1993 Scamp 16' repair and remodel

[TheWanderers]

We stopped by Keller's RV Supply in Somerset and picked up the replacement grey water shut off value/shutter and I installed that this morning; easy peasy. Also installed the replacement Bearing Buddies that we picked up from Paul's Discount in Somerset and that was a quick job as well. Scratch those off the to-do list!

[TheWanderers]

With Laura on the inside and me on the step ladder, we drilled out the pop rivets that where supposed to be holding the roof vent in place. I say supposed to be because this is a design nightmare. That light weight tin shroud of the roof vent will never seal with pop rivets holding it down. The goop that someone had put all over the vent just caused more leaks because the tin would simply deform around the volume of sealant.

I'm gonna' re-engineering this bad boy! I'm heading over to Lowe's for some aluminum stock that I can cut and drill to match the hole pattern on the existing shroud. Then, I'll put a piece on the inside of the cabin and a second piece on the outside of the shroud and bolt the vent in place with butyl tape to seal the hold as well as the vent using stainless bolts and ny-lock nuts. This will allow the bolt/nut combination to pull the vent cover down using the bar stock as a solid frame upon which to bolt and seal the vent. We'll have to finish with something nice inside to trim out the frame and hide the nuts, but it'll stop leaking inside.

[dbdbgriggs]

That leaking and rivet-goop problem was why I glassed a frame to the top. It raised the lip so that even if water did lay in beside the frame, it simply couldn't leak. There are no thru-holes. The vent screws into the top of the frame, and the trim to the bottom, but the screws don't go all the way through
Doug Griggs
83 scamp 16
"Trash Panda"



Sent from my iPhone using Fiberglass RV

[TheWanderers]

Originally Posted by dbdbgriggs

That leaking and rivet-goop problem was why I glassed a frame to the top. It raised the lip so that even if water did lay in beside the frame, it simply couldn't leak. There are no thru-holes. The vent screws into the top of the frame, and the trim to the bottom, but the screws don't go all the way through
Doug Griggs
83 scamp 16
"Trash Panda"
Sent from my iPhone using Fiberglass RV

DB: That sounds like another good solution to a poorly designed installation. I appreciate your comments. Thanks for stopping by.

[TheWanderers]

We spent over seven hours resealing the roof vent/escape hatch on our Scamp. It was slow work but we're really proud of the results. This was one of the toughest jobs we've undertaken and it was definitely a two person job.

We started removing the old hatch by removing all the screws inside and out and scraping the old caulk and sealant. There was some kind of stuff up there that was really firm, almost hard, and took a long time to scrap it off, careful not the scar the fiberglass too much.

Then we cleaned with the residue with alcohol to ensure a good seal. We picked up some aluminum bar stock, 1" X 1/8", from Lowes and used the vent flange as a template to mark the holes to drill to match up the existing mounting holes through the roof fiberglass. The goal was to use the holes that were already there and not make any new holes. (First, do no harm.)

We used stainless steel bolts with nylock nuts to bolts through the bar stock on top of the vent flange and the butyl seal, through the fiberglass into the inside, through a second piece of bar stock inside the camper.

The installation went slow and careful but all the holes lined up and all the nuts just barely reached the bolt pushed through from outside the camper. We snugged the nuts down slowly, alternating around the flange to pulled the vent cover down in the most uniform pattern possible for 24 different bolts.

I am very pleased with the results. We haven't checked it for leaks, but we can see the excess butyl squeezed from both the outside and the inside of the flange so I am extremely optimistic for a good seal. There is still an area on the outside the camper where we may want to squirt some acrylic caulk to fill in a trough of open space where water may pool, but I don't think it'll leak, in any case. This was a lot like resealing a window, only on the roof.

[TheWanderers]

Just ordered our new table base, recommended by Ian, from Factory RV Surplus and we'll be installing this baby as soon as it arrives. $99 includes shipping to Kentucky from the RV capital of the world, Elkhart, IN.

[TheWanderers]

We've had almost four hours of rain last night that continues through most of today. The roof vent is dry!

However, we have four windows that are leaking. Arrrrgggg! (They'll be a lot easier to re-seal.)

[TheWanderers]

We installed the new table base tonight and it was pretty easy. Thanks for the great recommendation Ian!

[TheWanderers]

We've been struggling with a way to control our dogs while allowing them to freedom to run in/out of the camper while at the camp site. I've engineered this fencing adaptor to attach our our X-pen and go under the door to prevent any unwanted visitors from entering our "porch" area or escapees from out pack.

Using 1 1/2" schedule 40 PVC I glued various pieces together to form up a freestanding fence panel to which we will zip tie a custom cut piece of snow fencing that will follow the contour of the Scamp to protect the babies. We will attach our yard fencing to the two tallest uprights and hopefully have a controlled area that the dogs will be safe when at the campsite.

This is a picture of the third version of this device and I can already see another improvement to reduce cost, size and simplify construction. We'll employ this device for the first time and I'll let you know how it works and if the dogs like it, or not.

[TheWanderers]

We're gonna need more butyl tape. Oh, yah, it'd prolly help if I put the windows in right side up too...jus' sayin'...

[TheWanderers]

Well, we have spent a little time in "Ziggy" and we have decided that the bathroom closet/coffin is a terrible design. Well, maybe if your a normal sized human bean, but I'm 6'3" and trying to do anything in that tiny box, including simply stand still, is a challenge. We've been discussing options from modifications to complete removal trying to solve the space issue. This is gonna' get interesting.

[TheWanderers]

We worked all day today to repair many issues with Ziggy. We completed the window spacer for resealing the bathroom window but we didn't get it installed. Instead, I cut the rotted floor out of the closet that is the results of poor drainage from the A/C and have a new piece of plywood sealed with fiberglass and ready to be install tomorrow.

Laura worked out the dimensions of the new table top and put the first coat of sealant on the 9 ply furniture grade plywood top that will replace the ailing table that is probably from 1991 as the original. We've also cut a bed extension that will provide us with the additional space to come close to a queen sized bed in a 16' Scamp. We'll get pictures of that once it's installed.

We've completely removed the LP tank and the stove/oven combination and will be making that space into storage. While we were in that area we pulled the mini-fridge and cleaned under the cabinet and repainted the elephant skin under there. We'll have to cut out that floor at another reno session but not right now.

The plan for tomorrow is to reinstall the fridge, the A/C and the new shelving in the stove area. We'll see how much we can get done. I really like working with my best girl on our camper. Feelin' like we need to hit the road again soon!

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by TheWanderers

While we were in that area we pulled the mini-fridge and cleaned under the cabinet and repainted the elephant skin under there.

Elephant Skin? confused. You indicate its a 1991 Scamp correct?

Scamp stopped using Elephant skin in their trailers some time before the mid 80's !!!

[TheWanderers]

Carol: I can't explain it but I can tell you that the number stamped into the frame indicated that this is a 1991 and we don't have no rat fur.

Originally Posted by Carol H

Elephant Skin? confused. You indicate its a 1991 Scamp correct?

Scamp stopped using Elephant skin in their trailers some time before the mid 80's !!!

[TheWanderers]

Laura finished putting the final coats of MinWax Poly-Crylic sealant with UV protectant on our new table and bed extension this afternoon...well, actually, it was this evening because we worked our @sses off today getting some serious work done on renovations.

This is 9 ply furniture grade plywood and we use no stain so the final finish is EXTREMELY light colored, just the way we like it, in our small Scamp. The results are quite stunning in the small space and reflect light back into the room in a wonderfully warm way. We have prepared a bed extension that is oversized at 30" X 46." When combined with the new table that is 30" X 30" we will have a bed that is 73" X 76" sort-of and that'll really be nice. We still have to attach the final bed rail to lock the two pieces together, but the test was really encouraging.

We decided to make the table only 30" X 30" because it's a lot easier to get into and out of the dinette as well as move the table to the outside area like a picnic table and I can carry in in one hand now. Pretty nice mod!

[TheWanderers]

We have finished the re-install on the house air conditioner that came with our Scamp, Ziggy. We decide to re-install the house unit because it seemed to work well during a dry test in our garage, so...

I built a slider using drawer glides from Lowe's and 2" X 4" to make a table to allow the A/C unit to slide outside the camper into the "outside" where the A/C unit was designed to work as well as drain. I have not included any drain pans or water lines for the A/C unit because we don't intend to use it while on the road. When we stop, and intend to deploy the A/C, we'll simply slide the A/C unit out into the outside allowing ample breathing room and all the drainage that is required to eliminate the drainage issues common to A/C units. This idea seems perfect and seems the simplest solution to the A/C issue for us.

Of course, we'll have to continue to report how this is working, but the construction was not too difficult, although it was a lot of custom fiddly stuff to make the unit fit through the existing holes through the Scamp shell that was already cut.

Only time will tell, but the first test in running in our driveway as I type this review. I had planned on this install so I had already run the 110V line on it's own breaker when I installed the charge controller a little while ago. Simply adding the outlet and terminating the existing wiring and we were in business.

[TheWanderers]

We'll still have to complete the finish work and trim out the inside as well as work out how to seal the gap around the A/C frame/slide but it's working and the results are clearly noticeable within a few minutes of the unit running inside the camper. I call this move a success!

[TheWanderers]

I received some advice from someone here on the forum about creating a spacer to add some pressure to reseal the bathroom window. I cut a plywood "washer" to act as a spacer around the bathroom window frame and it worked great. That baby is sealed and dry!

[TheWanderers]

Tomorrow I plan to use an old piece of fiberglass to cut a cover that will be hinged over the opening for the slider for our new air conditioner configuration. I makes me laugh every time I say our Scamp has a "slider."

[TheWanderers]

Well, it's raining again and we're camping again in the rain. However, the bathroom window isn't leaking!

We're watching Silverado on my phone as a tiny movie in a tiny camper, in the rain.