Basement doors strike slideouts

[iam144]

Hi All,
I'm new to this forum, have had the rig for about 6 months, but have been RV-ing for about 8 years.

I have a 2008 Itasca Ellipse FD40 (pretty sure that's the model number) and we full-time and work camp in it.

Last October, I purchased the Ellipse from LazyDays in Tampa, FL. The basement doors worked fine. However when I got it to the park where we were staying for the winter, we noticed that 3 of the basement doors would not open all the way. The tops of the doors would strike the bottom of the slide-outs. These are all on the passenger side and it happens on both the living room slide and the bedroom slide.

We took the rig to LazyDays in Tuscon (don't ask why not Tampa, it has to do with a family emergency) and they said that they adjusted the doors down as not to strike the slide-outs. It worked fine at LazyDays, however now that we have set up for the summer, the doors are still (again) hitting the underside of the slide. I cannot fully open the doors.

How do I check to see if I can lower the doors any more, or alternatively adjust the slide up about 1/8 inch when extended, that's all it needs for the door to be able to clear the slide.

Thanks for helping out.

[Hikerdogs]

Originally Posted by iam144

Hi All,
I'm new to this forum, have had the rig for about 6 months, but have been RV-ing for about 8 years.

I have a 2008 Itasca Ellipse FD40 (pretty sure that's the model number) and we full-time and work camp in it.

Last October, I purchased the Ellipse from LazyDays in Tampa, FL. The basement doors worked fine. However when I got it to the park where we were staying for the winter, we noticed that 3 of the basement doors would not open all the way. The tops of the doors would strike the bottom of the slide-outs. These are all on the passenger side and it happens on both the living room slide and the bedroom slide.

We took the rig to LazyDays in Tuscon (don't ask why not Tampa, it has to do with a family emergency) and they said that they adjusted the doors down as not to strike the slide-outs. It worked fine at LazyDays, however now that we have set up for the summer, the doors are still (again) hitting the underside of the slide. I cannot fully open the doors.

How do I check to see if I can lower the doors any more, or alternatively adjust the slide up about 1/8 inch when extended, that's all it needs for the door to be able to clear the slide.

Thanks for helping out.

I believe the thin cable that's supposed to keep the door from opening far enough to interfere with the slide is either missing or is not attached to the door.

There should be a cable about 1/16" in diameter attached to the inner frame of the doors that open vertically. The other end of the cable has a loop that's supposed to hook around a screw on the rear facing edge of the door. The cable is just long enough to keep the door from interfering with the slide when the slide is extended.

The cable can be disconnected from the door to allow it to open further when the slide is retracted. Look in the compartment to see if there is a cable with a loose end on the rear vertical edge of the door frame. If it's there it's just a matter of slipping the loop end over the screw on the edge of the door.

There should be a cable on each door that opens vertically. Not only does it keep the door from bumping into the slide, it also keeps the deeper slides from catching the door and ripping it off if the slide is retracted when the door is open.

[iam144]

I'm sorry, I forgot to mention that the basement doors open horizontally, ie, hinged on the side, not hinged at the top.

[grtharris]

iam144, sounds like a slide issue, how much clearance is there when the slide is in? Adjusting the doors down is not a good fix if the slide is dropping when it goes out. Looks like you have flat floor slides and there should be an adjustment to correct for ware.

[Dtwallace]

Ok, just a suggestion, are you sure you are pushing the slides all the way to the stops when you put them out?

I ask this because I know they (the slide outs) will sag out and down if not allowed to completely tighten against the wall seals.

I noticed this on our Providence 42P one day when I just happened to have the basement doors opened and the DW extended the slides out. The slides barely missed hitting the tops of the doors, so I don't move the slides with them open anymore.

But as she allowed the slides to stop movement on their own as per the owners instructions manual, the slides out side edges picked up and cleared the doors with no issues.

DTW

[BigSkyBob]

If the doors clear the slides when at ride height then it's possibly a leveling issue. If my coach is slightly out of level the rubber strip on the top of the bay door will rub on the bottom of the slide. A slight adjustment in leveling will cure this.

[bgsc]

I agree with Big Sky Bob have had a similar problem on my coach, there is adjustment that can be made on the hinges,just make sure your coach is level before making any adjustments