Slide seal trim pulling away from exterior wall on 2019 374TH

[Tall1]

Hello all, have a couple questions. I recently noticed an issue on the Schwintek slides on my 374TH. The exterior aluminum seal trim has pulled away from the body, affecting the bottom 1' of the aluminum trim (see pictures) I've noticed a few screws have backed out or are missing entirely as well. This has split the silicon used for sealing this area too. The two front living room slides have the most separation and the one bedroom slide has a slight problem. This separation is visibly evident when the slides are fully retracted but the separation closes up and is not noticeable when the slides are opened fully. My theory is that the slides, when closed, are being sucked in a bit tighter on top, causing stress to the bottom area which has resulted in the separation issue. When the slides are opened fully, the stress goes away and the weight of the slide hanging , closes up the gap. Is there any kind of adjustment to the Schwintecs that can be made to equalize the closed force? They appear to be pulling in evenly, so I dont suspect a jumped tooth or anything. Also the front two slides are the worst and the bedroom is only slightly off, so it appears to be a problem common to all of the Schwintec slides on my rig. I know I'll need to reseal the affected areas too, so what would be the recommendation for sealant (silicon?)? Also, anyone have any tricks for keeping screws from backing out? Ive used Elmers glue squirted into the hole with screws that still have thread, as well as the toothpick trick for screws that are stripped. The glue is pretty much a permanent fix. I know it would be a good thing to be able to remove the screws if needed in the future. Anyone have better ideas for keeping these screws in and tight? TIA...

[TucsonJim]

Regarding the screws. I think you're close with the glue and toothpick solutions. I'd fill the hole with wood glue, then insert the toothpicks. Once the glue dries completely, I'd snap off the toothpicks and run the screws in.

Jim

[Jlawles2]

Glue and toothpicks work great.

My approach has been completely different from Jim's suggestion. I use my scribe to figure out about how long the toothpicks need to be, trim to length, glue and fill the hole, then immediately insert the screw. Their wood glue will adhere to the screw slightly but not to the point that it's impossible to remove. The screw acts as a clamp to drive the toothpicks into place and hold squeezing out a bit of glue for a good solid fit without the brittleness that you get when the glue hardens.