Everyday, I have done some kind of work on the Camper. It's going slowly more due to supplies needed not so easily found locally. In particular, I have a window I removed the shrunken old rubber seal and have yet to find another that fits. Keep in mind, all this work is done 100% by myself. So while I search out the rubber window seals, I have turned my attention to the roof. WOW, I am NOT enjoying this stage. That old rubber tar gook they put on there is a royal pain to get off. The middle roof is galvanized steel which is why you see some surface rust. That is where the roof sealant had worn away. Not to mention, it's obviously a previous owners horrible handy work (or a pathetic pro job}. I am removing all 4 vents, replacing the middle one with a vent fan, and sealing the rest up. There simply is no need to have 4 vents on a 13ft long camper. 1 was for the closet Loo, 1 is the fan vent, 1 is from once upon a time there was a heater and the other? I'm not sure what that was.
I have managed to break down the oxidation from it's shell, hence a lighter grey color I have yet to sand the "dust" off. plus many other little things such as replacing the Butyl putty which sealed the window frames to the aluminum body as well as a few glass inserts and rain drip guards. I have also managed to de rust the door frame & paint with primer. That was a 2 day job.
In between all the work over the last few days, I have taken time out to harvest some of our Pears.
I am just finishing up what i refer to as the Camper quilt. I found a decent amount of Upholstery fabric sample squares at the Thrift store which were perfect for the making of a patchwork Bohemian quilt. Something to keep in the camper not just as a backup blanket but also for incorporating into it's decor.
I promise to share as soon as I have finished the last bits up.
I begin working at a local U Pick farm in their farm market on & off site locations this Saturday. I'm really looking forward to get out of the house and be in an environment I enjoy. Besides, I have 3 kids to buy school supplies & clothing for on top of all this Vintage Camper work. A paycheck will speed things up a bit.
This summer has been rather bland within my blogging mostly due to the lack of road trips & creativity as well as time devoted to my project. I truly must find a way to get a little escape before the warmth starts to fade.
Until next time,
Sweet dreams,
~Tammie
6 comments:
It is so great that you are working on your camper yourself. I keep thinking about it but I don't know where to start. Mine is so bad I need to rip the floor out and it scares me....sharp metal! It's nice you didn't have to do that. I was thinking mine might be more apt to be a super cool chicken coop. Still tons of work and I'd have to hard wire the openings. My husband thinks I'm crazy:) Love your blog!
Nice to see you tackling the camper yourself. Girl power at work :)
I am extremely impressed that you are doing all fo the work on the camper at yourself. It looks great. I can't believe you think your blogging is bland. You totally inspired me with the pallet post. Good luck with the pears. I just got back from picking buffalo berries.
Julie~ It can be intimidating but the best thing to do is just jump right in & gut her! Mine was NOT suppose to be so much work but once I got in where the water damage was, I decided the best thing was to just gut it out and customize the interior to fit more sleeping spots. I saved the sink & counter as well as 2 drawers & a cabinet door with mirror to go back in. The rest had that old musty odor soaked within the wood I dared not chance saving it. Get yourself a pair of thick leather gloves & DIVE! Plenty of sites out there now to encourage & help along the way with how tos'.
Michelle~ I'm determined to get her done and being I will not rewire electrical work- theres a plan in place for alternatives- I am more confident on doing it. I just keep envisioning the final result each time doubt creeps in. My pinterest camper page is full of inspirational pins due to the need like this roof frustration.
BBB & B ~ I think my thought towards being bland is I have been so stuck on this one project, leaving variety on the back shelf. Panda says I am "Obsessed" being majority of my talk & thoughts are all vintage camper. lol. We'll see how she feels when I take her & the friends on their first annual friend camping wknd next year in it. Seems to always rain when we go- no flooded tents ever again!
You go girl ! What did you eventually do with the windows ?
Was the "extra" vent over your stove top?
Thank you for sharing your enthusiasm. Reading about this is energizing. :0)
Hi Tamie & Welcome to my little slice : ) .As for the windows I did find a method enthusiasts would tisk at. I found a replacement rubber trim which is common in w/ a slight different look which I also used for my light bulb moment solver for the big window in front. I used aluminum angle trim, screwed into the sides of the window frame to hold the glass in place then put a buffer rubber window trim along that -prevents movement from any tiny gap as well as prevent water from going between the glass & trim.
As for the the extra vents, there was not one for the oven. In all the older campers like this of the small size, apparently a skinny heater was placed just inside the door next to the oven. There were original cabinets directly above the stove as well. Weird I know. I've come to the conclusion at some point someone MUST have lived in this thing for a while. Too much commodity squeezed into a tiny space.
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