Awning adjustment

[mxdad777]

I have a new to me 2018 Rockwood 5th wheel. It has two Dometic 9100 power awnings on it and to me they both look out of adjustment. If it were to rain, the water would pool up on top or even run back towards the trailer. I know I can angle down one corner if it rains, but I’d like them to slant down anyway for more shade too. I looked through the installation manual and don’t see anything about adjusting the pitch of the awning. Is there a way to adjust this awning so it slants down instead of being level or pointing up?

[DFord]

I was a huge fan of the A&E manual awnings for years till I bought their Step 1 or 1 Step or whatever they called it. It was only on the market a short time (couple of months) because it was a piece of junk. They should have all been recalled and replaced. That soured me on A&E - now called Dometic.

Our Trek came with a Carefree power awning and I love it! The first time I put the awning out, it went straight out. Knowing that wouldn't work, I adjusted both arms for maximum slant and it's been like that ever since. No other adjustments have been necessary - it stays at maximum slant all the time. There is NO POSSIBLE WAY for rain to ever pond on this awning.

If wind comes up, I push the button to put it away. I don't recommend leaving your RV with the awning extended. I recently purchased the remote control/wind sensor to upgrade it so that it will retract if winds come up and I'm not around plus it adds the feature that lets me sit on my can and use my phone to extend/retract the awning - less than $100.

I'll never, ever go back to Dometic awnings. I can't believe you have to fiddle with their awnings every time you put it out to get a decent slant on it. Pure non-sense! My advice would be to the OP would be to have your awning upgrade to Carefree hardware keeping only the fabric.

[mxdad777]

Okay, so after looking through the manual and carefully inspecting the awning assembly, the only way I can see to adjust the pitch is by pulling the arms in and tightening the black knob. This is a pain in the ***! I want it adjusted so when I extend it there is about a 10 to 15 degree slope. Not just to shed rain, but for shade too. If it’s raining much at all, it’s usually accompanied by wind too so I bring them in. I don’t like having to deal with the knob and the wife definitely won’t. I can’t even reach the front knob without a ladder. Anyway, I appreciate the reply’s, but I’m still hopeful I’m missing something that will allow the adjustment. I’m not even opposed to drilling a new hole in the awning bracket and repositioning the arm, although I don’t think that should be necessary.

[dougrainer]

SoundGuy wrote:

dougrainer wrote:
People who leave awnings out in the rain regardless of pitch, eventually BUY new awnings when they collapse.

In practice I found that both my manual Dometic 8500 and power Dometic 9100 awnings, when set for the greatest pitch, would easily allow even heavy rainwater to pour off the awning and not bother it in any way. The only problem I had with rain was with the awful Carefree of Colorado power awning that came standard on our KZ Spree and which had zero pitch but I solved that problem by having the dealer replace it with the Dometic 8500. Wind OTOH would destroy either so we'd always retract the awning at night or whenever we'd be away from the campsite for the day.

People that think like you make me and our dealership money:B Doug

[SoundGuy]

dougrainer wrote:
People who leave awnings out in the rain regardless of pitch, eventually BUY new awnings when they collapse.

In practice I found that both my manual Dometic 8500 and power Dometic 9100 awnings, when set for the greatest pitch, would easily allow even heavy rainwater to pour off the awning and not bother it in any way. The only problem I had with rain was with the awful Carefree of Colorado power awning that came standard on our KZ Spree and which had zero pitch but I solved that problem by having the dealer replace it with the Dometic 8500. Wind OTOH would destroy either so we'd always retract the awning at night or whenever we'd be away from the campsite for the day.

[fj12ryder]

It almost looks like the motor isn't extending the awning far enough to take all the slack out. I don't know that I've seen awnings with material that loose. I think if that were mine I'd have a talk with the dealer and make sure everything is okay with the awning itself.

Having to adjust the arms every time you put the awning out would be a real pain, and shouldn't be necessary, IMO.

[dougrainer]

People who leave awnings out in the rain regardless of pitch, eventually BUY new awnings when they collapse. Doug

[MFL]

Just pull both arms down, and use the locking knob to hold them in the position you want. Don't forget to loosen the knobs before running the awning back in.

Jerry

[DFord]

There definitely is. Look on the arms for keepers to push on that will allow the awning come way down. Your door shouldn't drag on the awning if you lower it all the way and it blocks the morning/evening sun a lot better down.

Download the 9100
POWER PATIO AWNING Operating Instructions here and refer to page 5.