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Bathroom door in a 195
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ArenaBlanca View Drop Down
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Posts: 158 		Post Options Post Options   Quote ArenaBlanca Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Bathroom door in a 195
    Posted: 25 Jul 2022 at 5:30pm
So, the 195 has a sliding door on the the bathroom. We are traveling in Alaska this summer and some of the roads are less than optimal. Aside from the plethora of potholes, they have frost heaves (I really think they are a special Alaskan inverted speed bump).  Anyway one of the nuts on the sliding door hanger worked itself loose in the bumping, etc.  It was the rear hanger; so the door stayed closed while it moved up and down until the front hanger broke and pulled out of the door. So the problem is easy to identify --no hangers for the sliding door.

I can probably get new workable hardware at a hardware store but how does one access the track the hangers go in?  Any suggestions?
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offgrid View Drop Down
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Posts: 5290 		Post Options Post Options   Quote offgrid Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Jul 2022 at 6:11am
Dont know about the rpods but if they're built like home pocket doors you have to cut holes in the wall to access the track.

Had to do it a couple times on homes I've owned, no fun. After that I hated pocket doors so much I went to just replacing pocket doors with bifolds, which do not require accessing the inside of the wall.

So if that turns out to be the case for your trailer you might consider just installing a curtain. That would save some weight as well.
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vmh View Drop Down
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Posts: 13 		Post Options Post Options   Quote vmh Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 11 Nov 2022 at 3:10pm
I know this is a bit late of a reply but the pocket door falling off has been a problem on our R-Pod 195 since the 20 minute drive from dealer to driveway where the hardware actually broke and continues to be a problem with the door falling off the hardware. 

During our first real trip, it happened on every leg even with pool noodle wedged underneath and rigid foam next to the door.  So I watched this video, which seems to be filmed in an R-Pod, but it was immensely helpful in learning to get the door out of the pocket and re-attaching the hardware (presuming the hardware has not broken).  http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eust5n3gHM
The video is well done and clarified a great deal.

The main issue is that the part of the hardware that is supposed to latch the post (coming down from the track) into the slot (on top of the door) never stays locked in place. 

We had an additional issue in that the last screw holding the track into the ceiling all the way back in the pocket was not installed properly and sticks out.  So when the roller detached from the top of the door, it bounced its way back past the last screw and unless you have very skinny and long arms, you cannot reach it.  I used a crow bar to reach in and pull the roller forward and then re-attached it as the video suggested.

After doing this on each leg of the journey, my husband tried a piece of spare wire to hold the latch in place on one of the posts (apparently airlines do this for some things...interesting thought).  On the next leg, the post with the wire held, the other post latch came undone.  We replaced the wire with zip ties when we acquired some.  (See photo below; you can see the white zip tie wrapped around the post and enclosing the latch.) for now it seems to be holding. 

We want the dealer to ensure that the hardware is not defective beyond a poor design choice for a door rattling down the highway and fix the improperly installed track  (still under warranty).

 
2022 R-Pod195
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ArenaBlanca View Drop Down
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Posts: 158 		Post Options Post Options   Quote ArenaBlanca Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 Nov 2022 at 4:01pm
Thanks for the reply but I had already repaired the door.  

The hardware had broken on one end of my door and the screws had pulled out on the other end.  I ended up buying new hardware (rated for a 200 lb. door) and installing that.  Since the door is basically made with thin plywood attached to fiberboard I was afraid the screws would pull out again.  So I inserted sections of 1/2 inch dowel transversely into the door and drove the screws through the fiberboard and into the dowel. This won't keep the latch from coming unlatched but, if the screws pull out, 4 inch of the door will have to go with them.
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Pod_Geek View Drop Down
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Posts: 261 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Pod_Geek Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 Nov 2022 at 9:14am
Originally posted by ArenaBlanca

... I inserted sections of 1/2 inch dowel transversely into the door and drove the screws through the fiberboard and into the dowel....

How exactly?  By drilling 1/2" holes in the door (front to back, not vertically [i.e., "transversely"]?) and pushing the dowels in to the holes?

Our pool noodle has so far kept the door from detaching even more than it already has, but I'm looking for a permanent solution.  Been fighting this battle for almost three years.  Once the screws start pulling up and out of the door you're...screwed.
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ArenaBlanca View Drop Down
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Posts: 158 		Post Options Post Options   Quote ArenaBlanca Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 Nov 2022 at 10:22am
Hmmm, more detail would have been helpful.

Transversely could mean "front to back,  but I drilled from the sides. I made sure the screws were long enough so that 1/3 of the screw would end up in the dowel. I also drilled pilot holes for the screws so they would not split the dowel.  After attaching the new hardware, I stained the dowels using dark walnut stain so they would not be so obvious.  One could use walnut dowels but I didn't have any so I used the dowels I had.  These were poplar but any hardwood dowel would do.  You could also use pine dowels but these sometime have noticeable grain in them.  In that case, you might wish to make sure the grain in the dowel ends up running parallel to the floor so there is less chance of it splitting under pressure.
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Pod_Geek View Drop Down
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Posts: 261 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Pod_Geek Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 Nov 2022 at 12:24pm
Originally posted by ArenaBlanca

Hmmm, more detail would have been helpful....

Thanks for more detail.

Maybe OG's suggestion of a curtain makes the most sense...now if I could just figure out the best option.
2020.5 R-Pod 195 Hood River
2018 RAM 2500 6.4L
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