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Old 03-10-2007, 05:16 PM   #61
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Hi: Jon We scrubbed the ensolite in our '77 Boler with Fantastic spray...straight out of the bottle...scrubbed with a brush till it foamed up and rinced with clear warm water. Its a fumey job but it came very clean and 30 yrs. of smoke grease and cooking odours came off At one point in the project there was a brown line across the ceiling sort of a before/after but my pic's didn't turn out The seams can be filled with the D.A.P. white latex caulking and dappled with a wet paper towel eliminating the need for the tape Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie
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Old 03-10-2007, 10:04 PM   #62
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Thanks so much for the info on cleaning and about removing the tape on the seams. Most of the tape is hanging off so we have to do something. I am going to give it a try tomorrow inside the closet and see what kind of results I get. My husband is wondering if the surfside's came with a battery? Anybody?
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Old 03-11-2007, 01:04 AM   #63
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REMOVING TAPE, CLEANING, AND REMOVING OLD GLUE AND GUNK

Removing Tape:
When I tried to peel mine off, it came off in little, chippy, sticky pieces. Which stuck to my fingers. Which then stuck to the garbage bag. Which then stuck back onto my fingers. ARGH! Then I got smart!
Starting at the bottom of my section of semi-disintegrating foam tape, and using my shop vac, I used the nozzle (without any attachments) to lift the tape and sucked it into the vacuum cleaner. Use the high setting so it doesn't get stuck in the hose. Use a dirty canister so the dust renders the sticky stuff powerless.
Acetone (cheap nail polish remover is almost straight acetone) applied on a cotton pad to the sticky stuff will remove it. Get a good quality pad not a cotton ball or you'll be shedding "fluff."

Cleaning:
I worked my way up to the commercial cleaners rather than use some of the household stuff. TSP (trisodium phosphate - available at hardware stores in the painting department - or any Canadian Tire store) will degrease and clean a lot of the built-up, day-to-day grime. I like the powder better than the ready-mix spray because I can mix a stronger solution. I used the same technique as Alf S.: scrub it on then rinse it off. Rinsing is important because TSP can leave residue. The easiest way I found of rinsing was to get a spray bottle, start at the top and let it run down to a bunch of old towels. Remove your cushions first.
If there's any mildew or mould (black stuff), you'll need a strong bleach. Don't mix your cleansers - bleaches, ammonias and other chemicals react to one another. Wait until the TSP or other solvent is dried before you start with a different chemical / cleanser. And don't knock yourself out with the fumes - use a fan, or all doors and windows open on a breezy day, etc.

Removing Old Glue and Gunk:
Practically everything that goes on somewhat permanently has a solvent to take it off. Acetone works for a lot of the sticky glues. Rubber cement remover works for contact cement. Paint stripper (PolyStrippa or Poly Super Strippa) or brush cleaner (Poly Clens) removes old paint, although try the Shop-Vac technique first because you can often remove the bulk of the paint if it's chipping by vacuuming it well. If you have thick paint to remove, get the gel variety because it will adhere to the paint and you can leave it "soaking" to soften it. I'd apply the Poly Clens with a dripping, saturated cotton pad and have a paper towel handy to wipe up the spills. If the stuff was coming off in little sticky balls, I'd remove it with another cotton pad. I went through a lot of cotton pads. When finished, don't forget to rinse with a mild cleanser. For silicone you can try and work some water around the edges and peel or scrape it off. If it's not budging, scratch the surface of the sealant / caulking and apply Silicone Sealant Remover (Silicone-Be-Gone), then come back and keep scratching. Warning: This is labour-intensive so peel it off if you can. I used a brass brush (like an oversized toothbrush) a lot, both for removing the paint and for removing the sealants. Get these at the dollar stores - often 3 to a package for a buck. The stainless steel ones work, too, but can leave grey marks which will also have to be cleaned off.

Jon, by the time I got to the back of the unit (looks like yours in the picture you posted with the two strips of tape below the windows and black gunk accumulated around it) I had a system. I'd quickly give it a bristle brush and TSP cleansing, rinse it, dry it, then move to the Poly Clens and brass brush with VIGOROUS scrubbing. Once that was rinsed and dried, if there was any contact cement there I'd use the contact cement cleaner. For the really old, dried gobs of contact cement I'd put the solvent on a cotton pad and let the saturated pad sit for a bit (overnight, even). If there was any mildew or mould left after all that, a bit of straight bleach on a cotton pad left on for an hour (or overnight) usually got rid of it. A final rinse with a mild or great-smelling anticbacterial cleanser got rid of any chemical smells.

NOTE: This was for a restoration-type cleaning. Don't think for a minute I do this every year. I had a trailer that had ensolite that looked for all intents and purposes almost completely destroyed in parts. So much so that the previous owners tried to mask the gunky stuff by covering the whole dang thing with spray granite paint. Not everyone will have to do this level of cleaning. To me, it was better than trying to replace the ensolite. Painting over it wasn't an option because the surface wasn't properly prepared to accept paint (which I found out first hand when all the blue granite paint started flaking off). Ensolite is pliable, stretchy and shrinks and expands depending upon the temperature. Paint does this too, but not at the same rate as the ensolite, so that causes it to flake off. If you ever do want to paint, you need to pick a paint that works on plastic.

SAFETY TIPS: Put solvents in small metel cans (like pop cans cut in half) rather than plastic cups. They melt plastic clups. Solvents will also melt all but the heaviest rubber gloves (and sometimes even those). Don't even think of doing this with artificial nails! I wore eye protectors (like plastic glasses). If this stuff splashes, you hands are already covered in it so you're toast. Use a fan or other method of ventilating. If you use a pop can for anything, make sure it looks different than the pop can you're drinking out of. It's so easy to grab one and....

(Thus endeth the lecture.)

- Miriam
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Old 03-11-2007, 01:50 AM   #64
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Old 03-11-2007, 03:32 AM   #65
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Old 03-11-2007, 05:43 PM   #66
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Trailer: 1976 Surfside TM14 (Eggzibit)
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Thanks so much for the info on cleaning and about removing the tape on the seams. Most of the tape is hanging off so we have to do something. I am going to give it a try tomorrow inside the closet and see what kind of results I get. My husband is wondering if the surfside's came with a battery? Anybody?
NOt too sure if they were originally made w/ a battery, but when we bought ours last year it came w/ a battery and 12v lights inside. The wiring looks to be original.
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Old 03-11-2007, 06:03 PM   #67
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Trailer: Triple E Surf Side
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NOt too sure if they were originally made w/ a battery, but when we bought ours last year it came w/ a battery and 12v lights inside. The wiring looks to be original.
Mine did not come with a battery and no evidence of there being one before. I haven't heard of others suggesting that there was a battery in theirs either. My original brochure from 1976 is in the trailer (now in storage) so I can't check to see if there is any mention of battery(s) in it.
The 12V lights and wiring are an independent issue. Would draw juice from the tow vehicle's when the wiring is plugged into the tow vehicle.
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Old 03-12-2007, 10:01 PM   #68
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Ours didn't come with a battery, but we have 2 sets of lights - one made to run on plug-in and the other made to run on battery. They've got a spot created so a battery can be hooked up. In a powered site, we use the 110; otherwise the lantern does just fine. All things run on their own source - DVD has it's own battery for instance and....and....hmmmm...can't think of another appliance I bring along. Hmmm...electric can opener? No. Crock pot? No. Toaster oven? No again. Fridge! That's it! I have a three way fridge! Tried the battery one year but it kept shorting out the driving lights. Oh well.

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Old 03-28-2007, 06:34 PM   #69
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Trailer: 1976 Surfside TM14 (Eggzibit)
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Hello everyone, just thought i would let you know that i've now posted our Before, During and After pic's here's the link. Let us know what you think.

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/index.ph...st&p=219627


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Old 04-02-2007, 01:01 PM   #70
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Wow, SurfSide city going on here! Regarding the door - after reading about Boler doors filling with water I gave my door a shake and it had a lovely splashing effect too. I drilled two 1/4 inch holes in the bottom and watched as gallons of water poured out. The door is now much lighter to swing and with the water out it must be much lighter on the hinges. My hinges are also screwy. Our door is also 'warped', it seems to be a characteristic of F/G trailers. I took the lock to a locksmith, who for $10 cut a new key and cleaned/lubricated the lock with graphite. Works like new.
Adam
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Old 04-02-2007, 10:14 PM   #71
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Wow, SurfSide city going on here! Regarding the door - after reading about Boler doors filling with water I gave my door a shake and it had a lovely splashing effect too. I drilled two 1/4 inch holes in the bottom and watched as gallons of water poured out. The door is now much lighter to swing and with the water out it must be much lighter on the hinges. My hinges are also screwy. Our door is also 'warped', it seems to be a characteristic of F/G trailers. I took the lock to a locksmith, who for $10 cut a new key and cleaned/lubricated the lock with graphite. Works like new.
Adam

You drilled holes in your Surfside door and water poured out ? - Wild.

Also, I do not have a key for my Surfside door lock. Do you or anyone else suggest that I remove my lock and get a new key made ? Is it not that hard to do ?
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Old 04-03-2007, 06:48 AM   #72
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You drilled holes in your Surfside door and water poured out ? - Wild.
Yes I highly recommend doing so, it was a lot of water, and water weighs about 10lbs/gallon, it really adds up and stresses things.

Quote:
Also, I do not have a key for my Surfside door lock. Do you or anyone else suggest that I remove my lock and get a new key made ? Is it not that hard to do ?
I didn't have a key either. If I remember right the lock is held by two phillips screws in the end of the catch plate, and two phillips screws that go from the inside into the outer plate. I removed them, popped the assembly out and into a ziploc bag. The locksmith in town cut two keys for me and cleaned/lubricated the assembly at lunch time in about 10 minutes for about $10. Now it locks, opens, closes, and should a kid lock them selves in, I have a key!

Adam
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Old 04-03-2007, 09:34 AM   #73
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I drilled hole in the bottom of my Boler Door on my 13 fter.It too was filled with water.I was amazed at how much.
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Old 04-03-2007, 11:00 AM   #74
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I drilled hole in the bottom of my Boler Door on my 13 fter.It too was filled with water.I was amazed at how much.
I guess I'll have to try that out.

Here are some pics of my SurfSide.
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Old 04-03-2007, 11:48 AM   #75
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Yours looks the same as mine, Eric!

Quote:
I guess I'll have to try that out.

Here are some pics of my SurfSide.
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Old 07-15-2007, 06:44 PM   #76
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Wow! Lots of nice SurfSides and good information.

Interesting trivia: Even though the SurfSide was built by Triple-E, it was designed by the same guy that started Beachcomber, also in Winkler, and was based on the Trillium. The marine themed names came from his frequent travels to Clearwater Beach, Florida. There were a few trailer companies in the Winkler/Morden area in the 70's. Odd how many of them were within a 100mi radius of Winnipeg at that time. Most of the owners, although competitors, were friendly with each other and shared materials. When the oil crunch came, whoever was able to get their hands on a barrel of resin shared at least a little bit of it to help keep the other companies running. Not something you'd see in business today.
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Old 09-28-2007, 01:13 PM   #77
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Mine is a 76 Surfside - built in Winkler Mantioba.
Made a new door in [b]space under the clothes closet (otherwise space is uneusable). Put new door in the space under the gaucho bench (end near door). [b]Deep cycle battery goes in there along with a very good marine qualtiy charger. Put in a [b]fuse (breaker) panel under the gaucho next to the furnace. Also a [b]propane alarm (just in case).
Alan
Hi Alan,
Hope you had a great summer. My Wife and our Dog, really enjoyed our SurfSide this summer. Now after a summer of camping I have a few questions for you.

I am curious what your post meant about making a new door under the closet area ? Is it possible to explain what you meant by this and or email me a few pictures of what you did?

Also you said you made a new door under the gaucho - I'd love to see that too. Finally, you mentioned you purchased LED lights for the back tail / stop / turn lights. Are you happy with them? Are they brigther and were they easy to install ?

Thanks for now.
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Old 09-28-2007, 03:06 PM   #78
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Hi Alan,
Hope you had a great summer. My Wife and our Dog, really enjoyed our SurfSide this summer. Now after a summer of camping I have a few questions for you.

I am curious what your post meant about making a new door under the closet area ? Is it possible to explain what you meant by this and or email me a few pictures of what you did?

Also you said you made a new door under the gaucho - I'd love to see that too. Finally, you mentioned you purchased LED lights for the back tail / stop / turn lights. Are you happy with them? Are they brigther and were they easy to install ?

Thanks for now.

Hi Eric:
We too enjoyed the summer with our large dog. We did Ottawa to PEI and then across NB to the "Boston States". Handy to have a trailer in the states as hotels rarely accept dogs and even campgrounds often will not allow dogs.

About the modifications; I'm not sure if you have the same model but in ours the closet is immediately to the left as you come through the door. The cupboard is positioned immediately above the passenger side wheel arch so the floor of th cupboard is quite high as a result. There is waste space around the wheel arch which I thought we could use. So I cut a hole in th side of the cupboard. The hole goes vertically from just above trailer floor level to just under the level of the floor of the cupboard. The cupboard is framed with 1"X2" framing. Horizontally I cut out all the space between the 1X2 framing. The resulting hole is approximately square. Hinges mount on one side and the friction catch on the other side. Using the Russian plywood described it looks like it was put there by the designers. There isn't a lot of space in there but I keep selected tools and rags and things I will need quick access to in this oddly shaped space that is not good for much else. It is easily accessed from outside the trailer.

On the other side as you come through the door is the gaucho bench which in my model is divided roughly in three parts. The centre section already had a hinged door giving access to a porta-potty. However the left and right thirds were accessible only via a narrow hatch under the gaucho cushion. Made it difficult to use the space as you have to remove the cushion to get into it. Just like on the other side I cut away the the skin (1/8" plywood) in the section nearest the door. Cutting back to the limits of the framing on top, bottom and sides. Then as on the other side I installed a hinged door. I use 1/2 of this space for a 100 amp deep cycle battery and high end marine charger. A bulkhead of thin plywood separates the electrical side from the other side which I use for storage. I replaced all the other doors as well. I didn't like the fake wood grain paper glued to it or the fake embossed plastic frames to make the doors appear thick and heavy. The Russian plywood doors are heavier than those they replace, and I worried about vibration causing them to come loose - especially the large doors and especially on rough road. This has not been a problem.

Then all the brown fake woodgrain walls (cupboard and around the fridge and furnace and everywhere it was found ) had to go. They were painted in an off-white that matched the paint used on the ensolite. Feels bigger and cheerfully bright inside now. The Russian ply doors are finished with colourless varathane that shows their very nice varied grain to good effect and contrast a little with the off-white walls.

I used the same Russian ply to make a shelf all the way from the back side of the cupboard to the rear of the trailer across the back and up to the side of the fridge. It is at the level of the top of the plywood window frames. This shelf has a 5" wall to help things stay in the "shelf/trough" and it works well except sometimes on the roughest of roads. So, I don't put anything up there that would not survive a fall unless I have it really well secured. This shelf is wider where it crosses the back of the trailer than it is on the sides (to avoid bumping the head). It is fastened to the fridge wall and the cupboard wall and the frames of both side windows and the rear window. This shelf is really useful for all kinds of stuff like clothes and towels and the like and over the cooking area ro cooking related stuff.

About the LED lights - they are really bright - almost too bright as some people have pointed out before, but they fit nicely in the same area as the originals although they will not cover both of the holes from the originals. I had to fill one of the holes from the original and drill new holes for the new lights. I think they are great. They look sensible like they are the right size for the space and could be part of the original design. The originals were always dusty/dirty inside and therefore very dim. They burnded bulbs a lot too.

The new ones came from Princess Auto and are a standard item usually in stock. Sometimes on sale for $25/each but usually about $34/each. I believe they are called 7" and they have some funny number of LEDs - like 39 or so.

If I have a chance I'll take some pictures tomorrow and post them in another message. Maybe someone could simply explain how to post pictures and the permissable size.

I hope this is helpful.
Alan
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Old 09-28-2007, 03:11 PM   #79
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If I have a chance I'll take some pictures tomorrow and post them in another message. Maybe someone could simply explain how to post pictures and the permissable size.
Alan
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Old 03-08-2009, 09:24 AM   #80
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Alan - love to see some pictures! I have a few windows with stripped cranks and am debating what to do with them. We bought a fixer-upper house in Calgary so have been busy but am looking forward to finishing my re-upholstery of the cushions and tackling so other trailer projects.

Also, someone on the site mentioned ZEP as a cleaner to tackle the outside - anyone seen it in Canada? I've tried Walmart and Superstore but no luck yet....

Where did Jana go - she was working on her Surfside too I believe?
I changed my window cranks it was super easy i think on the bolerama website i found the article, just cut the front of the frame bend it out and pull the old cranks out. I was just going to leave them but im glad i didnt.
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