I just bought Mouse a U-Haul CT 13

[Mouse]

Hi, I am Brooke.
Mouse is my first RV, so everything is new.
I am planning on making a few changes to Mouse. So far I have found some very useful documentation. I still need to figure out where to find the photos people are referring to.
In the documentation they refer to screw grommets as "20075-006 Insert, Nylon". Does anyone know where to buy the exact ones that are used in the trailer? They seem to be the best way to add L-braces for shelves and the other things I want to add.
I live in the SF Bay area. Is there anyone with a Uhaul CT13 in the area?

Brooke

[Kevin A]

Welcome to the UHaul family and the FiberglassRV group! As the owner of the larger brother of Mouse (we have the 16' version know as a VT), I know that it is often hard to find "exact" pieces for repairs. Those plastic anchors for holding screws are pretty easily found at any home repair store like Lowe's or Home Depot. The part number won't match, but you should be able to find a very close approximation if you take in one of the fasteners from the CT as a model. They pop into the hole in the fiberglass and grab the screw when it is screwed in place. Different sizes hold different weights. Also, you should only insert these fasteners in cupboards or similar interior structures. You don't want to screw through the outer shell!

Hope you enjoy your new trailer! Feel free to ask lots of questions. We have lots of answers here and many are even correct!

[Mouse]

Kevin

I have tried Home Depot, Lowes, local hardware stores, Graingers, NAPA and online. Most of the screw grommets are bigger and square. Grainger may have one but they don't give dimensions in their catalog. The best thing I have found is well nuts. I can get them in a dimension that uses a 5/16 drilled hole and can be as little as 1/2 inch deep. Then you use a 6-32 or 8-32 bolt depending on which you buy. They are rubber with a nice flange and they meet my requirement of attaching in blind hole situations but they are not cheap. I don't want to use sheet metal screw and it is a blind hole, so I can't use bolts.

What are other uhaul owners using?

BTW: I making the front bunk area into a seating area with a 4' table and extending the counter top over it. So it needs to be attached well and hold up to being permantly in place while trailering.

Brooke

[keekers]

Brooke,
Welcome to the UHaul family. Looks like you have some creative mods in the works. Wonderfully helpful people here that can answer just about any question. I have found this site very valuable. Enjoy "Mouse" and add pictures when you can.

Patti

[mary and bob]

I have bought similar "screw grommets" at my local independent owned auto parts store. Also try McMaster Carr, they are similar to Graingers but better in my opinion. As you will find out, Uhauls use a lot of parts that are unique to them only. You would use a sheet metal type screw in those nylon inserts, or can you use a toggle bolt, but like Kevin says, don't drill or screw through the outer shell. Lots of good info here, plus you can access the repair manual. Be sure to check the 110 outlet, some were wired incorrectly, ours was, there's info in the repair manual about that. Bob

[CindyL]

Does that mean that we have "the Rat?"

Hi, Brooke, I am the wife of Kevin A. We have the 16' Uhaul VT.

I thought that those screw holes were not original. We have a privacy room, and they seem to be placed randomly in that room. We bypassed those and use a suction-attached mirror and towel rack.

Our previous trailer was a 13' Burro. We removed the couch and built a front dinette with swivel chairs. The table was a TV tray from Menards. The chairs were made of captain chair backs from a table and chair set we bought at Good Will. We just took the legs off and bought the swivels online. We attached them to the covers to the storage spaces below the couch (although ours were wood, not plastic as yours may be). Pix are on this forum.

CindyL

[Donna D.]

Hi Brooke, welcome to FiberglassRV. As you've already found, there are lots of kind and helpful people here.

Please post pictures when you can.

[Pam Garlow]

Sometimes they're referred to as license plate inserts. You can find them at auto parts stores also. They are square, and will fit into a round drilled hole, just 'snap' them through the hole that you drill. The square shape will keep them from spinning so much when you tighten the screw into them.
I actually found mine in Lowes in small divided boxes where specialty hardware is kept (not hung up with the rest of the bolts/screws). Take one in as a sample, or take in a picture to show them. You may have better luck looking in small hardware stores rather than large box stores.
And locking suction cups are wonderful! As are peel and stick velcro strips.

[Mouse]

Thank you everyone for all your help and encouragement.

I have found a few automotive screw grommets online that I think will come close to the original specifications. I am away from home this week, so I'll order the parts to arrive next week and I'll tell you if I can find a match to the original and how well the well nuts work.

There a quite a few holes through the outside of the trailer on the bottom where previous owners have changed components. I was planning on filling them with silicone. Now I know that two part marine epoxy putty is a much better choice.

Once I get home and figure out how to post pictures I will do so.

Brooke

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Mouse

I was planning on filling them with silicone. Now I know that two part marine epoxy putty is a much better choice.
Brooke

, see you are learning already!!!

[Mike Magee]

I would expect well nuts to work well because (well, umm) they are well nuts. Oh well.

[Roger Kimble]

Welcome to U-Haul familey, and Fiborglass RV

[Mouse]

Well nuts are the best. Half inch long 6-32 or 8-32 well nuts take a 5/16 inch hole. You can get them on Amazon for a good price or at your local hardware store. Second are square screw grommets that take a size 6 screw.

[Mouse]

I finished adding the front table! It is four foot long by two foot wide. It fits where the couch/ bunks would have been.

Here is a before picture showing the table supports:



Here is the after:

[CindyL]

Very nice! That was a mod we made to our 13' Burro. We took out the front couch and put in a dinette with chairs that swiveled.

Pretty curtains.

Welcome to the Uhaul crowd.

CindyL