Remis roof light

Has anyone had problems with the winding mechanism, ours clicks as though the gearing is not engaging properly and it struggles to raise the window. Any ideas please people.

As previously mentioned on this forum the roof light can become stuck to the rubber seal making it difficult to raise with the winding handle. It is recommended to apply upward pressure on the roof light with your free hand whilst turning with the other. To prevent future 'sticking', a light lubricant of some sort is applied to the rubber seal to all the roof lights. Unfortunately the winding mechanism when forced, can be damaged where the roof light becomes stuck to the rubber seal.

Thank you, but I already knew this information from , as you state, the forum.Really wanted to know how to repair the gearing.

Yet another piece of equipment in an AS not fit for purpose. I have been treating ours with kid gloves from when we bought the van new, lubricating the seals and religiously helping it to open with one hand whilst winding gently with the other. At habitations I have asked AS to inspect the gearing, and to clean and lubricate where necessary. So far so good, but why do I have to be so careful with the roof light. It’s not sturdy enough. My wife won’t touch it in case she breaks it and gets shouted at!

Talking about my lovely wife, she has brought me away on a lovely Greek holiday so I don’t have to think about motorhome problems. Biggest problem I packed the b***** IPad!

Sorry I can’t help you flapjackers, good luck with the gearing.

Pete (not looking at this forum again till we get home)

P.S. And to all those that will jump at me, I know it’s not an AS piece of equipment, but they should have the confidence in supplier’s items they install. Or they should be at least discussing these problems with their supplier’s to gradually improve these products. Motorhome and caravan manufacturers are major customers of these companies. As we have seen, Thetford fridges and Whale pumps are among other issues. No more from me, I have said enough!

Enjoy.

Is it actually a Remis in a 2012 Van. It's a Heki 3 in my 2011.

New parts are available available .I would not open until fixed  as it may drop to bits then you will be stuck with it open .mine was replaced twice in three years , as said not fit for purpose .I run a thin card round the seal  before opening .and support  with one hand on opening .and then hope the wind dose not get up . and the fridge only lasted 3 years  .

Yes it is s Reminder on a 2013 Bourton

Oops predicted text, should be Remis

I had a similar Remis rooflight (older version) on an Auto-Trail and it stopped working after about three or four years. I took the mechanism apart and found it was rusted to bits and there was almost no lubrication in the long tubes at all.

A friend who was an RAF Chief Engineer said that the same mechanism (the rods) were used on a lot of the older aircraft before fly-by-wire came in. There were grease nipples at intervals all along the rods and they had to grease them under strict timetable.

I eventually managed to get a new mechanism on eBay (Remis didn't support that model any longer!) and fitted it so the van was OK before we part-exed it for our Bourton. Needless to say, I wasn't happy to find the new roof-light is a Remis and the mechanism looks much the same.

I have asked Remis for maintenance instructions but the response was as helpful as you would expect - 'No maintenance required'. If anyone finds out how to grease the darn thing, please let me know!

Hi
   we have a 2010 AS Gloucester and have the same trouble with our HEKI roof light so are spares available for that
regards
Alan

Hi Everyone
 I know this may be a strange question but what is the difference between the Remis and Heki roof vents.My handbook says it has a Heki rooflight but it has a wind out mechanism which I thought was fitted to Remis roof vents all be it broken as the gears are slipping
regards
Alan

Excluding the Miicro, mini and midi there are at least 5 version of the large Heki, at least one has winding mechanism, see here..

https://www.leisureshopdirect.com/ventilation/caravan-roof-vent/dometic-heki-rooflights

Hi Paul
   Thanks but has anyone tried mending a roof light with a faulty winding mechanism???
Regards
Alan

Just had a look at mine 2014 nuevo ,it has a remis mark  front nearside corner .

gemdeco wrote:Hi Paul
   Thanks but has anyone tried mending a roof light with a faulty winding mechanism???
Regards
Alan

Have a look at my comment from a couple of days ago, above. I did replace the Remis mechanism on my AutoTrail 4 years ago. I managed to buy a brand new mechanism on eBay for a good price (Remis didn't sell them anymore). It was a bit fiddly to fit but reasonably straightforward. It is a GREAT help if you carefully note how the old one was put together before you start taking it apart and trying to fit the new one.

I can't remember why, but I found it convenient to remove the (in the cab) part of the roof light before working on the thing. You do this by prising or pulling the whole inner part down off the rubber bung things that hold it in place. I took it off and replaced it a couple of times and the bungs seemed to hold it very securely. While searching for a replacement mechanism, it was easier to open and close the roof-light without the plastic winding handle in the way as I could get a proper socket and small brace on the job!

This isn't a recommendation, just recounting my experience.

The dealer Marquis offered to do the job for me but they would only remove the old roof-light and fit a new one, the quote was about £1100!

Hi everyone
    After enduring a season with the large rooflight not opening with out assistance ,I decided to have a go at it, First there are no markings on it to determine manufacturer but the hand book said HEKI so I had a clue. I unsrewed the winding handle that seemed to be a good fit,so the next job was to unclip all the trim around the frame by pushing it in , Success all remove with no broken clips. The trim around the handle looks like you can remove it, yes you can but only after the complete outer frame is removed about a dozen screws make sure you mark what holes the screws go in!! The frame is quite light but you need a 2nd pair of hands to support it. It comes down easily with nothing attached. now back to the winder another intermediate gear is fitted that seemed OK. There is now "a link" to the gearbox here was the problem the link fits on a metal hexangonal shaft Here was the problem "the Link" it had rounded off inside causing it to slip. The link comes in different lengths from "Leisure spares" Mine was red but it had been cut down.I am waiting the part now,the spindles seem to rotate quite freely.
Regards
Alan

Apologies fir resurrecting an old thread and hijacking it. Delboy describes removing the inner trim from the Remis roof light. I need to do this to repair a broken blind track. Does anyone have any handy hints that may  eliminate me reinventing the wheel and avoiding doing any expensive damage. I have looked for videos etc but they are gloss over this bit of the process as if it is simple. It may be but the parts are very delicate and I want to be sure of doing the right thing to avoid damage.

Delboy wrote:

gemdeco wrote:Hi Paul
   Thanks but has anyone tried mending a roof light with a faulty winding mechanism???
Regards
Alan

Have a look at my comment from a couple of days ago, above. I did replace the Remis mechanism on my AutoTrail 4 years ago. I managed to buy a brand new mechanism on eBay for a good price (Remis didn't sell them anymore). It was a bit fiddly to fit but reasonably straightforward. It is a GREAT help if you carefully note how the old one was put together before you start taking it apart and trying to fit the new one.

I can't remember why, but I found it convenient to remove the (in the cab) part of the roof light before working on the thing. You do this by prising or pulling the whole inner part down off the rubber bung things that hold it in place. I took it off and replaced it a couple of times and the bungs seemed to hold it very securely. While searching for a replacement mechanism, it was easier to open and close the roof-light without the plastic winding handle in the way as I could get a proper socket and small brace on the job!

This isn't a recommendation, just recounting my experience.

The dealer Marquis offered to do the job for me but they would only remove the old roof-light and fit a new one, the quote was about £1100!

We had a problem with ours whilst in Sardinia in June. We are both vertically challenged so turning the handle and pushing at the same time was impossible until we started pulling out the bed to stand on. as I weigh less than the maximum load for the cycle rack I climbed on and managed to get on the roof. The one cable had pulled out of the control box and kinked. I eased all of the cable holding screws removed the lid from the winder and managed to put the cable back in the box. Fastened all of the screws and it works. 
I agree it is very flimsy and there should be a way of lubricating everything.

pjonesf1 wrote:We are both vertically challenged so turning the handle and pushing at the same time was impossible . . .

Sian has a stick with a rubber bung on the end for when she opens the lid.  I always do it if I'm there, which is not always of course.

Ive had 3 of these fitted to my van (under warranty) - they are defintely not fit for purpose and nowadays i dont even bother opening it because as soon as i wind it (with the correct approach of assisting the opening with a helping hand) the feel of the plastic fittings doesnt inspire ANY confidence.

Does anybody know of any alternatives - id be happy for something simpler and more robust.

DaveLilroy asked:-


Does anybody know of any alternatives - id be happy for something simpler and more robust.

Our first 'big' van was an Auto-Trail (back in 2006) and that had a Heki rooflight with a bar handle used to open it. It wasn't as minutely adjustable as the wind-out ones but it always worked perfectly and closed easily. It had the added advantage that you could hang washing on the 'handle' if you needed to. Simple technology which always did the job. I don't think either Heki or Remis make anything like it now, but I guess they lasted too long for the manufacturers and the converters. If I could get one of those now, I would replace the current Remis wind-out ASAP!