Forum Discussion

groundhogy's avatar
groundhogy
Explorer
Dec 30, 2014

RV construction types....

Hi All,
My questions here will make it very apparent that I am new
to the RV thing as I have mentioned before. lol. But here
goes..

I am seeing several styles of RV here.

- The (older style?) ones with the ruffley sides. The
ruffles are lengthwise, I guess adding stiffness.
Are these aluminum? It seems to me it would be hard to
seal windows and doors well if you are sealing a flat
thing to a ruffley thing.

- The Smooth sided ones. As I understand these are usually
a laminate of several materials? Vacuum and cured?
Fiberglass and wood?

- Aluminum airstream types. Not sure what is just under
the aluminum.

I am wondering what the plusses and minuses are.

I also guess some manufacturers have proprietary build-ups
that they tout as better?

thanks,
groundhogy

12 Replies

  • bsinmich's avatar
    bsinmich
    Explorer
    Jan 06, 2015
    Are you looking at motorhomes or trailers? There are a couple of ways for making walls. A laminated wall is put together with glue, pressurized to seal and forms part of the structural integrity. If water gets into these you get delamination of the walls and lose a lot of the value of the RV. A hung wall is not laminated and not subject to delamination. I don't recall seeing new models with the corrugated aluminum lately. They use a butyl tape to seal these around windows and doors. All RVS have to be checked regularly to keep everything tight and leak free. The constant bouncing loosens any RV.
  • Effy's avatar
    Effy
    Explorer II
    Jan 06, 2015
    goducks10 wrote:
    JMO but there are only two types of RV's. Ones that have problems and ones that don't. Good luck.


    wait, I thought the two types were those that have problems and those that have more problems.

    ;)
  • goducks10's avatar
    goducks10
    Explorer
    Dec 31, 2014
    JMO but there are only two types of RV's. Ones that have problems and ones that don't. Good luck.
  • FrankShore's avatar
    FrankShore
    Explorer
    Dec 30, 2014
    Groundhogy, go over to YouTube and type in RV Construction and you should pull up a large number of RV Factory Tours (another good search term)
  • DutchmenSport's avatar
    DutchmenSport
    Explorer
    Dec 30, 2014
    I've had the aluminum side (ruffled stuff) and the smooth side (laminate stuff) and had no problem with either style. No leaks, no messes, no fuss. I do find the laminate stuff easier to keep clean as the aluminum sided stuff tends to oxidize and get rough. Hard to buff out. The smooth stuff, just wash and go. Simple Pledge or a very light weight wax and it shines much easier than the aluminum sided relative. By the way, Pledge furniture polish works great. Doesn't last long, but is FAST, EASY, and looks good. Great tip if you need to spruce up the outside real fast to show off the camper!
  • Oaklevel's avatar
    Oaklevel
    Explorer
    Dec 30, 2014
    As has been mentioned all have their advantages & disadvantages. Go with what you like & can afford.

    The corrugated aluminum is probably the cheapest but easiest to repair if there is a fender bender. This type have been around over 60 years.

    The flat laminated sides have been around probably 20 plus years. These can delaminate & are harder to repair if in a fender bender, but look nice & easier to wax.

    The air stream type been around longer but too are harder to repair & if scraped on a tree are hard to repair always will show it. But very well built trailers. Probably more old Airstreams around than any other brand.
  • rexlion's avatar
    rexlion
    Explorer
    Dec 30, 2014
    An example of a smooth (non corrugated) aluminum would be the Livin' Lite Camplite trailers. The smooth aluminum is attached to aluminum studs. No wood products whatsoever, so water intrusion should not be able to cause the extensive damage one can see with other construction types.

    Another trailer type not yet mentioned is the molded fiberglass (often called "egg") trailer. Scamp, Casita, Parkliner, and Oliver are examples. Such construction minimizes potential water entry points by eliminating roof-to-sidewall and sidewall-to-sidewall seams.
  • Jay_Pat's avatar
    Jay_Pat
    Explorer
    Dec 30, 2014
    groundhogy wrote:
    Hi All,
    My questions here will make it very apparent that I am new
    to the RV thing as I have mentioned before. lol. But here
    goes..

    I am seeing several styles of RV here.

    - The (older style?) ones with the ruffley sides. The
    ruffles are lengthwise, I guess adding stiffness.
    Are these aluminum? It seems to me it would be hard to
    seal windows and doors well if you are sealing a flat
    thing to a ruffley thing.

    - The Smooth sided ones. As I understand these are usually
    a laminate of several materials? Vacuum and cured?
    Fiberglass and wood?

    - Aluminum airstream types. Not sure what is just under
    the aluminum.

    I am wondering what the plusses and minuses are.

    I also guess some manufacturers have proprietary build-ups
    that they tout as better?

    thanks,
    groundhogy


    When we were thinking about an rv, I had the same thoughts and more.
    We ended up buying the best floor plan for us. It just happened to be a Keystone Sprinter.
    We looked at our rv as a home away from home (a second house on wheels).
    Very pleased with our purchase after 4 years!
    Pat
  • donn0128's avatar
    donn0128
    Explorer II
    Dec 30, 2014
    groundhogy wrote:
    Hi All,
    My questions here will make it very apparent that I am new
    to the RV thing as I have mentioned before. lol. But here
    goes..

    I am seeing several styles of RV here.

    - The (older style?) ones with the ruffley sides. The
    ruffles are lengthwise, I guess adding stiffness.
    Are these aluminum? It seems to me it would be hard to
    seal windows and doors well if you are sealing a flat
    thing to a ruffley thing.Commonly called corrogated aluminum. Old school siding. Cheap, durable. Usually stapled to wood studs

    - The Smooth sided ones. As I understand these are usually
    a laminate of several materials? Vacuum and cured?
    Fiberglass and wood?There are various smooth siding materials used, plastic to fiberglas to aluminum. Easier to wash and wax harder to repair

    - Aluminum airstream types. Not sure what is just under
    the aluminum.Airstreams are all aluminum construction sitting on a steel frame. You will see because of their design less inside storage.

    I am wondering what the plusses and minuses are.

    I also guess some manufacturers have proprietary build-ups
    that they tout as better? Yes, there are several different side wall types. Each has its pluses and minuses. IMHO none are perfect.

    thanks,
    groundhogy


    Personally any older RV purchase will boil down to one and only one thing. Condition! OK signs of water damage is also important. But that is condition.

About RV Newbies

4,032 PostsLatest Activity: May 30, 2015