ender skirts that trim out the wheelwells on fifth wheels and travel trailers improve the appearance and actually serve a purpose by keeping road spray under control. However, they are usually made of thin plastic and are screwed in place — leaving a bunch of threads and points exposed on the other side of the lower metal siding. Not only do these screw ends exude an unfinished look, they can rip your skin when working in that area or even trying to wash away road grime.
Likely, these screws are driven by power tools on the assembly line which, considering the thin material, makes it difficult to get a good feel when they are sufficiently tightened — often resulting in overtightening. Many times, self-drilling screws are driven so tightly they distort the plastic and pull the skirt in toward the siding. I’ve seen hundreds of skirts where the screws were even pulled through the plastic. When this happens, it’s only a matter of time before these fender skirts litter the side of the road.
Another issue is the aging of the plastic. Exposure to sun and other outdoor elements weaken the plastic — and their typically flimsy supports become dislodged from constant vibration. When this happens, the fender skirts flop around wildly in the wind created by highway speeds but usually go unnoticed by most drivers. The small screw heads simply cannot hold the plastic in place any longer — and if you’re not scrutinizing the screws and fender skirt constantly, it’s easy to miss early cracking.
Before ordering the fasteners, I checked access underneath the slideout and other than one screw hidden behind a bracket on each side, the coast was clear. I figured a longnose pliers would have to be used to hang onto the nut when tightening that bolt. The washers spread the load out and locking nuts allowed me to snug the bolt against the plastic without exerting undue pressure — just enough so that the fender skirt can’t move without deforming the plastic.
It was a little tricky getting the bolts and the nuts tight enough to prevent distortion of the fender skirt because there were uneven surfaces to deal with and the foam insulation sprayed against the frame to prevent water from getting up inside. A putty knife and a large screwdriver were used to break away some of the foam to make room for a few of the nuts.
I did use an impact driver (offsetting the tedium of tightening 22 bolts and nuts) to snug the locking nuts, but the driver was set at low torque and care was taken to prevent overtightening. Still, I had to adjust the nuts by hand to make sure they were set properly. (By the way, I had to order more bolts since there were only 20 in the original package.) I don’t think the bolts and the washers are quite as attractive as the small screw heads, but it beats the expense of replacing the fender skirts. While I was at it, I bolstered the fender skirts with additional brackets; the originals were just too flimsy.
Next on the agenda: paint the skirts. The ones from the factory were made from black-color plastic and it seems like a coat of paint will be a good hedge against premature fading and cracking.
