1984 Elandan Floor, Ceiling, and Roof Leak Repairs

[Lftdaporch]

Hi I'm David. I own a 1984 Elandan. Have rewired the starting system. All new wires. All else disconnected or not looked at. All house is gutted. I have 3 good batteries. After getting it cranked to move I have started replacing the flooring material above the foam. Due to soft spots and time issues I have added 2x4s cut down to 1.5x1.5s and removed foam for those channels to insert them. I will add pictures to give an idea of what I'm working with. I have a majority of the materials from Winnebago and Chevrolet. My current path is finish entire floor repair and then ceiling. Sagging and leaking. Then I need to get my 110 back online. I have found so far everything quit due to failing grounds. Oh and I have until the 9th to make it semi livable and drive able. Help me obiwanmorichkenobi you're my only hope.

 

[Lftdaporch]

So change of plans this morning. How heavy is the roof ac. And I know that flex seal has its detractors. However budget is also as tight as time is. Its been leaking a ton around the AC and I thought I would do the ceiling as the floor. front to back. Going to add photos now. Need to check funds and see what became most critical

 

[Lftdaporch]

Here's pics

 

[Morich]

Morning to you! On to your questions!
The AC on the roof is defintely a two man job to me. It is "possible one might get it done but that adds some big risks of dropping it and not one I would ever consider trying to move it off the roof! Get help if at all possible?
Assume you are feeling the need to take it out to form better sealing under and around it? Never had to get too deep in tdoing that job and I might guess there was some form of rubber seal between the AC and roof, but that is a definite guess!
One word of advise from a guy who has been there on the money and trying to decide how to get it done the cheapest. It is hard to do things to save money if we don't have money to buy the tools and materials that make for the best job! So one way to waste money is to try to do too much and go too cheap so we have to do it twice as that costs more than doing it better the first time! I'm walking, talking proof of doing things too cheap at times!
But I will start off recommending a tool to make things go so much better and quicker, even if you have to spend more on tools to start?
One of the major things you will be doing on RV is caulking and sealing. One of the big things before putting caulker or seals back is getting the old stuff off and TOTALLY cleaned. Often we see folks put caulk on top of old and thaty will soon fail if we don't get the old really clean. Sealers work best when they are put directly on a good clean surface, not if we put it on a thin layer of old or dirt where it won't hold! One way to waste time and money is skipping the prep work!
So I find having a 30-40 dollar tool to speed up removing the old as well as lots of other work like cutting in small spaces where no other saw will fit is now a "must have" for me!
Lots of choices but I tend to invest in the stuff that I find fits me and the money and time I have and will use it! I find the cheap one worked fine until I dropped it off a two story house on the sidewalk!

If I worked it full time I might go for the high value one but I'm not there, even if it feels like it some days!
But for things like that roof seam, getting the old junk and dirt off is the only way most anything will stick for very long. I don't go the Gorilla tape thing because I have to get the junk off just the same to make it stick. It just peels the dirt off if I don't!

Suggestion for the AC unit? If possible, I might go for getting four guys on hand and then a couple 2X4-8. Since the roof may be suspect and getting lots of help up there may be BAD, I might try to slide a couple 2X under and lfiting it from the sides without so much weight on the roof until you find how much rot there may be in there. If it is the old style wooden framing and it has been rotting for long, that may be a reall problem to watch until you find what you have. The thing you don't want is getting guys up there and finding out it is too weak when you hear the big pop!

Good luck on the project and keep in touch!

 

[Lftdaporch]

Thank you for the thread cleanup. I was about to start a new one. Ok so it's aluminum framing. But I would say 80% of luaun is rotted. I have cleaning materials and the stubbornness to get it clean. I know the value of prep work. So I'm taking all the roof fixtures off. Got the AC up on 2x4s. I ran some thick door molding on top of the the aluminum corner supports then the 2x4s on top of those. I'm thinking i have to get the ceiling intact first and then strip and clean/prep roof. I'm anal so isopropyl alcohol is always the last final cleanup before any paint or adhesive. I've had blue painters tape hold plastic up on walls and windows for 6 weeks without any peeling off. Had every room in the house done like that. So on the ceiling. Removing the luaun between the aluminum rounded corner and frame. There's like 3/8ths of an inch of starting at the edge of the frame. Drill out the rivets? Run the oscillating saw in that gap to clear it and leave rivets and cut small slots in the edge of luaun to accommodate the rivets. I know I need that 3/8 of an inch for ceiling strength. And some photos. I have to have me and camper off the property by the 10th.




Ok so questions are.
How to get the rotted luaun out of the gap.
Where the styrofoam has delaminated from the roof layer of luaun and luaun is totally gone. Just glue the styrofoam directly to the roof skin?
How strong is the aluminum frame. Can I afford to just do the ceiling roof and floors before I move it and catch the walls later? Or do I have to replace that luaun as well there before I move it.
No idea how far and where I will move it to.

Answers: I have a majority of most basic tools for handyman work. Alot of carpentry hand tools and electricians tools.

And thank you again

 

[Morich]

Okay, once again, I have to admit that I was so far off!
I'm not used to dealing with guys who know so much about what they are doing and also have thought about what and how! Congrats on the grit to look at this and form a plan!
So the metal framing is good as it cuts out one of the biggies that I quickly learned to avoid! No rotten ceiling frame is a GOOD thing! My first rebuilds were near semi disasters that never really got much better as the wooden framing was gone when I got in to see it! Can't say I ever made it really good but passed it on for even less classy work than fishing huts! Good enough if you are only there till the snow comes!
So my lack of info on what you have? I have not seen the metal strip used but might guess it is there because they built the walls and roof as seperate panels then used this to attach them? Kind of the way buildings are made up of panels stacked together to make a box? I better let you think about that but it WOULD be nice if you could get the ceiling panel in over the metal strip and let it support the panel for a better, longer lasting hold over any adhesive might give you!
But my best answer has to be, "I'm not sure" ! But we've both been in those situations and DO have to do something, so I would say this roof is safe enough to move to a different site as time is important and I feel like the metal frame will take the move.
I never got that far into work with metal frames, just lots of rotten wood to splice and rebuild! I had ugly RV but also had several ugly friends to help, so it worked!
One thought that you may want to think about is putting too much of the floor back if they are lots of things like plumbing that may have problems that you've not found yet? Something to lay awake at night if not sure about frozen pipes, etc. that might make it easier to get fixed if the floor was out of the way? Fix floor first or check pipes first. Lots of small stuff, but may depend on where and how it was prepped for winter?

 

[Lftdaporch]

First off I don't know **** about ****. I even had to look it up just to be able to spell it. That being said I know have to research well. And look to others with more years and experience than I. And those with less as well.
No problems with plumbing for sure. Just the toilet, my black tank, shower and the respective outlets are in the camper. That's for later today or tomorrow most likely. Its lived it entire life in georgia or tennessee.
Ok so I've managed to get one piece of luaun up. It was a nightmare of adhesive smeared all over the luaun, me, curtains, tool bag, metal shelf supports and anything in between the bucket and ceiling I came into contact with. However that little metal channel was cleared on both sides. As well as sanded and blown out with the air compressor. The little round rivets were knocked out where that sheet went and 2 foot beyond. I pried the entire roof up about 3/8 of an inch to make sure the luaun got as much as each side of the channel as possible to happen. Rivets were mostly rusty metal anyways. Will be putting screws in those holes anyhow. Got my game plan for roof together. I've marked where all the metal framing is up top and laid some planks out so I can navigate most of the roof. Also tied air conditioner off so it can't slide on me since im slightly nose down. And it got precarious on me while trying to raise it a little more off the roof so nothing would push down while fighting that luaun panel. It seems that the camper also has a thin metal layer between rubber and roof and below the subfloor. Hopefully today I can get some pics of progress made.
Any tips on how to make the old adhesive removal go quicker. Or things you wish you had known before you started that task.

 

[Morich]

Heah! No big thing with not knowing everything! One of the worse things I ever did was work with a guy that thought he knew it all! It's when we don't know we don't know that get folks killed!
I hate to sound silly about the oscillating tool but once I got into it, I find more stuff to use it for and that might be true here. I think it might be the tool for removing the old adhesive! I changed out the windows on my wood and brick house and found it great for getting the old caulk off there. Only thing I have ever found to get caulk out of the little pockets on bricks without tearing the brick up to look bad! On anything pretty smooth, I find an old worn out blade that used to have teeth for sawing is now a great tool to lay really flat on a surface and let it do the work. It still takes time but not nearly as much effort and you can get it done without gouging the surface like if we try the brute force of hand scraping.
My fingers don't bleed as much!

 

[Lftdaporch]

I thought about that. Been hand scraping. Angle the blade so it's horizontal and drag to you keeping it as straight up as possible. Very little scratching or gouging. And it's ok to sharpen them a bit. Almost have the AC area done so I can get that back secure. I have that frp and cheap caulk and gorilla tape for adhesive im thinking of finding some metal and running some supports under it so it spans two beams instead of resting on only one and bolt metal to frame and AC to metal. Got some rust around the AC opening as well. Some small patches on the front of. Rust-Oleum and metal tape after its cleaned.

 

[Morich]

What and how is often best worked out as we get into the job! All those small points can change what is needed, so go with what you find is working!

 

[Lftdaporch]

Ac spot is cleaned and painted. Finally a pic of how I'm reinforcing the flooring. Also shots of the whole thing outside. Tried the oscillating saw on the adhesive. It was taking off too much paint for my liking, but I may have been holding it wrong. Also it was a designated scraping blade. Did use it on the a/c bare metal and to take off a good bit of old adhesive where I pulled the antenna. Also have the foam gasket for the a/c cleaned. Hopefully it's not too flat. Should I try to manufacture another gasket togo with it?
As you can see in the photos I manufactured a window. I've also made my connectors for indicator bulbs. At least the metal conductors inside the bulb housing as well as a brake light one. Also the windshield washer reservoir will be diy as well. Speaking of all my fluids were good except the differential is a touch low. I need to do the brake fluid inspection. Also need to weld a crack shut on my kitchenette waste tank.

Side note, check the timestamp on my forum notifications. Once these structural needs are met I'll take pictures of what house components I need to prioritize putting back in and will need help identifying some things.
Thanks for your time and help btw.