Outside front and rear door hinges......24RBS 2012.

[DavidB.]

Hello everyone,

The front and rear side entrance doors are squeaking and groaning from lack of lubrication on the hinges, yep, my fault!!!!! never thought of doing it.

Have squirted Liquid Wrench into the joints/pivots to no avail.
So, like anyone else I'll squirt some juice down from the top, did that with no improvement.

O.K. then, I'll just take off the top and bottom end caps and squirt again from the top and let gravity take charge. Thinking that these little cap like covers seem to be plastic, no big deal. Oh my......

To my surprise, the top of the rods do not have plastic covers, it is the rod itself having been stamped/pressed down in a dome shape so that the rod does not come off/out during travels. Impossible to remove.

I thought that maybe like a house door hinge you could pry/pop up the rod a little and then squirt the juice and let it run down on the inside. No go.

I looked to see how the doors/hinges/trailer are attached. On the trailer side the pivot/support is riveted to the trailer. On the trailer, they are screwed in.

Does anyone have any ideas of how to remove this rod, or at least to raise it a few milimeters so I can get lubricant into the joints???

The hinges on the back door are wortst, in fact they are binding and things do not look
promising.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance,

A bientot,
DavidB.

 

[happykraut]

Can you use a small drift punch and knock it from the bottom to the top? Of course that will only work if the pin is exposed at the bottom.

 

[coneagle59fal]

I don't think you are to blame for the squeaking door. New Years weekend was the Maiden Voyage for Callie ( just arrived from the factory two weeks ago 24RBS ) both doors sound like innersanktum music. When you find the cure We would sure like to know. Trevor & Eva...:angel:

 

[DavidB.]

The situtation seems to be resolved .....for now .

Happykraut:....cannot use drift punch as the rod is pressed/stamped in a domed shape at both ends.

I think the only way to get that rod out would be to Dremel-like cut off the bottom dome , then you could use the punch. This would involve delicated work because one slip and you could damage the trailer.

What I ended up doing (with the help of several co-volunteers) was: drowned all the pivot joints with Liquid Wrench, let sit for 1/2 hour, then I applied WD-40 in liberal quantities, let that sit for a 1/2 hour.
Then I started working the door little by little 6'' at a time, until eventualy the hinges stopped making their innersanktum music.

The door is quiet now, but if you put your finger on the lowest rung of the hinge and open/close the door,
you can feel it rubbing/catching on the inside.

Thinking back, I had entered the trailer several times last summer (we did not go rv'ing at all last season)
and noticed the door was a little stiffer, but it never dawned on me to start lubing the joints.

Lubricating the hinges is on my every '' 4th day of the month'' of things to do.

Coneagle59fal, let us know if this helped you.

A bientot,
DavidB.

 

[SLJKansas]

Get a spray can of white lithium grease with a spray tube. Spray the hinge, moving the door while spraying, then let it sit for a few minutes. then wipe the excess grease of the hinge. This will hast longer than the WD-40.

 

[Bob&Patty]

One thing to consider, the hinges might be in a little bit of a bind. Try loosening the screws in the door and let them settle in a little.

 

[coneagle59fal]

Thank you all. I try it all.( oil,grease, and screwdriver. Trev

 

[Lynn1130]

Dish soap. Dawn or something similar. This does not collect dirt and grime like oils and grease. It lubes well but because those hinges are exposed to the elements, especially while driving, the hinges need to be treated often.

 

[DavidB.]

Good insight everyone.

Well, each lower rung of each hinges set is running smooth now, as compared to just after lubrication when they were still notchy, I guess the juice got in far enough. Will now coat with that Lithium and see how that works long(ish) term.

As stated, will lube once a month.

Lynn1130, Dawn soap, good idea, never would have thought of soap, will keep in mind.

Thank you all for your input.

A bientot,
DavidB.