Slide Skirt Support Modification

[slow]

Originally Posted by testwest

...........
Question: are there 3 vertical strips or one wide strip cut partway down?

I used three vertical strips joined at the bottom with a horizontal strip.On the support for the plastic skirt, the vertical strips are tapped for an 8-32 screw at each mounting hole. The screw threads into the vertical strips and I only tighten it enough to lightly load the plastic skirt with the rubber washer. I then used a nylock nut on the backside to prevent the screw from loosening and to "clamp" the vertical strips to the horizontal strip. That way the horizontal and vertical strips are anchored securely to each other to limit deflection, without overloading the rubber washer and plastic skirt.

[theallde]

Originally Posted by slow

The skirt mounted to the slide has been a persistent issue for me on long trips. The portion that extends down between the axles constantly flaps as we travel. At each gas stop, I have had to retighten the lower sheet metal screw that attaches the skirt to the support bracket. While on a 7,000 miles last fall, a crack developed in the skirt near the mounting screw. So I drilled a "stop hole" at the end of the crack and replaced the flexible support from the factory with a stiffer support and added a second screw below the original.

This spring I went further with a more robust skirt support using machine screws and nylock nuts:



Hopefully this resolves the issues I have been having.

How are the top braces secured? Great example and thanks.

[slow]

Originally Posted by theallde

How are the top braces secured? ............

Between Axles:
I removed the plastic skirting and by doing so, the street side of the 1" x 1 1/2" horizontal aluminum tube mounted to the underside of the slide was exposed. I positioned the vertical braces so that they occupied a "cavity" between plastic skirt's mounting holes. The braces were attached to the horizontal tube using ~3/4" long truss head metal screws I picked up at HD.

If you prefer not to remove the plastic skirt, you can attach the braces to the horizontal tube between the axles the same way as I did forward of the axle.

Forward of the Axle:
Since aluminum skirting material prevents access to the horizontal aluminum tube under the street side of the slide, I attached the 1" x 3/4" aluminum channel to the underside of the horizontal tube and then attached the braces to the channel. See phase 2 (post #15) for the picture.

BTW: In both cases I installed an extra 2 1/2" long screw from the underside of the horizontal slide aluminum tube up into the slide wall to ensure the horizontal slide tube was anchored well to the underside of the slide.

[theallde]

Thank you .... Don

[Chillaxin' III]

Wow that looks great, and very stable! I'm doing that mod this weekend!

[Chillaxin' III]

Thanks for the idea. I just finished mine. I took the lazier approach; due to the 98 degree temps, 98% humidity, and 98 yellow fly bites on my legs and ankles LOL. But at least it's done! It is now WAY stiffer than it was from the factory!

I just used 2 strips of .063" diamond plate aluminum scrap I had lying around. I tied everything into only 3 existing holes. I also bent a small 30 degree bend in the black extruded OEM support bar. This mod took me 1 hour, even in this heat.

[slow]

Glad it worked out. Does not take much for a big improvement.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Chillaxin' III]

No, it sure doesn't! I just towed my camper 50 miles and I BARELY saw the side skirt wiggling in the wind at 65-70 MPH. Thanks again!

[slow]

Update: We trailered approximately 4,000 miles this last summer with the skirt support modification and speed nuts on the skirt mounting screws. No screws loosened or skirt damage and no flapping. One of the best "required" mods to our TT.

[srvnt]

Originally Posted by slow

Update: We trailered approximately 4,000 miles this last summer with the skirt support modification and speed nuts on the skirt mounting screws. No screws loosened or skirt damage and no flapping. One of the best "required" mods to our TT.

Nice job. Keystone could learn a thing or two from us!

[mfifield01]

I fought this issue over my last trip. The main issue is that the self tapping screw keeps stripping and warping out of the aluminum tube. Is there a way to bring a screw from the front back and use a nut in that area? Basically the screw would come in between the plastic and aluminum tube.

I have a ton of stress cracks on the other holding screws now. There's also a crack from the lower holding bolt that goes through the strap.

[Mattcoa]

Hi,

I need to do the same thing with the skirts on my trailer. What are the dimensions of the 4 pieces of aluminum?
Best,
Matt

[slow]

Originally Posted by Mattcoa

Hi,

I need to do the same thing with the skirts on my trailer. What are the dimensions of the 4 pieces of aluminum?
Best,
Matt

1.5” wide by 1/8” thick.

[mfifield01]

I ended up backing the holes with fiberglass.

[Laredo Tugger]

I like this mod and will be doing similar. After new tires on the 5er.
I recently had a a piece of the J channel come off on the drivers side. The piece that was left buckled back and forth with the wind (driving) and started to rip in half. I caught it early (maybe a 2 inch tear) and pulled over and added support and secured the loose skirt section.
When I got home I realized how vulnerable the J channel is to any contact so I used 1/2 inch PVC pipe laid in the channel and mounted with stainless self tapping screws from the bottom. It is added support out of view. Also made a few of my own aluminum "support struts" for added strength.
RMc

[GMH]

Originally Posted by slow

Nice work! I love your anti theft system also!

[travelin texans]

Originally Posted by GMH

Nice work! I love your anti theft system also!

Curious! What is this suppose to be doing & why?

[flybouy]

Originally Posted by travelin texans

Curious! What is this suppose to be doing & why?

My thoughts to. Looked at that and thought "that's an odd way to store a cable and a quick link".

[DocP]

The skirting on one of my slide-outs had no support brackets, and the skirting screws kept backing out. I also noticed how much it was flapping in the wind as I was going down the road. Today, I remedied that by using a piece of 1" wide x 1/8" thick aluminum stock from Home Depot, several stainless steel screws, and stainless steel locking nuts. I bent the aluminum in my vice and was very pleased with the outcome. That skirting isn't going to flap any more!

[Bill-2020]

Too bad no one from Keystone is here... they'd learn a bit from your workmanship. Excellent job!