These are photos from my Bailey Senator Owners Club. A fellow member has noticed ripple like distortions around the door. He has done damp tests today, all good, between 4 and 10%. Any ideas please😃
Strange creases around door
- Thread starter Dustydog
- Start date
I have seen the issue previously, but cannot recall which brand was involved. I am fairly sure that the only way to resolve the issue is for the side to be replaced. A manufacturer or dealer will state it is due to impact damage which means they can claim.
However an assessor will probably state it is not impact damage which then indicates it is a manufacturing defect and if so, the owner may be able to claim off the supplier as the issue would have been there from day one.
However an assessor will probably state it is not impact damage which then indicates it is a manufacturing defect and if so, the owner may be able to claim off the supplier as the issue would have been there from day one.
It's a 16-year old caravan - any debate about a manufacturing defect is irrelevant.
Some years back Hymer had a problem with creases around the door, but that was recognised very quickly as the caravan was a new design model.
That is correct and it was Elddis models that were affected. I think it was within the past 8 years.
No that was before Hymer took over Eldiss and the ones I saw were Hymer caravans. But subsequent to their purchase of Eldiss they too may have also been affected.
It came up on the Buccaneer forum on FB so definitely within the past 8 years. I think it affected the 2015-2016 years.
As I said it affected Hymer specific caravans but I did not rule out similar problems subsequent to Hymer buying Eldiss. My reasoning being that whilst we owned a Bailey until 2014 we had previously considered trading up to a Hymer following a visit to France where a fellow Brit had one for sale and we were impressed by the build quality. So when we got back we started to look into Hymer. So it was before 2014 as that’s when we sold the Bailey.
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I'm inclined to agree with stress buckling as the most likely cause, because of the size of the damage, and that it appears in the diagonally opposed corners of the door. The doorway is potentially significant as its a major opening in the structure, and it reduces the strength of the wall, and will thus focus the dynamic stresses in the smaller and thus weaker remaining parts of the wall around the doorway.
Because I don't know the details of the wall construction, I can't be definitive, but the size of the distortion does suggest there has been a significant movement, and that must raise the concern that the walls integrity in those areas has been compromised.
Has the door fit been compromised?
Someone has suggest heat buckling, I don't think it is only heat induced, If it were only heat, I suspect there would be other areas equally affected, even those away from high stressed areas.
Damp will only become possible if there is a way for water to get in, so as long as the shell has not been penetrated that is not the concern. What is of concern is if the strength of internal structure of the wall has been compromised, and we cant tell that.
What's to be done? There is a risk the side of the caravan might be deemed unsafe, and that would make it unroadworthy. But regardless of that the side must be weaker, and that means it increases the stresses on other parts of the structure raising the probability of future failures elsewhere.
Because I don't know the details of the wall construction, I can't be definitive, but the size of the distortion does suggest there has been a significant movement, and that must raise the concern that the walls integrity in those areas has been compromised.
Has the door fit been compromised?
Someone has suggest heat buckling, I don't think it is only heat induced, If it were only heat, I suspect there would be other areas equally affected, even those away from high stressed areas.
Damp will only become possible if there is a way for water to get in, so as long as the shell has not been penetrated that is not the concern. What is of concern is if the strength of internal structure of the wall has been compromised, and we cant tell that.
What's to be done? There is a risk the side of the caravan might be deemed unsafe, and that would make it unroadworthy. But regardless of that the side must be weaker, and that means it increases the stresses on other parts of the structure raising the probability of future failures elsewhere.
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