Camper Doors

[jwstewar]

We are getting ready to buy a camper. It is an older model, it is a 1984 Scotty 28' long with two doors. My Aunt and recently passed Uncle had it. I've been around this camper its entire life. I used to be the one that would set it up and tear it down when Unkie would be at work so I'm very familiar with it. We are paying $1500 for it. We figure that we buy, fix it up a little, and start camping. If we like it after a year or 2 we would up grade to a camper w/ a couple of slide outs. (Maybe by that time I'll have my truck with a Duramax -hint to Monica ). My Aunt is getting rid of it because she bought an '03 23 footer that doesn't need any work because she isn't able to. (Her son now pulls it and sets it up for her, but doesn't have time to do the fix up as he already has TOO MANY irons in the fire so to speak.

In the mean time this one needs a bit of TLC and fix up. As Unkie got older he wasn't able to keep up on things the best and didn't want to admit that he couldn't anymore and we didn't want to admit that he couldn't either. We are going to start by sanding (only where needed) the ceiling and repaint it and to remedy what caused this we are going to replace the roof vents. While we are going it we are going to replace the interior lights (they have paint on them from previous ceiling paintings). It also needs a toilet. Looks like Unkie didn't get completely winterized and it busted. So before I replace the toilet we are going to remove the carpet and existing linoleum and replace all of it with the self stick floor tile. Carpet isn't terrible, but it is 23 years old and Monica doesn't like the color (therefore it has to go). I'm also going to replace all of the exterior lights. A couple of lenses are missing and I know they haven't working consistently for years. I'll replace and avoid the hassle. This along with a new Prodigy brake controller for the truck we are looking around $700. Water heater works and doesn't leak, stove, furnace, A/C all work. Fridge was replaced in the last 3 or 4 years with an electric only house fridge. They found one that fit the hole exactly and actually looks pretty good. Tires are about 5 years old, didn't see any signs of cracking. Awning worries me a bit. It was replaced about '96 because of a heavy rain that bent the old one (ironically it busted Mom & Dads too on that trip). But I saw what looks like rust on one end of, though I'm not sure where that came from. If it is bad, we'll take our 10x12 screen house or our 10x20 canopy with us to use for awhile. Not nice, but would work for awhile.

Biggest problem are the doors. The skin is starting to come off of them. I'm going to try to do repair, just not sure how feasible this is. So as a back-up, I've been searching for replacements. Holy Cow are these bad boys expensive + EXPENSIVE Shipping. So far the cheapest I have found doors is $300 + around $135 for shipping - per door. Hate to put $1000 in doors for a $1500 camper. Anyone know a place I could get a decent price on doors?

BTW, we should pick it up next week. My aunt still has a few things in it and they (her, my cousins, and parents) are camping at the Ross County Fair this week.

 

[OhioTC18]

Jim,
Not a bad price at all, if it only needs $700 to sharpen it up.
I have no idea how Scotty did theirs but on some brands the flooring is laid down before any walls are built. That means the floor covering is glued to the subfloor and walls built on top of it. Just something to be aware of.
If the door skin is bubbling and starting to come off, there may be water damage behind the skin. Post's Traveland on Westerville Rd has shelves full of replacement doors and windows. They "may" even have some door metal there too, I don't know. Some parts are high there, but you already know that camper parts are expensive after looking for doors.

Here's their website for parts

 

[jwstewar]

Thanks for the link Jerry. I'll give them a call tomorrow. I will also call Holmans and Tom Raper in Cincinnati. I've gotten pretty good prices from them in the past. I want to get a ball park price, though I think I'm going to try to rebuild first. Might be a little more determined to fix it if I know the price. I also won't order until the camper is here and I can get an accurate measurement of the rough opening.

You are correct on how the floor is put down. I figured I would just cut to carpet and linoleum as close as possible to the cabinets and stuff. I think it will turn out OK.

We've already bought some of the new clearance lights, the tile for the floor, and paint and sandpaper for the ceiling.

I need to get the order placed so that I can get the brake controller. If I spend $499 I get free shipping and right now my order is $474. I think I spend $25 more, might as well get something out of it vs. just paying for shipping.

 

[Doc]

Congrats on the new camper. Sounds like quite a deal.

My daughter and SIL just bought a 37' 2003 5th wheel camper. It has the slide outs that you mentioned (3 of them). Boy do they make the rooms bigger. Camping trailers have come a long way .... you can hardly call it camping anymore. They are just to darn nice.

 

[jwstewar]

Wow Doc, that is a big camper and with the slide outs it must weigh a ton. What are they going to pull that with? I'm assuming a 3500 dually w/ diesel?

I'll be pulling ours with my half ton Silverado. I've actually pulled Mom & Dad's 30 footer with it and it pulls just fine. Don't even realize it is back there. Now I've never taken to any mountainous areas either, but if going far it would be just as cheap and a lot easier to stay in a motel. I would say all of our trips will be less than 150 miles one way and probably 99% of them being less than 30 miles.

 

[Doc]

Wow Doc, that is a big camper and with the slide outs it must weigh a ton. What are they going to pull that with? I'm assuming a 3500 dually w/ diesel?

That's the funny part. They don't have a tow vehicle for it ...and don't plan to get one. They bought it for camping at the river lot. The place they bought it from said you buy it 'WE' tow it. So that made it easy for them.

It would be a tough one to tow I'd guess. The unit was traded in on a smaller one .... the only reason one I could think of was it was just to big to haul around to various places.

 

[jwstewar]

Just placed the order. A couple of items are just needed to start a 25' 30 A extension cord and brake contoller. Total everything came to $586. That includes the cord & controller, new interior lights, new porch & taillights, door props and rollers, water heater door & water heater bypass kit (don't know what happened to the one that used to be on it), battery box, toilet, 3 new roof vents (one with a fan) and install kits for these. For everything that we got, I don't think the price was too bad.

The new interior lights really didn't need replacing, but they'll help the looks they were $85 total so we could've save that, but in the long run it'll help the looks. The brake controller was $102 + 20 rebate. The ext cord was $34. So between those 3 things that is well over $200 that really shouldn't be considered part of the repair project.

 

[OhioTC18]

Jim,
Here's another place on Fisher Rd, probably close to Phillipi Rd. They sell doors and windows but also say they are a wholesaler.

 

[jwstewar]

Man, I'm worn out. We brought the camper home Friday. Didn't do much to it other than I put the new brake controller in the truck. Yesterday we started on it. Started a little bit and then realized we needed some before pics. So you'll see a couple of items that we had already "worked" i.e. tearing the one curtain down and the stove torn apart.

Monica worked yesterday and washed all of the cabinets out and started a little bit of disassembly.

 

[jwstewar]

Yesterday I replaced the front vent. As you can see in the pics there was a crack in the actual vent housing. Think that was letting a little bit of water in? As you can see from the pics there is some signs of water. The wood is a little bit dark, but it is good and solid. I poked it with a screwdriver and the most I could get was a little dent (whew, was I glad - not sure how I would've fixed it.)

Replaced the bedroom vent today. It was more of the same.

Monica sanded the ceiling and just finished painting it and the bathroom & kitchen walls.

After I finished the vent I started on the front door. We had found some 1/8" textured fiberglass at Lowes yesterday. Said it was water proof. Seemed like it fit the bill pretty well. I knew the door had been apart and "Fixed" before. What they had done was just put a piece of metal around the wood to hold it together. But the one upright was pretty much gone. I made a new piece out of pressure treated wood. I also made a new piece of wood for the bottom. The wood around the lock wasn't rotten, but it was broken so I made a new one - well OK, I made 5 of them before I got it right. Monica cleaned up the window frame and painted it with that plastic paint. Put it all back together with new stainless steel screws. Put it back on. The door wouldn't close. It was just a touch too long and a double touch to wide. So I took it back apart and cut a little of the bottom and the one side. Put it back on. It fit OK length wise now, but it was still a little too wide. and it was almost 10. I said it would have to wait until tomorrow. I also broke the latch for the door knob so we'll have to get a new latch assembly.

As you can see in the pic the current range hood is pretty rusted. We were going to paint it with a high temp paint, but we couldn't find white. Only black. Looking on Ebay we found a new range hood for $20 with $12 shipping. So for that price we decided it wasn't worth the effort.

We also didn't like the little microwave on the counter. We found one at Lowes for $80 that will fit in the one cabinet - where it would've have been had my Aunt opted for one when they bought it.

We also decided (for now) to do hardwood floor. Found it at a local closeout store. We got 4 boxes (23.xx Sq. ft. each) for $120. Hoping that is enough to do it. Also found a section of counter top for the kitchen for $30 at Lowes. Had just just planned on replacing the edge on the counter, but for that price decided to do the whole thing.

Guess I had better go get a shower so I can make the door close tomorrow before it rains.

 

[OhioTC18]

That'll be nice when you get it done.

 

[jwstewar]

Monica gave everything another coat of paint yesterday. I worked on the door some more. Finally got it to open and close real nice. Still have to get a new lock for it though. I think it'll have to be a camper one as I don't think a standard house one will go narrow enough and the inside knob will be too big and hit the screen door. So for now we are using a bungy on the inside to hold it shut. I have a few things I need to order so a new lock is one. I took pictures but forgot them at home so I'll try to post tonight.

The other thing I worked on was exterior lights. I replaced the plug that goes in the truck. Also replaced the taillights. I now have brake lights/turn signals and back-up lights - but no running lights. I've removed all of the front clearance lights and the outboard rear and none of them have current. I've got power coming from the truck but none at any of the lights. I think I've got a broken wire somewhere. Just not sure how to go about finding it yet.......

 

[bczoom]

I now have brake lights/turn signals and back-up lights - but no running lights. I've removed all of the front clearance lights and the outboard rear and none of them have current. I've got power coming from the truck but none at any of the lights. I think I've got a broken wire somewhere. Just not sure how to go about finding it yet.......

I get that problem a lot...
Actually, I may fix 2 trailers tonight that have that exact issue.
The brown wire is your running lights. If you don't have them on either side, it may be in/near the plug or possibly a bad ground.

I test for voltage by using one of those wire piercing testers.

 

[jwstewar]

That is exactly what I've been doing.

I know I've got power coming from the plug. There is a break in the wire loom that I can get to the running light wire. There is juice there. I also just replaced the plug yesterday, so that helped eliminate that problem. Once all lights are working I'll go back and put the grease on them, just don't want to do that now because it makes trouble shooting messy. I also am 99% sure it isn't a ground issue because I have good brake/turn lights. I can piggy back (actually the same light, but using the voltage tester) on that ground and still not have taillights. Ironically I have good back-up lights. I've never seen those wired up on a trailer before, but by golly I gottem even though I can't pull at night since I don't have taillights.

 

[bczoom]

Don't take this the wrong way, but is your ball greased?

That little white wire for ground is quite often the fault point and a better ground from the trailer to tow-vehicle is needed. If you can, use some alligator clips on a wire or some jumper cables or something and get yourself a good ground between the trailer and truck and see what that gives you.

 

[jwstewar]

Don't even have the trailer hooked up. I hate to depend upon the ball for ground. I will do everything I can to not have to rely on my balls.

At this point I've even just connected my tester to the truck and knew I had juice because of the aforementioned split in the main harness and then tried touching several of the clearance light "power" wires.

 

[bczoom]

Let me play with mine tonight. I'm talking lights, not balls.
I'll let you know what my issue was.

 

[jwstewar]

Finally made it home so that I can post pics of the door. First pic is the door before we started. The rest of the pics are after. I ended reskinning both sides. I was originally only going to do the one. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. I will probably run a small bed of silicone along the frame of the door to help keep water out even though it is made out of treated lumber now - don't want ice getting in there and pushing the new skin out.

Didn't have much time tonight (had a consulting job after work and then had to stop by Mom & Dads and look at there truck - broken brake lines) but I did get to mess with the lights a little more. Took the last 3 rear inboard lights out. Still a no go. I then rigged up a pig tail from the truck to the left front marker light. I then have good juice and good ground going to all lights. I think this tells me there has to be a bad wire right at the front of the trailer. There are some screws at the bottom of the sheet metal. I think I'm going to take those out and see which way the wire goes and see if I can pull a new one through.

 

[Doc]

The door looks good. Good luck with the lights. Sounds like you have a handle on it.

 

[bczoom]

Nice job on the door!

I played with my trailer lights last night. All worked but left turn signal. After tinkering with it for awhile, I took a spare wiring harness and ran it to the light and it worked fine. I'm going to be replacing the wiring today...

 

[jwstewar]

Camper Rehab

Hey BC, did you get your lights going?

I got mine working today. I hadn't messed with them any more. We pulled the couch out to remove the carpet and I found a fuse panel behind the couch. As soon as I removed the cover I saw the blown fuse. It had a 10A in it, I didn't have any 10s so I dropped a 20 in it for right now. At least I know I can get the lights working - as shown in the pictures. I've also put one of my new LED clearance lights on. It looked pretty cool. Once I get them all on I'll use some clear silicone around them to keep 'em nice and dry.

 

[jwstewar]

First a before picture of the kitchen. Next a couple of pics of what it looks like now. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out - except for all of the tools on the counter top. Still waiting on a new faucet. I was thinking it went throught the sink so I made sure I bought a 4" like was there. After doing the new counter top the faucet goes through it, I could have bought anything and put in. Oh well, live and learn. It should be here early this week. BTW, I've got a little piece of lumber behind that moulding and in front of the "legs" of the microwave to keep it in there. I also put a piece of OSB on each side to keep it from going back and forth. It might move a little, but not much.

 

[jwstewar]

We've also made some progress in the bathroom. First a couple of before pics.

We've painted the walls and then where over the tub we put in a new surround. I've overlapped it around the top of the tub, but I don't care for how it looks so I need something to cover it yet. I might get some PVC trim and glue it in place.

Now the bad news. I knew the floor was squishy under the toilet. But didn't know how bad until I started removing the linoleum. As you can see in the pic it was pretty bad. I wasn't really sure how to fix it since like Jerry said earlier the floor is put down and then everything is put in. We'll know that I probably couldn't go that far and fix it right, I got a piece of 3/4" B/C plywood and covered the whole floor in the bathroom. I was able to get some good solid flooring over by the tub and use screws there. I was then able to put in a new closet flange. I then put down some of the self stick floor tile. It only took 7 pieces to the the whole bathroom. I wanted to get some pictures but I forgot - I'll get some tomorrow. I don't want a little "step" to get up into the bathroom. Turns out a 7/16" sheet of OSB with the snaplock hardwood floor = a piece of 23/32" plywood. I'll then just cover the transition with one of the little metal strips and I think we'll be good to go. If this were a house or even something we planned on keeping forever I wouldn't have done it this way. But we plan on using it for a year or two and then we either like camping and we get one with a couple of slides or we don't like camping a cut our loses. Either way I with the leaks stopped I think the new plywood will last a long time.

 

[Doc]

Looking good! You've about got her ready to roll.
Have you decided on your first camping destination?

 

[jwstewar]

Haven't decided yet. Probably some place close in case something goes wrong. Mom was saying that a bunch of the family wants to get together and go to Scioto Trail one weekend in September. So that will probably be the first one. I need to get some chilly weather yet so that I can make sure the furnace is working before we commit to go when it could get cool. We know the AC works - we've had it working overtime while we have been in there working.

 

[bczoom]

Looks good.

I got my lights working. I had a bad wire in the harness so I replaced the wiring the whole distance.

I still had to tinker with the the back lights to get a good ground to the frame.

 

[jwstewar]

That was one reason why I went with the LCD clearance lights. They have a separate ground wire on them. Makes them a piece of cake to hook up to the camper that has a ground wire running everywhere. I had originally bought lights that grounded through the mounting screw. Couldn't figure out an easy way to do that one, was planning on having to put an eye on a wire to form a ground wire.

 

[jwstewar]

Had Jury Duty today so I got home a little sooner than normal. After a brief catnap I was able to go out and work on the camper some more. First are a couple of pics of the bathroom floor after my repair. Then finally with the potty mounted.

Next pic is of the new tub surround and where it meets the tub. I'm not happy about this, but I haven't quite figured out what to do about it yet. One thing tha really makes it look bad is that nothing is square in a camper or at least the ones I've worked on.

I worked yesterday and finished today of covering the rest of the floor with 7/16" OSB. Combined with the laminate floor there is a very little height difference. I would've like a little larger piece of OSB, but I'm not sure who actually carries 1/2" anymore around here and besides I had the OSB sitting here in the garage and I got some of it out of the way. Other than a badly bruised toe from dropping a full sheet on it, it didn't cost me anything.

Finally the last pic is of the laminate floor we are putting down. It says to put down some foam. I wasn't planning on doing that as I don't think in a camper it would be necessary, anyone else think I should? BTW, in the one OSB pic you'll see a lot more floor looks like it is down. That was Monica's attempt. She wasn't alternating the joints or anything.

BTW, if I'm using too much space or nobody cares, I'll stop. But if you want me to, I'll keep documenting the process.

 

[jwstewar]

LCD clearance lights.

Oooopps, just caught that. That should be LED clearance lights. I had been looking at Best Buy's website for small LCD TVs as I have a gift card for there from work. Thought that might be a nice little addition to the camper. Especially if I could find someone with an old Dish......

 

[bczoom]

Finally the last pic is of the laminate floor we are putting down. It says to put down some foam. I wasn't planning on doing that as I don't think in a camper it would be necessary, anyone else think I should?

Yes! I'd put the foam under the laminate. It'll reduce movement of the laminate (and probably squeaks) as well as increase comfort and insulation.

BTW, if I'm using too much space or nobody cares, I'll stop. But if you want me to, I'll keep documenting the process.

With 260 views (so far), people are watching. It may not be a very interactive thread at this point as you're the only one doing it right now. Views and questions will increase if/when others start tearing apart their campers.