As fulltimers, most of us have to lug all our stuff with us. That makes "basement storage," those handy outside compartments with lots of stuffing space, so attractive. But beware--that storage may not be as secure as you think.
For outside compartments with the standard "cabinet lock," your lock may not be as secure as you like. Visit any used RV sales lot and try your own compartment key on different RVs. You may be surprised just how many other rig compartments you can open. With so many RVs made, and so few suppliers to the industry, there's bound to be a lot more keys in common than we'd like to think.
Changing out the standard cabinet lock is easy, all it takes is a replacement lock, an adjustable wrench, and a few minutes time. We visited a locksmith and had him make up a number of compartment locks--all keyed alike--to replace our OEM locks. We feel a lot more secure knowing that not just "anybody" will easily open up our storage pods.
3 comments:
That is an excellent suggestion. Not many RV'ers know that the OEM locks are duplicated and all a person needs for access to these compartments is to buy about 50 of the most common locks from a dealer's store and presto! - access to many if not all.
You might also want to inspect underneath your unit to see how easy it might be to access compartments from that advantage area.
Drive safely!
Rick.
To add to this topic, always lock the deadbolt! If you just lock the top handle lock, their is master keys out there that will fit your door but not the deadbolt.
I looked at this issue when we bought our motorhome (Allegro Bay) and considered changing the locks. Then I looked closer and noticed that the locks locked unto a "U" shaped piece of metal that could be easily removed with a socket wrench. So much for trying to improve security ...
Post a Comment