Forum Discussion

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Downunda
Explorer
Apr 27, 2018

Internal Squeks and Squeals

I have a new rig and have managed to eliminate most of the rattles and noises except some squeaks and squeals caused from body movement when in transit. They are coming from behind internal moldings and fascia covers where it seems that cabinetry is rubbing on plastic or similar frame materials.

I know where they are and how to get to them and I reckon the way to fix them is to probably spray some sort of stuff into the joints concerned that would provide a lubricating function between the two rubbing materials.

The only thing I can think of using is silicone spray and was seeking ideas and suggestions in case a more suitable product is available.

Thanks
  • Silicone may work, but I found the most effective method was to insert felt material between rubbing surfaces. The DW is very sensitive to rattles and squeaks and I'm constantly on the hunt for issues.

    I would lean towards Teflon spray rather than silicone.
  • If the cabinets or whatever are attached with screws or bolts that you can get at, try making sure they are entirely snugged down. Sometimes they can work a microscopic bit loose and let things rub and squeak. (This is especially common on the cabover structure of some class C's where the truck cab and the bunk board join together, but certainly not exclusive to that location.)
  • I would lean towards Teflon spray rather than silicone.


    this

    white Teflon dry lube, goes on wet ?
    carrier evaps. and leaves white Teflon dry lube
    you can wipe it off any exposed surface
  • Thanks for the suggestions, I'll report back on how it turns out... will be a while though!
  • Along withe the stray, when you find loose screws, take it out and put some glue on the threads and put back in. I have very good success with that.
  • I have found squeaks in places that where different than where I thought they were coming from. On one coach I was convinced the overhead cabinets were the problem. It ended up being the driver side window. On another coach I was sure I had a rattle from one of the slides, ended up being the dash. Noise in the front of a coach can sometimes be in places different from where they seem to be coming from. I hate trying to nail them down. I wish you luck.
  • Thanks so far... today I removed some of the cab trim, specifically that that wraps the edge of the cabover bed. After removing the trim I could now see into the areas where the cabover frame adjoins the house. There was more than adequate felt like material between the two surfaces, so no worries there.

    However,the plastic trim pieces that cover and wrap the edge of the cabover bed are able to rub against each other and against the adjoining cabinets. I found that by giving them a twist or a nudge I was getting squeaking noises.

    It was easy enough to fix lengths of felt on all touching surfaces and now there is no plastic to plastic or plastic to timber contact.

    One can only hope that this solves the squeaking noises we were experiencing.
  • If you can get in between the two surfaces that you suspect are making noise, cutting pieces of an old bicycle inner tube and inserting them between the surfaces is a cheap fix. Then refasten them. The more rigid the surfaces, the better this works. There are different grades (read thickness) of bike tubes to take up excess slack should it be necessary or you can just layer the rubber to the needed thickness.

    Chum lee
  • A quick note to all who helped... we are now on our first long trip since I last posted and I am glad to report that putting strips of felt between the plastic trim pieces has indeed fixed the squeaking noise. Thanks again for all of your suggestions.
    Downunda - Melbourne Australia