Craig & Donna’s ’84 U-Haul 13’ Renovation

[Craig D. Thompson]

I am embarking on a complete renovation of my ’84 U-Haul 13’er. My parents bought this trailer in 1996 from a private seller in western Virginia. They drove from their home in northern Maryland so they took a bit of a chance that it was in good condition. It was. All original as far as I can tell.

My parents took some long trips with this trailer, including one across the southern USA to California where my brother lives, up the coast to Oregon, east to Missoula Montana where my sister lives, north into Canada, east to the Great Lakes, then back home.

My wife and I bought it from my parents in 2005. (We had been using a pop-up that we bought from them years earlier.) We planned on renovating the trailer right away but alas, 6 years now have passed and I have committed to do this renovation before next summer. This work will not be convenient since it will not fit into my garage or my workshop, doors not tall enough even with the wheels off.

Some of the major tasks at hand include replacing the axle to include brakes. I have had too many “urgent” stops, caused by other drivers, that were just too close for comfort due to the longer stopping distance while towing a brakeless trailer. To assist in the axle replacement I will remove the body from the frame, sand blast it and repaint it.

The windows leak quite badly. We camped in a pop-up for many years and came to love the very airy open feel of sleeping with full screens on three sides of the bed. I am hoping that I will be able to find some awning style replacement windows that don’t cost a fortune.

We rarely cook inside so we want to set up the kitchen supplies so they can be reached from the door, without stepping into the trailer.

I will be installing a StowAway2 storage box to the back of the trailer to hold tables, chairs and such. This will probably require moving the spare tire forward to the tongue.

I will try to post updates as progress is made. Hoping to make steady progress but no guarantees. I will also be asking many questions about all aspects of this renovation so brace yourselves!

Will post some photos in the next post.

Craig T.

[Craig D. Thompson]

Here are some photos when we bought the U-Haul from my parents in 2005.

The front window was broken during a trip to North Carolina and they never fixed it.

[mary and bob]

Craig: Leaking windows is a common problem with the Uhauls, there is info on here how to rebuild them. We have not yet done ours. We did buy the RV gutter from Camping World and installed it, but the trailer has been under cover since so I have no info as how effective it is. Also the repair manual is available on this site. I'm still researching where to get a replacement rear window. I know some owners have replaced their axles so as to have brakes, but I believe they have replaced the wheels also because of the bolt pattern. Uhauls have an odd rim. Ours needed a few repairs but was in fairly good condition. We are heading south for a few weeks with it this winter. Note that the rear bumper is Aluminum. Keep us all updated with your rebuild. Bob

[Craig D. Thompson]

Leaking windows seems to be one of the most common problem with all trailers! I want to replace the windows to get awning style so as to have full airflow. With the sliders you get a maximum of 50% area for airflow.

I want to get rid of the U-Haul custom wheel lug pattern as well as get brakes and go to 14" wheels so new rims will be required.

[Mike in NC]

Hi Craig,
Just wondering if your furnace has been removed, and what kind of "plug" that is on the side where the furnace exhaust should be. I am thinking of removing my furnace, and pondering over different ideas to seal the exhaust hole. Thanks.

[mary and bob]

Craig: Did you see the post on the forum here where someone put the awning style windows in their Uhaul. I think he got them from Scamp, but had to modify the opening. Probably the big issue with another axle will be to get the right length so as the wheels are in the correct position. Again, I saw where at least one other member here has done the conversion to brakes. Mike: You don't like the furnace? I had to work on ours some to get it operating. Not planning on using it much, but keeping it in the trailer. You could use a flat piece of metal, cut round, with a rubber gasket to seal the furnace vent hole. Thick aluminum would work. Let me know if you want to sell any of the parts, my thermostat cover is broke and the inside vent cover is not too good. Bob

[Craig D. Thompson]

Mike, when my parents had this trailer my father removed the furnace. It was badly rusted. He had a small sheet of flat molded fiberglass that he cut a disc from, caulked and bolted it over the hole.

Mary and Bob, I must have missed the post about awning window in a U-Haul. I will check it out. Thanks.

[Pat B Ohio]

I too am reworking my U-haul. Gutted the poor thing. I took off the swamp cooler, pulled the transformer, pulled all the liners, pulled the ice box, yanked the heater, removed the water tank and old battery box. ( I removed the bunks and did a front table mod earlier.)

Now, as I step back and really look at it. I find tons of unused space or poorly used space. I am going to put in a bed foot well / counter running from the sink under the escape window. It will allow a L shaped "lounge" area, more counter, storage for cushions and bedding.

I will have to redo the tail lamps, my rubber is rotten. I suffer from drippy windows too. I am looking towards the Scamp jalousie windows, but wince at the price.

Once i figure out how to resize pictures, I will start my own thread.

Best of luck to all of you.

[Mike in NC]

Bob,
I tried my furnace for the first time a couple weeks ago. I had the camper plugged into power at the campground, turned on the gas at the tank, and moved the thermostat setting up. There was two distinct "click" sounds. I don't know anything about these furnaces, but it sounds like there was power to the furnace, and the thermostat. I know it was getting gas, because after a couple tries, it was smelling like gas in the camper. That's when I decided to quit on it. I wanted to keep my egg safely on the ground! My furnace appears to be in very good condition, and the previous owner said that he had used it, and it worked. My wife and I had talked about removing it several times before we had even tried it. We don't like the fact that it so close to where blankets could be hanging off the bed. My thermostat cover appears to be original. It is a dark brown color, with either gold or silver lettering on it. Anyway, If I decide to remove it, I will be very careful in the extraction, and would like to sell the entire system as a whole. From the thermostat, down to the exhaust vent. It will be after January though because I crashed a four wheeler (ATV) last month, and tore all the ligaments in my shoulder. I can't work on it until that heals.

[Mike in NC]

Craig,
Thanks for the explanation. That sounds good. I may try to put a piece of fiberglass on the inside of the camper, so the outside can be glassed over smoothly. I would like it to appear that the hole was never there. Stainless steel bolts would be nice through the holes already there.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by Mike in NC

Bob,
I tried my furnace for the first time a couple weeks ago. I had the camper plugged into power at the campground, turned on the gas at the tank, and moved the thermostat setting up. There was two distinct "click" sounds. I don't know anything about these furnaces, but it sounds like there was power to the furnace, and the thermostat. I know it was getting gas, because after a couple tries, it was smelling like gas in the camper. That's when I decided to quit on it. I wanted to keep my egg safely on the ground! My furnace appears to be in very good condition, and the previous owner said that he had used it, and it worked. My wife and I had talked about removing it several times before we had even tried it. We don't like the fact that it so close to where blankets could be hanging off the bed. My thermostat cover appears to be original. It is a dark brown color, with either gold or silver lettering on it. Anyway, If I decide to remove it, I will be very careful in the extraction, and would like to sell the entire system as a whole. From the thermostat, down to the exhaust vent. It will be after January though because I crashed a four wheeler (ATV) last month, and tore all the ligaments in my shoulder. I can't work on it until that heals.

The combustion chamber uses outside air and vents to the outside.
If the furnace smelled like gas, you either have a leak in the supply line, a crack in the plenum, or a plugged flue or intake. The last of these is most likely. Dirt daubers and other insects or even mice love these things... Clean it out and try again, you might be surprised.

[Mike in NC]

Thanks Floyd! Very helpful. I'm going to jot that down, and check it out in the future. Still up in the air about removal, but it would be nice to see it working once.

[Craig D. Thompson]

The swamp cooler was gone when my parents bought the trailer. I removed the damaged vent and installed a vent with a fan.

My tail lamp covers are badly crazed and the light is so faint that several people have pulled up next to me and said my brake lights were not working. I will be moving the bumper back and adding a storage box. I plan to add new tail lights on the top of the bumper. I may remove the original lights and cover the holes. I want there to be no confusion about where the back of the trailer is!

Pat, you are correct about the under used storage space. With all that storage space though, I need to be diligent not to store a lot of items that are not really needed or used very often. I carefully weighed everything in my trailer and was surprised how much it added up to. I will collect that info and post it here in the next few days.

My parents removed the water tank. Battery and transformer are still in place. I have not yet decided what to do with the ice box. I might leave it for now.

I might use the furnace vent opening for an electric outlet hatch. Still working through many of these details though.

Craig T.

[h.mike]

Originally Posted by Mike in NC

Craig,
Thanks for the explanation. That sounds good. I may try to put a piece of fiberglass on the inside of the camper, so the outside can be glassed over smoothly. I would like it to appear that the hole was never there. Stainless steel bolts would be nice through the holes already there.

I have removed the furnace in my UH 13 and also have that big hole. I was considering a plug or patch but recently saw a "porch light" in LED. Its round and approximately the proper size. I may use that spot for an outside light. The light was at randpcarriages. They sell a lot on ebay. Keep us posted on your camper work. We all need info on these campers.

[Mike in NC]

Hi Mike,
The outside light sounds like a good idea. I like Craig's idea too about using the hole as an outside electrical connection. That would be great for when we use our 10 x 10 easy up canopy. I had thought about hanging those "string lights" around the top of the canopy. They put off a soft light.

[Marty D]

Originally Posted by h.mike

I have removed the furnace in my UH 13 and also have that big hole. I was considering a plug or patch but recently saw a "porch light" in LED. Its round and approximately the proper size. I may use that spot for an outside light. The light was at randpcarriages. They sell a lot on ebay. Keep us posted on your camper work. We all need info on these campers.

Hi folks,

The furnace was also gone on my CT13. To fill in the hole, I found a portable room heat pump/air conditioner that would fit into the opening, and was able to connect its exhaust to the orginial exhaust port. I just open the closet door when I want to use it. This allowed me to put a fantastic fan on the roof for general air movement, and not have all of the extra weight on the roof.

Marty D

[Pat B Ohio]

Hey Marty, what brand is that heat pump/AC? The ones I found have been too wide for the narrow U-Haul closet......

[Marty D]

Originally Posted by Pat B Ohio

Hey Marty, what brand is that heat pump/AC? The ones I found have been too wide for the narrow U-Haul closet......

Pat,

I don't remember off hand. I'll take a look when I get home tonight. I did have to trim back the opening (opposite the hinges) a little bit to get it into the void. Once it is in there, I have a couple of inches on either side of the unit. I went to Home Depot and bought stock white plastic (looks like flat steel bar) and trimmed the opening with it to hide the cut. It has worked out great for us.

Marty D

[mary and bob]

Mike in NC: The way the furnace is supposed to work is; turn up thermostat, after a short delay the fan runs to purge the system, there is a switch that senses the air movement, then the igniter activates, this is an electrode setup like a spark plug where spark jumps between the two terminals. You can see the spark through the little inspection window. When the spark starts the gas valve opens and the burner should light. I had to pull the electrodes out and reset the gap, that info is in the repair manual. Had to make a new gasket, and also vacuumed out the inside of the furnace. Mud wasps had also made a nest in the vent pipe. If you try to light the furnace on battery power only it may not work if battery charge is low. Craig: are you aware of the tail light conversion that is available from Uhaul? Bob

[Craig D. Thompson]

mary and bob, tell me more about this tail light conversion!!!! Please! I know nothing about it.

Craig T.