Bathroom Door Handle Failure

[canuckowner]

Hey ya'll,

It has been so wonderful to be back in the Jayco for another season. We just got back from a 5 night trip.

Unfortunately we had one small issue to deal with. The bathroom door handle broke. When we arrived at our campsite the DW said the bathroom door was locked shut. I could hardly believe it, but sure enough it was closed and locked (or so it seemed). So I unscrewed the door handle and pulled it off and pushed the other side through leaving only the bolt and interior mechanism in place. I tried to manually move the bolt but it was not going anywhere despite being able to get good movement with the internal mechanisms. Ended up having to use plyers to rip the bolt out and fortunately didnt damage the door. When I was able to gain entry to the washroom I quickly picked up the other half of the door handle to see if it had been "locked" and it was in the unlocked position... the door handle had failed.

So today I have been trying to track down a new door handle. Apparently residential hardware wont fit so I have called a couple of dealers but they have nothing in stock. Just sent an email to the dealer who sold me the trailer to see if it might be covered by warranty (unlikely I know) and if not to see if they can order a proper replacement.

I have never seen anyone else on this forum with a similar problem. So maybe I am the lucky one to get to start a new thread on the subject!

(BTW I would appreciate if anyone has advice on where to order replacement hardware in case my dealer is little help. Checked camping world website and didnt find anything)

thanks.

[Murphie]

Well how about that. I had the exact same problem. I was really surprised that to read your post. My wife discovered the door locked and the lock set had definitely failed. I opened the door by using two tools to slide the latch back. Once I got it by the strike plate I was able to open it. I haven't replaced it but will have to add it to the list. I wonder if there is a way to remove the locking mechanism.

[Locky66]

Where have you checked for the lockset.? A residential one will work. You need one with a 2 3/8" backset and you will more than likely have to chisel out some wood of the hole in your frame to allow the new latch to latch into it. Check with their cheaper ones. The better quality ones like Schlage need a 2 1/8" hole in the door and I believe the holes in the trailer door are only a 2" hole. If you have any questions just email me. I've been a Locksmith for 28 years.

[3'senough]

Try RVlocksandmore.com

[canuckowner]

Originally Posted by Locky66

Where have you checked for the lockset.? A residential one will work. You need one with a 2 3/8" backset and you will more than likely have to chisel out some wood of the hole in your frame to allow the new latch to latch into it. Check with their cheaper ones. The better quality ones like Schlage need a 2 1/8" hole in the door and I believe the holes in the trailer door are only a 2" hole. If you have any questions just email me. I've been a Locksmith for 28 years.

Thanks Locky,

We picked up a nice residential lockset and it does in fact fit with the following mods:

1) shorter screws are needed because the door is so thin, but that is an easy fix
2) as you suggested we have needed to enlarge the hole that the bolt goes through to get the new mechanism in, but that was fairly easy as well

The new lockset is of better quality and also has the ability to be unlocked from the outside with a butter knife or flat screwdriver, which is good with our young kids.

The downside is that the screws are now on the inside of the bathroom, so if this handle ever fails i'll be needing a hacksaw or axe to change it out!

Thanks for your advice.

[Locky66]

I was glad to be of help.