Casita windows come open while towing

[yolams]

Has anyone had problems with their windows opening while towing? Several times now I have towed my camper and found the windows (vibrate?) open while traveling. Big problem when raining!

Driver side window (emerg) latch locks down, but other side window and rear window latch locks up. Seems to be more of a problem with driver side.

[jerrybob]

Our back window has come open when not locked properly. These will help.....

https://www.amazon.com/Sliding-Windo...9KXGWY9W4K2CK9

[Rzrbrn]

Yes mine did also. The latches on the window are worthless. I cut down a yardstick to the length I wanted for each window. Drilled a hole and put in a nylon bolt in the top corner and painted the wood black. You will need someway to pull out the wooden stick because it will jam a bit as the window tries to slide open. I tried just drilling a finger hole but that did not work so well. I used these on every window that opened. It worked very well. The stick is placed in the bottom channel, or track, of the window. The yardstick is the perfect width of the channel.

[Laurizona]

We had the same problem. I cut strips of wood 3 inches long by 3/8" wide and about 1/4" thick (mine are 5/16 to be exact). They are painted black with a small eyelet for a handle on one end and Velcro on the other side. Velcro is stuck on the window almost under the latch and the wedge is stuck onto that. The latch can't go out of position with the wedge under it. To use window, simply grab the handle (eyelet) and lift out of place. Really easy! I put the wedge in the top of the blinds for safe keeping when I want to open window.

[alan H]

I used a hardwood dowel cut to fit that dropped into the track
They never budged

[Charles Ihlenfeld]

We have a 2008 Spirit Deluxe. The rear window has long opened even though we have always locked it. Two years ago while we were about 2 hours from home on eastern Long Island we made a routine rest stop and discovered that we were locked out. Since we were close to our service dealer we drove there hoping that they would easily drill out the lock and open the door. However, they told us that they could not do this. So we continued home. I did drill out the lock cylinder only to discover that this solved nothing. So we walked around the trailer looking for an idea--and discovered the slightly-opened rear window! Now checking to be sure that our rear window is unlocked is part of our breaking-camp routine.

[Jann Todd]

Originally Posted by jerrybob

Our back window has come open when not locked properly. These will help.....

https://www.amazon.com/Sliding-Windo...9KXGWY9W4K2CK9

These locks will not work on our Casita windows. We've tried them. Our back window slid open so we cut a stick like a yardstick and put it in the channel. No more sliding and so far the stick hasn't come out. We put sticks in the other windows that the locks go up just to make sure they don't open.

[yolams]

Thanks everyone - good suggestions! I will try the yardstick idea.

[Kai in Seattle]

73 Amerigo FG-16 windows came open during travel; we finally used a clip-clamp type office paper clip to hold it in place...every different window style could use a different elegant solution...don't know our clips are "elegant" but we had enough already and they've worked fine. Elegant as a solution, to me means simple, easy, affordable, and works just as you wanted.

[theresa p]

cheaper than a yard stick would be a paint stir stick---free at any paint store. same width. same thickness. alot cheaper.

[Jon in AZ]

Small bulldog clip attached to the lower rail does the trick.

[jerrybob]

Originally Posted by Jann Todd

These locks will not work on our Casita windows. We've tried them. Our back window slid open so we cut a stick like a yardstick and put it in the channel. No more sliding and so far the stick hasn't come out. We put sticks in the other windows that the locks go up just to make sure they don't open.

Have had one on my back Casita window for 6 years.....maybe I am just lucky.

[Fred762]

We too had the same problem w or Casita , but finally figured out that one window locked by pushing DOWN and two locked by pushing UP..the odd man out was the one wh was opening sometimes. Pain the keester til we figgered it out. Hpe the new Escape21 is better.

[Byron Kinnaman]

It looks to me like some interesting solutions to a simple problem. Most likely you the track needs to be cleaned so the window closes all the way.


It's easy to test close the window lock it then try to open it. if it opens there's probably something that's keeping it from closing.








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[Rzrbrn]

I cleaned the tracks the very first thing and made sure the window latched. The problem is, at least on the Casita, the latches are weak and will unlatch when going over bumps. I tried messing with the latch in various ways. Ultimately the only thing that worked was the yardstick. It fit nicely in the tract and I made sure it fit snugly lengthwise. I actually have a smaller length to use to keep the window partially open. I just don't want kids to crawl in through a window.

[Jon in AZ]

Byron, on my Scamp the latch is just a tab of plastic that slides into a vertical slot. It can easily vibrate open, even it properly closed when you start out. It happened numerous times when I first got my trailer. I initially suspected what you describe, but it continued to occur after I made sure the windows started out fully closed and latched.

I take it yours doesn’t do that. Perhaps some windows have slightly oversized slots? Mine have quite a bit of play when the tab is in the slot.

Now, when I close my windows for towing, I pull the window back a bit until it puts some pressure on the tab. Most of the time that’s all it takes to keep it closed. A bulldog clip on the window track is a backup.

I don’t know if Casita windows are the same or not.

[Rzrbrn]

Jon, Yep Casita is the same, probably same window mfg.

[Yardsailor]

On my 1996 Casita 17' SS the windows vibrated open because the little plastic latch didn't reach the sliding window that it was supposed to hold. Using a heat gun I just softened the plastic to bend them in enough to get a good grip on the sliding part. Once adjusted they have worked fine for years. If you have this type of latch it is a simple fix.

[Rzrbrn]

Frank, what an ingenious solution. Thanks for sharing.

[hts1190]

Based on the many responses, this is clearly a common problem. what we have done is simply apply a little piece of masking tape to the responsible latch. This effectively prevents the window from opening and is easily removed when you want to have it open.