Has anyone ever thought about modding the entry door so that it opens a full 180 instead of 90? I briefly glanced at it the other day and it seems like the hinges would do it and the only limiting factor right now is the gas strut that holds it open. I'm sure one of you supergeniuses has done a thorough investigation?
Other makes/models us something similar to this:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BRFQKQ?keywords=rv%20door%20catch&qid=1457185463&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1
IT would be an easy install as long as you don't mind drilling through your siding to mount
The sacrafice would be eliminating the gas strut. You would have to be careful not to slam the door or let it get caught in a gust of wind.
There's probably some way to put a spring on/near the hinge to slow the door swinging motion if you removed the gas strut, but I am not sure. I didn't find anything googling,. Maybe take a look at a few trailer doors that swing all the way open and see how they've addressed slowing the swinging motion.
I am going to the RV show in Oaks, PA today so I'll keep that in mind as I walk around.
The other consideration is the kitchen window, I'd need to be careful that the door doesn't hit it. In the perfect world the gas strut would remain but somehow it would also swing as it opened. Not sure if that's available.
Well, your post got me thinking as I was trying to get a chair into the trailer and could not do it due to the narrow opening. I went out this morning to take a look and DUH, there is a strut on the bottom of the door. I took it off and the door opens almost 180 hitting on the awning post.
Not sure but the very simple solution is to buy a longer strut; the one on the trailer is about 21 inches long extended. A longer strut would allow the door to swing open further right? The strut is smaller/less pressure than the storage struts but due to so many larger RV's and doors, there must be one out there that is 24/26 or longer. Am I missing something here?
A real genius would be one that can understand the Decibel ratings and explain how it works!
OK, I a missing something. The strut can not be longer than 12 inches in the closed position due to the position of the little ball strut connectors on the bottom of the door. It appears struts are measured by the closed position like 12 inches.
Just take the strut off and it will open almost 180, buy the latch described above or some type of bumper system to keep it from banging into the side of the trailer. To take the strut off just use a small standard screwdriver to insert under the clip and prying it up. This releases the strut from the ball mount.
My gas strut is broken so my door opens like that all the time, you have to be careful because it would swing real hard against the side of the camper and dent it. I would like to find some type of rubber stopper or something so that I can hold the door open.
So we're at no strut, bumper and latch. Who wants to drill the first hole? (I'm chicken)
My original gas strut failed (no gas) and the door opened too easily as far as I'm concerned. I did still have the 90 degree stop action, but no resistance getting there. I liked the resistance of the strut enough to make it worth replacing, which I did. Also, without the resistance, the strut just about ripped out the bottom of the door frame when it hit the stope if we weren't careful. It is very easy to undo the connector for those rare times we need to open the door all the way.