What to look for

[rocky_taco]

I'm going to look at a caravel this weekend. It has a dend from the door blowing open, the floors are rotting in two locations near the door (no seal?) and in the front where some lights were removed and the holes left open. What else should I look for? What should I avoid if possible?

[Stefrobrts]

Hi Rocky! I love my Caravel, it's a great little trailer - the perfect size and very roomy layout.

Poke around inside and look under all the cupboards and try to see if there are any more rotten spots in the floor along the edges where the walls meet the floor. Since you already know of a couple you'll know what they look like. A lot of trailers have rotten floors, and there are a lot of threads on the forum dealing with how to fix them. It depends on how far the rot has gone.

Check the axel. Read the article on www.inlandrv.com to learn about how to tell if the axel is still good.

Too bad about the door blowing open, but it happens. Dents and tears on the outside skin are about the worst thing in my opinion. Appliances like the fridge and AC can be pretty expensive to fix too. But everything can be fixed, you could stip the shell off the frame and rebuild it from the ground up if you wanted to. It really depends on how much work you want to do. Like I said, it's a great little trailer, and the prices are going up up up so if it's a good deal, buy it and fix it up, enjoy it, and probably make a profit someday when you sell.

Good luck!

[Van]

Look for rust on the frame/tongue members. Little is ok, a lot isnt so much. I would also look for water damage on the interior ceiling, in the cupboards, under the sink, etc. Have the owners fire up the frig, stove, water heater, etc.

[rocky_taco]

Is the floor rot worse if it is near the edge where it meets the wall? Would this require removing the shell?

[Stefrobrts]

Here's a website of a guy who did a shell on replacement of some rotted floor in his Caravel

http://www.winickdesign.com/Interests/Airstream1.html

Rot near the walls would be most likely to effect the area where the walls actually bolt onto the floor, so it would be more serious. It also tends to be where the problems are because leaks in the seams let water into the shell, and it often runs down the inside to the floor without coming out anywhere where you can see it. So those kind of leaks can go on for years and cause a lot of damage before they are discovered.