Crack appeared over front door.

[Todd F]

Hello,

I was recently washing our RV and found a small crack 2" or so that has appeared over our front door. The crack is only on the outside and does not follow through to the inside as of yet. We have a 2023 Valor 43v13. My wife has said she has seen a similar problem posted on the Facebook Alliance Group.

Has any one had a similar issue? I have placed a clear piece of Gorilla Tape over the crack to prevent water from entering for now and have contacted Alliance.

 

[darrell]

Any chance that the trailer was moved (like leveled for instance) with the stairs down and the door closed?

 

[darrell]

Sorry to reply again, but also, look closely at the first picture. One, are those cracks or scratches on the trim? Two, it looks like there is an abrasion on the paint of the edge near the crack. Did something hit there?

 

[Bozo]

Hello,

I was recently washing our RV and found a small crack 2" or so that has appeared over our front door. The crack is only on the outside and does not follow through to the inside as of yet. We have a 2023 Valor 43v13. My wife has said she has seen a similar problem posted on the Facebook Alliance Group.

Has any one had a similar issue? I have placed a clear piece of Gorilla Tape over the crack to prevent water from entering for now and have contacted Alliance.

Usually not a good sign, please keep us valor owners posted.

 

[Todd F]

Any chance that the trailer was moved (like leveled for instance) with the stairs down and the door closed?

The trailer has not been moved or leveled with the stairs down. At least not by us.

 

[Todd F]

Sorry to reply again, but also, look closely at the first picture. One, are those cracks or scratches on the trim? Two, it looks like there is an abrasion on the paint of the edge near the crack. Did something hit there?

I didn't notice the mark on the trim. I'll have to get out the ladder and inspect to see if that is a scratch or crack?

 

[BryanValRox]

I didn't notice the mark on the trim. I'll have to get out the ladder and inspect to see if that is a scratch or crack?

Looks like that top radius trim piece needs a close inspection. To me it doesn’t look to be seated properly indicating it may have moved for some reason. Also, about what appears to be an inch down from the end of the RH side of the same trim piece, there is a “ witness” mark from something. Take a good look around that entire door frame , keep an eye out for loose, missing or sheared screws, inconsistent gaps, dents, scratches etc. These clues may help you understand what is happening or has happened. From my lense, root cause is unknown.

 

[Todd F]

Looks like that top radius trim piece needs a close inspection. To me it doesn’t look to be seated properly indicating it may have moved for some reason. Also, about what appears to be an inch down from the end of the RH side of the same trim piece, there is a “ witness” mark from something. Take a good look around that entire door frame , keep an eye out for loose, missing or sheared screws, inconsistent gaps, dents, scratches etc. These clues may help you understand what is happening or has happened. From my lense, root cause is unknown.

Bryan, After looking at this more closely i have found the the upper trim piece appears to have not been installed correctly compared to the one on the rear door. The outside edges on that piece are not seated properly on both the right and left sides of the door. There is what looks like a very light scratch on the paint on the upper trim piece. The witness mark referred to is a blemish in the plastic.

I repeatedly opened and closed the door back and forth about 5"-6" while holding my hand on top of the crack and could feel and hear what sounded like creaking in that area. The friction hinge has always seemed pretty tight. I guess it is possible that there is a little flex in that area from opening and closing the door? We do full time so it does get a lot of use. I sprayed some silicone lubricant on the friction hinge to alleviate some of the tightness of the hinge and will do so until we can get it in for repair.

 

[darrell]

It sure looks like something hit it to me.

 

[Todd F]

It sure looks like something hit it to me.

Based on what? I guess that's your opinion, but not mine after looking at the area more closely.

 

[darrell]

Based on your pictures, that is all I really have to go on. From my perspective, in the Scratch Paint.jpg picture it looks like something hit (and caused a rub mark in the paint) right on frame/trim nearly perfectly in line with the crack. From that photo, it is hard to tell, but it also looks like that might not be a true radius any longer. It could just be the perspective of the photo. In any case, I will stop guessing at it now. You have a handle on it.

 

[Bozo]

Not for sure what caused the crack, all causes are not good, but I would 86 those friction hinges on both doors to start…..hopefully they figure out the cause Of the crack. Mine goes into dealer tomorrow….well we shall see what comes of the extra issues I have found, most are minor but it is under warranty.

 

[Rub800]

Hello,

I was recently washing our RV and found a small crack 2" or so that has appeared over our front door. The crack is only on the outside and does not follow through to the inside as of yet. We have a 2023 Valor 43v13. My wife has said she has seen a similar problem posted on the Facebook Alliance Group.

Has any one had a similar issue? I have placed a clear piece of Gorilla Tape over the crack to prevent water from entering for now and have contacted Alliance.

Try running your slide in and out all of the way, have someone watch the crack and see if it gets wider when the slide Is all the way out or when it moves all way in if it gets tighter. The framing in the wall may be broken. I'm having this problem by 2 of my slides

 

[Todd F]

Thanks for the info. I tried that out. The crack didn't move at all when moving the slide in or out. I think mine may be some sort of frame flex issue. It started out about 2" long and now is just over 7" long. I have to keep putting a longer piece of clear tape over it to keep it covered. It seems to grow little by little every travel day. I'm sure by the time we make it South for the winter it will be up to the roof by then.

I thought it may have been from a really tight friction hinge on the door but I have since drilled out those pins and the crack keeps growing.

 

[BryanValRox]

Thanks for the info. I tried that out. The crack didn't move at all when moving the slide in or out. I think mine may be some sort of frame flex issue. It started out about 2" long and now is just over 7" long. I have to keep putting a longer piece of clear tape over it to keep it covered. It seems to grow little by little every travel day. I'm sure by the time we make it South for the winter it will be up to the roof by then.

I thought it may have been from a really tight friction hinge on the door but I have since drilled out those pins and the crack keeps growing.

Well, you have been dealing with this for a while, five inches of growth since you reported it is concerning.
So, while it might not look pretty, there is a technique that can be used to HELP slow and or stop the crack from running. It is highly technical in nature🤣! You simply drill a round hole at the end of the crack. This technique has been used for years on metal castings etc. It might be worth a try, given doing nothing ensures the crack continues.
Nothing ventured , nothing gained. Might try a 3/16 or 1/4 hole if you move forward.
Not suggesting this is the cure to the root cause, just offering it as a method of trying to prevent the crack from running further.

 

[Todd F]

Thanks for the info. I did try and drill a hole at the end of the crack when it was at the 2" mark. Albeit it was only 1/8". To small to be effective I believe. I didn't have the guts to go any bigger at the time lol!! I may try the bigger hole as you suggested to see if that helps.

 

[DanNJanice]

Thanks for the info. I did try and drill a hole at the end of the crack when it was at the 2" mark. Albeit it was only 1/8". To small to be effective I believe. I didn't have the guts to go any bigger at the time lol!! I may try the bigger hole as you suggested to see if that helps.

Did you get to the bottom of this and figure out root cause/repair?
I just found this crack on the LR exterior sidewall

 

[Rub800]

Did you get to the bottom of this and figure out root cause/repair?
I just found this crack on the LR exterior sidewall

I haven’t found anything for sure but when I went to put mine in the garage for the winter. I was up on the top and noticed a ripple in the roof right on the edge. It’s in line with the lower front of the trailer and I noticed the trim has moved a little along the bottom of the bedroom overhang all of the silicone has pulled away. I’m going to check it for frame flex. If you haven’t heard of this check out some of the you tube videos on this. All of the frames are made by lippert and they have had issues with them. I will let you know what happens when I check mine out.

 

[DanNJanice]

I haven’t found anything for sure but when I went to put mine in the garage for the winter. I was up on the top and noticed a ripple in the roof right on the edge. It’s in line with the lower front of the trailer and I noticed the trim has moved a little along the bottom of the bedroom overhang all of the silicone has pulled away. I’m going to check it for frame flex. If you haven’t heard of this check out some of the you tube videos on this. All of the frames are made by lippert and they have had issues with them. I will let you know what happens when I check mine out.

Thanks, keep us posted.