Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

For those of you using a concealed piano type hinge for your door...I noticed when washing the tear and driving in a downpour across Nevada...I got some water through the hinge gaps on the knuckle of it. Not a lot, but enough that I wanted to do something to stop it...There is no clearance to allow any sort of weatherstripping, without damaging the hinge, or stressing the screws, however I'm sure there are differences in the hinges..I'm using Grants because they really strengthen the door. Anyway, what I used was a 1.25" piece of rip stop nylon full length...and stuck it down on both sides of the hinge using double faced thin carpet tape...you can't put the tape down the knuckle of the hinge at all...just attach it to the 2 sides leaving the material in the middle unattached...make sure you allow enough material for when the door is full open...seems to have worked, material is shown on the hinge in tan...see the light colored dashes?...that's where the water gets in, although it is not as bad when closed...just an idea...Doug

This is what I did, I used an open cell foam near the pin (charcoal colored). It stops most of it from coming in.
Closer to the inside of the hinge, I used a rubbery type P shaped weatherstripping (white colored). It sits in the offset so it doesn't have to squish too much. It continues along the bottom so any water will go towards the outside.

Click the thumbnails for bigger picture:
Door closed
Door open

Doug, I used a bicycle intertube behind my Paino hinges and it doesn't leak a drop so far.

Rocky...where did you get the P shaped stripping? I haven't found something like that, that's why I did what I did...but then I didn't do a big search...just what I found locally....Doug

Jim...I think I know what you are saying when you say behind...but our hinges may be different....got a pic? I checked your album and didn't see any...thanks...Doug

I think I got it at Home Depot. The roll came in a yellow box (not a bag). It was one piece, 2 round ends with a flat in the middle, you had to separate the two halves to get 2 P-shaped pieces. I'll check the garage to see if there is some floating around.

If I find it...I'll pull this off and give it a try, and if you know what it is officially called that would be helpful, I'm sure there is some sort of name for it other than weatherstripping, but it may be one of those things...you can get it there, but not typical stock here...thanks...Doug

Doug i used the p shaped stripping on the door t-molding works good it will flatten down really thin,i got mine at Lowes.

doug hodder wrote:If I find it...I'll pull this off and give it a try, and if you know what it is officially called that would be helpful, I'm sure there is some sort of name for it other than weatherstripping, but it may be one of those things...you can get it there, but not typical stock here...thanks...Doug

It sounds like the same thing I used. I bought it at Ace hardware. It is made by Frost King. It is called X-treme Rubber Weatherseal. It comes in a box. It has a "P" profile. The role is 3/8"wide 7/32"thick and 17'long (Actually it is two strips 8 1/2 ft each).

Hope that helps.

Here is a picture of the box.

Hello, All

I have a Hunter Shadow Teardrop and so does
Dave and Kathy McGrath who have a large
selection of pictures on their website and I will
use some here to show how this issue of leaking
is dealt with in the Shadow. http://campadk.com/pjsnoozer



As you can see they use a rubber to cover the
outside of the piano hinge. I have never had a
leak with this method in place.

Also the hurricane hinge has the same type of covering on the Shadow.

Thanks Endo, that's the same stuff. I looked for the box but I remembered that I actually installed the weatherstripping the last time we camped at Inks Lake. At least while I was looking for the box, I found some other things that I've been hunting for.

Doug, even though my hinge has weather stripping on the inside I put a bicycle inner tube on the outside with a couple of 1/2" strips of aluminum trim. I did this since I noticed the weather stripping was getting crushed and tiny rays of light were coming through. It gives a nice finished look too. Scratches complements of Western Trailer Repair Seattle where I purchased my alum skins. Danny

Thanks everyone...I'll look for that weatherstripping...the inner tube idea is a good one, but my doors are on and siliconed behind the hinges...I don't want to take them off now, and something on the exterior is going to ruin the "woody look"...I did what I did as it seemed like the easiest way out from a door that is already hung...probably shoulda thunk that one through before...the first trailer didn't have the problem though...oh well...live and learn...Doug

Hi Doug,

I had the same concern...ruining the woody look.

I used stainless piano hinges, and covered them like they did it in the old days.

Back then, a piece of treated canvas wrapped around the outside of the hinge, and was secured behind the hinge on both sides by the hinge screws.

Being that canvas wasn't a great outdoor material, they didn't last long, but they did work well while it lasted.

I chose a vinyl material, such as is used for automobile vinyl tops.
I used a buckskin color to help blend in with the wood.



Since the trailer is stored inside, I expect to get 10 years or so out of it before age takes its toll.

In ten years, it will be time for close inspection of several areas anyway to maintan or renew seals.

Rob

I think I'll do it like that on the next one....Doug