How do I extend my outdoor kitchen door higher?

[NevadaRookie]

I want to increase the height that my outdoor kitchen door opens so I stop hitting my head on it. Is there an easy way to change out the gas springs to a different size or do I need to move the brackets? Thanks for your help.

[PAThwacker]

[JRscooby]

Maybe just make couple tie rods, about 4 inches long, mounted in between cylinder and wall. When first open, cylinder would not hold open as wide, but lift door, force tie rod to break over-center, would move the lower end of cylinder up 4 inches.

[APT]

I recommend disconnecting the current struts and testing how far it can swing up and measuring how long of new struts. Or possible no struts if you can use magnets like for slam latch doors against the trailer for full 180 degrees opening.

[Grit_dog]

If you unhook the gas struts and it has more range of motion in the hinge then the problem is pretty easily solved. Just gotta move the brackets a bit and possibly change the length of the shocks.
If the door will fold all the way up flat against the camper like most storage compartments you may be able to slap a couple latches on the sides similar to other storage doors for a simple solution if you don’t want to re mount or change the shocks.

[BarneyS]

Here is the forum picture posting site that was mentioned above.

If you will follow these directions exactly, it is very easy to post pictures on our forums. One of our moderators, 1492, developed this photo posting app to post your pictures. It works for other internet sites also. There is no need to have a separate hosting site for your pictures in order to use it.

It is very simple to use. Follow these directions exactly. Do NOT make any changes to the results when you get them.
1. Upload your picture from your computer to the app.
2. Copy the resulting URL.
3. Paste that URL into your post

without ANY changes. No additions or deletions.

Your picture will then appear in your post and be properly sized for use on our forums.:)

Note: Norton Lifelock does not like the site for some reason. I, and others, use it regularly without issue. When I get the red "Dangerous Webpage Blocked" message I just click on "continue to the site" down at the bottom and everything is ok. Have been doing this since 2014.

[MFL]

OP and John...to use the forum picture post is easy, and does everything but furnish the pic. It's easiest to just google rv.net photo posting to get there, and just follow easy instructions.

Jerry

[JRscooby]

Before you put longer shocks on stock brackets, be sure there is room between mounts when door is closed

[JBarca]

OK, with more info, it appears what was supplied at the factory is lifting the door as far as the shocks will go. Just that height is not enough. I'm 72" tall without shoes on, so I would clunk into it as well. I can feel the headache coming on now...

Not knowing what your door brackets etc. are like, it is hard to help tell you to how to change what you have.

It sounds like you are on the right track by increasing the stroke length in the same mounting locations from the door hinge. With longer shocks with the correct strength, you gain more stroke but do not add more stress on the mounting brackets. Moving the existing shock mounting points closer to the hinge point will gain more door movement, but it will increase the stress on the bracket as the lever effect is now larger.

If, by chance, the old shock can release the ball socket on the shock from the mounting bracket, and the ball socket is the same size as the new shock, maybe you can remove the old shock and put the new shock on the old brackets. You can release the shock from the ball end on the mounting bracket for some of those gas shocks. And some you can't, and you are stuck changing the whole bracket. You may get lucky and can change just the shock and use the old brackets.

Posting pics, there is a way to do this using the forum file server; I'm unsure how. Someone else can chime in on that. I link my pics to the forum from my Flickr photo hosting site. If you have an online photo site system that allows 3rd party linking, and the file ends in jpeg, you can use the postage stamp icon. It will request a picture URL, fill that in, and the picture will view here. Make sure to fill in a max of 640 pixels wide, not to create scrolling of the screen. You can leave the height blank; the system will resize it to 640 wide by whatever proportion fits the height. There used to be a rule not to post pics more than 640 wide; I think it is still in effect as I see the moderators resizing pics still.

Hope this helps

John

[NevadaRookie]

Thanks for your help John. We just bought a used 2011 Coachman Chaparral Lite 29BHS. Great condition but we are making some upgrades. The outdoor kitchen door extends out to 70” above the ground. I’m 73” tall. If it’s an easy fix it would be really nice to not have to duck under it or accidentally hit my head on it. Again.
The 20” gas shocks do look like they are working properly, they are completely extended, and they will not extend any further. I already bought 26” gas shocks to replace but quickly realized I’ll have to make some adjustments to the mounting brackets - and hoping I didn’t have to add more holes and have to remove the fridge to get access to do it.
I’ll post a photo if I can figure that out.

[JBarca]

Do you know if the current gas shocks are fully extended out, OR are they sagging, and you can lift the door further?

Posting a pic helps, too, so we can see what you are up against. If you are hitting your head on it, that seems low. By answering the above question, you may determine if the shocks have leaked some gas. If there is more stroke left, as you can lift it higher, then either the gas shocks have leaked out, making them weaker, or they may be slightly undersized from day one.

They do make stronger shocks, and they also make different stroke lengths. I would not remount the existing shock just yet until you sort out what the problem is.

You did not mention if you bought the camper new and this has always done this, or you bought it used and or the door has come down over time. That info also helps.

Hope this helps.

John