I'd like to add a sliding door lock - Fiberglass RV
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Old 09-23-2009, 03:02 PM   #1
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The key lock on the entry door works OK - but just OK. I don't get the warm and fuzzy when locking up for the night. For one thing there's no way to check that the lock won't open from the outside because if I pull on the inside handle it also unlocks it (if it's locked).

Anyone has any tips or other ideas? Since my 5 yo sleeps on the bunk bed near the door I'd like to sleep comfortably knowing that the door won't pop open quietly even with a small amount of force with a pry bar. Come to think of it the door is not a good design since the hinges are on the outside so if someone wanted to they could easily undo the 4 screws and lift the door out

One of the main reasons we upgraded from our popup camper was to improve the safety and security especially at night - both from the 4 and 2 legged critters. I was thinking at a minimum I can add a $5 sliding lock but I've never drilled into fiberglass and I'm not sure how strong it'll be?

Any other ideas would be much appreciated!
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Old 09-23-2009, 05:23 PM   #2
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Quote:
The key lock on the entry door works OK - but just OK. I don't get the warm and fuzzy when locking up for the night. For one thing there's no way to check that the lock won't open from the outside because if I pull on the inside handle it also unlocks it (if it's locked).

Anyone has any tips or other ideas? Since my 5 yo sleeps on the bunk bed near the door I'd like to sleep comfortably knowing that the door won't pop open quietly even with a small amount of force with a pry bar. Come to think of it the door is not a good design since the hinges are on the outside so if someone wanted to they could easily undo the 4 screws and lift the door out

One of the main reasons we upgraded from our popup camper was to improve the safety and security especially at night - both from the 4 and 2 legged critters. I was thinking at a minimum I can add a $5 sliding lock but I've never drilled into fiberglass and I'm not sure how strong it'll be?

Any other ideas would be much appreciated!
I can't help with lock recommendations, but I can give you this tip: whatever you choose, make sure that it can't slide to the locked position while you're traveling down the road. I once got locked out of my vintage Airstream when the screen door bolt slid shut due to road vibrations, and the screen door was latched to the outside door. Luckily, I noticed this on a fuel stop on my last leg going home, and it slid back to the unlocked position by the time I got back.
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Old 09-24-2009, 09:26 AM   #3
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Thanks for the tip Don. I didn't think about that!

But based on the overwhelming responses I'll assume no one else feels that the door and the locking mechanism is worth improving
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Old 09-24-2009, 09:57 AM   #4
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If your lock portion has a small hole in the top--I dropped a long nail into it and no way the handle could turn from the outside.. You were safe!

We had it actually hooked onto the lock so it couldn't get lost. Hanging there at all times.. Used at night
Worked for the 13 years we had our Boler.
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Old 09-24-2009, 03:01 PM   #5
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Our Scamp latch doesn't feel all that secure, either, and I think Lynne would be happier if we had something that both felt more secure and was easy to check at a glance.

Thinking about it a traditional thow-bolt might do the trick. Mount it to a piece of wood and mount the wood to the door, then add a strip of metal to the door frame to act both as a strike plate and reinforce the fiberglass. I think that would work pretty well.



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Old 09-24-2009, 03:03 PM   #6
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I added one of these simply so the door was somewhat secure while I am trying to find the little door lock hole on the Scamp door lockset. I found it did jiggle and lock on me while traveling so I add a piece of elastic over it so it won't lock while in transit. On the body side I just added another strike plate ordered from Scamp.


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Old 09-24-2009, 05:14 PM   #7
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If you're worried about someone undoing the screws on the hinges, you can replace them with torx head screws, or security torx head (they have a pin in the middle making them even less common). Torx head is not common like phillips or slotted, so unlikely someone would be running around with a torx head screw driver.
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Old 09-24-2009, 05:44 PM   #8
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Peter, Joy - that's what I had in mind when I said a 'sliding lock' didn't know the right term My question is though do you just drill into the fiberglass door and door jamb? Peter can you elaborate on the 'mounting to piece of wood' method?

Thomas, that's a great idea! And just to make it even harder I'll fill the Torx holes with pliable silicon or something

Thanks guys!
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Old 09-24-2009, 05:50 PM   #9
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Thanks for the tip Don. I didn't think about that!

But based on the overwhelming responses I'll assume no one else feels that the door and the locking mechanism is worth improving
Anything is worth improving f it is worth it to you .......that said ...How about just a simple "safty door chain"? You could hang it up high (out of the reach of the little one) slip it in place at night when you go to bed and it would not get cought in the lock postion when you travel down the road. Then on some off chance, that someone unscrewed the door hinges to get in the chain would help hold the door in place.

Ok just my 2cents worth
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Old 09-24-2009, 10:15 PM   #10
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Russell,

There's wood in the door. I was careful to drill just into it and not through the door and used the appropriate sort screws. This latch is not meant to keep anyone out particularly, just enough to let them know it is locked until I can place the pin in the little hole.
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Old 09-25-2009, 01:38 AM   #11
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My 13 ft casita came with one of those sliding dead bolts in addition to the regular latch. It does add security at night. I feel much safer when it's latched. Not sure if it was standard or someone before me added it, but it does ad that little extra sense of security.
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Old 09-26-2009, 07:02 AM   #12
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The key lock on the entry door works OK - but just OK. I don't get the warm and fuzzy when locking up for the night. For one thing there's no way to check that the lock won't open from the outside because if I pull on the inside handle it also unlocks it (if it's locked).

Anyone has any tips or other ideas? Since my 5 yo sleeps on the bunk bed near the door I'd like to sleep comfortably knowing that the door won't pop open quietly even with a small amount of force with a pry bar. Come to think of it the door is not a good design since the hinges are on the outside so if someone wanted to they could easily undo the 4 screws and lift the door out

One of the main reasons we upgraded from our popup camper was to improve the safety and security especially at night - both from the 4 and 2 legged critters. I was thinking at a minimum I can add a $5 sliding lock but I've never drilled into fiberglass and I'm not sure how strong it'll be?

Any other ideas would be much appreciated!
I used a child safety refrigerator lock. I mounted it at the top of the door to keep the grand kids in.
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Old 10-07-2009, 04:18 PM   #13
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Cool

When we bought our old Boler a couple of years ago, the Bargman door latch was completely frozen. I removed it and replaced it with a standard aluminum-screen-door type latch/lock that I got at a local RV parts place. It has a key lock for the outside and came with 2 keys, and a sliding tab on the inside that allows us to lock it from the inside at night, similar to a screen door on a house. It has worked great, is very secure and does not release when travelling, and cost about $20. It solves the problem of locking from the inside, without any chance that it will lock by accident. Even if it did, it could be opened from the outside using the key.

I used the original striker plate from the Boler and had to fill 2 of the 4 holes left by the old lock with fiberglass. The new lock fit right into 2 of the old holes. I also had to repaint the door, which was not a problem since I had to fix the curve of the door anyway which resulted in me repainting it. The door had previously been painted and the new latch was smaller than the old one.

You can see a picture of my door lock on page 191 of the GO RV catalogue under item #46096 ("Door Latch with lock"). http://www.go-rv.com/coast/do/catalog/page...amp;pageNum=191

Rick in Edmonton
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