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Screen door latch: don't make this mistake, like I did

profdant139
Explorer II
Explorer II
Whenever we leave our trailer, we usually just close the screen door and then slam the outer door. (Spoiler alert: that's the big mistake, right there.) We've been doing it this way for 14 years and two trailers.

A couple of weeks ago, we slammed the door, the way we always do. The little handle on the screen door latch snapped off. I had to remove the latch in order to get the screen door open.

I went to Camping World and got a new one. It is tricky to figure out whether you need a right hand latch or a left hand one. Tip: when you stand inside your RV and the door hinge is on your left, then you need a right hand screen door latch. (The Camping World salesperson was very knowledgeable -- I wasn't.)

But the real light-bulb went on when I was installing the new latch. I had a chance to spend a lot of time with the design and the materials and the placement of the components, trying to figure out what went wrong.

Bottom line: DON'T JUST SLAM THE OUTER DOOR against the already-closed screen door, which is what we had been doing all along. Bad idea. It eventually causes material fatigue, and the handle will break.

Instead, when it is time to close the outer door, FIRST latch the screen door to the outer door by depressing the little handle. An angled hook on the outer door then engages the little handle on the screen door latch; the hook holds the screen door handle in a slightly-depressed position, so that the "tongue" of the screen door latch retracts. Once the screen door handle is engaged by the hook, then it is ok to close the main door.

Here are some photos that should clarify the problem. This is what the hook looks like in profile โ€“ notice the sloping โ€œnoseโ€ of the hook:


Click For Full-Size Image.

This is the handle of the screen door latch, in a โ€œdepressedโ€ position, ready to engage the hook:


Click For Full-Size Image.

This is the handle engaged by the hook:


Click For Full-Size Image.

And this, in my opinion, is the culprit โ€“ this is the backside of the screen door latch handle, with a little angled cutout. The cutout is supposed to slide down the nose of the hook and pop into the engaged position:


Click For Full-Size Image.

I had never paid any attention to the interaction of the angled hook and the sloping cutout on the backside of the latch handle. Theoretically, these two components are designed to engage the handle automatically, as the handle slides down under the pressure of the hook. In the real world, though, the materials are not tough enough to handle that impact. Eventually, the handle will break.

After doing it the wrong way for so many years, this is going to be a hard habit to break. I have posted a little reminder on the inside of the door lock: LATCH SCREEN FIRST.
2012 Fun Finder X-139 "Boondock Style" (axle-flipped and extra insulation)
2013 Toyota Tacoma Off-Road (semi-beefy tires and components)
Our trips -- pix and text
About our trailer
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single list."
20 REPLIES 20

BFL13
Explorer II
Explorer II
Tech Issues--"...and other rig related electrical/mechanical problems"

It is a mechanical problem, requiring innovation, and the right tool for the job (a bigger hammer). ๐Ÿ™‚
1. 1991 Oakland 28DB Class C
on Ford E350-460-7.5 Gas EFI
Photo in Profile
2. 1991 Bighorn 9.5ft Truck Camper on 2003 Chev 2500HD 6.0 Gas
See Profile for Electronic set-ups for 1. and 2.

NRALIFR
Explorer
Explorer
Trigger Warning: โ€œInnovationโ€ ahead! :E

:W :B


Dan, there are actually a couple of ways to adjust the screen door latch. The way yours is adjusted, both the screen door and the outer door will be latched when the outer door is shut. You can also position the โ€œhookโ€ part on the outer door just a little lower so that when the outer door is shut, it pushes the screen door handle down just enough so it is no longer engaging the screen door striker plate on the door frame. That way, when you open the outer door the next time, both it and the screen door open at the same time.

Thatโ€™s the way I have my screen door latch adjusted, but when our cats are in the camper, I also want to have the option of having the screen door stay closed when the outer door is opened. So, I made a โ€œdead boltโ€ for the screen door that is part of the sliding panel. If the panel is closed, the screen is dead bolted. To help the hook part separate from the screen door handle, I filed the hook just a little bit on that inside surface to give it a slightly ramped shape. You still have to pull on the outer door firmly, but it doesnโ€™t feel Ike itโ€™s going to break the handle on the screen.

The dead bolt is made from flat aluminum stock with a spacer made from HDPE plastic, and riveted to the slider panel.



Making the dead bolt as wide as the panel stiffened the panel up nicely.



Closed and engaged. I made the hole it goes through by heating the aluminum up with a heat gun and pushing it through the plastic.



The hook. I didnโ€™t have to file it much at all to make it separate easier.



:):)
2001 Lance 1121 on a 2016 F450 โ€˜Scuse me while I whinge.
And for all you Scooby-Doo and Yosemite Sam typesโ€ฆโ€ฆโ€ฆ..Letโ€™s Go Brandon!!!

profdant139
Explorer II
Explorer II
Bobbo, that's an interesting question -- at what point does a repair become a modification? I think it's when there is some innovation involved.

Maybe altering my method of closing the door qualifies as an innovation?? I'd be flattered if that were true. But I think of my "solution" as little more than making a virtue of a necessity -- since the latch mechanism is poorly designed, I have had to come up with a reasonably graceful work-around.
2012 Fun Finder X-139 "Boondock Style" (axle-flipped and extra insulation)
2013 Toyota Tacoma Off-Road (semi-beefy tires and components)
Our trips -- pix and text
About our trailer
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single list."

Bobbo
Explorer II
Explorer II
profdant139 wrote:
In other news, someone asked why this thread is in Tech. I'm not sure where else to put it -- we don't have a special forum for "fumbling attempts to repair under-engineered hardware," but maybe we need one!

Sure there is. It is titled Do It Yourself Modifications and Upgrades (DIY).
Bobbo and Lin
2017 F-150 XLT 4x4 SuperCab w/Max Tow Package 3.5l EcoBoost V6
2017 Airstream Flying Cloud 23FB

bighatnohorse
Explorer II
Explorer II
profdant139 wrote:
Whenever we leave our trailer, we usually just close the screen door and then slam the outer door. (Spoiler alert: that's the big mistake, right there.) We've been doing it this way for 14 years and two trailers.

All this time and I thought it was just me and my camper.

There's a stupid design flaw in there somewhere that requires the screen door to be latched to the outer door before closing.
2021 Arctic Fox 1150
'15 F350 6.7 diesel dually long bed
Eagle Cap Owners
โ€œThe best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity."
-Yeats

profdant139
Explorer II
Explorer II
Bobbo, I told my wife I wanted to repair the holes. She said, "No, don't! Remember, chicks dig scars." (Which may explain why we have been married for more than four decades.)

In other news, someone asked why this thread is in Tech. I'm not sure where else to put it -- we don't have a special forum for "fumbling attempts to repair under-engineered hardware," but maybe we need one!
2012 Fun Finder X-139 "Boondock Style" (axle-flipped and extra insulation)
2013 Toyota Tacoma Off-Road (semi-beefy tires and components)
Our trips -- pix and text
About our trailer
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single list."

Bobbo
Explorer II
Explorer II
If you've got a couple of unfilled holes in the door, put a couple of pop rivets in there. Much less noticeable.
Bobbo and Lin
2017 F-150 XLT 4x4 SuperCab w/Max Tow Package 3.5l EcoBoost V6
2017 Airstream Flying Cloud 23FB

profdant139
Explorer II
Explorer II
bp, you are right that the screw holes did not match. And yet the hardware was identical. Why the difference? Frankly, I think they misaligned the hook at the factory -- it was too high up, and the latch was not sufficiently depressed. This caused the tongue of the latch to hang up in the strike plate on the door, which is probably one reason we had so much trouble with the latch in the first place.

I tried mounting the new hook using the old holes and got the same poor results. So I realigned the hook to a better position. It left a couple of unfilled holes in the door, but (as we say) "it's just camping." Things don't have to be beautiful like our stick house. (I don't know how to do those roll on the floor laughing emojis.)
2012 Fun Finder X-139 "Boondock Style" (axle-flipped and extra insulation)
2013 Toyota Tacoma Off-Road (semi-beefy tires and components)
Our trips -- pix and text
About our trailer
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single list."

bpounds
Nomad
Nomad
BTW, what has the world come to, when a screen door latch is considered a "Tech Issue"? ๐Ÿ˜‰
2006 F250 Diesel
2011 Keystone Cougar 278RKSWE Fiver

bpounds
Nomad
Nomad
Plenty of us have broken those little buggers. I notice your replacement wasn't exactly right to fit the existing holes.

My wife broke the last one. Being a good guy, I just laughed it off. I was able to buy an exact match on Amazon, and they were so cheap I bought a spare. Just in case, you know, I might be the one who breaks it next time.
2006 F250 Diesel
2011 Keystone Cougar 278RKSWE Fiver

BFL13
Explorer II
Explorer II
ReneeG wrote:
Profdant139. Thank goodness we do that - latch both together then close the door. One word though, our screen latch (that little thing in your first pic) was at an angle on our FW. So . . . guess what happened . . . hubby straightened it out . . . big mistake. It was at an angle for a reason. We couldn't get in, but after much jiggling and slipping a wire in, we managed to open without damaging the piece or door. Lesson learned!


Also the angle is set by tightening screws in wide slots. The screws get so they won't tighten even with fatter screws so the angle keeps getting "off" in the slots. This can get to where the screen door won't open with the main door. You can reposition the thing and the handle to solve that (for a while)

The issue remains that they use thin aluminum to screw into and you can't fix the screw holes like you can with wood.

Similar problem with the screws for the main door striker.
1. 1991 Oakland 28DB Class C
on Ford E350-460-7.5 Gas EFI
Photo in Profile
2. 1991 Bighorn 9.5ft Truck Camper on 2003 Chev 2500HD 6.0 Gas
See Profile for Electronic set-ups for 1. and 2.

Gjac
Explorer III
Explorer III
Thanks for posting this Dan,I never even thought about this before your post, but along the same line if you have the Trimark outer door latch I found it is less wear on the inside latch if you don't slam the door shut but pull the handle out then push the door shut. The inside latch is just a zinc alloy and prone to breakage. I replaced mine twice and when it broke the third time I took it apart and fixed the broken latch with a steel plate. I was not about to buy another one at $100 a piece. Some on this forum carry an extra one just in case of breakage.

profdant139
Explorer II
Explorer II
Now that I have discovered that there is a right way and a wrong way to close the door (who knew??), I have also found that it is much easier to close the door without slamming it -- I swing the whole thing shut and then pull out the big paddle-shaped outer door handle. The door assembly now glides into place, and I release the handle.

Somewhat less satisfying than a nice loud slam, but it works better.
2012 Fun Finder X-139 "Boondock Style" (axle-flipped and extra insulation)
2013 Toyota Tacoma Off-Road (semi-beefy tires and components)
Our trips -- pix and text
About our trailer
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single list."

ReneeG
Explorer
Explorer
Profdant139. Thank goodness we do that - latch both together then close the door. One word though, our screen latch (that little thing in your first pic) was at an angle on our FW. So . . . guess what happened . . . hubby straightened it out . . . big mistake. It was at an angle for a reason. We couldn't get in, but after much jiggling and slipping a wire in, we managed to open without damaging the piece or door. Lesson learned!
2011 Bighorn 3055RL, 2011 F350 DRW 6.7L 4x4 Diesel Lariat and Hensley TrailerSaver BD3, 1992 Jeep ZJ and 1978 Coleman Concord Pop-Up for remote camping
Dave & Renee plus (Champ, Molly, Paris, Missy, and Maggie in spirit), Mica, Mabel, and Melton