Cracked Cabinet

[LeatherDog]

I was working on our trailer while it sits in storage this past weekend when I happened to look in the rear upper cabinet and found this crack. I don't understand how such a crack could occur. We do not store heavy items there, only the camera, binoculars, DVDs and sweatshirts. In preparing for the long cold winter, we remove almost everything in the trailer and I am sure I would have noticed it if it was there at that time. Anyone else have this sort of issue? We have had some serious cold this winter, could that have caused a crack? Any ideas on how to fix?

Thanks!

[djarrett]

That is very odd

[wulfraat]

Looks like something with a hard edge hit it / was dropped. To correct that you’d need to remove the cabinet, dissemble, re-laminate a sheet then put it all back together again. Probably better to just live with it.

If you are still under warranty you could try to go that route, but I’m not sure I’d trust a dealer to get it right.

[Omnial]

Originally Posted by LeatherDog

I was working on our trailer while it sits in storage this past weekend when I happened to look in the rear upper cabinet and found this crack. I don't understand how such a crack could occur. We do not store heavy items there, only the camera, binoculars, DVDs and sweatshirts. In preparing for the long cold winter, we remove almost everything in the trailer and I am sure I would have noticed it if it was there at that time. Anyone else have this sort of issue? We have had some serious cold this winter, could that have caused a crack? Any ideas on how to fix?

Thanks!

I had the exact same crack, but in the cabinet above the front queen bed. Nothing hit or damaged it, at least while I’ve owned it. And it didn’t happen due to cold because I got the trailer new in July. Fixed under warranty by dealer by filling in the crack...can’t tell there ever was a problem.

Photo is from top of cabinet looking down.

[LeatherDog]

Originally Posted by Omnial

I had the exact same crack, but in the cabinet above the front queen bed. Nothing hit or damaged it, at least while I’ve owned it. And it didn’t happen due to cold because I got the trailer new in July. Fixed under warranty by dealer by filling in the crack...can’t tell there ever was a problem.

Photo is from top of cabinet looking down.

Amazing similarities between these two cracks! It is good to know that a relatively simple fix is possible. Thanks for the feedback. Will contact the dealer/factory.

[ExploringAir]

Could a screw have been driven in there crooked, lifting up the laminate? Then when the installer ran their hand up there, found the screw head and then backed it out leaving the crack in the laminate?

[LeatherDog]

Originally Posted by ExploringAir

Could a screw have been driven in there crooked, lifting up the laminate? Then when the installer ran their hand up there, found the screw head and then backed it out leaving the crack in the laminate?

That would be a very logical root cause if the crack was present when we picked up the unit. The crack was not present at delivery and it wasn't there when we did the winterizing clean-out. I did, after the clean-out, take it to the dealer for them to winterize but they would have no reason to be in that cabinet and I know I looked it it afterwards and all was good. Quite the mystery but the fact that someone else had a very similar crack makes me thick it may be excessive stress somehow being transmitted to the cabinet.

Thanks!

[kkdesigns]

I've done a lot of laminate cabinets in my line of work.

Most likely there was a hair line crack in the laminate when they glued that sheet to the wood to cut the part from. It could go years and you might not notice it. Most likey the wood substrate shrunk just a bit with the dry cold air and brought the crack up to the surface. The only way to repair would be to replace the part. If it's somewhere out of the way, just leave it alone. Once it warms up and the wood expands it will probably close up a bit. It won't go away, but it should become a bit less noticable. If it really bothers you you can get a product made called seam filler. you would need to get the laminate color and manufacturer and have the color custom mixed. you can find it online. It's expensive. You also might call airstream customer service. they might have some that they can send you.

[TXGal]

As I was cleaning my cabinets out today, I also noticed a crack in the upper cabinet above the dinette in our AS. All I keep in that cabinet is paper plates/goods and plastic ware. What I noticed about mine is that it starts right where they drilled a screw in. So I looked in my other cabinet above the sink and I can also see two small cracks starting on each corner. I def believe that’s it’s due to nothing the consumer has done.