Installing a front dinette while retaining bunks, couch and porta-potti in 13' Scamp"

[Scamper Jim]

Bill,

I forgot to mention that you should drop the table into the bunk position to check the placement of the table support. It has to be forward enough so that the bottom of the leg doesn't hit the front of the camper when it is folded up against the bottom of the table.

I also forgot that I can't reply to a message notice, but have to do so here. I just received notice of that so here is the message I sent on Dec. 8th.

Forget the home projects and hook up to the camper. It was 73 degrees at the bottom of Palo Duro Canyon today with only 9 of us RVers in the whole place. Will be here through Wednesday and then on to Sedona. It would be great if it's that nice there this weekend also, but probably not as it is at about 4,000 feet.
Jim

The really great temps have contined and am in shorts most of the time. Mid 70's all over the place. Hope it holds for thte Christmas in Sedona this weekend.

Jim

[Bill Nolen]

Originally Posted by Scamper Jim

Bill,

I forgot to mention that you should drop the table into the bunk position to check the placement of the table support. It has to be forward enough so that the bottom of the leg doesn't hit the front of the camper when it is folded up against the bottom of the table.

I also forgot that I can't reply to a message notice, but have to do so here. I just received notice of that so here is the message I sent on Dec. 8th.

Forget the home projects and hook up to the camper. It was 73 degrees at the bottom of Palo Duro Canyon today with only 9 of us RVers in the whole place. Will be here through Wednesday and then on to Sedona. It would be great if it's that nice there this weekend also, but probably not as it is at about 4,000 feet.
Jim

The really great temps have contined and am in shorts most of the time. Mid 70's all over the place. Hope it holds for thte Christmas in Sedona this weekend.

Jim

Palo Duro Canyon is such a neat place to park. It's strange to be driving across flat country, and then you just drop down into a different world. Lots of Indian history took place in that canyon.

Thanks Jim for the suggestion about checking the dinette table leg placement. I was able to move the leg 1-inch and it folds up just right.

Only problem I had with the dinette table mounting is the sliding aluminum parts won't slide!

However, it's not all that important at this time, and that may change in time. Did you have any problem with non-sliding?

I'm only working a few hours a week on the scamp, but, slowly things are getting accomplished. Sure a lot of small details that take time...

Bill

[Scamper Jim]

Bill,

I found that the table does not slide when in the fully down position. The front has to be raised a few inches to release the grip. That is probably to keep the table from shifting while towing.

The weather didn't hold for the drive to Sedona. Had extremely strong head and cross winds with fierce blowing sand all the way from Grants, NM to just before Sedona due to a storm front moving in.

Then Saturday woke up to snow and ice at Sedona, pic attached. It melted though after a while and was a real nice outing. Beautiful rock formations, Christmas events and now being able to put a few faces to names and camper showings.

Jim

[Bill Nolen]

Thanks Jim for the reply about the non-sliding dinette table! It's nice knowing that I hadn't goofed up in some manner.

That looks like a very nice camping area. Hopefully the snow hasn't returned!

It was 29 degrees this morning so naturally I didn't do a single thing with the Scamp today.

Bill

[Johnny M]

Originally Posted by Scamper Jim

Photo 4 shows the fix I did to address the pressure/venting problem. I figured that as long as I was drilling holes, why not drill one more. I cut a hole with a 3/4” Forestner bit in the back of the PP and hot-melt glued in a nylon fitting. As added insurance I secured it with three stainless steel screws. I attached a 3/8” hose to the barb and ran it back to the storage area where it forms a high loop up to the top of the bottom side of the fiberglass bench and then loops down and passes through a hole in the floor. The hose is also removed from the barb when the PP is “serviced”. The use of the slide out tray keeps the wires and hose in their proper orientation so I don't have to pull the PP out from the storage area and rotate it as with the original method under the center bunk area. Hey, if the big rigs can have a monitor and vent system, why can't I?? So there!

Jim,
I really like this mod you did, seen it a while back and came back to it today after a little searching for it. I have a couple of questions. (1) Can you tell me how you like the porta potty setup after you installed the vent? (2) does your vent help with odor control? (3) when you disconnect the vent line to "service" the porta potty is there a valve or cap to keep the contents of the tank from escaping through the connection point? (4) also does your vent exit at the top of the trailer like most rvs? If not do you notice odors outside around the vent area?

BTW this mod inspired me to add the utility tub shower to our Boler which I have since fully converted into a wetbath.

[Scamper Jim]

Hi John,

The Porta-Potti setup has worked just as I had hoped. I have made no changes to it at all, except adding a flat brass latch to the door to keep it closed when traveling. The tray would want to roll out and push open the door after making a few left turns. I have a clip-type latch on it, but it wasn't strong enough to keep from being opened. Problem solved with the latch. Pic below.

The vent hose has resulted in absolutely no odors at all inside or outside the camper. The PP used to bulge a fair amount in hot weather and I had to be vvvvery careful when opening the valve and keep the lid down as it would want to release gases forcefully inside the camper, and occasionally there would be a telltale scent of the odor control liquid from the tank. All oc that is gone.

When I service the PP, I use a short piece of tubing with one end plugged with silicone to cap the "L" connection point. Pic attached below. It is needed to plug the opening when vigorously shaking the tank when rinsing it.

The vent tube exits the camper through the floor. The tube runs from the PP and makes a long loop up to the underside of the bench seat and then loops down through a hole in the floor. It is sealed with silicone. That long of a piece allows the tube to fold up when the PP is pushed back into its space.

If you are considering a shower option, hold on a bit. While I didn't change anything on the PP setup, I made a significant change to the shower setup. I will post a new thread on that shortly.

Jim

[Johnny M]

Originally Posted by Scamper Jim

Hi John,

The Porta-Potti setup has worked just as I had hoped. I have made no changes to it at all, except adding a flat brass latch to the door to keep it closed when traveling. The tray would want to roll out and push open the door after making a few left turns. I have a clip-type latch on it, but it wasn't strong enough to keep from being opened. Problem solved with the latch. Pic below.

The vent hose has resulted in absolutely no odors at all inside or outside the camper. The PP used to bulge a fair amount in hot weather and I had to be vvvvery careful when opening the valve and keep the lid down as it would want to release gases forcefully inside the camper, and occasionally there would be a telltale scent of the odor control liquid from the tank. All oc that is gone.

When I service the PP, I use a short piece of tubing with one end plugged with silicone to cap the "L" connection point. Pic attached below. It is needed to plug the opening when vigorously shaking the tank when rinsing it.

the vent tube exits the camper through the floor. The tube runs from the PP and makes a long loop up to the underside of the bench seat and then loops down through a hold in the floor. It is sealed with silicone. The long of a piece allows the tube to fold up when the PP is pushed back into its space.

If you are considering a shower option, hold on a bit. While I didn't change anything on the PP setup, I made a significant change to the shower setup. I will post a new thread on that shortly.

Jim

Thanks Jim for the explanation. I think I may try the vent tube with our unit, looks like we have the same Dometic porta potty except ours had the 5 gallon waste tank (it gets heavy when full).

As for our shower, 2 years ago when we acquired our Boler my wife insisted she didn't want to camp without a shower and toilet. So I set out to add it. As it turned out a utility tub we found at Lowe's fit perfectly in the cutout under the lower bench. I built a bathroom around that complete with an accordion folding door for privacy. We took out the kitchenette and put our son's bunk there to the front window (street side) with the porty potty on the curb side. The layout worked out really well. The problem with the utility tub was we had to use 2 shower curtains to contain the water to the inside of the tub and it was just a pain to use and to keep the curtain out of the way for using the potty. So this past spring I took out the utility tub and made it a wetbath by glassing everything inside followed up with Bondo filler then Marine Top Side paint by Rustoleum. We really like how it turned out and it is water tight. I have to admit though, my finished skills could use refining but that was mostly due to not enough time on my hands to make it look as nice as a factory shower stall.

The first picture shows the old setup with the utlity tub during construction, the 2nd one shows the new wetbath setup which I made storage behind where the toilet sits on the upper ledge. We have a shower curtain on hooks that covers the storage area as well as the front door area of the bath. The last picture shows the vanity I built on the street side. Underneath this vanity there is leg room for the street side bunk so an adult can sleep there even though it is our sons bed.

I am looking forward to you post to see what you have done with your shower!

[Scamper Jim]

Mike,

Now that looks like it belongs there. Very much the same concept as with Scamps bath, but with the added built-in storage shelves.

Jim

[Johnny M]

Originally Posted by Scamper Jim

Mike,

Now that looks like it belongs there. Very much the same concept as with Scamps bath, but with the added built-in storage shelves.

Jim

Thanks Jim, yes the same kind of concept as with Scamp only reversing the toilet to the curb side allowed us to keep the bunk but only by sacrificing the kitchenette. Being as many people don't use their kitchenette but rather cook outside I have often wondered why Scamp doesn't offer a similar floor plan. I think it would be very popular among Scampers to see a new floor plan in a 13' unit.

[Johnny M]

Jim,
After the 2nd look at your toilet vent, I was inspired again by you to find a better solution for our setup similar to what you have. So while searching last night for a vent for my Dometic porta potty I came across this replacement black tank that has a pump out connection and a vent connection that is a direct replacement for my unit and should fit yours to but is $75 (I gave $50 for our Dometic new). They also make it in a 2.5 gallon model.


It is called MSD fittings and from what I learned it is used in boats to convert existing porta potty toilets to a permanent installation so they can be pumped out when in the marina. Then I found this while searching more for the MSD info:


It is a retro fit kit for Dometics with the vent and pump out in one unit, so you only drill one hole in your tank. It is only $17 here:
https://alltackle.com/dometic-msd-fi...arge-tank-970/

Not a bad idea for anyone who wants to convert their porta potty to a permanent toilet. I could easily plumb to this and put a macerator pump and a rv dump valve in place which would be very cost effective vs totally converting to a new rv toilet and black tank, especially when I already have this Dometic unit. The even make a set of hold down brackets for these Dometic toilets too.

When planning and building our wetbath two things stopped me from changing to an rv toilet: (1) where to put the black tank (trailer frame directly under the toilet area prevented this) and (2) I already had the paid for Dometic and the RV toilet would have cost more than my budget at the time allowed.

So when I saw this I thought to myself this is the perfect solution! I think I am on to something here, so now I have my next mod to begin planning out.

[Scamper Jim]

Mike,

I believe that model is used in marine applications. It is too high for my space but it should work well in yours and the macerator pump will be a nice feature.

[Scamper Jim]

Originally Posted by Scamper Jim

Hi John,

If you are considering a shower option, hold on a bit. While I didn't change anything on the PP setup, I made a significant change to the shower setup. I will post a new thread on that shortly.

Jim

In one of my lasts posts on this thread, I said I would post updated pics of the new, free-standing shower. I forgot to do it but now here they are along with two other projects I did a year ago.

The new free-standing shower is here:
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...amp-80512.html

The new, larger clothes closet is here:
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...set-80503.html

The larger refrigerator and other kitchen modifications are here:
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...ons-74885.html

I have some other pics to get up here so hopefully they will be soon.

[Hopper]

WOWZA, this is really nice. I updated my scamp 13’ with a similar toilet/ shower idea. Yours is really nice!
Any AC ?
if you did put AC in, how and where?

[Scamper Jim]

Hi Carla,

Yup, those kind of projects are fun to design and then actually get completed. I haven't made any changes to the final version of them. There have been almost 22K visitors to the thread, but only two who have said they have tried it. The cutting of the fiberglass probably gives them some pause, that or their wives!! Hope yours worked out as well as mine did for me.

I don't have A/C as I frequent the mountains and we have low humidity here in Colorado. I use a portable fan when I infrequently travel in the Midwest in the summer when I get tired of seeing the mountains and want to see more cornfields.

[jessed1]

Jim, I am trying to open pics of your remodel but when I log in I lose them. I will keep trying. What great work! Best, Elizabeth Jesse

[jessed1]

Jim, I just now saw your brilliant multipurpose updates to the front couch/bunk beds from 2015. How did it all work out over time? Best, Elizabeth Jesse

[jessed1]

I found them. Best, Elizabeth

[jessed1]

You did fine work and kept the needs of your family in focus. Where do you store the table leg? Can you flip the table down to a sofa/bed easily? Best, Elizabeth Jesse

[Scamper Jim]

Elizabeth,

Nice that you came across the posting. The table leg folds back under the table. It is the same concept as Scamp uses for its dining table. You can order them from almost any RV parts store. Their catalog will have them listed in the Hardware section as Table Leg or Adjustable Table Leg, either for about $45 - $50.

I do not fold down the table. It is lifted up slightly to detach it from the locking railing. It is then set lower and the cushions placed on it for a bed. You can get the railing from an RV parts store also for about $10. I used that concept also for the additional work space in the kitchen. Pics of that are in the kitchen remodel thread.

I have not made any changes to the final layout as it has worked out so well. I especially like sitting up higher when dining and being able to look straight out the front window. Same for the use of the Porta Potti. The higher position makes it so it can be used without feeling like you are squatting over a hole in the ground or something.

Any other questions, just ask.

Jim

[jessed1]

Originally Posted by Scamper Jim

Elizabeth,

Nice that you came across the posting. The table leg folds back under the table. It is the same concept as Scamp uses for its dining table. You can order them from almost any RV parts store. Their catalog will have them listed in the Hardware section as Table Leg or Adjustable Table Leg, either for about $45 - $50.

I do not fold down the table. It is lifted up slightly to detach it from the locking railing. It is then set lower and the cushions placed on it for a bed. You can get the railing from an RV parts store also for about $10. I used that concept also for the additional work space in the kitchen. Pics of that are in the kitchen remodel thread.

I have not made any changes to the final layout as it has worked out so well. I especially like sitting up higher when dining and being able to look straight out the front window. Same for the use of the Porta Potti. The higher position makes it so it can be used without feeling like you are squatting over a hole in the ground or something.

Any other questions, just ask.

Jim

Jim, Thanks for such a detailed answer to my questions. I have printed them out and will share with my hubby, Ray. I appreciated the links for table leg and railing. I have enough fabric left from my first cushion covering project to cut the cushions into three if Ray is up for converting the couch to table.

I am trying to figure a simple back rest for the front bunk bed/couch because we don't have young grand kids that would use a bunk and the bunk board back is way too heavy/big. Maybe foam at a slant.



I would like to use the front as a sofa, bed as needed (one of us sometimes snores-so we go to front sofa if can't sleep), small table with benches, and place for the Loo (but currently the spot is our beagle's bed (Melvin). I expect that you leave your big bed down always? Thanks again. Carry on!

Best, Elizabeth Jesse