Why It’s Important To Check Your RV’s Frame

I was recently sitting around the campfire while camping with some friends, and as it typically does, the conversation turned to RVs.

One friend mentioned that he had studied RVs at length before he purchased one himself. He had looked at RVs built by the same manufacturer as my travel trailer and discounted that manufacturer, as he didn’t like the way the A-frames on their travel trailers were designed, especially like my A-frame designed for travel trailers with higher clearance.

Having been in the RV industry for most of my life, I somewhat disregarded his opinion, as I could count on one hand the number of A-frame failures I had encountered in over forty years.

However, as I was doing some other work on the front of my trailer, his words came back to me and I decided to take a closer look. Sure enough, there were stress cracks where the A-frame met the first crossmember on the door side. I found the same thing when I examined the opposite side.

Luckily, I know how to weld and have a welder (and a long extension cord) at home and was able to repair the trailer the same day as we had a trip planned the next day.

As I pointed out a while back when my entry door lock failed, my wife and I log considerably more miles than the average RVer. In addition, we like to boondock, which puts us on rougher roads than most RVers are comfortable with, so the chances of this happening to your travel trailer is much less likely.

However, it emphasizes the fact in being diligent and checking your frame along with other items that we seldom check, but ought to, like lug nuts, spare tire pressure, water heater anode (out of sight, out of mind type things), etc.

This is not a one-size-fits-all solution type of repair. If you find signs of failure with your RV’s frame, I highly recommend you take it to a certified frame shop.

Finding a serious safety issue on your RV immediately before departing on a trip—just another adventure in RVing!

This information is for educational purposes. VIARV shall not be responsible nor retain liability for RVer’s use of the provided information. Prior to making any RV service decision, you are advised to consult with an RV professional.