My wife and I are new to camping. We had our first outing in our 2009 Forrest River 22bh. I just noticed today the awning support on the bottom was bent in and the aluminum had separated. There were some strong winds on our first outing but I just now noticed the damage. Any thoughts? Sorry in advance for the crummy pics. I was able to bend the bracket and metal siding out as far as possible (the pics are after I did so). Also the two mounting bolts will not tighten up. Would it be ok to get two that are slightly larger and longer? Should I put a clear silicone to cover the gap in aluminum?
Yes, you can put longer larger diameter lag bolts in and see if that will tighten up. I assume that the gap that requires filling is at the dent in the first picture. If so, you can use silicone to seal the area.
I would by "roll" butyl caulk ( 1/2 to 1 inch wide) and remove the bracket completely; clean the old caulk off; squirt a bit of silicon cement into the holes; cover the back of the bracket with the butyl tape; using the next size up stainless steel screw; reinstall the bracket; trim around the bracket after install to remove excess tape.