I bought a Takena 1865-EX trailer... the idea of a small trailer with a very large slide appeals to me....I also thought that the idea of having the door at the rear as well as the bathroom was great if you wanted to pull over while driving and have access to the bathroom without having to pull the slide out....well, the bathroom door can't open unless the slide is out!... Upon looking at this, though, I'd say if the door was reversed....hinges on the right instead of on the left as they are, one could open the door at least far enough to get in and out of the bathroom without moving the slide... Surely the Chalet engineers could spot this simple flaw?....maybe the side the hinges on is more ridged since it's closer to the closets?...but you'd think you could sturdy-up the side of the door jam on the inside to accommodate the hinges without too much extra trouble?...I was wondering if one could take the door off and hang it the other way?...I know that there are other manufacturers that have a similar floor plan and was wondering if they too have this problem?

RVs are designed by people that have never used an RV before. I'm convinced of that.Sadly I find that a lot of the large slides do hinder access to parts of the trailer while the slide is in. In your case, it doesn't seem like it would be a lot of effort to take the door down and inspect what is supporting the hinges on the wall. You might be able to flip it around. I would give it a try.

The easiest way to solve your problem would be to install an accordion door to replace the solid one. http://www.accordion-doors.com/This way you can slide it out of the way when the slide is retracted.Happy Camping.ArizAl

I would try reversing it. Cheaper than buying something else. I'm thinking you would have to reverse the door knob so the striker will work. Also the hinges will be outside instead of inside. Minor changes IMO.

If redoing the lav door is the only change you make consider yourself fortunate.

Don't see why you couldn't switch it yourself. Why didn't you notice that before you bought it if you wanted to be able to use it that way?

Takena 1865 design flaw? | Good Sam Community

14 Replies

limbery
Explorer
Jun 26, 2013
Fixed with something soft on either side of door left open..... Such an easy fix even I could do it!
hausfrau
Explorer
Jun 26, 2013
My Takena 1865ex had the same problem until I asked them to fix it during a trip to the manufacturer for something else. When the trailer came back, the lav door cleared the slide and everything was fine. I think it was just a matter of making that carpeted step on the slide a little bit smaller.

I love my Takena, Nice small size on the road and in the driveway, big room on the inside when camping. And my 6'4" husband stands up inside with no issues. Also love the large capacity waste tanks. I hope you can fix your door issue so you don't have that one pesky annoyance to think about.

Enjoy!
opnspaces
Navigator III
Jun 14, 2013
I tend to not alter or modify anything. It's not that I'm not capable, I just don't like to change stuff that is already there. In your case I would probably not think too much about throwing a duffel bag full of clothes on the floor to hold the door open while driving. If the door rubs on a wall while open I would throw one of the couch pillows behind it to hold it away from the wall.

The only direction of motion that is really a concern is motion from the back of the trailer to the front. This is because the brakes will be the strongest force causing things to slide forward. Next would be acceleration forces, but I only see that as a problem with a big truck and a small trailer. I can tell you there is no way my 3/4 ton Suburban is going to be able to accelerate fast enough to make anything slide rearward in the trailer. After that I think the side to side movement is almost non-existent. Unless you're cornering like an F1 racer, I don't think anything is going to move too much.

Put something soft on either side of the open door while in transit and don't give it a second thought.
limbery
Explorer
Jun 14, 2013
SprinklerMan wrote:
limbery wrote:
SprinklerMan wrote:
Can you leave the door open when the slide is in . Thats what I did , leave door open with the slide in.

Duhh....Thanks for the great idea, you've saved me a lot of work.... I suppose I'll just have to bungee it to a handle on one of the rear storage cabinets...

Get one of those magnets they use on kitchen cabinet doors to hold closed , use it to hold the door open .

I don't know if that would hold well enough while driving?....don't want the door to be swinging around and a sudden bounce might dislodge it....
SprinklerMan
Explorer
Jun 14, 2013
limbery wrote:
SprinklerMan wrote:
Can you leave the door open when the slide is in . Thats what I did , leave door open with the slide in.

Duhh....Thanks for the great idea, you've saved me a lot of work.... I suppose I'll just have to bungee it to a handle on one of the rear storage cabinets...

Get one of those magnets they use on kitchen cabinet doors to hold closed , use it to hold the door open .
limbery
Explorer
Jun 13, 2013
A41Billy wrote:
We have a Chalet Takena 1865EX. Our bathroom door hinges are on the left and it can be opened with the slide in.

Wow....what year?...maybe they changed something?
BTW the Chalet people got back to me and said that where the door hits the slide there is a carpeted area which they suggested would be easier to cut some away rather than reverse the door...
A41Billy
Explorer
Jun 13, 2013
We have a Chalet Takena 1865EX. Our bathroom door hinges are on the left and it can be opened with the slide in.
limbery
Explorer
Jun 13, 2013
SprinklerMan wrote:
Can you leave the door open when the slide is in . Thats what I did , leave door open with the slide in.

Duhh....Thanks for the great idea, you've saved me a lot of work.... I suppose I'll just have to bungee it to a handle on one of the rear storage cabinets...
SprinklerMan
Explorer
Jun 13, 2013
Can you leave the door open when the slide is in . Thats what I did , leave door open with the slide in.
beemerphile1
Explorer
Jun 13, 2013
Don't see why you couldn't switch it yourself. Why didn't you notice that before you bought it if you wanted to be able to use it that way?