Door hinge loose bolt

[BLPeace1]

The top door hinge bolts loosens. They will tighten with medium torque but loosen again after use. Anyone experienced this and if so how did you remedy it?

2019 30 ft RBT Classic.

[BigSxyWhtGuy]

The ones in side the aluminum skin or are you referring to another bolt?

[BLPeace1]

Originally Posted by BigSxyWhtGuy

The ones in side the aluminum skin or are you referring to another bolt?

The ones that goes try the hinge and attached it to the trailer.

[Fungus]

Have you tried Lock-Tite?

[Wazbro]

There is a slight chance you can remove one bolt at a time and apply Lock-Tite, do not remove both bolts at the same time. On the newer Airstreams I believe they have a cheap plate trying to connecting the 2 nuts so removing both would drop them to the bottom of the space between the skins. Many people that had the nuts separate from the plate and not be able to tighten or loosen them, then had to remove the inside door trim and use a hole saw to make a hole to get to the nuts between the skins.

[Larry_M]

If possible, you should try to tighten the door hinge bolts to keep the door properly aligned. Unfortunately, once they start loosening up they will continue to loosen. You either have the older phillips head screws or the more recent Torx (size = T27) bolts.

I would not recommend removing the bolt to apply Lock-Tite. While Lock-Tite itself is a good idea, once you pull the bolt out, the nut will fall to the ground inside the aluminum shell and you’re really S.O.L.

The problem is that the hidden nuts inside the aluminum skin do not properly “grab” and lock in place as they should. They’re simply nuts with those cheaply attached “star” lockwashers that flatten out over time and simply don’t grip anymore.. Which is why the bolts keep loosening up.

The real fix is remove the interior trim around the door and drill a hole on the inside aluminum skin to gain access to the back of the nut and properly tighten it down. After tightening the bolt / nut, the interior trim covers the holes once reapplied.

Personally, while it seems an easy thing to do, I would leave it to the dealer technicians to handle. Fortunately, we were attending a rally where “Phil, the Door Guy” was making the repairs on site. It wasn’t cheap but it was well worth it to prevent those hinges from continually loosening up. If you let the hinges get too loose your door will start to misalign.

[Larry_M]

I learned in October that while Airstream claims to use a plate that is attached to the nuts, it appears to be a unicorn. Phil The Door Guy, who does this repair quite often, has yet to find one of those plates Airstream claims to use. Since the nuts aren't attached to plates, they will drop to the bottom if you remove the bolt. We have a 2020 Flying Cloud it did not have the plates. As I said, Phil has yet to find one during his repairs. I suppose they're used somewhere... but do you want to take that chance? Supposedly the 2020 models had the plates...

[Fungus]

Or this…lock tite on the exposed threads. Tighten. See if it holds.

Maybe this has come up before for losing the nut…replace it with some version of a rivet nut. There may not be enough space.

[Wazbro]

Originally Posted by Fungus

Or this…lock tite on the exposed threads. Tighten. See if it holds.

Maybe this has come up before for losing the nut…replace it with some version of a rivet nut. There may not be enough space.

The "exposed threads" are hidden inside the wall and inaccessible without removing the door trim and drilling holes in the inner skin. The door is installed before the inner skins.

[tjdonahoe]

I replaced my bolts to stainless bolts wit Allen wrench heads and nylock nuts…no more loose bolts….

[airmaine]

Larry M's advice is right on.



The hinge engineering is not at all adequate for the weight of the AS door. On mine, 3 of the 4 bolts had loosened, so this past spring I removed the inside trim opposite the hinges, drilled four holes with a hole saw directly opposite the bolts (make sure the hole saw has an attached pilot bit) and replaced the (worthless) star nuts with vinyl lock nuts, and blue lock tight. In addition, I used a lock washer. Do one hinge completely and, then the other. Replace any insulation that was removed in the process and replace the trim. In case it happens again, it's an easy fix. It took a couple+ hours, saved myself 2-300 bucks, and because I'm not near an AS dealer or rv repair shop with AS experience, I've got to handle some of these completely manageable jobs. It requires 2 people for best results, as you'll need to stabilize the door as the bolts are replaced.

[Magredvet]

https://www.airforums.com/forums/f45...ir-182181.html
This thread details the fix.
I just completed it on my 2018 FC.....no plate, just individual nuts and star washers. Replaced them with locking nuts.

[Life is a Highway]

Inside trim will be removed two holes bored in back of the nuts exposing those loose nuts. New hinge bolts and nuts installed with nylock nuts properly torqued The trim reinstalled you will never see the holes

Some have done this at home sone dealers attempt it our dealer butchered the job 1200 miles later Jackson Center did it correctly under warranty

QUOTE=BLPeace1;2646558]The top door hinge bolts loosens. They will tighten with medium torque but loosen again after use. Anyone experienced this and if so how did you remedy it?

2019 30 ft RBT Classic.[/QUOTE]

[BLPeace1]

Originally Posted by BLPeace1

The top door hinge bolts loosens. They will tighten with medium torque but loosen again after use. Anyone experienced this and if so how did you remedy it?

2019 30 ft RBT Classic.

Problem resolved. The great folks at Airstream of Mississippi performed the surgery and left no scars.

[Magredvet]

Originally Posted by BLPeace1

Problem resolved. The great folks at Airstream of Mississippi performed the surgery and left no scars.

Just curious, was that the one in Gulfport ?
How was the experience ?
I went there to get a quote on fixing some collision damage, and was less than impressed. It took two weeks of emails just to get an estimate, and then the follow up emails, with procedural questions were ignored.
Glad you got it done !

[Boxite]

Who is this “Phil the Door Guy” and how does one contact him?

(asking for a friend…no kidding)

[jeffmc306]

Originally Posted by Boxite

Who is this “Phil the Door Guy” and how does one contact him?

(asking for a friend…no kidding)

His name is Phil Enoch, AKA “The Door Guy”. You can reach him via email at noloxsolution@gmail.com

[mrslalanne]

Ours came loose and we took it out to add lock tight. The nut behind came off and fell behind the wall! This required removing the door trim/handle, cutting a hole in the wall to replace the nut, adding lock tight, and then buying some wood trim to cover the hole. On the plus side, it hasn't moved since. We have a 2018 Classic 30RBT.

[BLPeace1]

Originally Posted by Magredvet

Just curious, was that the one in Gulfport ?

How was the experience ?

I went there to get a quote on fixing some collision damage, and was less than impressed. It took two weeks of emails just to get an estimate, and then the follow up emails, with procedural questions were ignored.

Glad you got it done !

We had a great first time experience. John, the service manage was very customer service driven.

[krgolding]

Took my international 28' 2021 into airstream northwest dealer. They took off one interior panel off to add a new plate and secured with new bolts.
No problems now.