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rtreptow7's avatar
rtreptow7
Explorer II
Sep 23, 2019

Screw pulled out of exterior fiberglass wall

The pass through storage compartment on one side of my fifth wheel has a door that is held open by a latch attached to the fiberglass sidewall. One of the screws has pulled out. It is stripped. Won’t tighten back up and stay in place. It only holds the weight of the hatch open at 90 degrees. I temporarily put a little silicone around it to prevent water intrusion. But want to fix it now. Can’t get to the back side of it to fasten anything. Was thinking of filling the hole with some sort of epoxy and then re-drilling it. Any other suggestions/ideas to fix this?






https://1drv.ms/u/s!AlPYRU9A7-IqdxqpATwWZum8uKA
  • Pack the hole with Kleenex.

    Make a well from chewing gum (or similar)

    Soak in as much water thin crazy glue as possible

    Wait 24 hours

    Remove the gum

    Gently sand the "filling" flat

    Start the screw, then remove it

    Put on the "clip" and screw it into place
  • When I installed my Furrion backup-observation camera on the back of 5er I had to remove the plastic dummy look-alike first. The sides of my camper are fiberglass too. I had previously purchased a Bondo Fiberglass repair kit for a deep scratch I put on the front cap of the 5er. I used it to fill the holes for the camera, let it dry hard and then simply screwed the same screws right back in the same existing holes, except these were rock solid now. The screws snugged back down nice and tight.

    You can get it at WallMart, Home Depot, any number of places: Click here. Keep the rest on hand for other "hits" your fiberglass may take. It dries clear. And considering you are just filling a screw hole, it will take just a tiny bit. You don't need to use that mesh material for something like a screw hole. Be warned though, once it turns hard (after a few minutes) its HARD! You'll never remove it. So if you are sloppy with it, you'll have slop on the side of your camper forever. But it works great!