Cracked fiberglass

[goodmanrv]

I just joined the forum this afternoon and this evening I cracked my first trailer.

I recently purchased a 2018 KZ connect 281bhs and it is fiberglass. I have it in front of my house so my wife could do some work on it and I decided to turn it around. I was hooking it up to my truck and forgot to put the stabilizer jacks up and I heard a pop. I immediately put the tongue back down.

Now I can see a crack in the fiberglass just below the door. The frame must have flexed and put too much pressure there.

So now I feel terrible (my wife loves this trailer) and I am not sure if it is a problem or not.

I am attaching some pictures so you can see.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/2jSc2iTigQo3LpER9

So the question is:
1. Did I just ruin the sidewall structural integrity of my trailer
2. Should I take it in for an RV dealer to check it out
3. Can I just patch this with some epoxy

Any help is appreciated, I feel like I have been punched in the gut.

Thanks,

[TCHB]

1. Is there any damage to the frame below.
2. Do you have any cracks any where else.
3. If nothing else I would get a second opinion and patch it.

[goodmanrv]

1. I dont see any other damage to the frame
2. I dont see any cracks anywhere else
3. For a second opinion should I take it to an RV dealer or just someone else on the forum?
4. Any recommendations on what to patch it with. Do I need a patch or just some Fiberglass resin

[Bob_C]

Stainless plate across bottom of door opening pop riveted on both sides of crack and match rivets at the other end.....be a protector....

[TCHB]

Behind the fiberglass is hard foam insulation. I would seal the crack with silicone clear and keep my on it to see if it changes. If it does not change then you could put a kick plate along that edge.

[Tomahawk]

It is possible the crack is from the loading but also possible it was already there. You could check by recreating the loading and watching the crack. If it gets wider as you load it, it is probably from the loading. If not it was probably already there. Because of where it is, it is a weak spot because the door is a giant cutout in the side wall that creates a huge stress concentration at that location. If the rear stabilizer was down and you raised the tongue to get on the hitch, it would create a big bending stress that could crack the that location.

I would fix it. The steel plate and rivet would work well. I'd add some epoxy to that as well. You'd need to sand the gel coat down to get a good bind to the existing wall. You could replace the steel plate with a fiberglass strip, GEB or g10 glass from McMaster Carr would work well. One reason to use fiberglass over steel is the fiberglass is easier to glue to and the Coefficient of Thermal Expansion matches the current wall. So, no thermal stress with temperature change. Another approach would be to remove the door and then remove the Styrofoam from the wall panel in that area and replace it with wood. You would do that by cutting out that Styrofoam. Then cutting piece of wood to fix snugly in the space you created. Then epoxy the wood in place by pulling it out, slathering it and the wall inside surfaces with epoxy and sliding it back in. Let it dry and then re-install the door. I would make the wood about 4 to 6 inches long. Complicated but stronger than the original construction.

I would not just fill the crack with glue or silicon.

[mokurt]

I wonder if that crack was already there?

Are the jacks near the crack?I see the steps are right below.
Seems like any damage would be near the jacks.

[bddadles]

First thing that I thought of was 'If all he did was forget the rear stabilizer' I can't imagine that he hurt the frame. Now with that said I agree with the person that said it is at the door opening and that is a weak spot in the side wall. I'll ask a question then offer an opinion.
1) Can you get to the back side of the crack? Maybe pull the trim around the steps?


I would imagine that since that is a weak spot all you did was make OR extended an existing start of a crack.
I ask about getting to the back of the crack because if you can you could put the suggested kick plate on the inside of the crack and it will not be seen. Then you could put a narrow decreative strip over the crack and paint that the same as the rig and you would have both the extra support behind and the strip would hardly be noticeable.

Good luck.

[camper8251]

Interesting Dilemma...
I would check and see if the crack split the fiberglass all the way or does it still have room to travel.. If so you need to stop drill it.

My second concern would be if you a steel plate there it wont have the flex that fiberglass has, if that trailer really does flex that much you are going to end up pulling out the rivets and creating more damage with the rivet holes since the plate wont flex...

I would sand and grind out the crack a bit. Then patch it using cloth etc....
Check this out..
https://www.diy-fiberglass-boat-repa...ss-cracks.html

[Jay D.]

Get some white sealer and seal it and forget it. chances are it was there when you bought it. structurally it doesn't hurt anything. it was probably caused by flexing of the trailer when towing, it wouldn't take much to sperate that small spot.
Jay D.

[tuffr2]

I am with Jay D. - put sealer in the crack. I would use a popcycle stick or a tooth pick to get the sealer as deep as I could then just keep an eye on it. You may need to reseal it every few years.

[goodmanrv]

Thank you all for your responses.

I believe the crack is new because neither of us noticed it before and as I was raising the tongue jack I heard a pop and that is what made me stop.

I contacted a local repair facility and they said since it is a small crack I could caulk it and monitor it because they are 6 weeks out on repairs anyway. In the morning I will be taking it to a local company that does trailer work and they will do a visual inspection to see if the frame may need further inspection.

I like the idea of reinforcing the door with wood and the kick plate seems pretty good but I agree with one user that it won't flex at all and that may cause some issues down the road.

I think my plan will be
1. caulk with silicone
2. get frame inspected
3. monitor it on my next trip
4. seal and patch with a fibreglass patch kit
OR
look at fibreglass strip option
5. Monitor

Thanks all for your help, my mind is at much greater ease now.

[keymastr]

Silicone should never be used on any part of an RV. It attracts dirt, fails rapidly outdoors, must be completely removed and the seam cleaned with solvent before any new caulk can be applied since nothing will stick to silicone including more silicone.

What you want to use on all exterior sidewall seams such as windows and marker lights is a urethane caulk which dries clear, will not attract dirt, lasts a very long time outdoors and can be re-applied over itself if touch up is needed. Many Rv manufacturers use Geocell Pro-Flex clear on sidewalls although a good substitute that can be had at any home center is Lexel clear caulking.

[TCHB]

I noticed my stabilizing jacks are held on with metal screws, not bolted. I wondered if they were that way so they could break off instead of damaging the frame.