BGD Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 The awning on the secondhand MH we bought last summer is, like the MH itself, about 11 years old now. Bog standard Omnistor wind-out jobbie, with the two arms pushed out/pulled back in via cables. Over the years, the awning fabric has stretched a little, and is now quite floppy when the awning is wound completely out. There are adjusting nut thingies on the two arms. Before I dive in, get the stepladder out and have a little play with them, any advice please on which bits to adjust in order to bring the arms out a tiny bit further relative to the awning fabric roller, so that the fabric is a bit tighter at fully-open position. Muchas gracias mi amigos. :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auntyjanet1 Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 Hi BGD i have a Fiamma wind out awning, but the same should apply to yours.When we have wound out the awning and put down the legs ,we have a aluminium adjustable rafter which fixes between the awning top side (fixed to van) and the wound out part ,after fixing rafter,wind in the awning to tension the fabric. If you have not got a rafter,you could use a length of wood ,simular to a wooden batten .Hope you can understand this as i haven,t explained it very well. If you look at the Fiamma site you can bring up a video which shows the rafter in place or try You Tube entering Fiamma etc Hope this helps Cliff (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vandaemon Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 I just rewind the awning slightly after extending it to remove any slackness. Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 Vandaemon - 2013-04-01 2:39 PM I just rewind the awning slightly after extending it to remove any slackness. Alan Ditto ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BGD Posted April 1, 2013 Author Share Posted April 1, 2013 Thanks for comments thus far. I've got a tensioner pole; it came with the awning, and I'bve been used to the usual "wind it back in a tad to tension" trick from awmnings on previous MH's. But this awning is very droopy even when those two things are done; and I want to take up some of that excess slack, by having the articulating arms open a tiny bit more than the fabric roller turns; thus pushing the front part of the awning (that the legs are attached to), a smidge further out. As I understand it, this effect should be able to be achieved by screwing in or out the arm adjusting screws/bolts. It may have to be a trial-and-error process for me, adjusting one turn at a time in each direction, to understand the adjusters effects on the arms, and thus on the fabric tension between roller and front bar. I just wondered if anyone else already knew which way to screw the arm adjusters to tighten the fabric tension a smidge........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maggyd Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 You might find this thread helpful BG http://www.motorhomefacts.com/forum-printtopic-1-138114-0-0-asc-viewresult-1.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 I confess on our 20 year old awning the winding back in a bit has worked Bruce :-S My only other suggestion would be .......assuming you are parked up on a campsite :D..........is to use a tension strap which is fixed forward of the awning.......not sideways ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brambles Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 The adjustments reffered do are for the height/angle of the arms. I suspect your springs have just weakened over the years which stretch the tensining wires inside the arms. I imagine you can buy replacement springs and how easy to fit I have no idea but probably qute difficult. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 I agree with this. The two rafter arms are spring loaded to extend, and it is them, and them alone, that extend the awning once the safety lock is freed. When retracting the awning the roller winds in the fabric against the tension of the arms. When winding out, the roller releases the fabric as it is unwound, and it is the tension in the arms that causes it to advance. That it why winding it back a bit once fully advanced pulls the fabric up taught. It is at that point, when the arms are fully extended and only slightly flexed, that the maximum tension on the fabric can be gained. If this fails to tension the fabric it will be the tensioning springs in the arms that have weakened with age, or possibly, just that the pivot joints in the centre, and at both ends of, the arms are binding and need some (silicone type) lubrication. Don't try dismantling them Bruce, there are dire warnings about doing this due to the power of the tensioning springs. Think missing fingers! :-) You can get replacements for most Omni parts, including the arms, but I don't know about the springs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flicka Posted April 2, 2013 Share Posted April 2, 2013 Hi BGD Don't know if you have a distributor in Spain. AFAIUI the fabric can be retensioned. Hillside have a parts diagram on their website for current awnings http://www.hillviewawnings.co.uk/spare_parts.htm#5000 Click on any of the Awning no's will display parts So for say a 5003 Awning it shows "dogged" drives at either end of the Awning fabric tube. Part No's 55-5451-00 (RH) & 55-5457-00 (LH) . This suggests that the fabric "slack" COULD be retensioned by winding the "dogged" drives. May be worth an enquiry regarding older Awning to:- Hillside Technical: technical@hillviewawnings.co.uk Telephone: 01202 525477 or Rose Awnings sales@roseawnings.co.uk Phone no. 01202 620427 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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