at the campground about 30 miles a way because my awning was ripped off and the arms are hanging about 8 ft. out. I rolled up the canvas but don't know how to close the arms and don't want to break them. Can anyone give me a clue how to manually close them up without breaking them? Thanks so much!

[Camping family]

Don’t know if this will work or not. But try having someone push on the frame while you operate the switch.

[chuckster57]

Get 4 long zip ties. The arms will retract, it might take 2 people. Pull down at the bottom corner and push in at about the middle point. Once retracted, slide a zip tie behind the part that’s screwed to the trailer, it may take 2 to reach.

[dutchmensport]

The zip tie makes the most sense. Just an FYI.... if you are going to purchase a new awning and have your dealership do the work, you may have to wait a while. I've been waiting for 4 months now (since September 1) for a replacement awning for my Montana. They said (promised, guaranteed, swore up and down,) the awning would be in no later than December 1... Guess what? It's still not "in" yet. The only good thing about this is, it's winter right now, and we're not using the awning. Hope it arrives by April 1!

[JRTJH]

I believe you have an electric awning ???

If so, there are two gas struts, one on each arm. If you aren't strong enough to push them to the trailer, then remove the bottom pin from the gas struts and it will go in easier. You can leave the struts attached at the top and the awning arms will "fold over the struts" to keep them from being lost or damaged.

Then, zip tie the arms in place and tow it gently.

As for the awning replacement, if it's damaged beyond repair, consider an insurance claim. The awning will cost about $1200-1400 and installation at a dealership will run probably another $400-600. Well worth the deductible...

If only the fabric is torn/damaged, you can buy replacement fabric on EBay or Amazon for a bit less than $200. It's not difficult to install new fabric. There's instructions that come with the new fabric, lots of YouTube videos and this forum has lots of members who have replaced their fabric and can help guide you through the process.

DON'T THROW AWAY THE OLD FABRIC until you get the numbers off the tag near the front corner that's attached to the roller tube. You'll need that information to order "OEM replacement fabric" if you decide to have the dealership replace it for you.

[flybouy]

I wS in a similar situation last year. We were at the camper and a micro burst hit. We were there but couldn't get the awning in quick enough. It bent the arms some but was so twisted I couldn't get the arms back up with the roller tube still on. I removed the roller tube, DON'T DO THIS UNLESS YOU FIND OUT THE PROCEEDURE FOR YOUR AWNING FIRST! After that I was able to get the arms secured close enough to the walls and stored the awning roller inside when we left.

Our Dometic awning had an eta of "unknown but a min of 2 months". The shop was able to get Carefree in 2 weeks so I went that route. Our insurance covered it so it was well worth our $100 deductable.

[P&DZ]

Insurance is the way to go if they honor your claim. if not, and the frame is not damaged, replacing the fabric is not difficult. I bought replacement fabric from RV Awning Mart and the DW and I replaced the fabric in about 3 hours. There are several good YouTube videos, find one that is representative of your awning. I highly recommend watching the video as there are a couple of MUST do procedures.