John.....luckily its just the bottom, from window upwards bone dry! So should be just a simple job along the bottom and once that is done that end should be damp free!! There are some spongey walls in the bathroom area but will leave that until winter - we have had vans in the past with slightly spongey walls and it has been fine to live with.
Wynnie....so glad you had a good time..our teenage son is a keen fisherman, their never happy are they!! Glad to hear your toilet area wasnt as bad as you were expecting, thats always a nice bonus!!
We're picking up our awning tom. its a Dorema President Vario, the larger the better for our size family! I'm now just looking around at chairs and sleeping bags etc. We got rid of all our camping stuff when we sold our last van, so are starting from scratch again! ;( Hubby had a day off today from the van and will start fresh tomorrow. I really must upload our photos so you can see how we're doing!
Hi camperman6667,Looking forward to seeing pics, hope he did'nt get to tippssssy, dose he have garage to work in over winter, if not extention lead and heater in van, oil filled heater or some thing like it, keep van warm and help dry van out when frame work exposed. if you sell this van later on, keep your camping stuff for at least a year,just incase.
------------- If everything runs smoothly then I must have done something wrong
If in Doubt Check it Out.
looks like some serious holiday planning on the go ,im so happy for you all getting away,pity your son didnt live nearer hubby could take him out on one of the lochs up here,hopefully you will be blessed with decent weather for your hols,as long as its dry i suppose the suns an added bonus,
hubby is out doing ours ,door out and rebuild of frame round it and along the bottom on the floor ,so its all go ,we have it under tarpaulin dont trust the weather,hopefully this is the last chapter on the van repairs as everything has been pulled out and redone ,its cost a fortune on sealants, wood and rolls upon rolls of mastic but if your going to do it right dont scrimp on the quality of stuff,we still have the floor to do but that will be the last then at least we know for a few years anyway we have a safe dry van,
let us know when your off and where your going etc etc x
Hi sorry to hear your van was damp. We to have fallen foul of the damp caravan syndrome.
We bought an avondale perle off ebay two weeks ago got it for the bargain price of £600 with full awning,porch awning new porta potti etc etc but boy when I took the curtains down the day after alarm bells rang when the curtain popper just pulled out of the front wall! Further investigation revealed that the front wallboard was a different colour how the hell did we miss that? Anyway the whole lot got pulled off to reveal a rotten mess well I just cried,I couldn't believe the guy hadn't told us. Luckily our best friend is a handyman so the repairs have started and I have managed to calm down!
Lessons learnt
Don't view caravans when its nearly dark
Pull all curtains back!
Take a damp meter
If something is to good to be true it probabaly is
Book ourselves in for an eye test :-))))
LOL yeah we too should have gone to specsavers!! But our repair is nearly done now and overall i am very pleased with our purchase. If you do the diy repair yourself it shouldnt cost too much so you may have a good deal anyway! If you get stuck on anything you should check out this website for help - it has helped us loads. Keep me updated on your task ahead. we have had all our caravans from ebay and this is our first with damp problems! Good Luck x
Hi, and congratulations on fixing your caravan. I'm another one who should have gone to specsavers... All now fixed and dry.
I just sort of noticed that although you've mentioned putting the inside right, you haven't mentioned that you had found out where the water was getting in from the outside, but I may have missed it! So I hope you found where the damp was coming from and resealed the outside rails, window seals and stuff, or all that hard work will be for nowt! Please tell me I'm wrong!
Jax365....lol yes my husband has spent hours resealing the outside. We think it was coming in through the awning rails and side rails....many tubes of sealant later and we are hoping the job is done!! Inside is now completely done, just needs a new carpet but can hold off on that for the time being. I'm very proud of my husband, he has done a fantastic job. I will be uploading the photos next weekend (daughter gone to scotland and taken camera!) so everyone can see how hard he has worked!!
well clara looks like the end is in sight and the holiday is round the corner,beats the first post when you were full of despair,we are on rebuild now thats everything redone and rebuilt,the floor now has to be rehardened ,the new curtains are done and the pelmets on the go ,carpet and cushion floor bought so things looking up for sure,im still taking photos and when i get a degree in computer technology i will do a bit for the repair site !!!!!,take care and happy camping
wynnie i look forward to seeing your post! Have you made your new curtains? do you have a post on what you are doing, would love to read it. we have now just started to put things in the caravan like plates, cutlery etc. Hubby has done a grand job, never thought this day would come!! I will finish off my post next weekend by adding before and after photos.
yes the curtains are made,my next door neighbour done them for me ,im doing the pelmet and tie backs,i dont know what you mean by a post??,i will need to get my young brother to do all the needful on that front,but ive been taking pictures all through the rebuild and i will do a full in depth bit when we are through,we have had a few tricky moments due to the inside of the van ,it curves and slopes in all directions,but it has been redecorated ,chose to wallpaper instead of panels,and picked nice thick stuff that has the look of panels but a lot warmer.
just got the door area finished last week and hubby is now on floor then all furniture etc will go back along with carpet etc, found the fix it site a godsend ,and there wasnt a van the same as ours(coachman) so maybe our trauma will give someone else hope and an idea how to tackle the repairs from our point of view,once we know how to do the bit for fix it club we will get it all set up.
told you your hubby would fix it all eventually didnt i,get the holidays out the way then you can fix anything else you havent done at your leisure,take care
Inside is now completely done, just needs a new carpet but can hold off on that for the time being. I'm very proud of my husband, he has done a fantastic job. I will be uploading the photos next weekend (daughter gone to scotland and taken camera!) so everyone can see how hard he has worked!!
Hi Clarax, Said at the start of your project, it was not to dawnting a task,,and your OH would be proud of the job that he did,and you would be too, and you will love it even more, now that you have made it your vang. good luck as youwill be looking forward to your first trip away in your new baby.
------------- If everything runs smoothly then I must have done something wrong
If in Doubt Check it Out.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Damp,Damp & more Damp!
