Reno for ‘74 Trillium 1300

[PrettyLou]

I just finished replacing the flooring in my Trillium.

It was pretty easy to rip up the old lino, and I wasn’t too worried about any residual stickiness. A quick vacuum and scrape of any large chunks was all I did for prep.

As seen in a lot of other threads, I went with the Allure flooring - specifically the grip strip stuff. $35 at HD over the Canada Day long weekend, can’t beat that price!

In retrospect I should have mapped it out a bit better, especially where the overlaps occurred so the seams were a bit tighter. I also didn’t leave enough space near the walls in a couple spots, so I had to dremel out a gap to fit the moulding in. There are also a few spots with the trim around the edges that have little gaps, so will fill with a grey latex caulk at a later date.

I used exactly 1 box, with hardly any scraps left over. It was easier to cut than I thought, I just used a sharp (ish) utility knife and a T square.

I bought some insta trim from Amazon to use around the edges, and a rubber stair/edge thing from HD to use on the dinette step. The insta trim went in pretty well, but it’s stickiness was a bit suspect. I ended up using a heat gun and the box end of a combo wrench (it was a perfect fit for the groove) to really get it in there right.

About $65 total for the whole project.

Next up, fixing the ensolite and adding a tongue wheel.

[John in Michigan]

Very nice looking flooring and trim! So far we have only installed 1/2" thick interlocking foam tile.

[thrifty bill]

Nice work! I like your trim better than the stuff I used.

The thing to watch for on any of these vinyl floor products is the coverage. A box tends to have about the same price, regardless of brand. But some products are thicker than others. So a box of the thicker product will not be enough (lower square footage), while on the thinner product, you will have a little left over. I used a product towards the thin side. Realize the floor's strength is all about the two layers of fiberglass and plywood. So IMHO, you don't need a thicker product. The thicker stuff has fewer planks in the box than the thinner stuff, as the overall dimensions of the box are the same. Read the label carefully. Square footage difference can be huge.

[PrettyLou]

Thanks John and Bill !

Slower progress today. Finished installing the wheel on the tongue, makes it a lot easier to move around in the garage. Ran into an issue getting it out of the garage though, so picked up a trailer dolly...I didn’t realize the angle backing into the garage was so great, and as a result the coupler wouldn’t seat on the ball properly. I can now wheel it out into the alley to hook up on a level surface.
A bit tough getting back in the garage though, had to call a couple strong friends. I think I have a solution though - I found a power winch on kijiji I might pick up and mount to the floor under my work bench. That way I can move the trailer into the alley a lot more safely for hook up, and pull it back without having to phone a friend. So many things to do! Will update on that when I get around to it. Probably a bit overkill, but fun right?

Also put in a shelf today in the closet with some scrap cedar decking. Smells great! May add a lip(s) depending on what we decide to put in.

We have 6 trips booked starting next weekend so time to get cracking.

Ensolite fix and painting later this week...

[John in Michigan]

Love your shelves!

[PrettyLou]

This interior is taking longer than hoped, but finally got the ensolite repaired and primed.




I glued up the sagging ensolite with contact cement and it stuck great.



Next up was filling the gaps with some dap230...this is the only picture I remembered to take of this step, so it’s ugly and not complete



Since the t-moulding was really beat up and some of the tracking missing, I decided to tape the seams. I didn’t like the look of just the seam fill with dap, and my texturing with a sponge looked bad. The seams were so uneven too that it was just ugly.
I used this stuff from amazon. Not cheap! I scoured the city for something cheaper or similar but none of the big box stores carried it. I even tried calling the hot tub stores too, but no one had anything this wide or not cut into pre-set lengths. It has a texture to it very similar to the ensolite.



This stuff was a nightmare to put up. I first tried with the included adhesive backing, some 3M super77, and a heat gun, but it failed miserably. The next morning 75% of the tape was on the floor. I ripped it all down and started again, but used this stuff to secure it.





The trick was getting the lines really close to the edge of the tape, so that it squished out when attached. The best way to do this was to run a finger along both edges, then roll with a small clean paint roller. This also means the adhesive forms a bit of a lip or edge with tape, so there are no gaps. It took about 24 hours to cure fully. I did a test spot in the cupboard first, and it was really tough to pull off. My only concern is temperature fluctuations and cracking, but the adhesive is rated for pretty extreme temps. Fingers crossed.

After the tape cured it was time to prime. I used Kilz2 latex, and applied two heavy coats. What a world of difference. I bought a little can thinking it would be enough for such a small space, but save yourself a headache and some $$ and buy the full gallon as I ended up going back for 2/3 more of a can.




I’m going to pick up some high quality latex paint tomorrow and finish it off in a light grey (or evening charcoal with earthy undertones, as the fancy swatch says). It’s like night and day inside now, no regrets so far on painting. I scrubbed and scrubbed the ensolite before hand hoping I wouldn’t need to paint, (ammonia, tilex - a few days later after a water wash!, vinegar, and bar keepers friend). Those all helped but some of the stains were just way too set in. I was tempted to try the steamer too, but I had had enough.

Will post some pics with better light as well once it’s all done.

[PrettyLou]

I also polished up the outside using the zep high traffic floor polish. I’ve done 5 coats so far, and plan to do another couple in the next few days.
I used some off brand swiffer pads, after reading about discolouration from microfibre (and couldn’t find any white microfibre clothes!).

I know it’s been said before but the key was using way less than you’d think. The first 3 coats were kinda streaky and I was worried, but after 4 and 5 there is almost a mirror like finish. I got a little eager on the first coat and there are some drips I noticed way too late that had already hardened, but probably only something I’ll notice. It was also 11pm and I had no intention of scrubbing them off and starting again.

For prep I used a hose and non scratch scour pad, with a bit of barkeepers friend.

There were some old stickers on the exterior that I removed as well. Scrubbing didn’t work, so I got one of those rubber buffer drill attachment thins from princess auto, and was amazed at how it well it took off the decals and glue residue. Should’ve listened to the guy at the store who told me to use it on the slowest setting, as I now have an ever so faint burn mark on the corner of the first sticker removal spot....whoops!

Below are some pics before and 1 after the polish,as well as 1 showing the level of grime on the rock guard!

I’m headed out camping in a few days so will snap a few of her in the sun, in all her shiny glory!

[PrettyLou]

Also thought this was kinda cool. Did some digging in the forums saw my (now) trailer’s kijiji ad back from 2013. The fishing stickers (now removed) were one of the giveaways.

Too bad each one didn’t always come with a story. Pretty interesting to imagine all the owners and places they’ve been over the last 45 years.

http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...0-a-58114.html

[John in Michigan]

Great results with the ensolite and the zep Louis! Wow