replacing inside panels and ceiling

qttire1 wrote:
I have a 2009 rockwood TT and the person I bought it from did not keep up the caulk above the slide and it seems water came in and now has water damage in a small interior panel and a little on the ceiling panel. It seems the ceiling panel has Styrofoam on it and I am sure that is what is damaged.

Here are the pics of the damage.


http://www.qualitytire.com/dune.htm

My question is... I ordered new paneling and ceiling panel from forest river but just want to make sure I am not getting in over my head in replacing. I have to remove some cabinets and microwave to replace the entire ceiling panel but it looks pretty easy, not sure how it is secured though.

The side panel piece is about 7 inches by 20 feet right above the slide out. I am thinking of stripping the wallpaper off to check out the damage, remove any really bad damaged pieces and trim a new piece of panel and glue it over the entire 7" x 20' area then re-seal with trim and seal tape. I was thinking of sanding the edges down and use trim to make it look now so obvious that it was replaced.

Does this sound like the best solution. I think the leak is now fixed just need to cosmetically fix the inside.

You ARE over your Head.

No matter how small of an area that has been appearance wise affected, the damage is many times worse than you will ever think..

Removal of paneling and even ceiling is not going to be an easy task.

Understanding typical Rv construction is key to how you approach removal, replacement and repair of damage.

Construction starts at the floor level, plywood (or even chipboard) is laid down first. The walls and roof are built on large tables with the inside paneling GLUED and stapled on the walls. The ceiling is GLUED and stapled to the upside down roof trusses.

The walls are then hoisted and set on top of the floor.

The roof is flipped over so the ceiling is now on the underside and the roof assembly is set onto the walls.

The inside walls, cabinets are now stapled, screwed or nailed to the side walls and even the ceiling panels FROM THE OUTSIDE.

The wiring is done from the outside.

The insulation is done from the outside.

Once that has been done the siding and roofing is put on.

There are some variations of this construction but the most part it is pretty much very close.

In a nutshell, attempts to remove cabinets without damaging them is very difficult and time consuming job. You better have a lot of time on your hands and take your time.

You will need to find creative ways to cut any and all fasteners blindly without causing damage to the cabinets.

Unless the damage is behind the cabinets you might find cutting around them is going to be a better solution.

Removing paneling or the vinyl surface of the paneling is not an easy task. The paneling is attached with lots of glue and staples and the vinyl covering is 100% glued to the paneling and attempts to remove it will result in damage the paneling under it.

I am not saying it can not be done but that it is going to be a very large and time consuming project..