Water leak

[JimNCheryl Domenoe]

I called BCS and Ken Carpenter said he thought it was probably behind the refrigerator.   Unless I find out otherwise I guess I'll be pulling the refrigerator out to find out for certain.

Thanks again for the help.

[JimNCheryl Domenoe]

OK, it has been raining for 24 hours and there is no more leak above the entry door.  It is absolutely dry inside the area that the water was collecting and dripping in.  The resealing with Lexel seems to have worked.  Now to work on the rear awning bolts.

[LaMonte Monnell]

That's great, one fix done and another to accomplish!

[JimNCheryl Domenoe]

OK, I got the refrigerator out and there were two sets of three bolts on the wall behind the refrigerator.  All of the bolts were tight.  I have attached pictures of the bolts and also of the gap caused when the awning is fully opened.

Obviously the weight of the deployed  awning is pulling the top of the awning assembly down but it is not caused by these attachment bolts being loose.  The documentation that came with the coach doesn't have enough detail about mounting locations as it is generic to the awning, not the specific application.

Any ideas as to why this is happening?  Are there other attachments that are not evident?

[Keith Moffett]

Given that the bolts inside are tight I have to think your best answer will come from Girrard or BCS.

[Edward Buker]

If the bolts are tight then the back plate of the awning must be bending to allow it to open the gap. I have never had my awning off of the coach but I believe there may be some brackets or backing plates that have an edge visible at the bottom of the awning. Do you see any bracket? Someone who has had one of these awnings off may want to comment, I am not sure of the bracket info.

I would call Girrard and see how the mounting is supposed to be done and see if yours has been mounted properly. If you open the awning and check the back of the housing where the bolts are, is the back of the housing look or feel deformed? My suspicion is that the awning was never mounted properly, perhaps the bolts were placed too low and the top of the housing is not secure and bending.

Later Ed

[Gerald Farris]

Jim,
I have to agree with Keith here. From your description, apparently the mounting bolts have pulled out of the awning. Therefore, you are going to find a corrective procedure only from BCS or Girard.

Gerald

[JimNCheryl Domenoe]

There are no exposed mounting hardware visible when the awning is out.  I tried to look through the gap at the top to try to find some hardware but I don't see anything.  I have a call in to Girard and am awaiting a call back from a technician.  I will try BCS if they can't help.  I doubt the awning is specific to the Beaver coach so they may not be able to determine exactly how it was mounted in this application.

Thanks for the suggestion.

If the bolts are tight then the back plate of the awning must be bending to allow it to open the gap. I have never had my awning off of the coach but I believe there may be some brackets or backing plates that have an edge visible at the bottom of the awning. Do you see any bracket? Someone who has had one of these awnings off may want to comment, I am not sure of the bracket info.

I would call Girrard and see how the mounting is supposed to be done and see if yours has been mounted properly. If you open the awning and check the back of the housing where the bolts are, is the back of the housing look or feel deformed? My suspicion is that the awning was never mounted properly, perhaps the bolts were placed too low and the top of the housing is not secure and bending.

Later Ed

[Steve Huber Co-Admin]

Jim,
I've attached an exploded view of the awning. From your symptoms, I'd suspect the awning body has come off of the "hooks' on item 8. If so you may be able to loosen the bolts and get it to re-engage. Otherwise it looks like the awning would have to  be removed and remounted, which may be the best option as it will allow you to repair any water damage, etc.
Steve

[JimNCheryl Domenoe]

Thanks, Steve.  I am guessing it is quite a heavy piece and best left for someone who has worked with/installed them before.  Not sure I want to risk trying a fix-it-yourself solution.  I haven't found a shop I trust in So Cal so I will inquire with the folks at Girard if they call me back.  They probably have a suggestion for who does quality work with their products in my area.

[Gerald Farris]

Jim,
Girard may repair your awning at their factory in Orange County, California. They changed the motor on my awning at the factory several years ago. Their factory is located;

1361 Calle Avanzado
 San Clemente, CA 92673 

Gerald

[JimNCheryl Domenoe]

I just got off the phone with Andre at Girard's service department.  I explained the issue and Andre told me that this was a fairly common problem on my vintage Beaver coach.  The issue is that the way these awnings were mounted by the factory, with the rearmost attachment hardware being nearly 3' forward of the back end of the awning, it does not adequately secure the awning to the coach. 

Andre said the recommended fix is made by drilling a hole directly through the the awning rail (within 10" of the rearmost end) and through to the inside of the coach  and attaching it on the inside wall with a mounting plate, nut, bolt and washers.  He said that this will cure the problem.  He also said that he thought this may have actually been a recall on Beaver's part since it was an improper installation in the first place.  Andre said that Girard will not do this modification and I was on my own to do it myself or find a shop that will do the work.

I have a call in to Ken Carpenter at BCS to see if they have heard of it and/or fixed any of these in this manner.

Has anyone else heard of this issue?  I wonder if this should be moved to a separate post since it has now gotten a bit off track from the original post.

[Edward Buker]

Jim,

The bracket (item 8 in Steve's exploded view) should be visible along the bottom. This is a photo of the brackets and what may be extra bracing behind the awning. There are three of these mounting arrangements on my 2002 Marquis, one somewhat near each end and one over the light between the two living room area between the two windows. Photo attached. Seems like you should be seeing something like this on your Girrard. Hope this helps.

Later Ed

[JimNCheryl Domenoe]

Thanks, Ed, I'll take a look tomorrow.  I'm not sure this is the issue but it deserves a closer look.

I spoke with Ken at BCS and he confirmed that this is not the first such problem.  He said he recalled a similar fix in which an additional bolt was inserted near the end of the awning, he believes it was placed in the cabinet next to the mirror. 

I feel certain that this is what it will take to correct the problem.

[Adam Hicklin]

I trust Andre at Girrard and would follow his instruction explicitly. He has worked there since the A&E days and is very familiar with the Beaver applications.  I had a problem a few months ago with my awning. I described the problem over the phone.  He knew the exact problem, the fix, where every bolt was located (I was able to take it to Girrard since I'm in So. Cal.) and exactly what needed to be done.  The guy is a pro and if he explained the fix, I would look no further.