1980 Caravelle Shell Off Renovation

[timzog]

By the way, I really loved the propane fireplace idea that Steve http://www.airforums.com/forums/f99/...oat-48054.html used in his Caravanner. The Dickinson Newport heater is so cool. I would be so delighted to not have to run a fan and stay warm plus it just looks so cool! I am frankly scared of any nonvented appliance so this looks like the perfect solution. A bit pricey, but my wife loves fire and I really need to get her buy in on this. I had promised some camping in the trailer this summer, but that's just not gonna happen.
Thanks for all the inspiration. I am trying to buoy myself with the possibilities in order to get past the extra costs and work that are stacking up.

[pbearsailor]

Originally Posted by timzog

By the way, I really loved the propane fireplace idea that Steve http://www.airforums.com/forums/f99/...oat-48054.html used in his Caravanner. The Dickinson Newport heater is so cool. I would be so delighted to not have to run a fan and stay warm plus it just looks so cool! I am frankly scared of any nonvented appliance so this looks like the perfect solution. A bit pricey, but my wife loves fire and I really need to get her buy in on this. I had promised some camping in the trailer this summer, but that's just not gonna happen.
Thanks for all the inspiration. I am trying to buoy myself with the possibilities in order to get past the extra costs and work that are stacking up.

I'm really happy with the heater. Pam and I just got back from the trailer and it was on, as usual, today. It really works well. Only problem is that it's too easy to flop down in the chair and zone out watching the fire instead of working on plumbing.

cheers,
steve

[Colin H]

Originally Posted by timzog

Thanks for the encouragement. My daughter and I were playing around with sketchup this morning and even though we are far from building anything, it is still fun to think about what could be. I posted some simple sketchup pics and some of our ideas in my blog. Airstream Forums - timzog
These ideas are very far from original but I think with the right materials and craftsmanship could still be quite nice.
Tim

Nice layout....................feeling better yet?
Colin

[3Ms75Argosy]

That is a nice layout! I would keep the water heater in it's current location under the bunk bed on the street side to help "balance" the trailer side/side with the kitchen on the curbside. You can make the kitchen even a bit "skinner" with a two burner cooktop a' la the 16' CCD models that AS makes to preserve counterspace. I like it! The 22 foot Argosy rear door model has a similar layout and it's a real nice place for people to hang out and sit.

Marc

[timzog]

Originally Posted by 3Ms75Argosy

That is a nice layout! I would keep the water heater in it's current location under the bunk bed on the street side to help "balance" the trailer side/side with the kitchen on the curbside. You can make the kitchen even a bit "skinner" with a two burner cooktop a' la the 16' CCD models that AS makes to preserve counterspace. I like it! The 22 foot Argosy rear door model has a similar layout and it's a real nice place for people to hang out and sit.

Marc

Thanks Marc,
I know the Argosy is wider though so I like your idea of shrinking the cabinets to make up room. If you do the math and add up to the 7' width, you run out of room in a hurry. 2' cabinet + 2' aisle + 18" table leaves only 18" for the human and their backrest. I think I need to make the little table so it can be folded easily and then you can have a large open space when you want it and a table when you need a place to sit.
Tim

[mutcth]

My Minuet is the same width. I'm not sure you'll gain much by making the kitchen cabinets narrower unless it's just where the sink and cooktop reside.

After all, you need the countertop to cover the refrigerator - not sure how much extra space is behind it, but my guess is not much...

Tom

[timzog]

Not getting much done.

[timzog]

Here are some other layout thoughts. With a narrow cabinet, I think you could get away with a deeper side dinette. This dinette is 3' deep and ~6' wide. It would give kitchen workspace as well so a little less counter space wouldn't be a problem. Moving the fridge to the back might change the weight balance a bit, but I don't know how much since it would be just behind the wheels. A 12V Danfoss fridge would do the trick. I could also remove the chimney and free up upper cabinet space.

[timzog]

So I actually started work on my Caravelle today. I promised my wife I would finish all the unfinished stuff around the house first and I finally got most of it done. I started tearing out a lot of the work done by the PO who was very fond of sheetrock screws even into the aluminum frame
First I removed the bunk above the front windows. It was kind of cool how they fashioned a crude slide out mechanism, but it was very rough construction. Then I removed the masonite overhead cabinets that were held in place by 2 rivets total. Then I removed the TV/microwave cabinet which was also built of sheetrock screws and masonite. Good riddance. As far as I can tell, only the kitchen area has any original components in it.
It feels so much more comfortable and more open with out the bunk or upper cabinet. I've read that to be comfortable in a space you need a minimum of a 5' diameter circle at your eye level. Also, there is much nicer light coming in from the front windows without the bunk blocking it. I'll post some pictures later when I have some time.
My plan is to do some leak sealing, replace the axle, replace the tires, get all the safety related electrical working properly, and put together a temporary sleeping scenario so that we can take her out labor day weekend. Then over the fall and winter, the real project will start which is to replace the interior skin and floor and start building everything from the floor up, hopefully with a lot less sheetrock screws.
Tim

[timzog]

In case anybody is interested, I've been working for a couple of weeks on tearing apart the inside of my Caravelle. So far, all of my worst assumptions have been correct. Bad fresh tank, rotten floor in many places, no interior aluminum skins. I am going to redo everything from the ground up I think. If anybody wants some of the few original parts, let me know. I'd be happy to try to arrange that they get to a good home. Parts include, toilet, shower pan, bathroom sink cabinet, shower surround, oven/stove, and maybe the functional air conditioner. I have lots more details and pics on my blog: Airstream Forums - timzog
I'd love to hear more about other 1980s trailer projects and especially want Colin to share more about his 1980 Caravelle project. PLEASE!!

[jslowery]

I am trying to post as much as I can here about my 1980 Caravelle.
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f36/...ing-49035.html

I hope you are still making progress. I am ready for the deconstruction to end. I think it is awesome that you and your daughter are looking at layouts together. How difficult is that program you are using? I have used autocad which is great for detailed drawings but not so much for quick visualizations.

[timzog]

Originally Posted by jslowery

I am trying to post as much as I can here about my 1980 Caravelle.
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f36/...ing-49035.html

I hope you are still making progress. I am ready for the deconstruction to end. I think it is awesome that you and your daughter are looking at layouts together. How difficult is that program you are using? I have used autocad which is great for detailed drawings but not so much for quick visualizations.

I have hit a bit of a wall. Everything is out of the trailer now and I am tring to figure out what to do with the tanks before I do anything else. I am debating between 1 big tank, 2 tanks below the floor and a black tank above the floor. I want it to be simple and easy to use and also make my wife happy so as far as tanks go, I think bigger is better.
I teach college so I am now in midsemester and my time is short so nothing has happened on the airstream in more than 3 weeks.
I used Sketchup which is a free download from google. If you can use autocad you can easily learn sketchup. There are even some tutorials out there for designing a whole airstream including the complex 3d panels. I started from the airstream website floorplan and made sure the dimensions were right and then just built things up from there. I would love to see more pictures of your Caravelle. There aren't many around. If you need any interior or bathroom parts, I have some from the deconstruction that I removed gently.
Good luck and I look forward to hearing more about your project. I hope it's not too cold to do anything when I find myself some time again.
Tim

[timzog]

I had some time to iron out a few more details. I've decided on a Nature's Head Composting toilet and a bigger grey tank with greatly simplified plumbing. I want as much grey capacity as possible without spending a fortune or risking bottoming out. I'll use Hepvo traps instead of p traps for the 2 sinks and the shower to maximize under counter space. Ill link the grey vent with the powered toilet vent and I'll run the toilet fan with solar panels on the roof. I'll probably do a standard 6 gallon water heater in the normal place but I'm going to remove the overhead AC in favor of one on the floor which will happen later. This will make more room for solar on the roof without any shadows that can cut off current. My floor plan ideas are posted on my much neglected blog. I finally found a plan that my wife and I both like. Key features are a set of bunk beds in the street side rear. The top half of the top bunk will be hinged to be a nice backrest for the dinette. I still need to figure out how to secure it but will probably use a clip on the wall and a cable from the ceiling, the front bed will be permanent with room for a sleeping dog or storage underneath. I may just get a portable Danfoss cooler to slide out from under the bed which would be awesome for parties and work with solar power. That would free up tons of storage in the kitchen. I want to do plastic bins that pull out from the dinette just like Euroair did in his beauty.
http://www.airforums.com/forums/blogs/50843-timzog.html
All ideas are appreciated. If my work would calm down and the weather would warm up I'd pull off the AC and start sealing up all the holes in the outside before working on the tank and the floor.
Tim

[timzog]

Here is the plan...

[timzog]

So I took off all of the operable windows and removed all the old gasket cleaned them up and replaced with D gasket from Inland RV. I used this citrus based stuff called Krud Kutter to soften the old adhesive after I scraped off the gasket with a putty knife. I used a dull old chisel to scrape off any debris and then used sandpaper to remove oxidation starting with 220, then 500, then 1000. I removed all the old tinting with film remover from the auto parts store. Just sprayed it on,covered with plastic wrap, and then it was an easy job with a razor blade to remove all the tint. My front window had 2 layers. There is a lot more light now and I like it that way, maybe I'll change my tune in the summer. I used the 3M gasket adhesive that Andy sent me and after the first one, I got the hang of it pretty quickly. If you are too stingy with the adhesive it dries before you can spread it well. I only got a bit of adhesive on the frame and that cleaned up easily with the Krud Kutter. I was able to put all the windows back in by myself except the larger rectangular front window. I had some help from a friend putting that back in without ruining the hinge. They seal beautifully except the rear window which has a gap midway on the left side. I don't know if that means the window frame itself or the frame on the trailer is warped but something is out of whack there. We had a wet melting snow yesterday and no water as coming in there, but I think I need to address it. Anybody know what I should try first?
Will post pics soon.
It is very exciting to actually make something better instead of just ripping out garbage.
Tim

[timzog]

Finally making progress!!
I removed the AC, the main vent, the bath and the fridge vent in order to start addressing leaks and am I glad that I did. I found a couple of rivet holes that never had a rivet and sunken sections of roof under the AC and main vent. I am going to add stringers under these when I patch them to keep the water from pooling. There were several problems under the AC including pitting and a missing rivet which must have been leaking from day 1! I was able to remove all the old sealant with odorless mineral oil, a putty knife, and lots of repetition. I could remove about a mm at a time by soaking, scraping, and soaking and scraping. When I got close to bare metal, 220 grit sandpaper and lots of water to rinse off the sandpaper did the trick. After that I used 500 and then 1000 grit paper to clean up the scratches. I have a bunch of pics on my blog at http://www.airforums.com/forums/blogs/50843-timzog.html
I am getting ready o start cutting new aluminum today and then to learn how to install buck rivets. Wish me luck!
Tim

[timzog]

So I installed my new Fantastic vent. I splurged and got the one with the thermostat and rain sensor. I documented as much as I could on my blog:
Fantastic Vent install - Airstream Forums
Here is the final product. SO MUCH NICER!!!

The Olympic rivets are really nice.

[timzog]

Just ordered a grey tank for my Caravelle. http://www.rvsurplus.net/catalog/dis...roduct_id=3735. It is 40 gallons and will take up the bulk of the room beneath the floor in the back. It will fit between the main frame rails that are 10" deep and beneath the cross members that are 3" deep. It ended up costing just over $300 with shipping. My neighbor is a welder and will help with some frame reinforcements if needed. It is 6" deep at the deepest and will stretch from one main frame member across to the other so I'll be able to attach it to the frame above and then run some straps to provide extra support. It is going to require a big access panel so I may get one thicker piece of aluminum for that section of the bellypan and hold in it with stainless screws. I'll only have 1" for insulation underneath it and I hope that is enough.

[timzog]

I also installed some new patches in my efforts to stop all leaks
http://www.airforums.com/forums/blog...-patches-1781/

[Travel Bird]

Congratulations!!!!