RV slide toppers present added safety from moisture and falling particles, making certain your slide-outs stay in good situation over your RV’s lifespan. Whereas some RVs are bought off the lot with slide toppers, these with out require an expert or DIY RV slide topper set up.
When you’re unfamiliar with RV slide toppers, we advocate you learn this text to find out about their advantages. It covers a slide topper description, the advantages of slide toppers, upkeep suggestions, recommendation for selecting appropriate slide toppers on your RV, and really useful slide topper merchandise.
With that useful resource at your disposal, you’ll be higher geared up to discover ways to deal with a DIY RV slide topper set up.
Phrases of Warning Earlier than Tackling a DIY RV Slide Topper Set up
Earlier than we start, perceive that engaged on slide toppers has inherent dangers and risks. Most frequently, you must belief a skilled RV technician to put in your new or substitute slide toppers. Earlier than you try this DIY set up, study these dangers and risks to greatest stop them.
Under are the dangers a DIY set up can pose to you and your RV:
Any awning, slide topper, or window awning incorporates a spring much like a storage door spring. This spring is preloaded with loads of potential power saved inside that tube. Often, this set up requires you to be on a ladder or in different precarious positions the place a number of eventualities could happen.
Within the case of a slide topper, all of the potential power saved is holding the 2 ends in place with cotter pins. If the cotter pins are eliminated on the fallacious time, the ends will spin with great drive. Human nature is to aim to cease all of that power from spinning, which steadily ends in accidents (even for skilled RV technicians).
Many technicians have tried to forestall the spinning by utilizing vice grips or different instruments. This can lead to these instruments being flung, which fails to restrain the spring coil and turns them into harmful projectiles in a situation the place installers are balancing on RV ladders.
Listed here are a couple of extra downsides of this set up:
- You’ll be working from a ladder for a very long time, reaching left and proper whereas putting screws and feeding the awning into the rail. Bear in mind that the screws are usually non-magnetic chrome steel and won’t maintain to the driving force bit. There are loads of them, and it takes each arms.
- The spring-loaded awning axle shaft can escape you and immediately spin 10-12 occasions. Whenever you understand one thing has gone fallacious, it would hit your fingers and knuckles repeatedly and with excessive drive. A sturdy pair of labor gloves can present added safety on your arms.
- All edges will be sharp or have burrs. Mostly, they rating the awning material as it’s slid into the awning rail. This will trigger rapid or untimely failure of the material. They’ll additionally trigger cuts and scrapes to the installer. We’ll cowl when/the place to make use of a small file to spherical edges and take away burrs through the set up to attenuate this threat.
- There are such a lot of holes being made with bits and screws by means of aluminum, metal, fiberglass, and wooden {that a} great quantity of shavings can be created. They’ll find yourself within the installer’s eyes or pores and skin, caught to clothes, and find yourself within the laundry. Protecting eyewear is really useful for this set up.
- It is not uncommon for the driving force bit to slide out of the fasteners. Care should be taken to manage this so the driving force bit doesn’t gouge the wall or hurt the installer.
Listed here are some suggestions that will help you full a secure, profitable set up:
- Align the awning material as precisely as attainable however wait to safe it with cease screws at every finish of the awning rail till it has been run out and in a couple of occasions. It will guarantee there aren’t any wrinkles.
- It’s vital to exactly align the awning rail and slide room wall brackets. If errors are made, they can’t be adjusted later. All the time observe the producer’s directions fastidiously to make sure correct alignment.
- The installer MUST have assist. Even essentially the most skilled technicians get somebody to help on this job to boost security, present recommendation, and stop injury to the awning or the RV.
- Verify for indications that wiring could also be current contained in the partitions the place screws are to be positioned. This will require calling the producer or visiting their web site to test a wiring diagram.
- The surfaces should be fastidiously cleaned earlier than set up. The proper sealants, as really useful by the awning producer, are important to forestall leaks and water injury.
With these phrases of warning in thoughts, here’s a fast guidelines of the instruments and provides required for an RV slide topper set up:
- New slide topper(s)
- Awning rail(s) – in case your RV isn’t already geared up
- Butyl tape
- 2 individuals
- 2 ladders
- Impression driver
- Cordless drill and drill bit set
- Needle nostril pliers
- ⅛” hex key
- Utility knife
How To Set up A Slide Topper
For knowledgeable RV DIYers or these assured of their capability to finish this set up, these are the mandatory steps for a Trailer Life RV slide topper set up. Verify the particular set up directions on your product should you’re putting in a slide topper from one other producer.
1. Set up the Awning Rail(s)
The situation should be a minimal of three” and a most of 6” above the higher fringe of the slide room. Mark the situation with a non-permanent methodology.
Apply butyl tape to the again of the awning rail and fix it with the provided screws.
Gently use needle-nose pliers to open the awning rail’s set up nook to scale back the possibilities of the awning material catching throughout set up.
Verify for different sharp edges and trim any extra butyl tape with the utility knife. Technicians counsel utilizing a small file to around the sharp edges and take away any burrs current.
2. Set up Entry Plates and Brackets
Apply butyl tape to the again of 1 entry plate and safe it to the slide room’s exterior nook utilizing the provided screws. Repeat for the second plate on the other nook.
Trim extra butyl tape across the plates together with your utility knife.
Slide the brackets into the entry plates based on the producer’s directions.
3. Assemble the Extension Rod
Gently insert the extension rod into the spring head meeting torsion arm to align their fastener areas.
Slide the tip cap into the extension rod to align all three fastener areas.
Fasten one finish utilizing the provided self-tapping screws and repeat for the opposite finish.
4. Slide the Awning Cloth into the Awning Rail
Set your step ladders into place and guarantee their stability.
One particular person ought to ascend their ladder to the required top, and the second particular person ought to hand the extension rod as much as the primary particular person as soon as they’re steady and earlier than ascending the second ladder to the required top.
Place the rod so one particular person is on every finish, and unwrap the awning material by a single flip.
Slide the awning material into the awning rail, ranging from the tip with the corners unfold open.
Heart the material over your awning room, after which slide the torsion arms into their brackets.
5. Take a look at and Safe
With the awning centered, maintain the awning tube tightly whereas eradicating the pins on every finish of the extension rod utilizing the needle nostril pliers. Permit the stress to launch slowly in your hand.
DO NOT pull the pins and let the stress snap!
Retract and lengthen your awning room a couple of occasions, checking that the awning stays sq. to your RV and rolls up straight.
Safe the awning material on the ends of the rail with provided screws.
Safe the entry brackets with provided screws.
If this feels like an excessive amount of for a DIY set up, however you continue to need to add slide toppers to your RV, schedule an set up appointment at your native Tenting World. Our licensed technicians will safe your slide toppers and get you again on the highway to get pleasure from new locations this season.
Do you might have any questions on this RV slide topper set up? Tell us within the feedback beneath!
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