Making repairs on my new off grid living camper
November 18th, 2011
It rained a few days in a row, quite heavily. The leak above the sofa that I found was worse than ever. I decided to rip down the ceiling panel and see how bad it was.
But where the water was coming in there is very bad rot and damage. The main roof support beam is rotted to nothing on the corner. That caused the roof to sag in this spot and the seams were leaking. No wonder. There was an inch of water on top of that spot. If the people who patched it previously had only replaced this whole board, it may never have leaked again. But with this piece sagging an inch downward, it was just a pond on top.
Its not actually going to be much work to fix this up. Two support beams should be taken out completely and replaced. They are 2 1/4 by just under an inch by 8 feet. Shouldnt cost more than a couple dollars. A new ceiling panel costs only $12 for an 8 x 4. That is double what I need. The insulation was surprisingly not even dirty. I may use it. Maybe I will just replace the piece where the water was coming in.
Camper repair is not really that expensive, nor is it hard to do. You just have to overcome the fear and dig in. Forget trying to save or keep old stuff and just replace it all. Then you will have a long lasting camper.
I will post updates when I get new wood. But before I close this up again, I will patch the roof better and wait for a good rain. Then, if it doesnt leak anymore, I can put up the new ceiling board.
About the Author
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Troy Reid |
