A Big Stretch

by Bob Livingston | Oct 27, 2023 | Pro Tip, RVEXPERT

a man stands on the balls of his feet, reaching overhead to close an external compartment door on an RV

Photos by author

Closing the fifth wheel’s large pass-through compartment door took super long arms or a big tug on the side to release the magnets holding it up. A simple pull handle made the process seamless.

Exterior compartment doors are typically held in the open position with magnets placed on the sidewalls. It’s an arrangement that works well — unless you’re height-challenged. When it comes time to close the compartment door, owners who are shorter find themselves grabbing the side of the door to pull it way from the magnets.

That technique works — but over time, the door can become warped and not make good contact with the magnets. When that happens, it’s possible for the door to come crashing down on your head, especially when it’s windy. And, of course, the door always hits that part of your head where hair is sparse and there’s a lack of “cushioning.”

A good solution is to install a “grab handle” right in the center of the door. I found an old Coil n’ Wrap loop strap in my junk box that fit the bill perfectly, but trying to find that exact strap outside of an RV show was difficult. Fortunately, there are other such straps on the market, and when I searched the Internet for “nylon strap with loop and grommet” I found a few that would also work. For example, Amazon offers a pack of two Boncas Hood Loop Straps for only $7.99.

two drills, an old Coil n’ Wrap nylon strap, and a container of Isopropyl Alcohol sit a on wood box at the opening of an RV tool storage compartment

An old Coil n’ Wrap nylon strap with a loop handle was stuffed in my junk box and called into service. While this strap is difficult to find (this brand of organizers is typically found in RV shows) there are others on Amazon.

The installation could not get any easier. I simply drilled out the rivet that held the edge molding in place and used the same hole to attach the strap through the grommet. If there is no rivet, drill a pilot hole in the same vicinity. As luck would have it, a #8 x ¾-inch lath screw had a large enough head to cover the grommet and provide plenty of bite to secure the strap.

a pilot hole is drilled into the edge molding on the compartment door

The first step was to drill out the rivet holding the edge molding on the compartment door that happened to be in the right place. If not, just drill a pilot hole in the same area.

a #8 x ¾-inch lath screw is placed through the straps grommet and is held close to the compartment door edge

A #8 x ¾-inch lath screw had a large enough head to cover the grommet in the strap. Some other strap brands will have larger grommets, which will require the use of a washer.

the RV technician carefully drills the lath screw through the strap grommet into the compartment door's edge molding

Use caution when driving the screw into the compartment door with a cordless tool — the door material is normally not that robust — and make sure the screw is not too long with the potential to protrude though the exterior panel.

Some of the other straps might have larger grommets, which means you’ll have to add a washer. Also, measure the thickness of the compartment door before driving the screw to make sure it won’t penetrate through the door.

with the compartment door closed, a hand loops a finger through the strap now hanging beyond the closed compartment door

Oops. After the first try, I realized that the strap was going to stick out the bottom of the compartment door when closed. This jammed the frame and presented an eyesore.

view of the strap and open compartment door after a piece of hook-and-loop fastener material was applied to the inside of the door

A piece of hook-and-loop fastener material was applied to the inside of the strap loop and on the door. This keeps the strap from moving when the door is closed. Problem solved.

Like all great ideas, this one needed tweaking. When the door is closed, the strap fell out of the bottom of the frame, jamming the door and creating an eyesore. To fix this problem, I simply attached a piece of hook-and-loop material to the inside of the strap loop and the compartment door. Now it’s just a matter of pulling it away from the door when needed and “sticking” it back before closing.

And, of course, now I don’t need a big stretch and tippy toes to reach the top of the compartment door.

the RV techninican, with a light grasp on the compartment strap, pulls it down to close the compartment door

No more stretching and getting on your tippy toes to close the compartment door from the top center point, which will also prevent warping the door when pulling from the sides.

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