Zip Dee Awning Lost On I-70

[Fortemd]

2022 Globetrotter 27FBT
The electric Zip-Dee awning flew off our trailer on I-70 near Salina, Kansas. We were unaware and were honked at by a passing motorist. We immediately stopped on the shoulder. Another motorist stopped and notified us that our awning was about one mile behind us on the interstate.
Our awning arms were drooping like outriggers, but were not touching the road surface.
I’ll try to attach photos.
We called RV One. They were very helpful. She called local police and then connected us with a service technician. He gave us the choice of trying to remove the awning arms ourselves or waiting (several hours) for a service technician to arrive.
The officer was very helpful, as well. He advised us not to attempt to retrieve the awning.
With the officer’s help, I removed the nylon lock nut and bolt at the top end of the stabilizer bars and then pulled the cotter pins at the base of the arms. I pulled the pins to disconnect the arms and cut the electrical wires to complete the removal.
Next, I called the nearest Airstream dealer to our destination to inquire about repair/replacement. I was instructed to call Jordan in the service department Monday in Salt Lake City.

This story has more to it:
We picked up our new trailer about 6 weeks ago from RV One owned Airstream of Greensboro. This is about 2.5 hours drive from home. At delivery, the awning worked flawlessly. We towed the trailer home. The awning, again, worked flawlessly when we arrived.
About 10 days prior to our first trip (4 day shakedown trip to visit family in Nashville and 6 weeks in Utah/Arizona), the awning froze about 12 inches from closed and never worked again.
I called the dealer in Greensboro and went through the various resettings to no avail. They referred me to Zip-Dee. They also walked me through diagnostics, including attaching the accessory cable to connect the motor directly to the battery posts. Nothing. Next, AOG rushed ordered a new awning motor ( I paid for overnight shipping so we wouldn’t have to cancel or postpone our trip) and worked us into their service schedule in time for our trip two days later. The awning worked flawlessly after the repair.
Both AOG and Zip-Dee were forthright, courteous and accommodating, so I have no complaints with them. I am bummed that our trip that we have planned and prepared for for over a year has now become a repair saga.
I’m typing one letter at a time as my wife drives, but will try to update this as it unfolds.

[DCPAS]

Yikes! I would love to know what caused it to happen if you can determine the cause.

[GOUSC]

So sorry to hear about your misfortune. That would be a scary situation when you first discovered it. At least no one was injured and no damage to other property.

If you have removed everything and can travel without anything flapping around, I think I would just continue my trip and worry about the awning when it’s over. Try to enjoy the trip and not let the repair be the trip if you are able.

[2012FB]

Wow I can’t imagine the frustration if not down right anger in what you have been through with your new Airstream. I second the suggestion to carry on. Maybe you can arrange to have a new one put on by a mobile service with Airstream and/or Zip-Dees approval at one of your stops. Personally I would have a manual one put on. I am curious is there not a positive lock on the power awning like there is for the manual version. I also add square locking pins on the arms at each end for double security. Good luck and enjoy best you can.

[field & stream]

Don’t know if this would have helped or might in the future, but prior to traveling many folks fasten the arms to each other with zip ties or Velcro straps. Very scary situation, and people traveling behind you could have been seriously hurt. Best wishes……

[GOUSC]

I noticed in your picture the front support bracket was pulled away from the main body. The rear probably was as well. When this finally gets repaired, make sure they seal that area well. I had some warranty work in that area. I had nothing to do with the awning.

The electric wire goes thru a rubber grommet that powers the awning. The factory repair center did not set that grommet back properly and it left a gap where water entered the front storage compartment. The water rotted out some of the subfloor that had to be replaced under warranty. they had to re-set the grommet and applied additional sealant to prevent leaking in the future.

Just check behind them and not let one repair turn into another one. If you continue your trip, make sure that area is sealed up well as water runs right down that rivet line. Look for other areas that may be water intrusion areas as well and seal them in the meantime.

[uraljohn]

Consider replacing the Zip Dee "Relax" Power Awning with a good old fashion manual Zip Dee Awning. No more problem and they extend and retract every time.

[BT2513]

We lost our awning in a storm - our fault, not AS or Zip-Dee.

My advice is to go to your local sporting goods store and purchase a tailgate canopy for some shade and continue on. It bummed me out seeing the empty brackets with no awning attached but we were able to complete our trip with no other interruptions. Honestly, if you were able to get through this with no major dents or damage to the skin, I'd consider yourself lucky. The awning will get replaced. You can buy cheap portable shade in the meantime.

[Hermes]

Originally Posted by GOUSC

Just check behind them and not let one repair turn into another one. If you continue your trip, make sure that area is sealed up well as water runs right down that rivet line. Look for other areas that may be water intrusion areas as well and seal them in the meantime.

This is super important and exact. If your trailer is slightly angled down towards the front, that is where all the water falling on the roof flows down; there can be gallons and gallons of water flowing right there. I think we should all check that area regularly. I haven't noticed it, but the same may apply to the rear awning attachment area as well.

[dpyates]

We are working on changing the awning out to a manual. A big hassle but I don’t have to worry about it all of the time. Too many bad stories like this one.

[GOUSC]

Originally Posted by Hermes

This is super important and exact. If your trailer is slightly angled down towards the front, that is where all the water falling on the roof flows down; there can be gallons and gallons of water flowing right there. I think we should all check that area regularly. I haven't noticed it, but the same may apply to the rear awning attachment area as well.

This does apply to both awning attachments. When you actually have an awning tube up there that has not been ripped off, the rain hits that tube and rolls forward, or backward, depending on if your RV is slightly up or down. It took me forever to figure out where the leak was. Someone at a Rally helped me identify it. I then took a hose to the roof to observe water flow.

Until I could fix it, I kept my RV slightly elevated to keep water from running down that rivet seam. The OP has lost his tube but still has the tube cover attached. I still believe that cover may be able to route water to the front of aft. He can also raise or lower the RV to facilitate that. If his rear attachment is less compromised he should be able to elevate the front to route water away from that front attachment area.

[Fungus]

Sorry about your terrifying experience. Good that no one was hurt and the trailer skin appears undamaged.

I would also carry on with the trip, not allowing this misfortune to ruin an adventure.

And another vote for a manual awning. I had to replace a rafter and rear head casting damaged by the previous owner. Cost $1000 for that silly little pressurized tube. Had I read about it on the forum, I would have devoted that $1000 to a down payment on a manual awning.

My experience with Zip Dee was great also. At repair time, Zip Dee spent nearly an hour on the phone with me as we both tried to figure out how to remove the damaged head casting while it was still wound tight. At the end, the dreaded (and violent) last resort was the only way.

[Ephraim]

Originally Posted by Fortemd

2022 Globetrotter 27FBT

The electric Zip-Dee awning flew off our trailer on I-70 near Salina, Kansas. We were unaware and were honked at by a passing motorist. We immediately stopped on the shoulder. Another motorist stopped and notified us that our awning was about one mile behind us on the interstate.

Our awning arms were drooping like outriggers, but were not touching the road surface.

I’ll try to attach photos.

We called RV One. They were very helpful. She called local police and then connected us with a service technician. He gave us the choice of trying to remove the awning arms ourselves or waiting (several hours) for a service technician to arrive.

The officer was very helpful, as well. He advised us not to attempt to retrieve the awning.

With the officer’s help, I removed the nylon lock nut and bolt at the top end of the stabilizer bars and then pulled the cotter pins at the base of the arms. I pulled the pins to disconnect the arms and cut the electrical wires to complete the removal.

Next, I called the nearest Airstream dealer to our destination to inquire about repair/replacement. I was instructed to call Jordan in the service department Monday in Salt Lake City.



This story has more to it:

We picked up our new trailer about 6 weeks ago from RV One owned Airstream of Greensboro. This is about 2.5 hours drive from home. At delivery, the awning worked flawlessly. We towed the trailer home. The awning, again, worked flawlessly when we arrived.

About 10 days prior to our first trip (4 day shakedown trip to visit family in Nashville and 6 weeks in Utah/Arizona), the awning froze about 12 inches from closed and never worked again.

I called the dealer in Greensboro and went through the various resettings to no avail. They referred me to Zip-Dee. They also walked me through diagnostics, including attaching the accessory cable to connect the motor directly to the battery posts. Nothing. Next, AOG rushed ordered a new awning motor ( I paid for overnight shipping so we wouldn’t have to cancel or postpone our trip) and worked us into their service schedule in time for our trip two days later. The awning worked flawlessly after the repair.

Both AOG and Zip-Dee were forthright, courteous and accommodating, so I have no complaints with them. I am bummed that our trip that we have planned and prepared for for over a year has now become a repair saga.

I’m typing one letter at a time as my wife drives, but will try to update this as it unfolds.

We had our awning auto deploy in a 70 mph windstorm. Very concerning. It survived because we were close to the house which protected it from the worst. However there was lots of back and forth between Airstream, zipdee and the local dealer. It all worked out but there was lots of finger pointing from all parties except zipdee. The upshot is that the factory installed the controller under the sink and too close to the wall. The sink drain wasn’t connected properly or had vibrated loose and it dripped water onto the controller destroying it. The fault was airstream’s because they mounted it to far back. The fix was to move the controller forward so it was protected be the drawers and shelving.

The dealer lost my future business over the issue because they reported inaccurate info to airstream who panicked and tried to void the warranty. It all worked out but my blood pressure wasn’t too good for a couple of weeks.

[Fungus]

The connectors on the control board can be jostled by gear in the cabinet too. Our awning would not work one day. I found loose connections.

I still want a manual awning.

[Padawan]

We lost our powered Zip Dee awning on 5/5/2019 about 65 miles north of Des Moines, IA on I-35. You are lucky just your awning arms were left. I had awning metal cover slats hanging off my trailer plus the arms. Recommend using electrician tape and silicone sealant to seal the sprung lower brackets.

About a month later, Jackson Center made the repairs and were wonderful. It took them 2 days (9 hours of labor) to fix. Since the body of the camper was sprung, the mechanic had to craft and mount support plates for the new main (lower) brackets. And of course, Zip Dee changed the upper support brackets, so the mechanic had to figure that out and still make it look nice. He did a great job!!

Be ready for some sticker shock!!

If interested, please see Air Forums thread: https://www.airforums.com/forums/f54...re-195274.html

[Padawan]

I too considered a manual awning replacement but was advised not too because the bracket mounts don't match - it would cost too much to make the camper look good. What I did add was a control panel power kill switch - it is mounted on the sink cabinet by the main door. This switch turns off the power to the awning control board and, in theory, locks the motors. In three years, it hasn't failed yet.

[Fungus]

Originally Posted by Padawan

I too considered a manual awning replacement but was advised not too because the bracket mounts don't match - it would cost too much to make the camper look good. What I did add was a control panel power kill switch - it is mounted on the sink cabinet by the main door. This switch turns off the power to the awning control board and, in theory, locks the motors. In three years, it hasn't failed yet.

Photos and parts list?

[Life is a Highway]

Grateful that the skin of your trailer was not damaged. And that no one on the road was damaged but the flying off awning.

I have heard of this happening before but never heard back what caused it.

[djarrett]

Is it possible you left the awning control panel set to the "Power on" position? Our dealer warned us to turn the control board for the power awning to the off position any time we are traveling. I also took some 6 inch wide black velcro and made straps that I wrap the front and rear arm with to prevent it from opening while we travel.

[jondrew55]

I think it's very important to make sure you turn your awning power off and also the water pump. I've yet to see an accidental canopy deployment on my unit, but it would certainly be disastrous. I did leave the water pump switch on once and found my kitchen sink full of water when I arrived at the camp site. I suppose I was lucky the kitchen faucet did not spin out of the sink and dump water on the floor.

Originally Posted by djarrett

Is it possible you left the awning control panel set to the "Power on" position? Our dealer warned us to turn the control board for the power awning to the off position any time we are traveling. I also took some 6 inch wide black velcro and made straps that I wrap the front and rear arm with to prevent it from opening while we travel.