Painting Cabinets in a Compact Jr.

[Ricky 4]

I am wanting to paint the cabinets in my Compact Jr. Has anyone painted the cabinets with success. Not sure what kind of paint to use. The cabinets seem to be covered with something like contact paper. I was told this is original. Also do I need primer first?
Getting the camper ready for travel and our yearly river float vacation-where people always want to see the insde of these tiny campers.

[Flygal]

well I don't own one but if its anything like wallpaper , they make a great eco friendly wallpaper remover at Lowes (or homedepot). Its probley stuck, well like glue, a heat gun may also be in order to unstick that mess...past that I have no advice

I am wanting to paint the cabinets in my Compact Jr. Has anyone painted the cabinets with success. Not sure what kind of paint to use. The cabinets seem to be covered with something like contact paper. I was told this is original. Also do I need primer first?
Getting the camper ready for travel and our yearly river float vacation-where people always want to see the insde of these tiny campers.

[Marinab]

Miy cabinets are that dark wood paneling that was so popular. I'm going to be painting them this spring with a good primer and paint.
If yours are wallpaper, I've seen people paint over that with good success but personally have never tried it. I would always be afraid
that the paper would peel and take the paint with it.

[Donna D.]

I've successfully painted over wallpaper in my home. And yes, a good primer and paint are necessary. The only concern would be any moisture issues and that causing the wallpaper to come unstuck from the cabinetry. There are wallpaper removers, it's a "paint-on" stuff, sorta like a thick glue. Makes a mess, but maybe you'd like to try it in one small area....

[Ricky 4]

Thanks for the info-I may prime and then paint a small drawer and see how that goes. We have added new cushion covers, new refrig, new wheels and tires,some new wiring and new curtains.
I take the little tv out to the garage, in the camper and our grandkids think it is fun to watch tv and eat lunch. It is like a playhouse for them.

Will let you know how the painting goes.

[Steve Hilby]

I painted the cabinets in my sister's Compact Jr. They had already been painted, so I didn't need to prime; but I'd certainly echo the advice of those who have told you to prime. I used a semi-gloss latex, and it turned out pretty well.

Don't just mindlessly paint them white; think about it a bit first and then paint them something more interesting.

I used green and blue.


Here's the whole album showing the many little things I did on that trailer.

[Ricky 4]

I painted the cabinets in my sister's Compact Jr. They had already been painted, so I didn't need to prime; but I'd certainly echo the advice of those who have told you to prime. I used a semi-gloss latex, and it turned out pretty well.

Don't just mindlessly paint them white; think about it a bit first and then paint them something more interesting.

http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z256/hi...ct/DSCN1879.jpg

Good to hear someone else has painted cabinets.
The walls have been painted white-the cushions are black with gold shades of leaves and vines-kind of jungle looking. The curtains are black with the same fabric of the cushions for the valance. Was thinking of a gold/yellow cabinet to match the cushions.
We are going to take out the heater and make more storage. I have cleaned the oven and using it for storage since it doesn`t work. Going to paint it white to match the new refrig.
I think working on the camper is addicting and good therapy for the winter blues.
Mrs. C

[Flygal]

hahah can't tell you how many times my son and his buddies were out in the trailer acting like it was a restaurant. Every now and again I would wander by and they would have a peice of paper posted with theri "requests for food".....it was a nice way to get yardwork done.

Thanks for the info-I may prime and then paint a small drawer and see how that goes. We have added new cushion covers, new refrig, new wheels and tires,some new wiring and new curtains.
I take the little tv out to the garage, in the camper and our grandkids think it is fun to watch tv and eat lunch. It is like a playhouse for them.

Will let you know how the painting goes.

[JenPB]

I painted mine, too, though it didn't have the contact paper issue. Previous owner had primed it...and left it white primer. Picked up ALL sorts of dirts. I could was my hands and STILL get dirt on those primed cabinets! It was maddening.

Flash forward a few months and I've painted over the cabinets with latex semi-gloss I picked up FOR FREE from my local recycling center. (Check yours, or your landfill - lots of 'em have paint collection stations, and they give the good batches to anyone who wants to use them - GREAT source for small batches of paint.)

I liked Steve's idea of painting the edges differently from the faces. Worked out great in mine, too (IMHO).

I am wanting to paint the cabinets in my Compact Jr. Has anyone painted the cabinets with success. Not sure what kind of paint to use. The cabinets seem to be covered with something like contact paper. I was told this is original. Also do I need primer first?
Getting the camper ready for travel and our yearly river float vacation-where people always want to see the insde of these tiny campers.

[Pat Goodwin]

I painted the cabinets in my sister's Compact Jr. They had already been painted, so I didn't need to prime; but I'd certainly echo the advice of those who have told you to prime. I used a semi-gloss latex, and it turned out pretty well.

Don't just mindlessly paint them white; think about it a bit first and then paint them something more interesting. :)

I used green and blue.


Here's the whole album showing the many little things I did on that trailer.

HI, I'm interested in the tarp arrangement - big problem camping is no dry place for dogs to be out of the rain. How did you attach to trailer and what kind of poles are those? Thanks for the help. Pat

[Ricky 4]

Really like the two tone painted cabinets-I am going to do that also.

When the weather warms up I am going to put a stripe along the sides and wax the camper to see if it will shine.
I think we figure out things to do to the camper just so we can be in it during the bad weather months. Ours is in the garage so we can work on it even in the cool weather.

Really need to put a new canvas around the top but the old one is still usuable but doesn`t look too good. Haven`t wanted to tackle that yet.

Mrs. C.

[Steve Hilby]

HI, I'm interested in the tarp arrangement - big problem camping is no dry place for dogs to be out of the rain. How did you attach to trailer and what kind of poles are those? Thanks for the help. Pat

I put stainless steel eyebolts through the trailer roof, using rubber-backed washers and latex caulk to ensure they wouldn't leak. Then I bought simple carabiner-type hooks to snap the tarp to the eyebolts. The poles are sectional fiberglass tent poles-the type with the elastic cord down the center.

The only complication was when I put an eyebolt in the roof over the kitchen. The trailer is double-walled in that area (the trailer shell and the fiberglass kitchen surround), with a little space between the two. I didn't want to squeeze the two shells together and maybe cause cracks later, so I drilled the hole in the kitchen shell a bit bigger and put a spacer over the eyebolt so the inner nut squeezed against the spacer instead of the kitchen shell.

Hmm, hard to explain. I'll make a sketch tonight at home and post it here.

[Steve Hilby]

Really need to put a new canvas around the top but the old one is still usuable but doesn`t look too good. Haven`t wanted to tackle that yet.

Mrs. C.

If it were me, I'd haul it in to an auto/boat upholsterer and have them make one. They have all the heavy-duty tools, plus experience making boat canvas. Better I should pay them and get a good job than fumble around doing a crummy job on my own.

[Larry&Carrie]

I put stainless steel eyebolts through the trailer roof, using rubber-backed washers and latex caulk to ensure they wouldn't leak. Then I bought simple carabiner-type hooks to snap the tarp to the eyebolts. The poles are sectional fiberglass tent poles-the type with the elastic cord down the center.

The only complication was when I put an eyebolt in the roof over the kitchen. The trailer is double-walled in that area (the trailer shell and the fiberglass kitchen surround), with a little space between the two. I didn't want to squeeze the two shells together and maybe cause cracks later, so I drilled the hole in the kitchen shell a bit bigger and put a spacer over the eyebolt so the inner nut squeezed against the spacer instead of the kitchen shell.

Hmm, hard to explain. I'll make a sketch tonight at home and post it here.

Steve--- I ran into the same thing..... I just put a fender washer on both sides with a liberal amount of butyl on the outside and cranked it tight using a nylock nut... hasn't fell off or leaked yet. I put hooks on and put grommets in our awning. Just screwed up by not measuring correctly--now need to move a grommet. (see funny sag in picture) Two sets of grommets on sides - one set for when poptop is up and another set for when it is down. Larry

[RobertaF]

Just a thought, I've used a product called Caromel Colors in my home for some furniture that I wanted to refinish without a huge hassle. I have seen photos of kitchen cabinets that have been done without the antique glazing and they looked great so if you don't want an antique effect it is possible to do that with this product as well. It's not dirt cheap but it wouldn't take that much for the cabinets in a trailer. This stuff can be applied over anything and I mean anything and it does not rub or off flake off - it is possible to sand it off for different effects but that's about it.

You can check it out at:

http://www.caromalcolours.com/

[Steve Hilby]

Okay, here's the eyebolt installation sketch I promised:




All hardware is stainless--it costs more than plain steel, but in the very small quantities you need, the price difference doesn't amount to enough to worry about. The spacer is a piece of thick-walled aluminum tube but really could be almost anything un-rustable.

The point of the spacer in the "kitchen" portion of the sketch is to prevent squeezing the inner kitchen shell and the outer trailer shell together. Call me cautious.

I actually used acorn nuts on the inside to prevent having ugly threads visible--but I forgot that while I was drawing the picture.