How To Repair Georgetown side wall failure

[miked11272]

Forest river did that repair to my coach the screws kept coming loose and eventually stripped. They drilled about 3/4 of an in lower then the original bolts and put a carriage bolt and lock nut on. About every 2 feet and it has been fi e for 2 years. The molding still covers the heads of the bolts.

[Arvicru]

I have a 2009 Georgetown 35' TS and have had it repaired 3 times on the driver side. So, I am going to try the Tapcon method. I have the trim off and yes, I do once again have sheared screws. Once I put the screws back on, how do I get the trim back on?

[Iggy]

Originally Posted by Arvicru

I have a 2009 Georgetown 35' TS and have had it repaired 3 times on the driver side. So, I am going to try the Tapcon method. I have the trim off and yes, I do once again have sheared screws. Once I put the screws back on, how do I get the trim back on?

I have heard earlier here in this thread that it was held in place by silicone.

[Arvicru]

No, it snaps on or slides onto a metal trim piece behind the trim. I was just wondering if somebody knew a trick or easy way to put it back on. It is kinda hard to take off.

[AbdRahim]

My question still is; are the new Georgetowns subject to the same problem?

[Iggy]

Originally Posted by AbdRahim

My question still is; are the new Georgetowns subject to the same problem?

I have only heard of 2 or 3 I believe had the problem. Actually one of those is another manufacturer if you read all the complete thread.
The Georgetown's that had this problem was 2008 and 2009 and I can see these screws rusting in high salt rain areas.
With that said I do not believe it is a common problems considering the thousands of Georgetown owners here on this forum.

[miked11272]

The trim is in 2 parts the first is plastic in the center that you can just pull out. Once you remove the plastic you will see the screws to remove the second molding. Just a heads up the tapcon method did not work for my coach they came loose and stripped and it was done by Forestriver.

[Arvicru]

Originally Posted by miked11272

The trim is in 2 parts the first is plastic in the center that you can just pull out. Once you remove the plastic you will see the screws to remove the second molding. Just a heads up the tapcon method did not work for my coach they came loose and stripped and it was done by Forestriver.

I was unaware that the Tapcon method failed as well. This is disappointing the hear. From your picture mike11272, it looks like we have the same exact rig. Do you know how many miles the Tapcon method lasted and have you had your rig repaired since then?

[AquaMan]

The tapcons are made for concrete and not really designed for steel/aluminum. They are a hardened screw with a deep thread pattern, but have alternating thread depths. I believe bolting would be the best solution.


Sent from my iPhone using Forest River Forums

[miked11272]

About 1500 miles before I realized I had to re secure the screws. And on the second trip only about 600 miles that is when forest river had nuts and bolts put in. They are about a half to three quarters of an inch lower than the original screws , and you can access the nuts inside the wheel well. If I get home early enough I will try to take some pictures. But it has been solid for about 5000 miles.

[bjennings510]

I'm about ready to purchase a 2017 335DS. Can anybody tell me if FR has correctly resolved this sidewall separation issue.

[QNH1013]

Since you're ready to buy a new FR RV you're in the driver seat (no pun intended). I would ask them what they have done to correct the problem. If they say they didn't know of such a problem, they're lying. I have tried to call on several occasions, left messages with no reply. If hadn't been for the kind and competent people on this forum I would never have been able to repair mine.
I got no help from FR.
The folks that did get an answer from FR was just adding more screws like that were installed when built, which was no help and subsequently failed after a short time.
I would not buy a FR product unless I was assured that the problem had been dealt with better hardware.
Good luck.

[AbdRahim]

X2 Almost afraid to buy a Gerrgetown.

[Flightar]

This was emailed to me from Forest River about the walls. Hope this helps; The Georgetown XL walls are now set on top of the 5” thick vacuum bonded floor’s. They are not hung on the side of the coach. The idea is much like a house, you have your concrete floors and your walls are built on top.

[zrx1100]

I cut 5/16 threaded rod cut nut in half on the outside under molding than in the wheel well I put casilated washer with nylon stop nuts I put only 3 added to more. Get electrician drill bit it will drill through the metal stock under the floor so you don’t need to remove drivers seat, carpet, remove carpet etc... I put one in within 15mins.
Anybody have any thought to help

[rremde]

Just purchased our 2013 337DS - we love her, except for the fact that the dealer's PPI was worthless. Among other issues, we have the sidewall failure on the driver's side. So, if you're looking at/have that year or older, the sidewalls are still bolt on.

[JohnnyMeteor]

We bought our 08 350ts se not quite 2 years ago now. I knew the wall on the drivers side had separated and dropped by at least 1 1/2 inches. The dealer followed the links I sent them from this forum and they repaired it before I bought it. Well sort of, they did not use the bolt style repair. They instead used screws, that were much larger then the OEM screws. They also doubled up on the number of screw.

Good to go.

Wrong, we were in the unit today changing out the curtains for roll up blinds. Yes you guessed it, wall hasn't dropped but I can see very thin slithers of light between the wall and the floor. Two spots, each about 2 inches long. Real visible when a flashlight was placed in the wheel well.

It is off to the dealer that did the repairs, no warranty I imagine, it was a repair and it will be 2 years ago in May.

Time to do the Forest River bend over dance.

[kenandterry]

JohnnyMeteor and I have spoken for quite some time about our Georgetown units. Different floor plan models, different by two years, different sides, but same sidewall separation issue. Those that have reported the sidewall separation have nothing in common as to which side failed or when, other than all the models were prior to maybe 2015?

We’ve had our repair done at the dealer using larger and more screws also, not bolts like what was described when this thread started years ago.

FYI.....when we contacted FR about the issue with our 7 year old Georgetown, their recommendation and only contribution was larger, stronger, and more screws for the attachment of the body to the floor.

Our repair was made September 2017, and our only travel so far has been to Snowbird in Florida, some 1800 miles later.

Just watching and wondering.......

[miked11272]

My sidewall repair only lasted 1 season, all the new screws on both sides broke or stripped. The third time they fixed it they used carriage bolts and 2 nuts on the inside from coming loose.

[rremde]

Our 2013 Georgetown suffered sidewall failure at a point where the coach was less than 4 years old. Our repair facility (who is not an RV dealer, but services RVs and commercial vehicles) contacted Georgetown directly (without prompting from us). They do a good deal of warranty work for all makes of RV, and felt quite strongly that this was a design flaw that should at least be partially reimbursed by the factory. Forest River refused, simply replying that the coach was out of warranty, so repairs were the owners' responsibility.

While FR's position is absolutely, legally correct (barring a Federally mandated recall), it was very disappointing to hear that they would not stand by repairing what genuinely appears to be a design flaw. Particularly when the fix (bolts, not screws) is a relatively simple fix.

We purchased our Georgetown used to be sure we liked RVing before splashing the big bucks for a newer diesel. While we're really enjoying our Georgetown, this experience has crossed the Berkshire and Charleston off of our list.