 | Bob Crager of Lewis Street Glass is a 26 year veteran in the glass business. Lewis Street Glass is a leading Wichita Glass company, serving the entire Wichita/Sedgwick County area since 1919. They do anything and everything having to do with glass, both residential and commercial. They also do Auto glass. They are located at 743 South Market, facing Kellogg on the South, and you can reach them by phone at (316) 263-8259. You can email Bob Crager at bcrager@lewisstreetglass.com |
Home Improvement
2013-04-29 13:25:40
Windshields & other glass in smaller RV's & motor homes?
A-This kind of a question surfaces year round, not just in the springtime. Look at your exact situation to determine the time frame for completing the particular repairs or replacements.
There are a substantial number of “snow birds” in the Wichita area, folks who head south during the winter months into warmer climates and actually live down there in their motor homes for the duration of the “colder weather”. The good news is that the motor home windshield needed for your cracked one is nearly always still available, whether it’s a new one, near new motor home, or one that’s been over the roads with you for several years. It’s important, as you are probably aware, that you not drive that unit with an obstruction or visual problem for the driver or take a chance of being unintentionally in violation of the law with the police or state patrol in whichever state you’re moving through. The laws are usually different, one from the other, pertaining to this.
As time goes by, there are different ways that windows in motor homes and travel trailers can get cracked and broken, and need repairs. Leakage, both water and wind, occur in both older, as well as newer units. Wind noise can drive you right off the road, and temporary insanity can result. Seriously, water leaks need your immediate attention as soon as you can discover that they’re there. Unattended, those will begin to rapidly deteriorate the materials inside those wall sections of the motor home. That’s not a pretty discovery later on. A good habit to get into is that when it rains, just do an inspection of your windows all the way around, inside and out, and you’ll probably catch those pesky leak problems early before they turn into something more, like electrical wiring problems inside the walls.
Most of the windows in motor homes and travel trailers are specialty windows designed for that particular line of vehicles. If you have one of the motor homes that has some of the more involved antique glass patterns, you really want to try to get those replaced or repaired by professional techs who do that kind of installation as a regular part of their business, as soon as possible. Many glass installers don’t have those antique glass patterns, so go ahead and do a little research before you actually need to repair or replace those windows. Otherwise, less than desirable results could be in the offing.
Windshields for nearly all motor homes are normally available through a good glass shop, even if the original manufacturer of the motor home has gone out of business. Whether it’s the driver or passenger side that’s cracked, or both, the replacement of either or both is relatively common. Most of these windshields have some manner of tinting in the glass, so matching the original color is pretty important. The glass installation should, in all cases, be done by trained certified installation techs, using the correct sealants and trim materials, and make sure the shop doing your glass work is insurance approved.
Custom van windows, side mirrors, windshields, and all manner of glass for heavy equipment and tractors are all repairable or replaceable. Sometimes the electric motors or the regulators go out on the windows, and those normally have to be replaced with new units. Occasionally the raising and lowering mechanism for the windows in all kinds of vehicles will break or loosen up inside the doors, requiring the disassembly of the door panels to accomplish the repair. Other than the periodic inspections of your unit’s windows when it rains, you’ll be in good hands with the right glass shop handling your repairs or replacements.
The well equipped glass shop will have a facility that will allow your large motor home to be driven inside out of the weather for your repairs to be accomplished. There’s never a wrong day to get started with a shop that will work with your insurance company. The right glass shop will assure your complete approval of all work that they perform for you. Also, service technicians who specialize in all of the specialty glass work that might be required is important to the final outcome. More great information next month…
