A&E Awning oop's

[jan3dee]

So I'm driving down the road almost to the campground, and I hear a loud crash on the right side, look in the mirror and it's the awning.  It had Come out all by itself and hit a telephone pole.  I thought there was a safety that would not allow this to happen.  Any ideas...

 

[Jim Dick]

So I'm driving down the road almost to the campground, and I hear a loud crash on the right side, look in the mirror and it's the awning.  It had Come out all by itself and hit a telephone pole.  I thought there was a safety that would not allow this to happen.  Any ideas...

Normally there are locks mounted on the arm that you must set manually. they lock the two sections of the arm together preventing the awning from opening. There is a roller lock that holds the roller in place. I've seen some people roll up the awning and then reset the lock. This will allow the awning to open given the right conditions.

 

[NY_Dutch]

There have been numerous reports over the years of strong wind gusts hitting an RV at just the right angle to cause the awning fabric to unroll despite the roller latch being set. Once the fabric balloons out, the arm locks break or slip off and there you go. The only effective prevention is one of several add-on awning roller locks that prevent the roller from turning, even under the most adverse conditions. There are several kinds available, but I prefer and use this one.

 

[jan3dee]

I didn't mention it is the motorized remote awning, and I was only going about 20mph.  There are no locks on this awning.

 

[cbeierl]

Although I've never had a problem after reading of a number of folks whose automatic awnings came open in a strong wind I installed one of these RV Awning Travel Locks .

 

[PancakeBill]

Sounds like the clutch let go.  Do you have the wireless key fob control?  Could it have been touched?  I think there is an ignition override, but somewhere there was a failure.  With the pole being hit, you probably have a lot to replace.  Good luck.

 

[John Canfield]

I moved this back to the Winnebago board due to perhaps a Winnebago unique wiring scenario.

 

[4ducksrus]

I'm wondering if you have a switch that controls the power to the awning along with the actual switch that operates it?  We do and after I retract my awnings (large one and small over the door) I turn off the button the power button for both.  Just a thought!  Not sure if this would prevent it from happening and would like to know if anyone knows if it would?  Thanks

 

[goldwingerx2]

Our switch is located just inside the hinge side of the door behind/beside the passenger seat.  Because of this location I added a protective switch cover to the power switch so it can not be bumped and turned on.  It has served well and Home Depot got a sale.

 

[azloafer]

So I'm driving down the road almost to the campground, and I hear a loud crash on the right side, look in the mirror and it's the awning.  It had Come out all by itself and hit a telephone pole.  I thought there was a safety that would not allow this to happen.  Any ideas...

We use these locks.  Two on the long awning and one on the short awning.  They look nice too.  http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/product/rv-awning-clamp/6430

 

[Seon]

Although my awning is manual, I wrapped a bungie type cord with a one inch plastic "ball" thru the part that attaches to the coach and wrap it around each post.  Bought the bungie cord from Camping World which is cheap insurance  .

 

[cbeierl]

Although my awning is manual, I wrapped a bungie type cord with a one inch plastic "ball" thru the part that attaches to the coach and wrap it around each post.  Bought the bungie cord from Camping World which is cheap insurance  .

Unfortunately, this won't help.  The problem, when it occurs, is that wind gets under the awning fabric and unrolls it--holding the legs in won't stop that.  You need a lock which will prevent the roller from unrolling.

 

[Mavarick]

jan3dee, not sure if your awning has a cover like mine but IMO that would have had to been a strong gust to unroll the awning all the way out going only 20 mph. Do you have a remote control (keyfob) that could have been hit? I keep my remote on my keychain for just that reason. I have hit it before when carrying in my pocket when we are parked.

Question;
I have the A&E weatherpro power awning with the cover. I thought the cover was there to keep this from happening by covering the roller and fabric. On the link Chris provided I see a pic on the exact same awning I have using the lock. Is this overkill or has someone actually had problems with the weatherpro coming open and know it was from wind and not another problem?

 

[Mavarick]

FYI, I couldn't stand it so I looked up and verified my awning does have an ignition interlock. With the key in the on/run position neither the remote key fob or the manual switch by the driver seat will unroll the main or door awning. They have power to roll up but cannot go out.

Jan3dee, with your coach being newer I would assume you have the same interlock which means it must have been wind or a mechanical failure?

 

[THutch]

I also have the A&E weatherpro power awning with the cover as Mavarick has.  I also thought I was immune to this potential problem, as we have the metal cover.  Has anyone had a malfunction with a metal-covered awning?

 

[cbeierl]

Although I don't have a pointer to the posting, I know that somebody with a 36RD just like mine with the metal cover, etc. did report that their awning was blown off their rig.  That's what convinced me to get the lock mentioned in my earlier post in this thread.