drawer glide bracket problems

[gbsell@sbcglobal.net]

I was wondering if any of you have had trouble with the plastic brackets breaking that hold your drawer glides? We have had to replace them several times. I guess we go down too many bumpy roads. This time the boards that have the brackets screwed to them came u</span>nstapled</span> (this is from the factory) from the 1x3 under the counter. Since the 1x3 boards don't go all the way to the floor all 4 drawers in the kitchen broke their brackets. We are replacing the 1x3 boards (that holds the brackets with a 2x2 glued and screwed to the wall under the counter. Then screwing a 1x3 to the 2x2 from the horizonal board under the counter to the floor. Then 2 L brackets to hold the board secure to the floor. This way if the brackets break again we can remove the 1x3 and easily replace the bracket. We have had this problem off and on since we have had this trailer. I know this will work since it is very solid now. Used liquid nails for glue. If you've had to replace these brackets through the drawer openings a cordless drill and a lot of profanity worksEdited by: gbsell@sbcglobal.net

[mwebber78]

Crossroads now installs ball bearing metal drawer extensions. Perhaps you can visit a local Home Depot or Lowes' and buy some?

[jimnfor]

just ran across this post. all four drawer slides in our bunk area within 1 week of owning the trailer. i submitted it to the dealer for warranty coverage, waiting to hear back.

seriously consider the 'real' slides from Home Depot/Lowes

[gbsell@sbcglobal.net]

It's not the drawer glides we have a problem with it was the plastic brackets that break. Home Depot carries a simular bracket ( actually cheaper made than those at rv stores.) It would be great if they made metal brackets since the glides are metal, but we haven't found any. What he did in my earlier posting by beefing up the wood that the brackets screw into is working. When you look behind the drawers and see that the thin piece of wood the brackets are mounted to is only held up with 20 staples and doesn't go all the way to the floor. Just think of all the weight these staples are holding up. Hope this helps.

[Chuck N. Wined]

We have 4 drawers in the kids bunk room mounted on the rear wall facing towards the front of the unit. 2 of the 4 have broken brackets. This is the bracket mounted to the wood framing at the rear of the drawer that holds the drawer glide in place. There are other 4 drawers in the bunk room mounted on the side wall and they are fine. I am guessing that mine broke because of the amount of "bounce" in the rear of the unit when traveling. None of the brackets in the kitchen cabinetry or the 2 drawers in the nightstands in the main bedroom have broken yet. As a quick fix I put a "zip tie" around the bracket to hold the top and bottom of it in place around the metal glide. I am going to replace them as soon as I can find something that is compatible.
Lonnie

[jeb]

I had two of these plastic parts snap on the same drawer at the top of the stairs. I got two replacements and when doing the "fix" noticed that the vertical wood slats they were attached to at the rear were "floating"...not fastened at the bottom because the flimsy staples didn't hold them to the floor. I replaced the fasteners and made sure all the fasteners in the entire drawer system were solid and have had no problems since then. I also looked at all the other drawers in the unit (kitchen, bath, bedroom, etc.) and did whatever was necessary to strengthen those also (nothing at all - ).

IMO, the breakage occurs not because they are plastic, but because they are not installed in a way which limits their movement. When the movement is too severe, they break because they aren't designed for that sort of bending.

[Dayle1]

In many cases, the problem with plastic guides is really with the type of mounting, either staples or wood screws, installed with power tools. This is true for both RVs and stick-built homes. Staples or countersunk type wood screws damage/distort the plastic and weaken or immediately crack it. New plastic brackets installed with pan head screws should last much longer. Over the years, I have seen this problem in multiple RV and homes.



The second issue is the length of the actual drawer guide vs. location of the bracket. The plastic bracket is designed to allow for spacing variation. A short drawer guide may work, but it will put all the load out at the tip of the bracket, causing it to sag and distort when the RV is stored in the heat. So, when fixing the problem, it helps to use longer drawer guides if possible or reposition the rear supporting wood as far forward as possible.

[gbsell@sbcglobal.net]

Look at my first post. I wrote in more detail how we fixed the problem. It is now solid and will not break again. Just cheaply made from the factory and saving a little cost too. If it was done correctly the first time you wouldn't have to fix it.

[gbsell@sbcglobal.net]

My husband agreesthat's why we spaced the wood out farther and used pan head screws. The brackets will get weak in storage since we live where it gets multiple 100+ degree days.

[fhenn]

I had a drawer bracket that fell apart this summer on my trip to Colorado. I got a tube of liquid nail and used it so far so good