Community Forums

maanonson · 06-09-2018, 09:35 AM

2006 National Dolphin. The door latch is stuck in the locked position. We are locked out of RV. (Fortunately we are not camping). The keys for the dead bolt and the latch handle are functional. The door has some jiggle room but one of the latches is still extended far enough to be catching on the door jam. Of course both emergency windows are latched shut. Any idea on what the make /model of the latch is and/or how to get latch open without drilling it out would be helpful.

Scooter · 06-09-2018, 03:39 PM

Can you get a thin penknife blade to the problem latch and get it to move backwards...or hopefully, one of your insurance policies probably has a mobile locksmith provision.

Richard S. · 06-09-2018, 06:29 PM

Have you removed the screws from the outside face plate.

Most door latch sets National RV used were TRIMARK

ChasL · 06-09-2018, 06:34 PM

Look behind door handle for a Rubber/PlasticPlug. If one there Pry out plug and insert screwdriver to open. It happened to me.

maanonson · 06-09-2018, 08:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richard S.

Have you removed the screws from the outside face plate.

Most door latch sets National RV used were TRIMARK

Hi Richard. There are no screws assessable from the outside. Thanks for the brand info. I’m checking with trimark now.

maanonson · 06-09-2018, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scooter

Can you get a thin penknife blade to the problem latch and get it to move backwards...or hopefully, one of your insurance policies probably has a mobile locksmith provision.

Thanks I’ve tried the pen knife but to no avail. Another blogger has put me on to trimark which is probably the manufacturer. I’m checking with them now. I’ll probably have to drill it out or have a locksmith do it but either way looks like I’ll have to order a new lock.

SirScottAlot · 06-10-2018, 04:42 AM

I had to drill mine out. Drill close to the latch so you can get a small screwdriver in the hole to move the broken piece of the deadbolt.

winniman · 06-10-2018, 08:40 AM

Have you checked all the windows to see if one has gotten left unlocked. You would be surprised how many times I have seen people get locked out of their rvs. Surprisingly, almost every time there is a window unlocked somewhere on the coach. Borrow a kid if you can, and boost them through. Maybe you will get lucky too. Good luck.

StephenW · 06-10-2018, 09:29 AM

I had to drill the latch thru the outside handle to access sliding the latch back with a pointed tool. This method will allow you to use the deadbolt lock until you get a new lock. Common issue with TriMark locks. Search TriMark locks on this site for pics and more info.

maanonson · 06-12-2018, 09:46 PM

I don’t know if the guys who responded to my RV door lock issue get notified of my (outcome) response but if you are notified, I’ll just say “thanks”. So I called a locksmith. (Thanks Good Sam road assist for lockout service) since I was locked “out “ of the RV, I told the locksmith it was ok with me if he had to drill out the lock just so we could pull it out. The pull lever on the outside would not pull out as it should. He surmised that something had to be blocking the slide latch on the inside so since we could not pull it by hand, he put a plier to the lever and just powered through the resistance. Result, door opened and we unscrewed the three screws from inside the RV and found that there is a little plastic part (yes, “plastic??” Inside a door latch??) that had broken and was restricting the latch from retracting fully. Both the dead bolt and the door latch now lock and unlock just fine with the keys from outside and the levers from the inside and that is without the plastic part. What is the plastic part for? Not sure. The manufacturer says it’s to stop the slide latch from “falling out. “ Could be, but at this point, I just don’t see how it could fall out. I think I feel safer leaving it out than replacing it with a new lock that will have the same plastic part in it. Most responsible RV’ers stuck inside with their family will find a Phillips head screwdriver, remove the inside panel of the lock and pry out the broken plastic part ....... but what, for example, if you are trying to evacuate the RV if there is a fire? Uhmmmm??

StephenW · 06-14-2018, 01:38 PM

Thanks for the update, first time I've read about that plastic part breaking. When my latch broke, the outside handle would move. Also, two of the inside screws were covered by the screen door frame, so drilling thru that frame to access the screws would have worked, if we had been able to get inside. A fire in this case only leaves going out the emergency exits, not a great option, but beats becoming a crispy critter.

onecb · 06-20-2018, 09:33 PM

I am on my third lock set and have carried a spare new one since the first one had to be drilled out. I would not leave it in with out that plastic piece, as the metal tongue will break a lot faster than the plastic does at least on mine it did. Hope you have better luck with this than I have. Alvin

DanesonRoad · 07-02-2018, 10:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by maanonson

I don’t know if the guys who responded to my RV door lock issue get notified of my (outcome) response but if you are notified, I’ll just say “thanks”. So I called a locksmith. (Thanks Good Sam road assist for lockout service) since I was locked “out “ of the RV, I told the locksmith it was ok with me if he had to drill out the lock just so we could pull it out. The pull lever on the outside would not pull out as it should. He surmised that something had to be blocking the slide latch on the inside so since we could not pull it by hand, he put a plier to the lever and just powered through the resistance. Result, door opened and we unscrewed the three screws from inside the RV and found that there is a little plastic part (yes, “plastic??” Inside a door latch??) that had broken and was restricting the latch from retracting fully. Both the dead bolt and the door latch now lock and unlock just fine with the keys from outside and the levers from the inside and that is without the plastic part. What is the plastic part for? Not sure. The manufacturer says it’s to stop the slide latch from “falling out. “ Could be, but at this point, I just don’t see how it could fall out. I think I feel safer leaving it out than replacing it with a new lock that will have the same plastic part in it. Most responsible RV’ers stuck inside with their family will find a Phillips head screwdriver, remove the inside panel of the lock and pry out the broken plastic part ....... but what, for example, if you are trying to evacuate the RV if there is a fire? Uhmmmm??

There was a post I was trying to find on stuck door latches that had helped me out. On my case the outside lever wouldn't open the door effectively locking us out just after returning from a trip. Turns out a lever inside the mechanism had bent over time and rendered the door inoperable from the outside. With all windows locked, I found in the article info on how to drill a tiny hole in the window frame to insert a stiff wire to pop open the window latch. Once inside I could open the door from the inside and completed the repairs to the door latch. It was a trimark brand latch. The tiny hole in my window frame is filled with RTV silicone and almost invisible to the eye, yet still available should this ever occur again. I'll thank the original poster of the article once I can find the post.