Pop-up campers are foldable and easy to haul because of their conversion into portable and small sizes. In addition, you can extend them and increase the roof area for sleeping space.
Pop-up camper door won’t stay closed because of the poorly designed interior, poor leveling, frame bending, single latch, jammed lock, and tight awning. Moreover, the issue occurs due to misaligned and saggy doors, faulty latches, and misaligned striker plates.
These are beneficial to use because of taking up less space in campsite areas. In addition, you can go anywhere because of their small and minimum size. In addition, you can easily tow these campers with trucks, SUVs, and minivans because of their lighter weight.
| Problems | Solutions |
| Poorly design interior | Align the furniture away from entryways |
| Poor leveling | Park on a smooth surface |
| Frame bending | Replace frame |
| Single latch | Replace single latch with double latch |
| Jammed locks and latches | Spray latches with silicone lubricant |
| Tight awning | Reduce tension of awning fabric |
| Misalignment and sagging | Sand or paint the door for their proper adjustment |
| Misaligned strike plate | Tight the screws of the strike plate |
Poorly design interior
People often complain that the doors of their pop-up camper do not remain closed due to the poor design of the interior.
Poorly designed interior means incorrect adjustment of furniture present in them. The improperly adjusted furniture causes hindrances in their closing.
The problem comes when you open the foldable furniture at night, including the sofa, beds, and bunk. When you retract these items according to your requirement, these items take up more space.
The opening of folding bed and bunkbeds take up a lot of space and cause hindrance in the closing of doors. It is the manufacturing fault that they do not leave enough space for proper functioning.
Recliners are often also present closer to the entryways, and you cannot close the doors after reclining these couches.
Adjust the furniture that these are not present near the entryways. Align them away from the entryways for their proper functioning.
Poor leveling
These campers are smaller; you can take them anywhere for adventurous trips. Some of these adventurous areas have up and down surfaces.
If the ground surface is not leveled correctly, it stresses various RVs’ components. These can cause pressure on doors, cabinets, and windows, and as a result, the door keeps popping open.
You cannot close it accurately if these are parked on a poorly leveled ground surface. Moreover, the poor leveling issue also occurs due to inaccurate tire pressure.
Park them on a smooth ground surface. In addition, it is also necessary to check the air pressure in all of its tires.
Frame bending
The bending of the campers’ aluminum frames is most commonly compared to stainless steel and fiberglass material.
These are of low strength and bend easily due to changes in temperature and other environmental factors.
The bend aluminum frames cause alignment issues, and doors cannot properly fit into their frame. The bending occurs due to inaccurate storing of the campers when these are not in use.
Sometimes it is a manufacturing fault due to poor adjustment and installation. For example, parking on an unleveled surface causes them to misalign.
You cannot repair the bent aluminum frame because these cannot withstand any heating treatment commonly used for straightening.
Change the whole frame to prevent the air and dust to come inside.
Single latch
Most of the camper doors contain a single latch for their fastening. Sometimes these are heavy, and a single latch is not enough for them.
These do not stay close due to poor fastening of the latch. As a result, the latches cannot hold them completely, and you can see the gap on the lower side.
The gap on the lower side is common because the locking latches are commonly on the upper side. As a result, the single latch cannot withstand the wind pressure from outside.
Remove the old latch and install the new one. However, you have to fill the old holes with putty and make new holes with a drill to install double latches.
Jammed locks and latches
The door locks get jammed, and you cannot close or lock them properly. In addition, these cannot move into the striker plate because of their restricted movement.
The latching part of the lock is made of steel or metal material, and these can rust easily. The jamming occurs due to the rust layer on the upper side.
Moreover, these can also get stuck due to changes in weather and the expansion of the metal. The problem is more prominent in winter because of the expansion of metals.
Allow their smooth movement by greasing them with a high-quality lubricant.
Use the WD-40 or silicone-based lubricant spray to grease the latching mechanism of locks. Remove the excess lubricating spray from the sides with a dry cloth.
Tight awning
Awnings are the retractable material attached to the camper frame to create a shady outdoor area. These can also prevent the entry of direct sunlight into the inner side of the fabric.
These contain fabric materials, including vinyl and polyester. These are manually and electrically operated structures depending on the type of brand.
People often complain that they cannot close the doors properly when the awnings are open. People tie their fabric to the tree for their proper functioning.
The tight fabric pulls the frame of the pop-up campers in that direction and causes the problem. Reduce the awning fabric’s tension and maintain the frame’s alignment.
Misalignment and sagging
The doors of these campers can get misaligned due to water damage. The risk of water damage is more if these are made up of wood and fiberglass material.
These materials can easily absorb moisture and lead to expansion and contraction. The contraction and expansion can change their size and original shape.
Moreover, the sagging problems come due to driving on bumpy roads. The vibrating movement for a long time affects the alignment of hinges and makes them saggy.
Remove the bent doors because you cannot close them properly. As a result, these cannot adjust into the frame and keep opening. Moreover, you can also resize them by sanding their surface and applying multiple paint coats to thicken their surface.
Misaligned strike plate
Strike plates are present on the pop-up camper door frames to fasten the latch. It is the hardware of the locks and is used for their proper locking.
The misaligned strike plates cause locking issues, and you cannot close it. In addition, these strike plates are made of metal material and can rust easily.
The latch does not fit into the strike plates if these contain a layer of rust. Moreover, the misalignment occurs due to loose mounting screws of the strike plate.
The screws become loose due to regular use and frequent opening and closing. You can adjust the alignment of the strike plate by tightening its screws.
Tighten the screws of the strike plate with a wrench and grease them to inhibit rust formation.