Expert Answers about Trailer Door Hinges

• What Could Cause Ramp Door on Enclosed Car Hauler to Become Out of Line
• It is difficult to say what exactly may have caused the ramp door on your enclosed car hauler to come out of alignment. It could be a bad hinge or something could have been damaged on the door itself with the previous owner, which over time lead to the door coming more and more out of line. We do offer some ramp door replacement parts, such as the Polar Hardware Ramp Door Hinge # PLR1902 if you find that the hinges should be replaced. I have included a link that will take you to our available...
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• Overhead Door Springs On Enclosed Trailer Frequently Breaking
• With your over head garage door springs frequently breaking you may not have the correct capacity springs for your door. We have kits that range from 80LBS # M374FR up to 250LBS # CB250D96SHD. The weight rating is not the door weight but the amount of force required to raise the door at any given point. The easiest way to check this is with a scale while raising the door. If you can tell me the weight you are seeing on a scale I can help find the correct system for your door. The Ramp...
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• Rear Door on Circle J Horse Trailer Has Play in It when Closed
• From what I could find the Circle J horse trailers use a sort of cam-lock design similar to what you might see on a big rig trailer # 383200 or a side door bar lock like # 305736. These designs work fine until something gets knocked out of alignment. The most likely cause is damage to the door or a hinge problem. If the door is warped or if you are able to wiggle the door at the hinges then that would be the issue. Straightening out the door or repairing it as needed and repairing the...
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• Troubleshooting Lippert SolidSteps That Are Blocking The Screen Door From Closing
• Is your SolidStep Manual Fold-Down Steps for 29" to 36" Wide RV Door Frames # LC791575 hinge sitting flat on the bottom of the door frame? The hinge will need to sit flat up against the bottom and outside edge of the door frame like you can see in the attached video around the 7 minute mark. If not, that could be causing the bind up with your screen door. Typically the screen door is anywhere from 1/4"-1/2" above the door frame with a brush weather strip to keep out bugs so it shouldn't...
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• Troubleshooting Lippert SolidStep RV Steps That Prevent Entry Doors From Closing
• If your doors won't close when the SolidStep Manual Fold-Down Steps # LC733931 are down then you'll need to see exactly where the hang up is. I'm assuming that the hinge plate is sitting too high above the threshold and the doors are coming into contact with it. If the screen door is the issue then you can easily trim the door down a bit to increase the gap you have for the steps. You'll need a minimum gap of 1/4" between the threshold and the screen door. Weather-stripping can be installed...
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• Trailer Signal Lights Malfunctioning After Installing Optronics Tail Light
• From what I can see in your question, it seems like the most likely cause for the signal lights on your trailer to be malfunctioning after installing the Optronics Sealed Stop, Turn and Tail Light # STL78RB is the ground connection on your trailer. You mentioned grounding the white wire from the new light to the metal body of the door hinges. I strongly recommend finding a more suitable ground on the main trailer frame for this wire. A weak or bad ground can certainly lead to many different...
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• Can a Pace Trailer Ramp Be Adjusted to Open Easier After the Torsion Ramp Spring Cable Breaks
• Since your Pace trailer was using an Enclosed Trailer Ramp Spring and you want the spring to function again, you will need to have a qualified professional work on it, one with experience with torsion springs (like a garage door company). Without the cable and spring in good working order, the ramp will never operate as easily as it did before. That is unless you repair the old spring or install a new one. I have included a link to our springs. You may be able to use Ramp Spring # RS16933LH...
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• Troubleshooting Up and Down Play with Fulton Swing Away Hinge Kit on a Magic Tilt Boat Trailer
• Thanks for sending pictures! The titanium shims you installed are just fine, but note that the inch of play is absolutely normal per my contact at Cequent Corporation. The Fulton Fold-Away coupler hinge kit you referenced is most likely very similar to # FHDPB330301. Your aluminum trailer is not intended to work with the coupler hinge kit because it's steel. Drilling holes on your aluminum Magic Tilt boat trailer is a safety concern and over time it will break.
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• How to Open The Lid On The Bright Way Push-to-Test Trailer Breakaway Kit
• To load/unload the Replacement 12V 5 Ah Battery for Bright Way Trailer Breakaway Kits # 3801250 in your Bright Way Push-to-Test Trailer Breakaway Kit with 1-Amp Charger and 5 Ah Battery # 3802308 you will just need to un-snap the lid latch and lift. If there is no movement, the hinge may be damaged and be preventing you from fully opening it. I recommend continuing to try and open the box, however if it still does not open I recommend just replacing the entire kit with # 3802308.
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• Recommended Replacement Hinge For Continuous Hinge Style Roof Vents
• If the vent lid you have has a metal continuous hinge like the # BV0554-01 then you could crimp the hinge a bit to better clasp onto your roof vent. If you got the plastic hinge like # BVD0449-A03 then you'll want to swap to the MaxxAir UniMaxx Universal Replacement Lid for RV and Trailer Roof Vent - Translucent White # MA00-335001 instead. This vent lid comes with brackets that can be bolted to the side of the vent so that you never have to worry about fitment or the lid falling off.
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• How to Remove an Old Roof Vent Cover
• There are a few different types of roof vent covers and the type of hinge they have is going to dictate how they are removed/installed and the tools required to do so. If your Haulmark trailer has a roof vent with a continuous hinge then you will most likely need a screwdriver to remove the screen/support arm and then a pair of pliers to slide the hinge out of the track. I have attached an install video on a roof vent with a continuous hinge for you. If you can let me know what type of...
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• Replacement Trailer Vent Lid Options For Unknown Trailer Roof Vents
• Unfortunately, your RV information does not provide much insight into the vents you would have. I could not locate any vents that you got from us to take a look at them, so I am not entirely sure what you are referencing. I tried looking up the Elixir models you mentioned but did not find much information on them. Other than with the hinge being the issues, it sounds like you are replacing the vent lid and not the entire vent. Fitment issue for a vent would come from the cut-out measurement...
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• Replacement Ramp Hinges for Enclosed Trailer
• If your trailer is brand new and recently purchased ideally you would return to the dealer to have the ramp corrected. The amount of misalignment you describe seems excessive for a brand new trailer. If the trailer is parked on uneven ground the ramp may tend to lean to the low side; this happens just from the weight of the ramp twisting the hinge. If the ramp leans over even on flat ground then there may be damage to the hinges that secure it to the trailer structure or the ramp itself...
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• How to Remove a Broken Roof Vent Dome Cover on a Trailer
• The removal of an old vent cover is usually not very difficult, but the exact process will depend on the brand of the vent. Typically, the first steps are to remove the handle, the screen and, in some cases, the lower or interior trim piece. Next, you will want to determine how the arm is attached to the cover and base. The arms slide along either a plastic or metal track that is attached to the vent cover. The arms are usually held to the vent base and handle with screws, which would...
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• Are There Replacement Bushings for Fold-Away Coupler Hinge Kits
• I cannot speak for all fold-away coupler hinge kits but the ones we offer, the Fulton Fold-Away Coupler Hinge Kit part # FHDPB230101, part # FHDPB330301, and part # FHDPB350101 do not contain any bushings. It can be rather difficult to just look at a bolt or hinge pin and determine whether or not it has stretched or deformed but I would be willing to bet that is the issue you are having. The loose connection between these bolts and pins is a rather serious safety issue so I highly recommend...
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• Removing Rusted Hinge Pin on Trailer
• You can try heating the nipple with a torch and then using a punch to drive out the pin. Be gentle with the heat, as the idea is to get the nipple to expand without heating the pin to the extent that it expands as well. When driving the pin out, be careful not to mushroom the end of the pin. For multiple hinges, you might have to remove the pins a little at a time. If that does not work, you will have to use an angle grinder to remove the nipple and pin completely, then start over with...
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• Trailer Running Lamp Circuit of 2018 Chevy 2500 Not Working At Trailer Connector
• Lets begin with the non-functional trailer running lamp circuit. I'd suspect a fuse in the engine compartment fuse block in location # 15. Replace the fuse but before plugging the trailer back in, you'll want to closely examine the running lamp circuit on the trailer and its trailer connector to locate the short and repair it or you continually blow fuses. This could be an intermittent problem caused by a loose connection or some cracked or worn wire insulation on the wire in the running...
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• Troubleshooting Wear On Folding Hitch And Recommendations For Hardware
• If your bolts are getting loose, I recommend using Loctite Threadlocker 262 - High Strength - Up to 3/4" Nuts/Bolts - 0.20-Fl-Oz Tube # LT37420 and torquing your bolts to the manufacturer specs. The Loctite will keep the bolts from coming loose and prevent further wear because of loose hardware. If you need to replace the unit you currently have due to the oblong holes, I recommend the Fulton Fold-Away Coupler Hinge Kit for 3" x 3" Tongue - Bolt On - Up to 5,000 lbs # FHDPB330301. Unfortunately...
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• RV Steps Move Slowly After Installing Replacement Motor LC301695
• If your RV steps extend more slowly with new motor # LC301695 than they used to with their original motor in place then the issue is likely to be either a weak electrical/ground connection to the motor, a mechanical problem with the step hinge mechanism or that the motor is not geared the same way as the original. I would start off checking the ground since this is the easiest thing to fix. If you can hear the motor operate and see the steps move as soon as you hit the extend switch then...
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• Troubleshooting Ground Circuit on Trailer
• Good job in testing using a different trailer! You've effectively eliminated the tow vehicle as being the problem. You are absolutely on the right track in suspecting a ground problem to be the cause of the issues you're having. The fact that none of the lighting functions are working would tend to rule out a loose connection or broken wire. A trailer connector will typically ground to the trailer tongue. From the trailer connector, trace the white wire to where it attaches to the trailer...
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