replace RV entrance door hinges?

[rexlion]

My trailer's entrance door is sagging. The hinges are worn out. I use this trailer to haul cargo daily for work, and I estimate that the door has been opened and closed upwards of 40,000 times.

How hard is it to replace these hinges? Or am I better off buying a new door/frame assembly?



It looks like the hinges might be riveted to the frame, but I'm not sure if those are rivets or something else. They screw to the door, so that part is easy enough to detach.

[DrewE]

jodeb720 wrote:
As others have said, I punched the center of each rivet, drilled it out with a very small drill bit - as a pilot hole, and then increase the bits until I could see the entire rivet.

Then took a punch an pushed it into the frame and it was done.

...

If you have a 4-1/2" grinder, I would grind off the heads instead of drilling them out. You're less apt to make a mistake and it comes off much faster.

In this (and similar) cases, I just started with a largeish drill bit, larger than the shaft of the rivet, and drill until the exposed head is detached from the shaft. Any excess drilling just chews up a bit of the flap of the hinge you're replacing anyhow. Of course, once headless, the body of the rivet has to be removed from the other side; or, in this case, pushed into the void of whatever is beyond the doorframe with a punch or whatever.

[jodeb720]

I did this last fall.
The kids used the screen door as a hand rail and after pulling it enough times, the pot metal failed.
I found the replacement on the Lippert website, and got it a week or so later.
As others have said, I punched the center of each rivet, drilled it out with a very small drill bit - as a pilot hole, and then increase the bits until I could see the entire rivet.

Then took a punch an pushed it into the frame and it was done.

When I reinstalled, I used Pop Rivets and found some of the holes didn't line up. Drilled new holes in the door and the hinge.

If you have a 4-1/2" grinder, I would grind off the heads instead of drilling them out. You're less apt to make a mistake and it comes off much faster.

I did it at my RV storage place with my drill and rivet gun. It took me about 90 minutes for the hinges on frame and door.

Take your time and it's not difficult.

josh

[Fisherman]

Gjac wrote:
I fixed my door sag by putting several split copper washers between the two hinges then squeezing them closed to keep them in place. this effectively lifted the door by the thickness of the washers. It was a lot easier than drilling out the rivets and installing new ones.

Yup, auto body guys used to have a similar trick, had a saggy car door, just put a jack under the door while it's open and crank it up to the point where things line up again. Quality control eh. I call it lazy, do the job right.

[bobsallyh]

Gjac, did about the same. Took aluminum pop rivet washers, cut thru one side, spread them, pushed them over the hinge pin and squeezed them back together.

[Gjac]

I fixed my door sag by putting several split copper washers between the two hinges then squeezing them closed to keep them in place. this effectively lifted the door by the thickness of the washers. It was a lot easier than drilling out the rivets and installing new ones.

[Dusty_R]

Instead of drilling the rivets out, which might lead the hole getting off center, or over sized, you could use a 4-1/2" side grinder and grind the old heads off, then use a punch had drive the old rivet out.

[DrewE]

Yes indeed, pop rivets are super easy to install, arguably easier than screws (though of course harder to remove and impossible to reuse).

Consider yourself fortunate that you could get a replacement hinge. I had to replace one of the door hinges on my motorhome last year after an unfortuate encounter with a concrete barrier on a very tight bit of roadway with a good bit of traffic, and when I took the mangled one into my local RV dealer and parts place they actually had a little laugh at me for hoping to find a replacement hinge for the 20 year old door. I ended up having to make one using a vice, hammer, flat metal stock, and some brute force. It worked out rather better than I expected, functioning just fine, although it won't win any beauty contests!

At any rate, pop rivets are installed blind. Traditional rivets require a bucking block or bar on the back side to install, but they are not what is used in this case.

[rexlion]

I looked up a youtube video and found out that I don't need access to the blind side. I've ordered 3 hinges and a rivet gauge, and for the rivet gun HF is just up the street. Thanks to all!

[rexlion]

jdc1 wrote:
All you have to do is drill out the rivets. The rest is easy, if you have a helper. But, you might try adding rivets where needed instead of tearing anything apart.

To install new rivets, would I need to dismount the door frame from the trailer? I've never done anything with rivets before, so I don't know if I need access to the other side or not.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

I chose stainless steel rivets and rivet washers but then had to buy a two-handed rivet gun. Boy did that clamp the doors tight in a utility bed pickup. The Harbor Freight tool still works great so says a friend.

[jdc1]

All you have to do is drill out the rivets. The rest is easy, if you have a helper. But, you might try adding rivets where needed instead of tearing anything apart.