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TinLoaf · 10-25-2010, 05:16 PM

I have a 2006 Safari with the rear corner shower. I was up on the horrific interstate highways of Wisconsin where the trailer really takes a beating and I lost all the screws that hold the shower stall to the ceiling.

The shower has actually rocked back over three inches and is most likely leaning against the wall. Surely those ceiling screws don't support the entire weight of the shower and some kind of large shim must have shifted out from under the shower floor.

What's the best way to approach fixing this? I'm thinking I'll need to remove the bed just to get a look under the shower from the side. I'm hoping I can get it taken care of before the stress cracks my plumbing.

Has anyone else had this problem?

HowieE · 10-25-2010, 06:29 PM

It is not uncommon to hang a one piece tub assembly from the top flange. I installed a one piece American Standard tub in my home 30 years ago. At that time I talked to the company engineers and questioned the fact that they did not call for any support under the tub itself. That assembly has lasted to date.

Now that said I think I used more than 10 screws to set that assembly and it was however supported on 3 sides. Looks like Airstream had a screw shortage, I see 2 holes, the day they made your rig. I also looks like the trailer rib is just forward of the screws meant to hold the tub.

Now the fact that the tub had enough room to move back close to 3 in. at the top causes one to question if the tub was placed too far forward when installed and lost any support that may have been designed into the frame. All in all it is very poor workmanship.

With the folding frames recently noted on this forum and this level of workmanship looks like Thor is dropping to SOB standards.

Not that you want to hear this but I would almost think you should remove the shower assembly completely and see if you can determine how it should have been installed originally. Just replacing those 2 screws is not the solution.

RangerJay · 10-25-2010, 06:33 PM

Ouch - that doesn't look good.

In addition to asking the question on this forum - you might also want to call the Airstream folks in Jackson Center - at least they'd be able to tell you if it's a big deal or a little deal - and should be able to give you enough basic information to make the choice between tackling it yourself - or driving down the road to the Service Center Terreport.

Really interested to see how this turn out.

Good Luck,

Jay

TinLoaf · 11-08-2010, 03:57 PM

Just finished with the last Airstream Rally of the season and I have two weeks before deer season to fix this shower.

I started by removing the mattress.

Then I removed the top plywood of the bed. I've owned the trailer for three summers and I didn't know those two extra small bins were back there!

The entire bed assembly comes out easily in one piece and you can see that tiny cutout where the drain comes through the wall. That's what I stuck the camera through to take the following photos.

TinLoaf · 11-08-2010, 04:08 PM

I stuck the camera through that tiny cutout and took the following photos with the shower in its current, fallen position.

The good news is that it looks like the fiberglass is sitting on the floor so I don't have to worry about too much pressure on the plumbing in its current state.

The bad news is that I expected to see a large shim or piece of lumber that the shower used to rest on. That's not there.

This photo is looking toward the rear-curbside corner of the trailer under the shower. You can see the black water tank which runs above the floor under both the toilet and seat of the shower.

This photo looks straight through the cutout toward the curbside of the trailer. It appears that the drain goes through the floor right under the shower, but it also travels through the cutout, under the bed to an air vent, then through the floor under the bed. Interesting.

TinLoaf · 11-08-2010, 04:16 PM

I pulled the shower back into place and replaced the screws holding the shower enclosure into the ceiling. There's no way those screws hold the weight of the shower. They're twisting under the pressure right now without the weight of a person in the shower.

So these photos show what it should look like under the shower if it were in the proper, upright position. As you can see in this first picture, there's no shim unless it's way back there in the shadow. The gap appears to be exactly 1-1/2 inches so I'm going to try placing a piece of 2x8 under their to support the weight.

This photo is looking forward toward the toilet in front of the shower and you can see the hot water line for the shower. Nothing looks unusual here.

HowieE · 11-08-2010, 04:18 PM

Your pictures in post #5. The first shows the left side of the shower stall sitting down on the floor and some of the fiber glass splintering away. The second shows about a 1/2 in. clearance under the same section of the shower. Can I assume the shower is tipped towards the left with respect to the pictures and that there was NO SUPPORT under the shower directly to the floor?

TinLoaf · 11-08-2010, 04:18 PM

At this point I'm finished for the night. My plan is to enlarge the cutout so I can get better access to the space below the shower. I'm thinking the piece of 2x8 will be an easy fix to hold the shower where it belongs. More photos to follow once I start cutting.

TinLoaf · 11-08-2010, 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HowieE

Your last 2 pictures. The first shows the left side of the shower stall sitting down on the floor and some of the fiber glass splintering away. The second shows about a 1/2 in. clearance under the same section of the shower. Can I assume the shower is tipped towards the left with respect to the pictures and that there was NO SUPPORT under the shower directly to the floor?

That's exactly right. The left side of the photos is toward the rear of the trailer, so the shower has actually rocked back toward the rear of the trailer. I don't see any kind of support unless it vibrated back into the shadow against the rear wall. I'll find out when I cut open the wall.

There must have been some kind of support back there because I weigh 275 pounds and those screws in the ceiling would have snapped off like toothpicks if there was no support below.

HowieE · 11-08-2010, 04:29 PM

You may want to check the top of the holding tank. If the connection is close to the edge that much drop may have cracked the tank connection.

I would definitely call JC and make sure that shower can be supported from the bottom. Often fiberglass tube are supported from the top to insure the inside of the bottom of the tub is stressed in compression rather than tension. In my house I have one of each type. American Standard supported from the top and Kohler supported by a layer of thin set floated under the complete bottom.

TinLoaf · 11-09-2010, 07:03 PM

Here are the photos again since I noticed the links broke.

From post 4:

TinLoaf · 11-09-2010, 07:05 PM

From post 5:

TinLoaf · 11-09-2010, 07:08 PM

From post 6:

Foiled Again · 11-09-2010, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TinLoaf

From post 6:

Well I was afraid there might be floor failure. There are issues with water standing on the rear bumper working its way in behind the trim band. It's bad design, and any little flaw in sealing the trim band just lets in a huge amount. I caught some leakage in mine thanks to a warning here - just used a product similar to Rot Doctor and
From what I can see it doesn't look like there is a frame problem or that there are any broken outriggers - that was my initial fear.

I agree with others. Call Jackson Center. Of course I think you can get service manuals online using the Airstream website. Sure looks like it ought to have some kind of bracing under there. I wonder if the back edge of the fiberglass didn't wear down?

Good luck fixing it. Glad you found that extra storage.

Paula

TinLoaf · 11-11-2010, 12:42 PM

This morning I cut the opening to access the shower even larger. I found that it had actually been enlarged once before because I found the cutout laying inside. Maybe this has happened before?

Once open, I could get a flashlight down there and see better. If you look in this first photo, you can just barely see the support block behind the wiring bundle.

There were two of these support blocks which were just pieces of scrap wood. I couldn't reach the one against the far wall, but here's what they look like.

I found a piece of wood in the basement that had the same 3/4 inch thickness and I ripped it in half. You can see the original piece above the new piece. Just one was sufficient.

Finally, here's what it looks like with my new support in place. Much better. The shower is solid again with no creaking. I replaced the ceiling screws, cleaned up the shower and applied new silicone sealer.

Jackson Center Customer Support promises to respond within 24-48 hours. It only took two. They asked me to e-mail my photos and I'll let everyone know what they say. I think I made the correct repair, but we'll see. Once I get confirmation I'll put the bed back and be done. Whew!

HowieE · 11-11-2010, 02:37 PM

Was there any load on the new piece of wood when you put it in place or did it slide in easy? If there was no load I would get some shingles and drive them in between the floor and the new wood. Not a lot of force but just enough to support the shower rather than the screws doing it again. I would also put construction adhesive between the wood and floor and between the shingles and the wood to make sure they can't move over time.

JC ought to be ashamed at this thread.

ROBERTSUNRUS · 11-11-2010, 10:39 PM

Hi, I think that if Airstream is going to use blocks under the shower, that they should have been glued or screwed in place, so as to not vibrate out of place.

ventport · 11-12-2010, 05:59 AM

I have used expanding foam under shower stalls to support them in houses and my Avion. It forms to the shape of the bottom of the shower stall and also glues it to the floor so it will not move. Works great in tight places when you can't get a board in, and all you can get under the shower is the straw from the can.

TinLoaf · 11-12-2010, 06:58 AM

In the first picture of post 15 you can see a little glob of spray foam. I wonder if that's what originally held the support block in place.

I think this shower in this particular installation needs solid support of the rear wall of the fiberglass. It's quite heavy. Air also needs to be able to circulate under there so keep the pipes from freezing.

Airstream would probably be better off setting the entire unit on the floor, but then they'd need to devise some kind of trim piece to cover the 3/4 inch gap at the ceiling. That's the reason they add the spacer - so the curve of the shower meets the curve of the ceiling. The extra 3/4 inch is not needed to clear the plumbing or the black tank. It's purely for the look.

TinLoaf · 11-13-2010, 12:21 PM

From Airstream Customer Support: "It appears that the screws holding it into place let loose allowing it to tilt and move back. Don't have a real fix other than pulling it back into place and reattaching with more or larger screws. I don't have your phone number, but if you wish to discuss further, please feel free to give me a call back."

Like I said before, there's no way the weight of that shower is held in place by three ceiling screws. When it first happened I put the screws back in to hold the shower and the fiberglass was cracking under the stress. That was just the weight of the shower. If I had gotten into the shower the fiberglass around the screws would have broken.

If feel confident I made the proper fix even though it's not what Customer Support says.