Progress update on my Trillium

[VB_in_BC]

I'm overdue for a progress update on my Trillium, so here goes.

I put the Trillium in my garage last fall (it barely fits) and started working on it slowly when I had free time. A few things were on my list, including the belly band, the pitted fiberglass at the bottom/front of the trailer, and the old 3-way fridge and propane furnace.

After lots of reading on this forum I tackled the belly band. The band had been siliconed by a previous owner and wasn't leaking, but I wanted a more elegant fix. After removing the aluminum strip I pulled out the metal plates that were rusty. Some plates were still solid so I left them in place. The fiberglass was ground down flat, and then I filled the gap with thickened epoxy resin. I used a high density thickener for added strength inside the gap, and a lightweight thickener on top for the finishing work. The whole job took me the better part of winter to complete, but I'm happy with the results.

I wound up deciding to convert the trailer to all-electric. So the furnace came out, leaving a big opening on the side of the trailer that needed to be filled in. At the same time I pulled out the 3-way fridge along with the fiberglass shroud behind it. The shroud limits exhaust fumes from entering the trailer and wouldn't be needed with an electric-only fridge. I cut a flat section off the shroud to use as a backing panel for filliing the furnace hole. Then I applied fiberglass cloth behind the the filler plate and thickened epoxy on the outside.

The new fridge is a NovaKool R1900 AC/DC fridge. It fits well in the opening left behind by the old Dometic, but it is a bit narrower and shorter. So I installed a plywood filler plate that I painted white. On the outside, I will keep the vent plates used by the Dometic. These should provide enough venting to cool off the electric fridge.

Because the top half of the trailer is in pretty decent shape, I decided to not paint it...for now anyway. I may change my mind next winter and paint the top half too. But with some buffing the old gelcoat looks quite good.

For paint I decided to go with Rustoleum Marine Topside. I rolled on a coat of primer first and wetsanded it smooth. I'm now currently on the second coat of paint, with at least one more coat to go, and westanding in between each coat. Once I get finished with the paint I'll put up some more pictures.

[David B.]

Very nice work, truly a labor of love.....thanks for posting.
Dave & Paula

[VB_in_BC]

Thanks David!

Here it is now after three coats of paint, rolled on with wetsanding in between each coat. It will probably need one more coat. The paint levels out very nicely, so I'm hoping it won't need more wetsanding and buffing after the last coat.

[Trill136]

Very very nice.

[Jay H]

Nice work so far Vince. The paint looks great.

[Roy S]

Looks really nice!

[Dennis77]

We are doing the same thing with our 13 making it all electric. we live in SC so need A/C to use seasonal. We put a frigedare A/C in the space
it is a perfect fit with no cutting and the vent is already there from the heater. New A/C self evaporate and there is an outlet at the front. A little ceramic heater should do us fine in cool weather. Your paint looks great.

[VB_in_BC]

Thanks guys.

The third coat of paint has been sanded and now it should just need one final coat of paint. I'm pretty sure it's more work this way (rolling & sanding), but I don't have spray equipment and didn't want to spray in my garage. I'm itching to get the paint finished so I can install the goodies I accumulated over the winter!

[scottkolmankeen]

Can you clarify some dumb questions for my rookie self? What is "wet sanding?" And what do you use to buff the exterior?

Thanks!
SKK

Originally Posted by VB_in_BC

I'm overdue for a progress update on my Trillium, so here goes.

I put the Trillium in my garage last fall (it barely fits) and started working on it slowly when I had free time. A few things were on my list, including the belly band, the pitted fiberglass at the bottom/front of the trailer, and the old 3-way fridge and propane furnace.

After lots of reading on this forum I tackled the belly band. The band had been siliconed by a previous owner and wasn't leaking, but I wanted a more elegant fix. After removing the aluminum strip I pulled out the metal plates that were rusty. Some plates were still solid so I left them in place. The fiberglass was ground down flat, and then I filled the gap with thickened epoxy resin. I used a high density thickener for added strength inside the gap, and a lightweight thickener on top for the finishing work. The whole job took me the better part of winter to complete, but I'm happy with the results.

I wound up deciding to convert the trailer to all-electric. So the furnace came out, leaving a big opening on the side of the trailer that needed to be filled in. At the same time I pulled out the 3-way fridge along with the fiberglass shroud behind it. The shroud limits exhaust fumes from entering the trailer and wouldn't be needed with an electric-only fridge. I cut a flat section off the shroud to use as a backing panel for filliing the furnace hole. Then I applied fiberglass cloth behind the the filler plate and thickened epoxy on the outside.

The new fridge is a NovaKool R1900 AC/DC fridge. It fits well in the opening left behind by the old Dometic, but it is a bit narrower and shorter. So I installed a plywood filler plate that I painted white. On the outside, I will keep the vent plates used by the Dometic. These should provide enough venting to cool off the electric fridge.

Because the top half of the trailer is in pretty decent shape, I decided to not paint it...for now anyway. I may change my mind next winter and paint the top half too. But with some buffing the old gelcoat looks quite good.

For paint I decided to go with Rustoleum Marine Topside. I rolled on a coat of primer first and wetsanded it smooth. I'm now currently on the second coat of paint, with at least one more coat to go, and westanding in between each coat. Once I get finished with the paint I'll put up some more pictures.

[VB_in_BC]

Wet sanding is usually for smoothing paint, either in between coats or after the final top coat in order to obtain a glossy finish. Google can give you much better information than I can.

As for buffing, I buffed the original faded gelcoat (on the upper half of the trailer) last summer and it came out surprisingly good. I used a rotary polisher with wool bonnet, and 3M "Marine Restorer and Wax." For the new paint I haven't looked into what compounds to use. But if I were going to buff it I would probably use a Meguiar's or 3M product. However, the paint looks pretty good to me so I probably will just leave it as is.

[PatriciaSK]

Just wondering what I would look for to see if the belly band is leaking or has been repaired. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[VB_in_BC]

Originally Posted by PatriciaSK

Just wondering what I would look for to see if the belly band is leaking or has been repaired. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Most of what I know about the belly band I learned on this forum. There are some very informative threads by others here that describe how it's constructed and how to fix it. If your trailer has not been repainted, particularly around the belly band area, it's unlikely the belly band has been repaired. Mine was caulked on the top side to keep water from getting behind it (which would eventually lead to a leak). Whoever did it actually did a pretty nice looking job. If you don't want to do a full repair at this time, I suggest doing this.

[David Tilston]

Due to how the upper and lower shells are joined, belly band leaks are inevitable, if you live where winter temperatures fall below freezing. As mentioned, calk on the top side of the belly band might indicate that leaks are already a problem. The fix that I did is kind of radical:
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...ead-58763.html
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...ead-59580.html

[VB_in_BC]

Last weekend the family and I took the freshly-repainted Trillium out for its first camping trip this year. The weather was cool and wet but we had fun anyways. Even with the rain my 7 year old son didn't want to leave.

I really like my new Nova Kool AC/DC fridge. It's quiet, kept our burgers perfectly frozen, and after 2 days my battery was around 50% charge. I've already bought a second battery that will be getting installed before the next trip. It will live next to the first battery, where the propane bottle used to be. I figure with warmer weather I should get 3 days or so before needing to recharge the batteries. We rarely stay in one place for more than 3 days anyways so for now that should work well.

On my to-do list are to repaint the door to match the rest of the trailer. It needs a bit of body work, and I ran out of time, so that's why I re-installed it as-is. I also need to build a cabinet and door to fill the opening where the furnace used to be.

I attached a few photos - one of the trailer in our driveway, and the other on our camping trip (Sasquatch Park, near Harrison Hot Springs BC).

We have another trip coming up next weekend, so I'd better get to work!

[Jon in AZ]

Looking great! I know 3-way fridges, furnaces, HW heaters,... have their place, but I sure love the appearance of smooth, uninterrupted fiberglass, minus all the vents.