I was able to lay my skins directly on the grass when I cleaned them. I have a small floor buffer - the type with two rotating pads. You can buy 3m scrubbing pads that can be put on over the brushes. I don't remember for sure which cleaner I used but being able to power scrub made a lot of difference. After I hosed them off I was able to stand the skins up on edge by curving them. It was not big deal to hit the back side with my hose to wash off the few grass pieces clinging to the back sides of the panels. Of course you would want to make sure that whatever cleaner you used would not kill your grass.
Finally, some progress Susan appreciates. We’re about half way thru getting the skins back in. Whoo hooo!
We were able to get most of the skins cleaned last weekend. I decided to go with the Jomax mostly out of curiosity, more than anything. It worked very well at getting the grease and dirty muck off the walls. What it didn’t do was remove the yellow stains. I may take another run at it with the TSP or Mr. Clean, haven’t decided as yet. We cleaned with the Jomax, then washed everything with plain old car wash. When we started installing the panels today, we noticed that some of the panels had some kind of residue on them. Another quick rinse took care of that. The reason for using the carpet thing discussed earlier is because of the soil here in Georgia. Lurking just below the surface around here is good ol’ Georgia red clay. Once that stuff stains something, it won’t come off.
To finish off insulating inside the walls, we used the pink stuff insulation on top of the previously installed foil insulation. The rolls were R13, about 3.5” thick. This was separated into layers about 1” thick and glued into place over the foil. Itchy, hot work. We ran out of pink stuff, so we picked up a roll of Johns-Manville R13 (“white stuff”). The Owens-Corning pink stuff seems a little easier to work with inside the Airstream. The white stuff doesn’t stick to the glue as well and is harder to separate. One small problem area was with the ceiling area. The insulation wants to fall before you can get ceiling panels up. Quick solution was to use a little masking tape to hold it in place temporarily. One side note. I thought I was being clever thinking up this method of insulating the camper. While catching up on the last 3 or 4 episodes of The Vap, Colin describes pretty much the same scenario (episode 67,IIRC). Maybe one of these days I’ll have an original idea.
The amazing thing about reinstalling the wall panels is that everything still fits, so far, anyway. The walls have been out about three years now. The camper has been moved several times. It’s only moved about 50 feet from the backyard to the driveway and back, but I was very afraid that all that movement would flex the frame or the shell and throw everything out of kilter. So far, so good.
A couple of pics.
Jim
__________________
“Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.....especially when they're near a ballot box.” --annon.
It looks like we are running neck and neck now except that you are running at the moment and I am not moving much at all. I have all my wall panels back in except for the strip down the middle too. I did decide to paint all of my interior skins though so they look very nice. They are a soft gray color now. I want to make sure that all of the electrical is working before I put the panel in down the center top. I did paint it though with it laying on the floor. I have heard that you can get rid of the yellow using straight bleach if you don't want to paint the skins.
I received an awsome birthday present this last month. It is a new charger with an integrated full electrical panel that is exactly what I need to make progress on getting the electrical back together.
Hey Guys things are looking great! I can remember what a great feeling it was to have all the interior skins back in place. A mile stone for sure. Thanks for keeping the rest of us posted on your progress.
Don
Thanks, Don. A huge step indeed. Susan is happy that she can actually "see" some of the work pay off. She's really after me now to get it on the road.
Hey Malcolm, so spill the beans, how did you go about painting? Spray it, roll it? We will definately be painting the interior. Probably a light blue. The woodwork will all be a light color as well. The original '70's campers were so dark. We called it "cave like". What type rectifier did you get?
Jim
__________________
“Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.....especially when they're near a ballot box.” --annon.
We just painted some of our interior. We used Sherwin Williams because I read somewhere in airstream forums or another RV forum where somebody else used that product with great success. We used a rolled on primer then followed with a latex. My wife did the bathroom yesterday and it looks great. Sherwin Williams tech told us to use a fine grit sand paper and scuff the walls which we did. I have asked about painting the wood work at Sherwin Williams and they said that the formica has to be scuffed by sand paper and if you miss a spot the paint and primer will peel.
It worked very well at getting the grease and dirty muck off the walls. What it didn’t do was remove the yellow stains. I may take another run at it with the TSP or Mr. Clean, haven’t decided as yet.
I've read here on the forums that the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser works well for cleaning the interior skins, so you might give that a try.
Your progress looks great, I think you're going to be camping this Summer!
Hey Malcolm, so spill the beans, how did you go about painting? Spray it, roll it? We will definately be painting the interior. Probably a light blue. The woodwork will all be a light color as well. The original '70's campers were so dark. We called it "cave like". What type rectifier did you get?
Jim
Jim,
My painting process was as follows:
1.) Thorough scrubbing of the inner skins while laying on the grass using a small floor buffer with 3m type scrub pads. I did not do any light sanding on the panels first but I think I may have accomplished much the same by using the 3m pads.
2.) Two coats of shelac based primer (BIN brand).
3.) Two coats of Home Depots best Bear interior semi-gloss latex enamel.
I applied all of the paint using a 6" sponge roller and a brush for cutting in here and there where I just could not get coverage with the roller.
Admittely I do not have experience living with the paint yet since I am still not done with my remodel. I have tried scratching the surface in a few places with a fingernail and it seems to be pretty tought.
For the elecrical system what I received for my birthday are the following Xantrex products:
XADC 30A Distribution Center
XADC 40A Converter Charger
The distribution center is on the following web page:
The distribution panel is very nice and compact. I have been intending to install it in my kitchen cabinet area which is just behind the entry door where the original converter was located. I think the panel can be mounted on the side of the cabinet just inside the door. It would be easily accessible there even without entering the trailer.
I bought the 30amp main and two 20amp branch breakers locally at Home Depot. I still have to find the 20amp DC fuses since Lowes and Home Depot don't carry what is needed.
...
I bought the 30amp main and two 20amp branch breakers locally at Home Depot. I still have to find the 20amp DC fuses since Lowes and Home Depot don't carry what is needed.
Malcolm
You can get a combo pack of DC automotive fuses, including fuse puller tool, for about $10 at Harbor Freight, Home Depot (only in some stores), or many auto parts places. I think it has 5 each of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 amp fuses and some packs have 30 amp, too.
You can get a combo pack of DC automotive fuses, including fuse puller tool, for about $10 at Harbor Freight, Home Depot (only in some stores), or many auto parts places. I think it has 5 each of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 amp fuses and some packs have 30 amp, too.
Zep
Zep,
The home depot that I looked at did not seem to have them although admittedly I was not actually looking for a combo pack. All of my 12 volt fuses need to be 20 amp too so the other sizes would not help me any. Also I believe that there is a puller attached to the panel as an accessory. I have not had time to mount a serious hunt for the fuses yet but I am sure that I can find them somewhere locally.
I took a small sample of wall panel (plastic lam over luan) from our '74 into our local paint store and they said there was only one product to use to make sure paint stuck to it. It is called X-I-M Primer/Bonder, and I will be the first to admit I don't exactly look forward to using it.
X-I-M is toluene based, so the fumes are strong. It is also very thin, so it splashes easily, but it also tacks very quickly. This means that wherever your brush or roller strokes overlap, it tends to glob a little. Having said that, it really does stick to the plastic laminate very well.
I try to set it up so that I can paint the laminate outside, and scuff it with 100 grit sandpaper. You don't have to use a power sander and it doesn't take much effort, just make sure you cover the entire surface until some fine, white dust develops. I don't have a sprayer, so I use a brush or roller to apply the X-I-M. Once the X-I-M is dry, lightly sand down the globs and then use a small diameter roller to apply a prime coat of KILZ. After that you can use any decent quality latex paint and the dark walnut laminate will disappear completely.
I have used a small diameter woven fabric roller and semi-gloss paint over the plastic laminate, and have been very happy with the results. The woven fabric roller leaves far fewer bubbles than a foam roller. Best of luck with the project.
I was thinking of doing what this guy did http://www.airforums.com/forum...lls-14441.html in post number six. He/she seems to be describing the "correct", if you will, method of painting vinyl. I tried to contact him/her but haven't heard back yet. Has anybody else tried this?
Malcolm, why a shellac based primer?
Laird, I'm replacing all of that plastic laminate stuff with real wood. I just don't like that stuff. I'm more concerned about painting the vinyl covered walls (aka the "inner skins") and plastic end caps. Have you tried the X-I-M on the vinyl?
Jim
__________________
“Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.....especially when they're near a ballot box.” --annon.
I think the real wood walls will look very nice, good approach. I have not tried the X-I-M on the vinyl walls, but I don't think you need to mess with it.
For cleaning the vinyl before painting, I have used strong concentrations of the both the purple stuff you can get at Wal-Mart, and Simple Green. Both seem to work well, as long as an abrasive scrubber sponge is used with some elbow grease. The green abrasive sponge for scouring seems to work better than the white abrasive sponge for glass and china. I did wipe down the walls after scrubbing, using a large sponge and lots of clean water. There was no more sticky feel to the vinyl after it dried.
For painting the vinyl walls, I have used one coat of water-based KILZ and two coats of semi-gloss latex, using that fabric roller, and had good luck with the finish. I have used Benjamin Moore, but have no reason to think other brands wouldn't work as well.
I have painted the tambour doors, plastic end caps and misc plastic parts with Krylon Fusion, which comes in spray cans around here. It is made specifically for plastic. I did find that it helps to follow the directions and apply the paint in multiple thin coats a few minutes apart. The paint runs pretty easily otherwise. I hope this is helpful.
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