Lazy Daze Owners' Group

Experiment in End Cap Repair

January 20, 2020, 03:21:42 pm

Among this forum’s most discussed topics is end cap cracks and repair.  It’s a topic we have followed by necessity.

When we bought our new-to-us 2011 27’ mid-bath in June of 2017, there were no end cap cracks, even after six years in the Arizona sun.  After just one year in Encinitas, CA, cracks developed in the rear end caps.  We park Sidra with the rear to the south, giving it lots of sun most days.

This past weekend we repaired the two biggest cracks with aluminum strips bedded in Loctite PL Window, Door & Siding Sealant (formerly PL S40).  We chose aluminum strips, in part, because we can paint them to match the adjacent color.  (We haven’t yet painted the repairs.  I need to research how to best prepare the aluminum for paint.)

Following are the details of our procedure.

Materials

• 3/4” x 1/16” x 36” angle aluminum (from our local big box store); 3/8” x 1/8” x 6” flat stock would have been better
• #8 x 1/2” stainless steel pan head phillips screws
• Loctite PL Window, Door & Siding Sealant
• acetone and/or isopropyl alcohol
• Painters tape
• Disposable gloves

Procedure

• From the aluminum angle, cut 3/8” x 1/8” x 6” strips; I used a hacksaw; it would have been easier with a small table saw or band saw.
• File and sand the strips smooth.
• Hand bend/fit each strip over the crack to be covered.  This is a bit of an art.  However, for those with experience bending metal, it’s pretty easy, aluminum being soft and forgiving.  Each strip will be a bit different; track which strip goes where.
• Mark and trim the excess length, sand smooth, and test fit again.
• Measure 3/8” from each end, mark, center punch, and drill a 7/32” hole (clearance holes for stainless screws).
• Perfectly align each strip over the crack and mark the wholes and top and bottom of the strip (as a guide for later masking) on the end cap.
• Drill 1/8” pilot holes 3/8” deep through the end cap and aluminum skin.
• Carefully screw the strip to the end cap and then remove.
• Mask the end cap.
• With gloves on and a lint free cloth, clean the aluminum strip and masked off end cap with acetone followed by isopropyl alcohol.
• Apply sealant.
• Attach aluminum strip with stainless steel screws.
• Clean off excess sealant and remove masking.
• Have a libation.

Yeah, so that’s what we did.  How do you think it’s going to fail?  If and when it does, we will most likely remove the mess and cover it with Eternabond, which is probably what we should have done to begin with.

Jim

Re: Experiment in End Cap Repair

Reply #2 – January 20, 2020, 06:16:31 pm

Great job, Jim! Thanks for sharing the details.

"3/8" x 1/8" x 6" flat stock would have been better"

McMaster-Carr is your friend. They have just about any kind of metal stock you could ask for, and they'll typically put it on your doorstep in a couple of days.