Lockers are commonly found on caravans and motorhomes. They are normally used as a cover to a storage compartment, such as the battery or gas bottle compartment. This maximises space efficiency and ensures that personal belongings, tools and essential equipment are securely stowed during travel. These compartments are designed to be easily accessed whilst maintaining organisation and protecting your contents from damage or loss during transit.
To work in the way they were designed, lockers need a watertight seal to keep your belongings dry and free from dirt. This is only possible by having a reliable rubber seal that compresses when the locker door is closed.
Different Types of Edge Trim
Edge trims are a fairly common seal used on caravan and motorhome lockers. There are three types of edge trims;
1 – Edge Trims
2 – Edge Trims with Side Seal
3 – Edge Trims with Top Seal
All of these products are manufactured with a metal reinforced self-gripping spine. Unlike other rubber sealing profiles, this enables them to hold themselves onto the edge of your frame without the need for adhesive or mechanical fixings.
Side seals and top seals also have a sponge sealing bulb which helps create a watertight seal when compressed. This sponge bulb is located on either the side or top of the edge trim, depending on the angle in which the lid closes against the section. As most lockers are manufactured with a horizontal edge and a lid that closes down onto the side of this edge, you normally need to use an edge trim with side seal.
Identifying a Replacement Edge Trim
To identify a replacement product you will need to measure the thickness of the edge that this section will clip over.
We recommend that you use a Vernier to get a precise measurement of the thickness of this panel. This will allow you to purchase a product that is large enough to clip over the panel edge, but is not too loose and risks falling off. You should take this measurement in millimetres so that you can cross reference this measurement with the products on our website.
Most lockers will be manufactured from single or double-skinned sheet metal. The thickness of this is usually between 1.6mm and 3mm. However, some lockers may be lined with carpet which, depending on how it has been installed, may increase the thickness of the panel edge you will need to fit your sealing profile over.
You should also measure the sealing bulb on your current side seal before attempting to source a replacement product. This will allow you to choose a section that adequately seals the gap you are trying to fill. In the same way how you measured the panel thickness, you should use a Vernier to take an accurate measurement of the diameter of the sealing bulb on your current section.
You may find that the sealing bulb on your current locker seal has badly distorted. If that is the case, gently squeeze the profile until it vaguely resembles a circle. You can then take this measurement in what was probably its original form.
If you don’t have the previous seal, you will need to measure the gap that you need to seal. In most cases this is very difficult as the gap is inside the hatch, and getting access to it is impossible when you close the door. If you can find a fairly large piece of blutack, stick this on the edge where the sealing bulb would go. When you close the door, this squashes the blutack. You can then remove the blutack from the gap and measure its thickness. This will give you a fairly accurate measurement of the gap you need to seal. We have recorded a separate video demonstration on Measuring a Hidden Gap.
To get the best seal, we recommend compressing the sponge sealing bulb by around a third. This will adequately seal your gap and reduce the chance of compression set caused by over compression. To give an example, if you have a gap of 10mm, you will want to find a product with a sealing bulb around 15mm diameter. When the door is closed, the seal will compress by 5mm, approximately a third.
Once you have measured the thickness of the panel edge and diameter of the sealing bulb on your existing seal, you can order a replacement product. We supply a large range of Edge Trims & Seals, most of which are available by the metre. In most cases you will need to order an Edge Trim with Side Seal, but you may need a different profile depending on your specific locker.
Fitting a Replacement Edge Trim
Fitting a replacement edge trim or edge trim with side seal is a fairly straightforward process. Measure around the outside of your locker and cut your new seal to length. We recommend cutting the new section at least a couple of inches longer than your measurement. This will allow for any errors in your measuring and enable you to get a tight butt fit within the two ends once the profile has been fitted.
You can then push the edge trim over the panel edge, making sure that the sealing bulb is facing the correct direction. Go all the way around the aperture until you get to the end. Cut off any excess ensuring that you still have a tight compression fit.
Identifying a Rubber Seal
If your current profile looks different to an edge trim with side seal, you may find that you have a different rubber seal fitted to your locker. Due to differences between manufacturers and an almost endless variety of shapes and sizes, replacing this profile isn’t a one size fits all approach. These sections are usually fitted into a channel that allows them to hold themselves in place without the need for adhesive or mechanical fixings. This can usually be seen by the arrow or barbed foot that initially compresses when pushed into the channel, then opens up when inside to stop it from falling out.
One example of a caravan locker seal is our CS5239, as shown in the drawing. This profile is becoming increasingly common for vehicle manufactured after 2010 and pushes into three sides of your locker, normally the left, top and bottom.
If you are having difficulties identifying your current section on our Motorhome & Caravan Door Seals or Motorhome & Caravan Miscellaneous Seals product categories, please get in touch with a photograph of the end profile of your current section. You can contact us via email at sales@sealsplusdirect.co.uk.
In a similar way to edge trims, you will need to look at the way in which the door closes against the section. In most cases it will close down onto the top of the profile, but it is worth checking your particular locker before ordering a replacement product.
You will need to take a good look at your current seal and take a number of measurements of its key dimensions to identify a replacement section. We have dimension drawings on all products on our website, which you can compare against your current seal.
Fitting a Replacement Rubber Seal
Once you have purchased a new sealing product, fitting the replacement rubber seal onto your locker should be a relatively quick process.
The exact process will depend on the replacement section you have ordered but in most cases you should remove the existing section and then pushing the new seal into the groove where the old profile was previously fitted. In the same way to fitting edge trims, cut the rubber seal slightly over length to ensure you get a tight butt fit between the two ends.
Order Caravan and Motorhome Locker Seals from Seals Direct
If you are looking for a replacement locker seal for your caravan or motorhome, the technical team at Seals Direct can help you find a replacement product. We are leading supplier of rubber seals and trims, and hold stock of most sealing profiles required for most caravan and motorhomes. The majority of these products can be ordered by the metre so are suitable for whether you just need a couple of metres to go around one locker, or are looking to replace hundreds of metres for an industrial application.
Contact our technical team by email at sales@sealsplusdirect.co.uk or via phone on 01425 617722 for help and advice with selecting the best product for your application.