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Topic: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ? (Read 927 times) previous topic - next topic

3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Discovered today that the three bolts that hold the sliding tray in place on the back rail are stripped.  Does anyone know exactly how they are anchored into the floor?  Thought I might get some replacements that are a tad larger in diameter or use a molly.  Thoughts would be appreciated.

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #1 –
All of our Joey bed bolts are thru bolted, with the heads at the bottom. They are probably just loose.

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #2 –
Our bolts go thru the flooor with big washers and nuts on the top

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #3 –
Looked under the coach to see if there were bolt holes for the Joey bed.  The only bolts I saw hold the bottom covering on.  The bolts that came out of the frame are about 2" long and have a tapered tip.

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #4 –
Scott,

Sounds like a bad installation job.  The only thing holding those screws is the very thin piece of fiberglass that serves as the floor for the basement-- below that is the foam core.

Even through bolting without a big backing plate underneath can easily pull out.  Suggest you through bolt with, probably, a 4"X4" aluminum backing plate.  If no backing plate, it is easy for the bolt if torqued enough to secure the joey bed to pull through bottom FG panel.

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #5 –
Quote from: Carol & Scott –
Discovered today that the three bolts that hold the sliding tray in place on the back rail are stripped.  Does anyone know exactly how they are anchored into the floor?  Thought I might get some replacements that are a tad larger in diameter or use a molly.  Thoughts would be appreciated.
My full Joey bed has Bolt thru with washer and nut on top. My half movable tray which does not appear to ba a Joey Bed brand had screws and not bolts and do not come thru the floor as you have. This one Foretravel added before it was delivered to me in CA.

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #6 –
Brett - I agree a backing plate is the answer.  However, I would have to go through the floor of the basement and then through the bottom covering and it does not appear to be very thick/strong.  How thick is the basement floor?  Could I use larger diameter molly bolts to secure?

Barry- I do not have nuts showing - only bolt heads like in your third pic.

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #7 –
The bottom covering or skin is glued on. The bolts that go up into the coach are what support the basement and they go up into the framing of the compartment dividers. On our coach (99' U270), there are also through bolts in the cargo compartment floor and they anchor the Joey Bed. All of the Joey Bed anchor bolts with the exception of one which was miss drilled go through the basement framing, obviously intentionally.
Don
Quote from: Carol & Scott link=topic=17685.msg118969#msg118969 qdate=1366033368
Looked under the coach to see if there were bolt holes for the Joey bed.  The only bolts I saw hold the bottom covering on.  The bolts that came out of the frame are about 2" long and have a tapered tip.

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #8 –
I have no problem with bolting through the frame members in the basement floor OR going through the "non frame areas".

The non frame areas are thin sheet of FG on floor of basement, core of foam and thin sheet of FG for bottom of coach.  It here that you need a 4"x4" plate, as there is no question-- you need to spread the load.

BTW, no problem drilling through the non frame areas-- goes very quickly.

I did our U240 one better, using a 2" hole saw from the basement through the basement floor.  Then removed the foam core with a knife and epoxied in a 2" hardwood plug.  Through bolted that including plate below.  Perhaps overkill.

Also, if you have shore power cord and/or water reels, I have inspected quite a few where small washers were used under the coach and the FG has broken out allowing water into the beam and bulkhead area.  Again, the answer is to use a plate to spread the load.  That also effectively seals the broken areas.

Brett

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #9 –
Thanks again for the input.  The covering feels fairly stout.  I would think it should be 4" x the width of the Joey bed, or 48" approx. using satinless steel bolts and nuts to secure the frame to the floor through the foam and then the bottom cover??

Thoughts??

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #10 –
Scott,

Clearly that will work, but is likely real over-kill.  At most, I would go 4" wide by 8" along long axis of Joey Bed.  It is only side motion that the bolt is transmitting to the floor of the basement. 

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #11 –
Thanks Brett-
I sometimes have a tendency toward overkill.  It's difficult without knowing the structure.

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #12 –
Quote from: wolfe10 –
Scott,

Sounds like a bad installation job.  The only thing holding those screws is the very thin piece of fiberglass that serves as the floor for the basement-- below that is the foam core.

Even through bolting without a big backing plate underneath can easily pull out.  Suggest you through bolt with, probably, a 4"X4" aluminum backing plate.  If no backing plate, it is easy for the bolt if torqued enough to secure the joey bed to pull through bottom FG panel.

This is EXACTLY what Jeff and I did when we installed a Joey bed in our '93 U225. It remains one of the ONLY things we have ever really done to a coach (we did install a new TV in the '93, as well) and it was solid. I don't remember if we used aluminum or galvanized steel, but we had them cut locally at a metal shop.
 

Re: 3 bolts stripped on slide out tray in basement - ?

Reply #13 –
Perhaps this picture will help you with the visualizing the structural framing of the basement.  This is a picture of the bottom fiberglass skin from just in front of the utility compartment after I managed to get it off intact and is taken from the rear of the cargo compartment forward. This is before I cleaned it up for reuse. You can clearly see the framing outline which is all inch and a half square tubing. Since our 99 is a 36 footer, chances are your later 36 foot has the same framing plan. It can be easily verified by using a strong magnet from underneath or even from the top if your carpeting isn't too thick. I don't think the addition of slides in your coach would likely affect the basement framing, but that's where the magnets come in handy. I used Blind Mark magnets which are made for locating electrical outlet bode in new dry wall construction. They come in a pack of three. Two of them shaped to fit in an empty J-Box, and the other sized to mark the cutout opening. Having the three of them make it easy to dew the outlines with the aid of a straight edge. Our Joey Bed is  build to size where you can adjust the width to fit the opening by cutting different the plywood bottom and street/curb side drawer fronts to size. In our case, the drawer is a bit over 5' side to side and nearly the full width of the coach. All that is to say that the frame of the Joey Bed can be adjusted to fit the metal framing if desired  and reasonably close to the right size.
Don
Quote from: Carol & Scott –
Thanks Brett-
I sometimes have a tendency toward overkill.  It's difficult without knowing the structure.