How to Fix an RV Awning That Will Not Retract Properly

I am sure most caravan owners (who installed roll-out awnings on their caravans) have faced the problem when the RV awning not retracting straight. While most of you might be thinking, the entire structure of the caravan rollout awning is the cause, your RV awning won’t roll-up, the issue might only be with the alignment and the position of the RV awning arms. Another reason could be due to the stretching of the fabric or missing a component. A thorough inspection would reveal the truth.

Now, the problem with the improper retraction of the awning is that there may be more than one scenario why the manual awning won't retract. Read the correct way to erect a caravan awning, if not already.

Cause #1

One of the possible causes may be that the awning’s position, where it attaches to the coach via the awning rail, has moved. Ideally, during installation, the awning should be fitted perfectly with both arms being positioned parallel with the awning fabric stretching between these arms. You need to ensure, this is evenly spread out, as the slightest variation could cause uneven retraction.

Solution: This would call for the RV awning arm repair. Realign the RV awning arms and make sure they stay in their position. If it needs replacing, then get that done at the earliest.

Cause #2

Another reason your awning is not retracting well could be the screws on the awning chord. You also need to check the awning chord that is placed along with the screws on the awning rail. This chord should not move, you need to keep it intact in its position. If you are experiencing retraction issues, then it is possible that the screws have come loose.

Solution: How to fix the awning in this case? Check the screws and make sure the chord is positioned correctly.

Cause #3

Check the awning arms and their movement. These arms should be perfectly parallel to each other and they should be perpendicular to the caravan. Their movement should be unrestricted and should have perfect alignment of all the components. Failure to keep these things in check will result in the rollout awning from being retracted smoothly.

Solution: To troubleshoot retractable awning arm repair you could use lubrication to make the movement smooth. In case of a structural defect that may be hindering the smooth movement, you need to get it repaired or replaced (in the worst case).

Cause #4

The third possibility of a bad retraction could be the fabric of the caravan awnings has over-stretched, either due to manual force or due to the weight of the water accumulated on it. The stretching of the RV awning fabric causes the retraction to be uneven as the length of the fabric gets distorted.

Solution: The only RV awning troubleshoot option you are left with is to replace the fabric completely.