Water Damage - Where to Start?
We haven't used our 24V Itasca Spirit in a couple of years but during that time both of my brothers & my sister have borrowed it. We pulled it out of the field (we keep it at my parent's farm) this...
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This looks fairly similar to the water damage on my cab over I repaired. If you are handy you can fix this for around $200. The delam is on a seem so you may have to fix both sides. The rear window will have to come out as well. This is fairly easy to remove with cordless drill and a utility knife. The repair itself (depending on the extent of the damage) will take 2 - 4 days. Things you will need that are most cost effective and that will get the job done looking good:
1 gallon of West's epoxy resin, $75 - $100 (you can also use bondo epoxy resin, $35 1 gallon; It will work fine but West's has a much slower cure time of 45 minutes where as with bondo you'll have only 8 - 12 minutes of workable time before the stuff cures solid).
1 sheet of 1/4 finished plywood, a few 2x4's you'll need to rip if any wood beams are part of this design. For mine I used 1" and 1 and 5/8's and 3" deck screws for reinstalling the corner piece, several cheap paint brushes and a few small 6" rollers. You'll need at least 1 quart of lacquer thinner for the resin cleanup and mineral spirits for the caulk and get a few sets of long rubber gloves as the epoxy is very messy and difficult to remove from skin once it cures. Bracing claps will be needed especially for the delam around the window; they are also a good investment for future repairs as such with most older RV's. Any Home Depot will have these materials as well as bondo but for West's you'll likely have to order online. You'll also need Decor EPDM rubber caulk, the non leveling type and a roll of RV puddly; any Camping World will have these.
The first thing to do is to remove all of the rotten laminate away from the filon, the exterior fiberglass sheet. So long as the foam core is not water logged you can reuse it. If it is, you can buy hard foam cores on line or go with the cheaper stuff at Home Depot. Once it's all removed, give your rig a couple of days to bake in the hot sun to dry any existing water. Once dried, you can start by installing your wood beams then foam if any. Most modern rigs use an aluminum frame which make this work a bit easier. If there is a thin remnant layer of luan remaining on your existing foam, you can apply the epoxy resin directly on it spread evenly after you've cut and sized your plywood. I've found applying a coating to inner side of the plywood as well works best. Once coated, You can also screw the plywood on to the aluminum frame every 6" or so. Just remember you have a short window of set time for the epoxy resin to cure. If the plywood is screwable, you probably won't have to use any braces for the plywood. Allow this to fully set for at least three hours before applying the fiberglass filon. For the filon, fiberglass sheet, you most certainly will need to brace it with wood and or clamps. The best way to do this is to brace your beams against a solid structure, like your house to get Max pressure to cure it onto the plywood. Any gaps or bubbles not braced will not not be pleasing to the eye although some are unavoidable. Remember, bondo 8 - 12 minutes, West's 45 minutes set times. If you've never done this, go with West's and good luck. I'll post a link to my most recent work with pics
1 gallon of West's epoxy resin, $75 - $100 (you can also use bondo epoxy resin, $35 1 gallon; It will work fine but West's has a much slower cure time of 45 minutes where as with bondo you'll have only 8 - 12 minutes of workable time before the stuff cures solid).
1 sheet of 1/4 finished plywood, a few 2x4's you'll need to rip if any wood beams are part of this design. For mine I used 1" and 1 and 5/8's and 3" deck screws for reinstalling the corner piece, several cheap paint brushes and a few small 6" rollers. You'll need at least 1 quart of lacquer thinner for the resin cleanup and mineral spirits for the caulk and get a few sets of long rubber gloves as the epoxy is very messy and difficult to remove from skin once it cures. Bracing claps will be needed especially for the delam around the window; they are also a good investment for future repairs as such with most older RV's. Any Home Depot will have these materials as well as bondo but for West's you'll likely have to order online. You'll also need Decor EPDM rubber caulk, the non leveling type and a roll of RV puddly; any Camping World will have these.
The first thing to do is to remove all of the rotten laminate away from the filon, the exterior fiberglass sheet. So long as the foam core is not water logged you can reuse it. If it is, you can buy hard foam cores on line or go with the cheaper stuff at Home Depot. Once it's all removed, give your rig a couple of days to bake in the hot sun to dry any existing water. Once dried, you can start by installing your wood beams then foam if any. Most modern rigs use an aluminum frame which make this work a bit easier. If there is a thin remnant layer of luan remaining on your existing foam, you can apply the epoxy resin directly on it spread evenly after you've cut and sized your plywood. I've found applying a coating to inner side of the plywood as well works best. Once coated, You can also screw the plywood on to the aluminum frame every 6" or so. Just remember you have a short window of set time for the epoxy resin to cure. If the plywood is screwable, you probably won't have to use any braces for the plywood. Allow this to fully set for at least three hours before applying the fiberglass filon. For the filon, fiberglass sheet, you most certainly will need to brace it with wood and or clamps. The best way to do this is to brace your beams against a solid structure, like your house to get Max pressure to cure it onto the plywood. Any gaps or bubbles not braced will not not be pleasing to the eye although some are unavoidable. Remember, bondo 8 - 12 minutes, West's 45 minutes set times. If you've never done this, go with West's and good luck. I'll post a link to my most recent work with pics
