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Rebuilding of a Truck Camper

It is odd that they look so nice with the outside all fixed nice with the aluminum, but yet the wood underneath is completely rotted out. Scary, but your doing a great job.
Keep up the great work! :fing02:
 
RI Chevy Silveradoman said:
It is odd that they look so nice with the outside all fixed nice with the aluminum, but yet the wood underneath is completely rotted out. Scary, but your doing a great job.
Keep up the great work! :fing02:
Click to expand...

Thanks! :thumbsup:

I hope the weather stays as planned and all the rain stays away for the weekend.
 
Not been getting much done the last two weekends, life keeps getting in the way.
I finally figured out about these boards.
IMG_1154.jpg
It was put there by the factory to help support the table.
I got the wood all cut out. I am going to do this in two pieces of wood.
If you look below the factory used two.
IMG_1155.jpg
Look how bad it was rotted here by the door. The PO hid this, what a POS.
IMG_1156.jpg
Got the sheet of plywood purchased. $34 for the good stuff. They had no cheap stuff.
 
ak diesel driver said:
What do you consider "the good stuff". ?

Sent from my Studio 5.0s using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

It is some birch plywood, looks like maybe furniture grade(maybe).

I am use to the cheap stuff full of large dark knots.

This stuff was the cheapest one in the correct size.
 
Furniture grade may not be very water resistant. You can get a pretty good underlayment that's got exterior glue in it.

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Should I return it?

It has to be better than the crap OSB that was in there.

I was going to seal it up with the sealer I am using after I get it cut to fit.

Wood is confusing :agreed: :mad2:
 
btfarm said:
You need to have exterior grade plywood. Treated would be even better.
Click to expand...

Marine grade is what the pressure treated stuff is commonly called and it's much better than untreated for water exposed areas. I know it's used for transit coach floors.
The treatment chemicals are toxic stuff so wear breathing protection and cover your skin.
Home Depot has the MSDS sheets online. Copper salts and didecyl dimethyl ammonium chloride are in the list of goodies. Not as good as the chromium salts they used to use on pressure treated lumber but nowhere near as toxic either.

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Marine grade around here isnt pressure treated. Lots of laminations and the glue is almost epoxy like.

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That will be a good choice.

Marine grade plywood is marine grade due to its structural properties. It's only due to these properties that it resists water better - there is no chemical treatment like there is with CCA plywood.
 
I went and picked up the pressure treated plywood yesterday. That sucker is twice as heavy as the other board.
I have got a little more done on the camper yesterday and today.
I removed some rot out of the corner.
IMG_1159.jpg
I removed the door this morning. This will make access easier. I also removed all of the foam.
I need it out of the way to add supports.
IMG_1160.jpg
IMG_1161.jpg
I need to trim all the left over floor that is still attached to the beams.
IMG_1162.jpg
I figured I would give y'all an update. I hope to get the floor in this weekend along with al the beams I am going to add.
Back to work! :thumbsup:
 
Here is the cardboard cut out to fit and scribe onto the plywood.
IMG_1163.jpg
This is all the screws I have pulled so far. This is the second time I have filled up this bowl with screws and staples.
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There is no way I can get this into the hole in one piece. Sucks, change of plan.
IMG_1165.jpg
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Here is the line for the cut.
IMG_1167.jpg
With one small trim on one corner I got the first side in. If you notice I cut it in half over the large support beam.
IMG_1168.jpg
IMG_1170.jpg
Here is the other half in place. It took a little more trimming but fits nice and tight.
IMG_1171.jpg
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Know off to home depot to get some 2X4's and liquid nails.
 
great job,i wished i saw this earlier,,ive built boats and campers most of my life,youve got a water/wood rot problem, heres my recomendations,,1.use marine-grade plywood[its put together with waterproof epoxy/glue],2.everything wood should be coated epoxy fiberglass resin [most important to coat cut ends] this will stop the water intrusion,3.that butyl rubber [its used by builders because its cheap][most builders of campers/trailers/motorhomes use the cheapest parts around] your using is junk,everything should be sealed with a good quality silcone caulk [its flexes],most of your leaks are caused by holes [drilled/cut] into the camper by the manufacturer,the PO was just trying to fix things as best as he could[probably not a real handyman] 4.make sure you ck the other siding and roof [you are so far along ,it would'nt take much more to pull off the other windows and siding to caulk and seal the siding panels] 5.try to thru bolt everything[waste water,gen,propane,ladder [lag screws/deck screws,staples,nails]6.ck every pice of wire/cable,make sure there are gromats anywere wiring runs thru a hole[most manufactures cut every corner they can] and ck every electrical connection,,good luck ,your doing a great job and just keep asking for help-somebody will be happy to help,,,also dont take anything im saying as putting down your work,this is just what ive found by fixing wood rot for the past 25+ years
 
I got the bathroom side glued and screwed down.
IMG_1173.jpg
I sanded it down really good and checked to ensure it was correct. But somehow it came back up.
I will have to get me a belt sander and get it level for new tile.
IMG_1174.jpg
You always forget something. I have a way figured out on how to get it in there.
Just need help from somebody my size.
This is the toilet water line.
IMG_1175.jpg
I got the living room entrance side board installed.
IMG_1176.jpg
I will let the liquid nails dry overnight. Then I will start to play with the wood beams.
 
looks good,your building it real strong,,you might want to try water-proofing [a gallon of fiberglass resin/and hardner,, a 2''-4'' brush works great and drys overnight]the underside and the topside of the bathroom floor and the main walk-ways ,and lots of silicone caulk on all the edges,the idea is to keep water out and not to wick into the wood edges,i think alot of rot is because of spray off the rear tires,throwing up into the underside of the floors,keep it up and camping is sooner then you think
 
Great thread! I've done a bunch of these projects and actually enjoy it. I bought an old Six-Pac 8.5 foot camper to haul around on my old Army Chevy (CUCV) when I'm beating around in the hills (My other pickup is an 07 GMC Dually Crew Cab and is great for pulling the 5th wheel but that's a whole different kind of camping). Probably the only camper of that size and vintage I've ever seen that had a shower and toilet. Over the years I've found that I'm as well off to just pull all of the windows, doors, hatches and skin right off the bat and then fix everything that needs fixing. I didn't do that on the Six-Pac though since the guy I bought it from had done it already. Just hadn't done the roof. Still should have though since the repairs he made were questionable. I pulled the gutters and front clearance lights, straightened the edges of the roof sheet and rolled back the roof. The center of the roof had settled a couple of inches and no patching or sealing was ever going to keep water from seeping in so I jacked the roof back up and then took out the rotted wood from around the center roof vent, put in new wood, and then cut stringers from 2x2's so they were 2 inches at the middle 3 feet but tapered down to the original side pieces, then glued and screwed a stringer on each side of the original 1x4 roof stringers so that it wouldn't settle again, and saturated all of the wood with Minwax wood hardener so that it wouldn't absorb water it it ever leaked again. After insulating it I covered the whole top with luan plywood, rolled the aluminum top back on and sealed everything as I reassembled it and as a final step mixed up a couple of gallons of two part EPDM rubber roof and spread it over the whole top of the camper. You could probably dance on it and it isn't going to leak. And I know what I've got, just like you will when it's all back together. I took a bunch of pictures too, if anyone's interested. Next one is a 19 foot trailer that we got for our son. This one he works, I supervise. At least that's the plan...
 
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