caravan repair

[Harry Bloomfield]

I'm just taking a bit of a sit down break, whilst in the middle of carrying out a damp repair on my Bailey Pageant. Whilst away in on holiday in Wales, a couple of years ago, water began dripping at the front of the 'van, between two of the three front windows. It was perfectly dry in the cupboards above the windows, so the only possible source was the full width alloy window hanging hinge bracket.

It's full size fibreglass molding, front and rear, with alloy roof and sides.

As a wish and hope temporary fix, I squirted sealant along full width of the bracket, then once home I removed it and resealed it properly. Wish and hope, because once water gets in, damage is almost inevitable.

The result of the ingress has gradually shown up since then, with the wall board and timber framing softening, to the point where I had to get it sorted this year. A couple of weeks ago I set about trying to source some matching wall board - the vinyl decorated 3mm ply forming the internal wall. Bailey advised the name of it, but that it was now an obsolete pattern. With a name for it, I scoured lots of local sources, until a very local one suggested they could supply a full panel. Ordered and arrived last Wednesday, armed with that essential panel I made a start on Thursday stripping the entire section out, including the damaged timber framing. The timber is a special size, so I ordered and collected that on Saturday.

Not until they were closing, did I notice the had cut the cross-section 1 x 7/8" rather than the 1 x 3/4" by around 40 feet (around 10 x sections) I had specified. All work stopped, because, not until this morning could I take it back and ask them to trim it down to 3/4".

I'm busy now refitting the timber framing, no front windows in, in the middle of the open garden, with a large canvas lashed over the front end to keep the rain out until it is all finished. I have a minor OP scheduled for early July, then another holiday for the end of July. I have to self isolate for 3 days before the OP, so I need to at least have it all done in time to live in it for the isolation. My partner works in a school, hates taking time off, so the caravan in my drive seems a good solution. I got a quote for the rough cost of the repair (out of curiosity) of around £1500 and several months before they could tackle it.

I have repaired water damage in caravans before - we once bought a second hand one, where the previous owner had removed the skylight and refitted it without sealing it. The entire roof lining and framing was ruined. I had to rip the entire lot out, to the wall sides and rebuild it.

 

[Mottie]

Sounds like you have project and a half on your hands there!

 

[Bodgedbuild]

I bought a caravan, rather sharpish as it turned out, when the builders had rendered my house un-inhabitable, before expected. I knew nothing about caravans so just picked the largest, cheapest one I could find. The thing was rotten at the front but didn't leak....until I poked the wall board! Damn stuff is plastic coated so traps the water behind the board. I had to remove the entire front clamshell and i did a rather strong bodge. Once I had Lego welded the cracked plastic, I laid it on the grass and laid a sheet of ply on top, I drew the window cutouts on and cut them out. To be sure I also framed it with some thin planks. I reassembled it all, using Calder D4 to glue my new wall board on but I balls up, the window rubbers would not fit since my new, very strong front end was too thick. We had to live in the thing with a tarp over the front for a week until thicker rubbers arrived.

 

[sxturbo]

Interesting project.

I'd have been tempted to chop it in and get another. I always worry that things don't quite fit as they should once taken apart in caravans

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Interesting project.

I'd have been tempted to chop it in and get another. I always worry that things don't quite fit as they should once taken apart in caravans

We love the caravan, it's a luxury job - wonderful shower room all very comfortable for two. I bought it as an insurance right off cheap and almost new, someone had driven the off-side of it into a gate and ripped the shell open, taken the plastics off and broken a window. I bought it from a specialist company near Draw PS. They become right off's for the slightest of damage, you just pick one you think you can repair. I managed to fix it up and made it look quite presentable with a few weekends work and I've toured all over the UK with it in the years since.

I've done quite a few mods in it too, sat system, mover and devised a quick way to get it level - with a plumbob and LED's. I just pull up on site, switch it on and it shows me on a little display just what I need to do to get it absolutely level. No guessing. I came up with the idea many decades ago, but only got around to actually building it a decade ago.

I've seen far too many caravans with hidden water ingress to want to risk buying another unless I am forced to - much better the devil you know.

I have now got the timber framing all in place. Next job is the interior panelling, insulation, then the rubber window seals. This would have taken me a few weeks, when I was working full time

Getting the seals to properly fit, was why I had to go back with the timber for the frame, to get it recut to the correct size.

 

[Bodgedbuild]

We love the caravan, it's a luxury job - wonderful shower room all very comfortable for two. I bought it as an insurance right off cheap and almost new, someone had driven the off-side of it into a gate and ripped the shell open, taken the plastics off and broken a window. I bought it from a specialist company near Draw PS. They become right off's for the slightest of damage, you just pick one you think you can repair. I managed to fix it up and made it look quite presentable with a few weekends work and I've toured all over the UK with it in the years since.

I've done quite a few mods in it too, sat system, mover and devised a quick way to get it level - with a plumbob and LED's. I just pull up on site, switch it on and it shows me on a little display just what I need to do to get it absolutely level. No guessing. I came up with the idea many decades ago, but only got around to actually building it a decade ago.

I've seen far too many caravans with hidden water ingress to want to risk buying another unless I am forced to - much better the devil you know.

I have now got the timber framing all in place. Next job is the interior panelling, insulation, then the rubber window seals. This would have taken me a few weeks, when I was working full time

Getting the seals to properly fit, was why I had to go back with the timber for the frame, to get it recut to the correct size.

I love having the caravan but the wife does not, she is strictly a hotel person! It's proved it's worth though, we lived in it for 18 months and we are about to go on our 4th holiday in it, really just off the back of Covid.
Good luck getting yours all back together, I hated doing the windows with all that sticky gunge stuff they apply around the inside of the rubbers + the fiddly spreader strip. Sounds like you know what you are doing though so I doubt you will need it.

 

[sxturbo]

We love the caravan, it's a luxury job - wonderful shower room all very comfortable for two. I bought it as an insurance right off cheap and almost new, someone had driven the off-side of it into a gate and ripped the shell open, taken the plastics off and broken a window. I bought it from a specialist company near Draw PS. They become right off's for the slightest of damage, you just pick one you think you can repair. I managed to fix it up and made it look quite presentable with a few weekends work and I've toured all over the UK with it in the years since.

I've done quite a few mods in it too, sat system, mover and devised a quick way to get it level - with a plumbob and LED's. I just pull up on site, switch it on and it shows me on a little display just what I need to do to get it absolutely level. No guessing. I came up with the idea many decades ago, but only got around to actually building it a decade ago.

I've seen far too many caravans with hidden water ingress to want to risk buying another unless I am forced to - much better the devil you know.

I have now got the timber framing all in place. Next job is the interior panelling, insulation, then the rubber window seals. This would have taken me a few weeks, when I was working full time

Getting the seals to properly fit, was why I had to go back with the timber for the frame, to get it recut to the correct size.

Nice my parents bought a Fleetwood caravan when we were kids, 5 birth all singing and dancing sounds very similar to yours with the shower room etc.

Best holidays we ever had in that.

I'd like to get one now, but it storing it and having to get an additional driving license that puts us off.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Near Draw PS

That was meant to read near Drax PS.

Just have just sat down again, but for the rest of the evening. I've made some good progress today, all framed up ready for the lining panel and I have just finished cutting the panel to size and the windows out, ready to fit tomorrow.

I've almost never been without a caravan of some sort, in my adult life. When I young, I was taken camping by my parents, then camping with friends. I would install pumping and commission station control systems, which were often out in the wilds far from hotels, so a caravan was the obvious solution - besides, I grew to hate staying in hotels, you cannot beat having your own space.