Slide roller wear and tear

[allenrude]

Jared on All About RV's did a YouTube recently recounting the issues he was having with roller wear on the underside of his main slide on his 2021 28BH. Same model as I have but mine is a 2022. His issue was that the slide rollers were damaging the OSB on the slide underside as the slide rolls in and out, and he was looking for a long term fix to better support the slide weight and to protect the boards from cracking. He has already replaced the Schwintek with the Vroom slide system, but that in itself does not address this problem. I went right out to inspect my main slide and while my wear was not as severe as his (sure I dont run my slide as much as a full timer), I can clearly see the OSB wearing. His initial fix was not 100% satisfactory and I am sure that he will repost when he gets a successful fix, but as I am sure we ALL have this issue that have OSB on the underside of our slides I was wondering if anyone had addressed this issue with a fix? I do not intent on waiting until this issue becomes critical before I get something in place.

Suggest that you should check out his video as it quite clear where this problem will head over time..

Thanks, Al

[howson]

allenrude -- I watched the video, too. The damage to the underside that he patched I agree with, no question. The indentations in the OSB he's concerned about on the underside of the slide? I'm not convinced at this point. For every "fix" there's an unintended consequence. I've learned that lesson over and over and over again.

I do like that's he's added an addition roller. I'd think that to remove what appears to be too much stress on a given roller the answer could be to add even more rollers. Space them one after another from one side to the other.

We'll see what he comes up with. Kudos to Jared for showing a failure. To save those who may be curious from having to hunt for it, below is the All About RVs video.

Slide Fix Failure

[allenrude]

Hi Howard,

Totally agree as to the unintended consequences. I am concerned that by raising the slide up, by even a small amount may change the alignment of the schwintek gears. Maybe such a small amount would not make a difference as I assume that based on loading of the slide and construction there are small differences in slides even of the same model. I will wait to see what he comes up with. I like adding additional rollers although I am not clear on just how to do it without having to remove the slide box?? I would be happy to add many more to better distribute the slide weight, but is there an easy way to do it without removing the entire slide which sounds like not a small job nor one to be undertaken by the the typical RV owner....

[howson]

allenrude -- all good questions. I wonder if Jared added that extra roller himself or had it installed.

[Frank L]

Hi Howard,

Totally agree as to the unintended consequences. I am concerned that by raising the slide up, by even a small amount may change the alignment of the schwintek gears. Maybe such a small amount would not make a difference as I assume that based on loading of the slide and construction there are small differences in slides even of the same model. I will wait to see what he comes up with. I like adding additional rollers although I am not clear on just how to do it without having to remove the slide box?? I would be happy to add many more to better distribute the slide weight, but is there an easy way to do it without removing the entire slide which sounds like not a small job nor one to be undertaken by the typical RV owner....

FYI; he does not have a schwinteck slide set up It was changed to a Vroom. But agree that it may still change the alignment.

[Jsm180]

This company makes the plates to reinforce the floor. Also have videos explaining the problem and install procedures.

http://talinman.com/

[howson]

This company makes the plates to reinforce the floor. Also have videos explaining the problem and install procedures.

http://talinman.com/

Very interesting--thanks for posting that information. I hadn't heard of this company.

[allenrude]

All,

i would be very interested to hear from anyone that has either replaced slide rollers or added extra to what they already have? At a minimum i would want to add a couple more, especially under the 16 cu foot refrigerators as every time the slide goes in and out the fridge bounces around so clearly it gyrating on something. Its also the most weight on the slide so assume thats the area that would get damaged first. I consider this more of a "will happen", rather than a "may happen", depending how long you keep the RV and how often you open and close the slide.

Lippert appears to sell a roller that screws to the front ledge where the rubber seals attach, just not sure if the size matches the current rollers. If they did this would be a pretty easy add.


Let me know what you think?

[howson]

allenrude -- is there any Lippert documentation or a part number associated with that roller?

[allenrude]

Lippert SKU
276288

They call these a J-36 service roller. Only question is, are these the same height from the floor once installed as the ones currently on the slide? It would help to know from DG if they used a Lippert roller to start with and the model/SKU and then should be an easy exercise to match up. If in fact they are the same then this would be a relatively easy and inexpensive project which would then distribute the load across a much wider area of the slide floor.

[allenrude]

Time for an update. I bought one of the rollers and installed it today. I removed the weather strip and had to gently jack up the slide just a tad to get installed. I also had to remove a small piece of the linoleum floor because it wanted to bunch up under the new roller. I put the first one under the fridge as it where most of the weight is located. I will add a second in the slide center as there is not one there and a third toward the other side of the slide. I tested today and ran the slide in and out. All rollers were supporting the weight with no issues. Will complete tomorrow and button up. So will end up with 7 rollers vice the origional 4. So while this does not necessarily address the wear issue of the rollers to the underside of the slide, it does significantly spread out the load. I will add another picture once completed.

[howson]

I will add another picture once completed.

Very interesting. I look forward to the additional pictures. I'm having a hard time visualizing how the roller interacts (or doesn't?) with the lower wiper seal.

[allenrude]

Hi Howard,

Looks like there are 3 wipers of different lengths for the slide. I will test to see if any could get caught in the rollers when the slide is closed. It going to be close and I may have to remove a small section of one of the wipers so it does not catch in the roller. I dont think losing a small part of one will affect anything. I will enclose some more pictures when I get completed this evening.

Thanks
AL

[allenrude]

OK, all is complete and i now have 7 rollers vice 4. The wiper seals were not an issue as they were to short to get caught in the new rollers when retracting the slide. Could not have fit better. The center roller and far left required almost no jacking of the slide to install. Clearly the heaviest part of the slide is the one holding the 16cuft fridge. The resty of the slide contains the 80 inch Recpro sofa that I installed to replace the dinette that I de-installed that was not very comfortable. The sofa is not the pullout bed but the theater seats so does not weigh much more than the dinette. Tested in and out a couple of time and even seems to slide more stable than before. So while to early to do the victory dance, time will tell if having the weight distributed over additional rollers causes more even wear and negates the need to take advantage of Jareds eventual fix.

[howson]

OK, all is complete and i now have 7 rollers vice 4. The wiper seals were not an issue as they were to short to get caught in the new rollers when retracting the slide. Could not have fit better. The center roller and far left required almost no jacking of the slide to install. Clearly the heaviest part of the slide is the one holding the 16cuft fridge. The resty of the slide contains the 80 inch Recpro sofa that I installed to replace the dinette that I de-installed that was not very comfortable. The sofa is not the pullout bed but the theater seats so does not weigh much more than the dinette. Tested in and out a couple of time and even seems to slide more stable than before. So while to early to do the victory dance, time will tell if having the weight distributed over additional rollers causes more even wear and negates the need to take advantage of Jareds eventual fix.

Definitely going to follow your lead on this one, Allen. Did you order the rollers directly from Lippert or another source?