The Project

I see no choice but to remove the entire unit to fix the tambour door.

There are eight metal 90° angle brackets that hold the shelving unit in place. I unscrewed all the screws that held the brackets to the walls, but left the bracket screws in the shelving unit.

In order to get to 4 of the brackets (2 at each end of the unit), I also had to remove a carpet-covered square at each end (each square also had two screws).

Once the screws are out, the unit drops slightly.

I thought about trying to make the repair in place but there's no room to work or see what you're doing. So removing the entire shelf-casing seems the only alternative.

If you try to work in place, watch the ends - the unit is such a tight-fit that the ends rub against the walls at both ends and you could do some serious damage to the wall covering.

Once I had removed all the screws, the shelving-unit came loose (see step 2). In order to remove it from its location (so it's easier to work on), I had to angle it (forward end UP and aft end down).

Here is a closer look at the lower track construction. The track is held in place by two screw-types.

The long screw (the silver screw that you can see) serves a dual purpose:

1. It holds the track in place
2. It serves as a STOP for the door; the door cannot slide past the screw.

Inside the hole (Sea Ray must have drilled this opening in the track) is a tiny flat-head screw. It holds the track and hopefully does not interfer with the travel of the door.

My plan is to replace the portion of tambour track that has deteriorated over time. It simply fell-apart from use.

My razor was sufficient for getting a clean cut. I cut to the right of the stop of the other door (it works fine and it still needs its own stop). The other end was already broken but I was prepared to cut it too.

Also I removed all screws for the portion of track I am replacing

Here I've laid in a piece of the new track (cut to size). The new track is substantially stronger than the original so I opted not to try to use the tiny screws.

Rather, I predrilled a hole at each end of the track for the two screws that would hold it in place.

In my case, for the left hand screw, be careful where you position the drill-hole. Remember: it will hold the track AND also serve as the STOP for the track.

Be sure to insert the tambour door BEFORE inserting the screws.

I purchased the tambour track online.

Before putting the unit back in place, I took the opportunity to check, replace and tighten screws on the 8 brackets.

A couple of the screws were pretty loose, and a couple were stripped, so this was time well-spent.

Again, by angling the unit and squeezing the cushion of the seat, I was just barely able to get the unit re-positioned.

As a last resort, I was prepared to remove the upper bunk entirely from its hinge to get a little extra space.

Voila! See how pretty the doors look.

Project time: 2 hours