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Haier Refrigerator Install in a 2019 315RLTS

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  • #46
    The slide has now gouged the floor. I've ordered another set of slide slickers as a temporary measure, but will have to figure out how to support the floor better.

    I don't think it's the actual weight of the refrigerator, it's how the weight is being transferred to the floor.

    Here's the Dometic's specs:
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    Now the Haier's:
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    The Dometic was sitting on a platform, and the bottom of the refrigerator is flat. Almost like it's in a tray which is then screwed to the platform.

    The Haier has four rollers and two front adjustable feet that transfer all the weight to the slide floor. That's what I think is causing my problem. I may have to try and recreate the platform...but there's precious little vertical space left. I may have to see if I can remove the rollers from the refrigerator.

    Here's a picture of the "platform" the Dometic sat on:
    Click image for larger version

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    I'd post a picture of the slide floor, but the trailer is buttoned up in anticipation of a visit from Hurricane Zeta. In the meantime, if anyone has an other ideas on how to fix this issue I'd be interested in reading them.

    Howard
    Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

    2017 Ford F-350 DRW, '19 315RLTSPlus

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    • #47
      howson You know now that I think of it we did put a piece of plywood under the new fridge (in addition to the shim piece of plywood that goes under the slide out as it comes in). We had the height to space, and thought it could only help to distribute the weight some. I agree mine was about the same weight as the Dometic, but obviously sitting on rollers is a different animal.
      Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

      Neil Citro
      2018 Reflection 28BH Pepwave
      2019 F350 6.7L Long Bed Crew Cab

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      • #48
        29 Oct 20 -- Removal of Refrigerator to Address Sagging Floor (Just Removal, Part 1)

        First thing I did was remove the black trim on the front of the slide floor. This is a single piece of "L" trim that is nailed in--very easy to remove.

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        With the trim removed the bow is very evident and it is easy to see where the slide is contacting the floor.

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        The electrical cord is long enough that I was able to remove the frig without having to remove the exterior vents (yea!). With the refrigerator removed the bow is still evident, but there's no longer contact with the floor.

        Click image for larger version

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        cont on next post...
        Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

        2017 Ford F-350 DRW, '19 315RLTSPlus

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        • #49
          29 Oct 20 -- Removal of Refrigerator to Address Sagging Floor (Just Removal, Part 2)

          The two pieces of wood running from front-to-back were added by me to secure the base of the refrigerator in place. What I plan on trying, due to very limited additional vertical space in this cavity for the refrigerator, is screw a piece of very hard and strong wood that will cover the entire floor. Then screw those two pieces back into position, to again keep the refrigerator from "walking" backwards and damaging the electrical outlet.

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          As you'll see in the pictures below, removing the wheels or doing anything to modify the base of the refrigerator does not look feasible.

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          As always, constructive suggestions or opinions are much appreciated.

          Howard
          Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

          2017 Ford F-350 DRW, '19 315RLTSPlus

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          • #50
            Howard

            I think what you will find is the installing a better piece of plywood , 3/4" cabinet grade I would guess to be the strongest , is that you will move the bow over to the thin wall between the fridge cavity and the cabinets to the left. When this happens you may cause the thin wall to separate from the slide floor. Getting some kind of attachment from the slide floor to the slide ceiling may be needed but I would be cautious as to moving the problem elsewhere. I think you have opened a can of worms with this project.

            Brian
            Brian & Michelle
            2018 Reflection 29RS
            2022 Chevy 3500HD

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            • #51
              Originally posted by Country Campers View Post
              Howard

              I think what you will find is the installing a better piece of plywood , 3/4" cabinet grade I would guess to be the strongest , is that you will move the bow over to the thin wall between the fridge cavity and the cabinets to the left. When this happens you may cause the thin wall to separate from the slide floor. Getting some kind of attachment from the slide floor to the slide ceiling may be needed but I would be cautious as to moving the problem elsewhere. I think you have opened a can of worms with this project.

              Brian
              I see where you’re going, but given his new fridge weighs about the same as the old one I think reinforcing the floor should help. I agree with Howard his problem looks like where the weight is distributed rather than the total weight. If he can attach the fridge to a stiff enough piece of plywood it should in my mind friction the same as the flat base of the Dometic.

              Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

              Neil Citro
              2018 Reflection 28BH Pepwave
              2019 F350 6.7L Long Bed Crew Cab

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              • #52
                Originally posted by ncitro View Post
                I see where you’re going, but given his new fridge weighs about the same as the old one I think reinforcing the floor should help. I agree with Howard his problem looks like where the weight is distributed rather than the total weight. If he can attach the fridge to a stiff enough piece of plywood it should in my mind friction the same as the flat base of the Dometic.
                Yes , but..........

                Brian
                Brian & Michelle
                2018 Reflection 29RS
                2022 Chevy 3500HD

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                • #53
                  ncitro and Country Campers (and any others that may have an idea!);

                  The blue line is the exaggerated bow in the slide floor. The brown line is the "new" wood I'll put on top. Given that 1) I can't access the bottom of the slide floor and 2) nothing can protrude beneath the slide floor, what's the best method to get the slide floor snug up against the new piece of wood? In other words, I want to "pull" the slide floor bow out of when attaching the wood together.

                  I haven't done any research yet on YouTube or google...hoping there's someone here who's a woodworker that knows a trick or two. Solving this problem will also give me a method to fix the bow in the dinette slide that GD couldn't fix.

                  Click image for larger version

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                  Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

                  2017 Ford F-350 DRW, '19 315RLTSPlus

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                  • #54
                    Howard

                    I do not think the bow is big enough and just using screws would do the job. Make sure to drill clearance holes thru the new plywood so the screws only bite into the slide floor. The only other method I can think is to bring the slide in over top of some shims that would lightly force the slide floor up to a level and flat state. There does not seem like there is enough room under the floor to get a pry bar or something under there to manually do it. If you did this with the slide out you may be able to use a bottle jack , carefully , up under the slide floor to maybe get the bow out.

                    Brian
                    Brian & Michelle
                    2018 Reflection 29RS
                    2022 Chevy 3500HD

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                    • #55
                      Originally posted by howson View Post
                      ncitro and Country Campers (and any others that may have an idea!);

                      The blue line is the exaggerated bow in the slide floor. The brown line is the "new" wood I'll put on top. Given that 1) I can't access the bottom of the slide floor and 2) nothing can protrude beneath the slide floor, what's the best method to get the slide floor snug up against the new piece of wood? In other words, I want to "pull" the slide floor bow out of when attaching the wood together.

                      I haven't done any research yet on YouTube or google...hoping there's someone here who's a woodworker that knows a trick or two. Solving this problem will also give me a method to fix the bow in the dinette slide that GD couldn't fix.

                      Click image for larger version

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                      ​​​​​​​I think screws would work as well, but if you needed more, could you push up the bottom from the outside when the slide it out?

                      Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

                      Neil Citro
                      2018 Reflection 28BH Pepwave
                      2019 F350 6.7L Long Bed Crew Cab

                      Comment


                      • #56
                        howson What about also adding a piece of angle iron to the front of the slide? When you pull in the slide it tilts up so you may be able to get some short carraige screws up into the angle iron from below and bolt it to help straighten and take the load. Then put on your trim again and paint the angle iron black to match everything else. Maybe even get a custom piece of trim to cover it. I think if you put the carriage bolts every 3 inches it would give enough holding strength onto the angle iron.

                        If you could do that along with the plywood it would give you plenty of strength to pull the floor straight. Just not sure if you have enough room or could get short carriage bolts in from below when the slide tilts in but the head of the bolts should clear once in.

                        Rob
                        Rob & Barb
                        2022 RAM 3500 Big Horn, 6.7 Cummins HO/Aisin
                        2022 Solitude 378MBS

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                        • #57
                          howson

                          I would try to push the existing slide floor up to the desired position with the slide out, using a bottle jack and suitable blocking to spread the bottle jack lift across the fridge area. Without the new plywood in place, this will allow you see if you can actually straighten this bow without causing problems in any of the surrounding areas. If all looks good, screws through clearance holes in a stronger piece of new plywood should remove most of the bow although the new plywood will probably sag slightly with the tension load from below.

                          Rob
                          Cate & Rob
                          (with Border Collies Molly & Angel + Kitties Hazel & Elsie)
                          2015 Reflection 303RLS
                          2022 F350 Diesel CC SB SRW Lariat
                          Bayham, Ontario, Canada

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                          • #58
                            Reinstallation After Supporting Floor (1 Nov 20, Post 1 of 2))

                            The first picture below gives you an idea of the "smile"in the plywood even after removing the refrigerator. (Side note--the plywood had returned to it's nominal position after removing the refrigerator.) After supporting the slide from underneath and pushing up (just slightly) in the affected area, the "smile" was removed prior to starting the reinforcement process.

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                            Due to the vertical space limitation I was dealing with, I chose a 15/32" sanded board as the reinforcement. That board was cut down to fit in the space without sticking out into the room (you can't see it) but it supports all four wheels on the refrigerator. The front brace feet don't sit on the wood--they extend down to the slide's floor. (I'll show you that in a pic at the end.) The board was secured to both sides of the cavity with pocket screws (using one of my favorite tools, the Kreg) and then screwed to the slide floor using 9x1" Neoprene Bonded Washer Screws (with 1/4" washers). I chose those screws so the screw's head had lots of "bite" into the top piece of wood.

                            As recommended, I drilled holes in the top piece of wood just large enough for the screw to pass through, then screwed the wood to the slide's base. (Did I use enough screws...lol.)

                            You may spot in the pictures below that I also reinstalled the wood "stops" at the rear to keep the refrigerator from trying to "walk" backwards into the slide. The stops now sit on top of the new wood.


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                            Now the bad news...when the refrigerator was reassembled, installed and the exterior support removed the "smile" returned.

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                            There's nothing else I know that can be done to the floor, so I'm going to use as it currently configured. I'll be using Slide Slickers (with the carpet nubs cut off) to ensure the slide doesn't gouge the floor again.

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                            ...continued on next post...






                            Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

                            2017 Ford F-350 DRW, '19 315RLTSPlus

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                            • #59
                              Reinstallation After Supporting Floor (1 Nov 20, Post 2 of 2)

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                              So why don't I think I'll have an issue with rocking? Because the 'frig just fits. It is crammed into the cavity, with the top hinge covers literally touching the slide trim.

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                              But looking down, you can't see the wood (wife is happy).

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                              Unfortunately, though, there's still the "smile" (if you look closely) after the trim was reinstalled. Part of the issue is the roller (mounted to the floor of the trailer) that is supporting the end of the slide. The next roller is in front of the stove, so any weight between these two creates the "smile". If I could remove the slide and add two more rollers the problem would be solved. But I'm not removing the slide!

                              If you look closely at the picture below, you can see the "feet" in the front of the refrigerator are extended down to the slide.

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                              As I wrote already, I'm going to use it as installed as monitor the slide floor and refrigerator position.

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                              So...would I do this again? Not without having the slide pulled and rollers installed to support the floor. The other alternative is a smaller (lighter) refrigerator. An exact size duplicate of the Dometic 1350 I removed, but in a 12v compressor version, would be ideal and the way to go. (The DW loves the space and features in this 'frig, though!)

                              Hope this helps someone. Fire away if you have questions.

                              Howard
                              Forum moderators are not GD employees--we are volunteers and owners presumably just like yourself. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, we have nothing to gain should you choose to purchase a product or engage a service we discuss on this forum.

                              2017 Ford F-350 DRW, '19 315RLTSPlus

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                              • #60
                                howson
                                Hi Howard,

                                Excellent project documentation of the good and the bad . . . as usual.

                                Did the plywood reinforcement stay tight to the original slide floor and bow to follow the “smile” . . . it looks like it did.
                                There has been discussion elsewhere about folks returning to Grand Design to have a 3/4” slide floor replaced with a 1” slide floor. I could never see where this 1/4” additional floor thickness could make much of a difference. I think you have proved this with a much thicker addition to floor thickness

                                Both of my main slide floors are far more “flexible” than they were when new 5 years ago. Furniture and cabinets move around a lot more than they used to as the slides travel in and out. I use slide slickers to protect the main floor for both. The connection between slide floor and slide walls remains secure . . . but, I am not sure where this is going with more in/out cycles of the slides.

                                Rob
                                Cate & Rob
                                (with Border Collies Molly & Angel + Kitties Hazel & Elsie)
                                2015 Reflection 303RLS
                                2022 F350 Diesel CC SB SRW Lariat
                                Bayham, Ontario, Canada

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