How to access my water hose reel for repair on 07 Dip

[LarryB]

How do I gain access to my water hose reel? The fiberglass panel in front of the reel provides the mounting for the plumbing fixtures has a 3” return on both sides. With all the pex pipe behind this panel I don’t believe I can remove this panel to service the water hose reel. I’ve considered cutting this panel in half vertically n reinforcing it w an aluminum rib. All ur help will b greatly appreciated

[Joelsheriff]

My 07 Dip needs a new hose as well and I wanted to change the reel as well. I was told to cut open the panel and frame it out rather than try to remove the entire panel which is a bear. 

[Scotty Hutto]

On my 06 Dip I removed the panel in one piece. It’s a bit fiddley, because I had to reach behind it to disconnect the shower and water fill connections.  Most of what’s on that panel is just a few screws and maybe one connector. The only one I had an issue with was the panel with the water pump and light switches.  If you disconnect those wires, make sure you take a picture of the connections first.  
 

The panel itself must be flexed to remove it, but once you get the panel out, replacing the hose (or hose reel) is pretty straightforward. On mine, the gear was stripped, and since I had to pull the entire reel I went ahead and replaced the hose. 
 

it probably took me three hours total for removal, repair, and replace everything. That’s been about four years ago and everything still works fine. 
 

Here’s info on the replacement gear kit in case anyone needs that.