Fender Skirt installation tips?

I have purchased from Heartland replacement fender skirts. The original skirts broke out near the screw holes from vibration and flexing. I was talking with an independant mobile repair guy who said to put a line of caulking along the entire inside edge of the skirt when I mount them. Has anyone had any experience with this?

Behind each screw hole I applied a layer of the flexible epoxy that comes in a tube and covered it with Gorilla tape. My idea is to strengthen the screw hole and surrounding area by spreading the load caused by vibration. Push a screw through the epoxy at the hole before it sets up.

You'll also want to ensure you have a metal strip that holds the bottom of the skirt in place, minimizing the back and forth motion caused by airflow.

Sheet metal screws can loosen and or rattle out. I like machine screws with nylok nuts.

llalsbury said:

I have purchased from Heartland replacement fender skirts. The original skirts broke out near the screw holes from vibration and flexing. I was talking with an independant mobile repair guy who said to put a line of caulking along the entire inside edge of the skirt when I mount them. Has anyone had any experience with this?

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I have done that to all of my rigs and so far have never had one crack or fall off. I also buy some plastic washers from ACE to give the screw head a bit more surface area, and I also coat the screws with adhesive sealant to keep them from backing out.

I had to replace ours and noticed that the screw holes in the new one were lower than the rest of the frame. I put some plastic washers on the INSIDE to make for the difference and now the screw holes are flush with the rest of the frame on the fender. Did it 2 years ago and I do not have any cracks. I put up a post about it maybe even in this forum that has pictures of all the stuff I did.

Good luck,

John