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Compartment door latch

Diamond_c
Nomad
Nomad
On our way home from our last trip last fall the door to the compartment that holds the propane tank on the driverโ€™s side of our fifth wheel came open while going down the road. Instead of fixing it over the winter I forgot about it. Last weekend while setting up at camp I noticed that the top latch on that same door was about half turned. While talking to my brother-in-law yesterday I mentioned it to him and that I was thinking of replacing the ( twist) latch with a lock. He suggested to take it apart and move the blade 90 degrees so that gravity and road vibrations would pull it closed instead of open. To which Iโ€™ve done this evening. Itโ€™ll be 8-10 weeks before we can go out again because of work obligations, to test it out and see if it works. But worth a try for the price. Does anybody else have any experiences, recommendations, or tips?
13 REPLIES 13

JRscooby
Explorer II
Explorer II
bpounds wrote:
Nothing says you can't put a lock on the propane door if you want. The propane police are not going to arrest you. It is not accepted practice, and violates rvia code, but once you pay for the rig you can do you.



If something happens, like a fire in a nearby camper, FD will turn off your propane tanks if they think a fire might spread. If they can open a latch to get to valve they will. If locked, you have whatever damage they do to get to valve.

If you think somebody will steal tanks, I would think better to secure thank to frame.

bpounds
Nomad
Nomad
Nothing says you can't put a lock on the propane door if you want. The propane police are not going to arrest you. It is not accepted practice, and violates rvia code, but once you pay for the rig you can do you.
2006 F250 Diesel
2011 Keystone Cougar 278RKSWE Fiver

JRscooby
Explorer II
Explorer II
enblethen wrote:
I think we killed the subject of not installing lock.
Another thing you could do on the latch is to bend the arm slightly to insure it is tight against the door frame restricting it's movement


Or the structure around door frame. Likely softer metal, more leverage. Easier to bend.

enblethen
Nomad
Nomad
I think we killed the subject of not installing lock.
Another thing you could do on the latch is to bend the arm slightly to insure it is tight against the door frame restricting it's movement

Bud
USAF Retired
Pace Arrow


2003 Chev Ice Road Tracker

Bobbo
Explorer II
Explorer II
dave54 wrote:
Bobbo wrote:
I agree with enblethen. A propane compartment is not supposed to be lockable. That way, in case of some emergency, emergency personnel can turn off the propane tanks.


Doesn't take much effort to open a locked RV bin.

No, as long as you have the key. (Or, are willing to break it.) In the event of an emergency of any type, the emergency responders won't have the key. This is only for the propane bin, where emergency responders may need to turn off the propane VERY quickly (without breaking it).
Bobbo and Lin
2017 F-150 XLT 4x4 SuperCab w/Max Tow Package 3.5l EcoBoost V6
2017 Airstream Flying Cloud 23FB

dave54
Nomad
Nomad
Bobbo wrote:
I agree with enblethen. A propane compartment is not supposed to be lockable. That way, in case of some emergency, emergency personnel can turn off the propane tanks.


Doesn't take much effort to open a locked RV bin.
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So many campsites, so little time...
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12thgenusa
Explorer
Explorer
When I first got my trailer, many of the latches were installed as you describe, and one door came open on a trip. I then re-clocked all the latches so that gravity and vibrations would not work against the latch staying locked. There have been no problems since.


2007 Tundra DC 4X4 5.7, Alcan custom rear springs, 2009 Cougar 245RKS, 370 watts ET solar, Victron BMV-712, Victron SmartSolar 100/30, 200AH LiP04 bank, ProWatt 2000.

bpounds
Nomad
Nomad
There are a lot of door and frame designs out there, so I don't know if this will work for you, but ...

I simply bent a slight tweak in the door stop flange of the door frame, so the latch has a bit of a cam-over point. It won't ever vibrate over that hump and become unlatched. Easy and cost $0.00.
2006 F250 Diesel
2011 Keystone Cougar 278RKSWE Fiver

jkwilson
Explorer II
Explorer II
I believe thatโ€™s the way mine are from the factory, but Iโ€™ll check when Iโ€™m outside
John & Kathy
2014 Grand Design Reflection 303RLS
2014 F250 SBCC 6.2L 3.73

Bobbo
Explorer II
Explorer II
MrWizard wrote:
I think he just meant latched,, he asked about the lock and was correctly informed .. do not lock

I hope you are right. This is what we were responding to though.

Diamon c wrote:
....replacing the ( twist) latch with a lock.
Bobbo and Lin
2017 F-150 XLT 4x4 SuperCab w/Max Tow Package 3.5l EcoBoost V6
2017 Airstream Flying Cloud 23FB

MrWizard
Moderator
Moderator
I think he just meant latched,, he asked about the lock and was correctly informed .. do not lock
I can explain it to you.
But I Can Not understand it for you !

....

Connected using T-Mobile Home internet and Visible Phone service
1997 F53 Bounder 36s

Bobbo
Explorer II
Explorer II
I agree with enblethen. A propane compartment is not supposed to be lockable. That way, in case of some emergency, emergency personnel can turn off the propane tanks.
Bobbo and Lin
2017 F-150 XLT 4x4 SuperCab w/Max Tow Package 3.5l EcoBoost V6
2017 Airstream Flying Cloud 23FB

enblethen
Nomad
Nomad
Litle off topic: propane compartments are not supposed to be locked.
I turned some of my locks, so the key or handle face the direction of the interior locking arm. That way you can see they are locked or secured.

Bud
USAF Retired
Pace Arrow


2003 Chev Ice Road Tracker