Maintenance & Restoration

**Jim Bennett** · 10-18-2013, 02:18 PM

Alrighty then, this will be like watching brain surgery happen.

David Tilston · 10-18-2013, 02:59 PM

Well..... I still have to come up with the $1000. My wife will find that more difficult to swallow then the original $100 purchase price. I will probably have to wait till the next company bonus, which is at the end of this month.

Roy in TO · 10-18-2013, 05:00 PM

That will give you the time to look at how you plan to attack this. I'd suggest you look at the inside seams / track for the ensolite to see if there are suitable locations to make the fiberglass repairs if you are swapping in the new parts.

That is look at where the cracks are on the outside comparing them to the seams on the inside. Figure out where it is going to be easy to conceal the repair(s).

Dave_L · 10-18-2013, 05:20 PM

Would it be a better investment if parted out? Just wondering about your time/cost

David Tilston · 10-18-2013, 06:38 PM

Cost:
$250 - Cost to get it to my place
$1050 - New roof
~$100 - Fibreglass supplies, (1 gallon of resin, and mat glass)
~$50 - Contact cement to re-install Ensolite.
~$50 - Replacement Ensolite, (thanks Roy!)
~$50.00 - Sand paper and other supplies
~$1550

I figure I can sell it for ~$4000.

Yes, I am aware that this can't be a complete list, (flooring, cushions, Get the lock keyed, ...). But I am kinda good at scrounging. If I make ~$2000 each, on both Humpty Dumpty, and the Cantaloupe, then I will call that success.

The time spent is not considered. This is entertainment for me.

Carol H · 10-18-2013, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by David Tilston

The time spent is not considered. This is entertainment for me.

Dont forget the vast amount of entertainment you give to all of us who get to be arm chair coaches and just sit back and watch you do all the work!

Spanke · 10-18-2013, 08:28 PM

David,

Sound like a great plan!

Good luck in your endeavor.

Can't wait to see the outcome!

Spanke

carlkeigley · 10-18-2013, 09:22 PM

I agree with Carol.
Not being "able" to do any of this myself, I enjoy
watching the progress of those who can.

Thanks for sharing with us.

David Tilston · 10-18-2013, 09:28 PM

OK, I have some personal idiosyncrasies that I have a hard time defending. I make choices that some people have a hard time understanding.

I have decided to try to fix the existing roof. I think the costs will be on the order of 20% of the previous calculation, well the fixing part anyway, the purchase cost is now kinda fixed. But this is not just about cost. I guess I like being itchy. I was really looking forward to the struggle to reform the trailer. Some people play hockey for fun.

I will keep the purchase of the top as a solid back-up plan. I would like to believe that I would be able to give up on plan A before I had wasted too much money. So I will tackle what I perceive to be the hardest part first, that big hump in the roof over the closet. There seems to be a large volume of deformed fibreglass there.

The Ensolite will have to be removed either way, so that will be first. I plan to try shaving it off with a vibrating multi tool. We will see how that goes. This will be just down to the top of the windows. I will leave the corners and sides hanging, but the ceiling piece will have to come right off.

Then I will have to construct a sort of form. Plywood cross sections that are the correct shape. There will be pieces running front to back, probably three. The at least three forms that run side to side, probably more. I expect to screw the fibreglass to these sections. Every ten inches or so around where it is ripped. The point being to keep the correct shape. A thin sheet of plywood will be sandwiched between the form, and the arched part of the roof. This will push up the sagging sections of the trolly roof arch, on either side of the closet. I am hoping that two sheets of 1/4” plywood will be enough. At $20 a sheet this will be fairly cheep. I am sure that this plan will evolve as I go.

The final goal is to grind off the gel coat and then lay a couple of new layers of glass on the top and sides of the arch.

But if this turns out to be too difficult, I always have plan B.

Everybody seems to have a great deal of faith in me. That's nice, but, they shouldn't, I don't have much experience, or skill, I am just not afraid to fail. This is especially true, when the monetary costs are so low.

Sue and Henry · 10-19-2013, 04:33 PM

Way,way better than television! Thanks David.

D Davis · 10-19-2013, 05:09 PM

David, I like the "I am not afraid to fail" attitude. You go your way David.
This is Courageous. I do not think any of us will be judging. We support you.

Roy in TO · 10-19-2013, 07:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carol H

Dont forget the vast amount of entertainment you give to all of us who get to be arm chair coaches and just sit back and watch you do all the work!

Plus all the learning untold others can receive in the years to come.

Maybe Matt has some suggestions after working on the damage to the Escape he bought a few years back.
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...gon-44188.html

Carol H · 10-19-2013, 09:10 PM

A site that has great tips on fiberglass repair is Fiberglassics.com

David Tilston · 10-20-2013, 01:04 PM

The Ensolite was barely attached beside the kitchen, I did not plan to skin below the window line, but it just pulled away. I assume that this section saw lots of weather. There were certainly lots of leaves behind this section. In other places there is what I can only call dirt, or the decomposed detritus that has accumulated over the course of five years.........(yuck).

I will be giving the back of the Ensolite a good scrub before I reinstall it. In the places that it was still glued to the fibreglass, I have been cutting it with a knife in about 1/4” cuts. I think I am only losing about 5% of the foam this way. There has been one big gash in the Ensolite with the knife. I figured this would happen, but with the 3' x 5' chunk Ensolite that I hope Roy in TO is able to acquire for me. I'm thinking strip the foam from the back, around the gash. Then, cut a new piece in the same shape as the missing foam. Then, glue it in from behind, with a vinyl glue, that kinda melts the vinyl. When it drys, with lots of observation, it should be impossible to find. I hope.

partsbin · 11-07-2013, 11:26 AM

are you going to make it all pretty like your other trailers?

**Jim Bennett** · 11-07-2013, 11:28 AM

Have you gotten any further with this, Dave? Curious minds want to know.

Lynn Musgrave · 11-07-2013, 08:30 PM

Yes Dave,Curious minds want to know.

and of course we always need pictures!
All of us like to see what others are doing,sometimes we can even add some suggestions that help,and I for one always learn something new from watching the great and hard work of others.

David Tilston · 11-08-2013, 10:09 AM

The truth is, I have been sick, and the cold makes it difficult to work in the trailer. If I put the 1500W ceramic heater out there for about an hour, it is OK, but I find that I can only get out there on the weekend.

No pictures, but I am having a difficult time getting the Ensolite off in one piece. The large piece that goes from the front window to the back window may not make it. I can probably salvage 3/4 of it, but I have already gone through it in a couple of places. I am thinking that it may be replaced by that foil bubble wrap, and rat fur. The rest of the Ensolite has been saved.

**Jim Bennett** · 11-08-2013, 10:13 AM

Hope you are well now, Dave. No worries, living in the same city and trying to do work outside myself, I know how tough it is with temps barely getting above freezing.

We all just like to see pikchurs, you know that.