Vent cover replaced

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

Eagleman

Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2011
Posts
9
Not as easy as the salesperson or the box made it out to be.  First of all, no instructions as indicated on the box.  Had to climb up on the roof to make sure I had the correct replacement cover.  Whew, I did!  Looked simple enough.  Not really. Decided to "google" information on the job.  Found two You Tube videos.  Didn't match up exactly but close.  Climbed back down and went inside to remove the knob and screen.  Knob came out fine, screen was attached to the whole unit.  Had to get four screws out and remove the unit.  Pondered how to get that arm loose to move it in position to slide it down to the release point.  Should the cover be up or down?  It was trial and error.  One more trip up the ladder.  With the cover fully up, couldn't get to the hinge. Back down to lower the cover and then back up to move the metal tabs to release the cover from the hinge.  Now back down to put the cover back up in open position.  Removed the screws on the base of the arm and slid the arm down to loosen it from the cover.  Now back up to slide out the old cover and replace with new one. Locked tabs in place and back down ladder.  Back inside to reattach the the arm, replace the screen unit and knob.  What sounded like a 5-10 minute job wound up being about an hour with sore knees from up and down the ladder.

Not sure what lesson I learned.  Maybe patience, perseverance, internet research, most jobs take longer than you think,  etc.. 
Back in the RV travel mode after sitting on the sidelines for a year.  Just getting things ready to roll. 
Hope you enjoyed my little story of a simple repair job.


 
Think about it this way.  You got an hour of exercise.  ;)  Seriously, I just bought two covers and am waiting for the heat wave to pass before going up and replacing them.  I'm not following you regarding why they just didn't bolt on.  Are you talking about Camco type vent covers that fit over the vent door or the actual door that cranks open?  I measured the bolt pattern of mine and bought what I think should fit.  It's a standard 14 inch cover.  Each corner has three holes so there is a fair amount of adjustment.  I don't recall 100%, but I thought all I had to do was unscrew the bolts take off the old cover and put on the new one.  What am I overlooking? 

 
The roof vent that cranks open.  My old one had a couple of small holes that allowed rain water to drip in between the driver and passenger seats.  The replacement cover was 14 inch, plastic.  The trick was getting the old cover off working with the hinge up on the roof and the crank which attached to the metal piece on the replacement cover.  My first experience with the process and it was lots of trial and error.

Hope your replacement job is smoother than mine.  I would suggest finding an assistant.  This would prevent multiple trips up and down the ladder! :-[ :(
 
You didn't mention the brand of either the vent or the cover you purchased, so difficult to know if it applies to anybody else's situation. Also, I'm guessing you are talking about the actual lid of the vent, rather than an add-on like the MaxxAir vent "cover". Right?
 
You are correct about the actual lid of the vent.  Not an add-on.  Not sure of the brand of the vent as it is the original on the Jayco class C.  All I needed was the vent lid replaced.  Just suggesting that anyone replacing as I did would probably want an assistant to make the job go a little easier.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
131,749
Posts
1,384,209
Members
137,520
Latest member
jeep3501
Back
Top Bottom