I'm looking to attach some mini splits to the walls in my U300. What is the recommended way to do this? Are the wall panels strong enough with the right screws? The cabinets seem to be just screwed into the walls. I know there is some framing in the walls, but what is it made of and how should I attach to that?
I tried searching the forums, but didn't have any luck with the right word combination. Thanks.
The interior wall surface is just thin wood paneling - not strong at all. The walls (and the roof), behind the wood paneling, have a welded framework made of square steel tubing. Anything heavy mounted to the walls should be attached to the steel tubing. How to locate the tubing? You can try using a magnetic stud finder, or electronic stud finder. Any tool that can pick up the presence of steel behind the wood paneling would be worth a try.
I have use this on both my grand villa and my U320 to find studs. Works great.
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I used one like shown below to locate the steel frame in the storage bay walls - worked great. Costs a few bucks at local Westlake (Ace) hardware store..
Ok, so the studs are steel and magnetic. I should have something around here that would pick that up. I found the top rail, looks like it forms the curve of the roof line. One advantage of having a dirty coach is the framing is visible from the outside. :)
(https://www.foreforums.com/MGalleryItem.php?id=4999)
The "top rail" that forms the curved junction between the walls and the roof is the exception - it is a aluminum extrusion. It contains a hollow channel that runs the full length of the coach on both sides. Some of the factory wiring runs through that channel, so be careful if you try to drill holes or insert sheet metal screws in that area.
I mounted mine right above the door . A stud finder will show the frame.
If your up close to the roof there's this aluminum extrusion that ties the roof to the walls.