How To Install An RV Side Access Door

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Shannon from House-Improvements.com shows you how to install an RV / camper access door. In this case, Shannon cuts a hole in the side of his own travel trailer and creates easier access to storage.
We have another video related to RV campers, it's how to change the water heater element, see • How To Change RV Water...
If you have questions about your home improvement projects, stop by the forum on our website, where Shannon will answer your questions in detail for free.
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Video © 2021 SKS Media. Videos produced by SKS Media (House-Improvements.com) are provided for informational purposes only. The information contained in the videos is intended to give general guidance to simplify DIY (do it yourself) projects. Because tools, products, materials, equipment, techniques, building codes and local regulations are constantly changing, SKS Media cannot and does not assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy of the information contained therein. Further, SKS Media will not accept any claim for liability related to, but not limited to, omissions, errors, injury, damage or the outcome of any project. It is the responsibility of the viewer to ensure compliance with all applicable laws, rules, codes and regulations for a project. The viewer must always take proper safety precautions and exercise caution when taking on any project. If there are any questions or doubt in regards to the element of a project, please consult with a licensed professional. SKS Media conducts all matters in accordance with the laws of Saskatchewan, Canada.

[@Dandelion._.HH7]

I love your attention to detail. It makes all of your projects extremely beautiful and professional. Thanks for another excellent video.

[@sinout044]

Great how to video!! Your explained and showed everything well

[@1nvisible1]

*Great job. Two standouts, #1 the tip on leveling to match the alum frame, and #2 the wistfulness in your voice that you left behind three inches due to a wire loom :-) Love it.*

[@johnumbach7064]

Been thinking of doing the same thing. You convinced me. Nice job! Thanks for sharing!!

[@Maxid1]

I've got a Lance 1181 camper. They run a lot of wire in the walls so this would be more like an archeological dig for me than cutting an opening with a recip saw. I'd have to brush away the entire area of the saw cut before I did anything. I have a factory installed one of these in my camper and it leaks water under the dinette when it rains. The water wicks into the metal ring around the door panel and empties into the camper. You'll need to find uv resistant caulk. Silicone doesn't hold up very well but if you don't mind reapplying it once a year it's fine. Dicor could work if you get the appliction area clean enough (the problem is the panel can move inside of the metal ring. Butyl tape works really well when installing the frames. It presses out and makes a really good seal.

[@dadokrstic]

I love this guy. If Shannon told me to set my living room on fire because that’s how it’s done, I’d go get some gasoline!

[@jamescarpenter4777]

Shannon you're the best at explaining all the work that needs to be done. I appreciate all your videos.

[@RoadieWingZZ]

Nice job! Watching this removes some anxiety about tackling DIY projects on my RV.

[@simonlachaine4881]

Nice job thanks I learn a lot. Maybe next time you should use the dicor butyl for the perimeter it's made to creat a seal and a kind of waterproof glue!

[@byronlopez1000]

Thank you for sharing this, great job

[@JoseMiguelDiazJr]

this video gave me the confidence boost i needed to up grade my basement door from 9.5 height to 14 so i can fit my action packers

[@aaron74]

Nice mod! Gonna ride down to Des Moines in my friend's RV this upcoming weekend to go to a rock concert! He's made so many customizations to his RV its nuts, mostly electronics. His is a 2018. He changed out all his lighting to LED, installed all sorts of USB ports everywhere, and near the breaker panel some segment displays showing the voltage of both battery, generator, and shore power. I'm not sure he has any wasted space in his.

[@HouseImprovements]

Very cool!

[@mr1pearl]

I can't believe how good the jig saw cut that nice ! Hey I think I would try that ! Thanks for sharing .

[@LokiMelb]

I am thinking of doing something like this on our old Jayco Swan. The latch to hold the door is a bloody brilliant find :)

[@JKBowman]

Shannon, you are awesome like Elvis but in a DIY kinda way. No matter the subject your content is always the best and that's true again here. Thank you!

[@HouseImprovements]

Thanks so much 😊

[@jacobwood6437]

That looks great! Good job

[@mikechiodetti4482]

THAT came out great! It looks like factory, or better than factory! Plus the added storage will really help. Great Job!

[@T.E.P.]

Shannon you RULE .... like the new addition to the channel. Please always trust your gut and share with us ... we are watching.

[@Dalton0394]

I work for an RV manufacturer, we have units that are 1” thick and 1 1/2” thick, to answer you question if there are thicker RV walls. Travel trailers are typically thinner for weight reasons. Fancier/Bigger 5th wheels are typically thicker. If you have any questions about how the sidewalls are made feel free to ask! It’s the one thing about RVs I know lol.

[@davidhake2239]

Awesome video and cudos to you for risking cutting into your rig. One advice, put caulk in screw holes and on screw threads to prevent water intrusion.

[@dustinkurtz9939]

I love this idea, great job! Last year I went through my camper and started opening up the panels and found at a ton of wasted space that can be used for storage. I didn't think about installing a door from the outside to access them.

[@HouseImprovements]

Yes there is so much wasted space in Rvs, and gaining access to them can really make a difference in your cargo haul!

[@drewpierce2273]

I don't own an RV, but I still can learn useful tips from Shannon that may be applied to a different project.

[@Crazick]

I just bought an RV a couple weeks ago and have two spots that are wasted. What a cawinkiedink! Thanks for the video.

[@larryz24]

I suggest that you put a bead of caulk across the top and down the sides as an additional drip seal when water runs down the side of the RV. You can leave the bottom as is....take a look at other doors on your RV to see what I am talking about. Great mod Shannon, one can never have too much storage when loading an RV. The added plywood that you put in will also give you much better blowout protection as well. Cheers.

[@matteversole5980]

As always...nicely done! Thank you for the great informative videos. Great details; very helpful. We just bought an rv this year; storage seems to be in short supply. I will be looking for ideas to add storage! Thanks again, Shannon, keep the videos coming!

[@oso4lifeusa156]

Awesome video and great job

[@joyce7892]

That was very helpful. Thank you for taking the time to film and explain.

[@badactor3440]

I have been wanting to do this on the basement of my class C motorhome. There's an access door on the rear and one side only. Having access on the opposite side would be a great improvement. Thanks for the tutorial.

[@doctom34]

Great! Do more RV stuff!

[@theuglyhomestead5455]

I second this! I do a lot of traveling with the family following my husband in his semi. Need to add more storage space.

[@robertadriver6931]

Great video

[@papaDIY]

Nice Job Shannon ! Keep the RV videos coming. As always easy to follow and understand from a down to earth human. Great Job and great idea..

[@HouseImprovements]

Thanks so much!

[@Knuckledragnation]

Appreciate the video. Yes I’ve been extremely reluctant to saw into the side of my Rv to add an extra cargo storage door. But it seems if one double and maybe even triple checks that there’s no cables, lines or structural issues it certainly is possible. I appreciate you taking the time to show the steps. Where did you purchase the door?

[@timothyjeffcoats7557]

Awesome, rec update to slam latches

[@1hjehje]

A nice job. Thank you for the video!

[@RocketCityTech]

Wow, better than factory!

[@Tom-Fisherman]

I really think flexing would push me to use a 3/4" piece of Butyl tape around the entire door seal perimeter. THEN an external bead of clear Geocel 28100V Pro Flex Crystal Clear RV Flexible Sealant around the outer edge of the external area of the door. The butyl will stay workable for YEARS and the clear Geocel makes it a safe yearly seal maintenance item.

[@tpalshadow]

On this camper I would use the white pro flex, but you are 100% correct on Butyl first then something like Pro Flex around that. It is 99% how they come from the factory and for good reason. I also hit the threads with the Pro Flex, it's great stuff.

[@lenburlingame119]

Great job!

[@TheSlipperyNoodle]

Excellent video sir.

[@HouseImprovements]

Thank you kindly

[@babaganoosh1969]

Cool...my Rv got some termite damage in the cabinet area...need to learn to make new ones

[@macsterguy]

Great job 👍🏼

[@HouseImprovements]

Thanks!

[@Mulepick]

Seal outside around the perimeter.

[@HouseImprovements]

16:50 mark.

[@mrnotnomis]

Thanks for this video. My trailer has a small door where a bigger door would fit. It's always a pain to try to get stuff in and out of that door, and it ONLY has a key latch, which is inconvenient. I will have to do a similar project to this, except I will just be making the opening wider. Looks easy enough! I am curious why you didn't just trace around that flange that sticks out on the door itself?

[@HouseImprovements]

You could if you had a helerp it would make that easier to do.

[@wilfredd.2524]

Hi Shannon, you mentioned that there are door frames that use the cut out as the door. Can you give more more info on that? That will work better in my case!

[@HouseImprovements]

I just know when I was searching for a door some did not come with the exterior panel. It is likely possible to use the same one I did and remove the panel ,I'm not sure?

[@chriswalls5831]

My new idea tinted r.v. windows

[@golfersa1]

Shannon, great job! Two quick questions... did you just use a razor knife to cut the paneling on the inside of the box, or? It was already gone when the video started. And, I'm curious about running the mounting screws thru the side of the frame into the wood pieces you installed and glued in place, vs putting them thru the exposed face of the frame... I don't think it would pull the frame out of square? Thoughts?

[@HouseImprovements]

Yes I removed it ahead of time to see what was in the wall. If you had enough space between the door and screw heads it could work.

[@golfersa1]

@@HouseImprovements thanks, getting ready to tackle the same project, your video is very helpful! 👍🏼

[@amylambert2365]

Very interesting and thanks for the video. I have a question about the heater/furnace. It has what looks like ventilation on the side that shows into the open cabinet so would that have been a way to ventilate. Can the furnace vent properly since it now has added plywood near that appliance? It seems the manufacturer may have allowed that open space to assume ventilation. Just wondering - for safety.

[@HouseImprovements]

These furnaces draw air from outside and exhaust out side so it should be no problem. I had checked before hand also if my unit got hot to the touch inside the camper but it does not. There is also a vent into the camper on the other side of the unit for any circulation it may need.

[@TapelessDrywallFinishing]

👍👍👍👍

[@HouseImprovements]

Thanks Mike!

[@chronicposer]

Ive got a wildwood 273qbxl and in some the bunkhouse has access to a kitchen area. But ours did not have that, and for some reason they just closed it up. So the storage under the bottom bunk is only accessible from inside and you have lift up the mattress and plywood to access it. I wanted to do exactly what you are doing here. This shows me how easy it can be. Now that its been almost a year later.. is there anything you would change? where did you get your luggage door from?

[@HouseImprovements]

Actually this has been working flawlessly for us. The door was a perfect size really to give us access to the area available. I keep all of our wood blocking in this for levelling and for under the jacks and any set up misc products because once we are set up we place a table against this area outside with a storage cabinet and small fridge on and it makes it inconvenient to open once the table is there.

[@HouseImprovements]

There are links in the video description for different doors through Amazon.

[@HouseImprovements]

If you have any other questions please use my forum.www.house-improvements.com/forums/

[@chronicposer]

@@HouseImprovements Thanks so much!

[@bubu11223]

why are there no locks with key? Anybody can open it!

[@HouseImprovements]

It has a lock and key?

[@RoadieWingZZ]

He actually removed the door key that was taped to the frame in the early part of the video…