Guest wemit Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 Has anyone here tried to rebuild their coach entrance door? Mine is coming apart near the bottom and is sort of "loose" when its open. It flexes in every direction. I suspect the interior is gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek up North Posted June 6, 2019 Share Posted June 6, 2019 Yes, it's been done. You've probably got whatever wood 'structure' inside when new that has rotted or the staples used to hold it together (sort of) have rusted away. Only the most basic of carpentry skills need to rebuild. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wemit Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 Are there any pictures of the repairs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linda s Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 hard to copy pics from yahoo. Didn't load in correct order but description If you mean the door itself is sagging out of square, then mypreferred repair is to completely disassemble the door after takingcareful measurements for the window and latch locations. Then I startthe rebuild by cutting a sheet of 1/4" or 5/16" exterior plywood tothe door size, complete with the window cutout. That will make anouter rigid surface behind the original aluminum skin, preventing thedoor from sagging in the future. Next, I rip down well dried pressuretreated 2x stock to make 1" thick perimeter and window frame, withextra blocking added for the latch area. The frame width is determinedby the aluminum edge trim.With the framing glued and screwed in place, the remaining cavity isfilled to flush with insulating foam boards cut to fit snugly. Sprayadhesive is applied to the inner plywood surface to hold it in place.The spray adhesive is also then used to attach the inner and outerskins to the assembly, and the edge trim is reinstalled with a thinlayer of butyl putty tape behind it. After the door has been refittedto the coach, the latch assembly is reinstalled, along with anyaccessory door catches, etc., and you now have a door that willprobably outlast the rest of the coach... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ctgriffi Posted June 18, 2019 Share Posted June 18, 2019 I just did a major rebuild on my coach door last month... didn’t start off with that intention, but the more I tore into it, the more I realized it needed a complete redo. Mine didn’t have a wood frame around the perimeter; just a solid foam slab with ply on both sides, fiberglass exterior skin, (surprisingly) tough vinyl-wallpaper interior skin, all surrounded by aluminum channel. The carpentry skills needed may not be advanced, but you have to make darn sure all dimensions are captured at the outset and carefully duplicated, if your new door is going to fit, still be lockable, etc. Learning about options for foam to wood, vs fiberglass to wood adhesive is a must, too. I was able to reuse the foam core from my door, which worked well as a template for cutting. Most difficult part for me was figuring out how to source the ply, at the needed thicknesses, in order to reach a final width that fit snuggly into the aluminum channel (calipers + math are key; also huge amounts of sanding). One of the final steps on my project involved using 3M spray adhesive to attach old FG skin to new ply: in hindsight, I was an idiot to not get another pair of hands to help quickly position the floppy skin correctly. Warning: you have one chance to get that right! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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