Rear Bath remods.

[quartzsitebruce]

I am considering remodeling the rear bath in my 34v Avion. One of the things I am considering is replacing curbside wall above the fiberglass wall of the tub / shower. It is held in place by rivets. Has anyone done that kind of work? Anyone know what is behind that vinyl clad aluminum? The tub and shower are in very good condition, however, there is a small crack outside of the tub near the base of the sink cabinet, that I'm pretty sure I can fix fairly easily. I have also been thinking about removing the cabinet and the sink in the bathroom. Has anyone had any experience with this remodel also? There does not appear to be any rotting wood from standing water or leaking water anywhere in the bathroom. Thanks for your input.

[silverloaf]

I am considering remodeling the rear bath in my 34v Avion. One of the things I am considering is replacing curbside wall above the fiberglass wall of the tub / shower. It is held in place by rivets. Has anyone done that kind of work? Anyone know what is behind that vinyl clad aluminum? The tub and shower are in very good condition, however, there is a small crack outside of the tub near the base of the sink cabinet, that I'm pretty sure I can fix fairly easily. I have also been thinking about removing the cabinet and the sink in the bathroom. Has anyone had any experience with this remodel also? There does not appear to be any rotting wood from standing water or leaking water anywhere in the bathroom. Thanks for your input.

Here is what the bathtub/shower walls look like on our '88 30P. The beige stuff you see is closed cell polyurethane spray foam. It's what gives all the wall its stiffness and insulation value. I suggest you not mess with a good thing.

I'm not sure why you want to replace the aluminum wall skin. There are many good paint products that can be used over the vinyl covering. You will hard-pressed to cut and bend a replacement piece that conforms to the trailer's curved walls.

So far as removing stuff, nearly everything is held together with square drive screws or rivets. Use a 1/8" and drill through the rivets. The rivet will fall apart and leave a clean hole for re-riveting.

[quartzsitebruce]

Thank you for the valuable photos. I was curious as to what was behind the walls. I was not going to remove the original wall, but maybe do something to put over the top of it: aluminum, vinyl wallpaper, paint, or? I'm going to have to replace the wallpaper in the rest of the bathroom because what is on there right now is coming off, I presume because of the humidity from the shower. I have been contemplating whether or not to remove the bathroom base cabinet and countertop and have something custom built. I have somebody that's coming back next October that does excellent finish cabinet work. I'm pretty sure I'm going to have him build custom base cabinets for the kitchen, so I might as well have him build a custom cabinet for the bathroom as well. What are you planning on doing in your bathroom for a base cabinet and countertop? The other thing I'm struggling with is should I paint all of the cabinets and woodwork in the trailer or just in the kitchen area and leave the rest of the wood original. The previous owner did a very poor job of painting the ceiling and the walls forward of the center twin beds and also painted some of the upper cabinets in the kitchen. I'm pretty sure that the new cabinets that will be built for the kitchen will be painted. I've been reading about the cabinet paint that others have been talking about. Although it's a little expensive, it sounds like a real good deal. It certainly would lighten things up and be easier to keep clean. Again, thank you for your reply.

[Razorback]

Yes, thank you for posting those photos. Although ours in a 34W, the detail of what is behind the walls could be valuable some day.

[silverloaf]

Removing the vinyl wall paper sounds like a lot of work. Alcoa Aluminum actually delivered the panels to Avion with the wall covering attached. I suspect they used a solvent-based adhesive for attachment. Have you thought about using a solvent- based contact cement to re anchor the loose wallpaper?

If all else fails and the vinyl must be removed, my paint supplier recommends a primer called Rustoleum XIM. It is a solvent-based product designed to anchor to most surfaces, including bare aluminum. I think Lowes carries it.
https://www.rustoleum.com/~/media/Digit ... r_TDS.ashx

Our bath vanity and countertop sustained a lot of decay from moisture. I took the vanity carcas apart, salvaged the door front and built a new carcas to the original shape.

I built a new countertop to replace the old. I wrapped the edges in oak and will install laminate on the top. I'll use a round-over router bit on the edge that will reveal the thickness of the laminate. The oak will then be varnished. I'm also thinking about installing an 1-1/2" high backsplash rather than the vinyl edging. I'll be using the same construction strategy for the kitchen countertop.

I learned quickly that curved walls and new square cabinets are incongruent. We chose to refinish (even reconstruct) the existing cabinetry rather than mixing apples with oranges. I plan on installing thin-gauge laminate on the shelves and drawer bottoms. It took 2 gallons of Acetone to remove the adhesive from old drawer and shelf liner material.

Regarding the poor paint job on the ceiling/walls, I suggest it knocking down the rough stuff with an orbital sander. A 120 grit disc will make quick work of it. Follow with a solvent-based primer to lock the surface for the finish paint.

[quartzsitebruce]

I really appreciate everybody's input so far. This is a great site and great people on it. I am so glad that I bought an Avion instead of one of those other "A"-word trailers...LOL

[Razorback]

“If it means that even ONE can be saved.....” from that agony..... the enlightened few!

[silverloaf]

Here are a few pics of our progress in refinishing the cabinets. All the finished stuff is stored in an upstairs bedroom. The lighter color is for the cabinets and center portion of the ceiling. The darker color is for the walls. The re-upholstery is courtesy of my wife.

One pic shows the original kitchen vent hood with a new 12v 3-speed fan. The cover between the fan and hood hides the wires to the original switches on the front of the hood.

[quartzsitebruce]

Always enjoy photographs. I am quite the visual learner, so they really help. As this is my first RV remodel, I am learning it is best to sit back and look around before deciding what to do. The friend that is helping me has said just sit in the trailer and get a feel for what you want. That has really been great advice. Sometimes I have a tendency to LEAP before I look, LOL. Therefore, I am taking it slow and easy. I have been in such a rush to use the trailer over this summer that I was potentially going to make some mistakes. I have decided to slow down a little and only do it once! Thanks for taking the time to post.

[silverloaf]

Always enjoy photographs. I am quite the visual learner, so they really help. As this is my first RV remodel, I am learning it is best to sit back and look around before deciding what to do. The friend that is helping me has said just sit in the trailer and get a feel for what you want. That has really been great advice. Sometimes I have a tendency to LEAP before I look, LOL. Therefore, I am taking it slow and easy. I have been in such a rush to use the trailer over this summer that I was potentially going to make some mistakes. I have decided to slow down a little and only do it once! Thanks for taking the time to post.

It is wise to sit back, take it slow and figure things out first. It can be a bit overwhelming to bite off the elephant in large chunks.

We encountered the perfect storm of firsts: trailer, Avion and restoration/remod.

For us, we do not have the luxury of time or space. Purchasing our trailer actually delayed selling our home and moving south by a year. Our trailer was not road-worthy due to hidden water damage, lot- rot and neglect.

One thing I learned quickly is everything on the inside was assembled in a series (not parallel) path. In other words, I had to reverse the assembly process to get to the item I wanted to remove. It morphed into disassembling a lot of stuff.

The folks on this forum have a tremendous amount of experience and are always willing to help. Enjoy the journey and new friends; I have.