A neighbour is selling their 12yo van and I'm thinking of buying it. They have two small children so the upholstery and carpet has taken quite a battering plus it's a bit 'twee' and I'd like to use slightly more modern fabrics/design.
How easy is it to reupholster the seats yourself? Are there any tips/tricks?
How easy/difficult would it be to replace the carpet (prefereably with vinyl floor - so I can mop it)
What are the approximate costs for paying a professional to do both jobs
The original covers can be used as a pattern and careful examination will show you how it was made in the first place. What might be an idea as well is to refoam as well - 12yo foam for sitting on can be bearable but the same for sleeping can be a pain, especially in the back
With the carpet you may find that it is fitted under the furniture, so you either cut around the furniture or take it out lay the vinyl and replace the furniture on top - laying vinyl isn't the easiest of jobs especially in a caravan with all the walls in but if you like laminate flooring then there is a vinyl version of this which is sticky backed, so you are just laying vinyl in strips.
Try looking on eBay or Ebid for pricing of the covers - I'm sure there are people advertising their services on one of those (you will also get a price for the foam as well)
Vinyl fitting... go into your local flooring showroom find the bit/offcut you want and ask the salesman if they can fit it and how much
------------- Caravanning is a way of getting a cheap holiday out of an expensive hobby
If you go on the www.foam.co.uk web site, they offer a full reupholstery service while it's being done, they even offer customers to spend the waiting time on their caravan site.
We've only used them to have two seat/bed base cushions filled & the service was outstanding. We sent the covers off by Royal mail on a Tuesday morning & they were back in our caravan by the Thursday lunch time. The workmanship was superb but while I can't recall the price, I do know it wasn't cheap. No doubt someone on here will have used them since & may be able to update.
They also offer a wide range of fabric on their site so it may well be worth a look.
Taken out carpet for vinyl a couple of times. its easy enough. The carpet is fitted under units etc so just cut round with a craft knife. Laying vinyl is a bit fiddly around furniture etc but if you lay it in the middle with an edge to cut off all the way around its not difficult.
Never done the upholstery but its a collection of cubes using the old ones as a pattern. How hard can it be.
Last year we bought a motorhome and did not like the quality of the foam so we used www.foam.co.uk They were brilliant we were away for a few days in that area and rang to see if they could replace our foam, we arrived at their factory at 9.30a.m. took 6 seat bases in to their factory, they have samples of the different types and thickness of foam for you to decide which one you would like. They took them through to be replaced, we just waited in the motorhome in the car park, we made some breakfast, had a cuppa, washed up and just had time to read the paper and they were ready, by this time it was 11.30a.m. we could not fault the speed and workmanship of the cushions, also if you are a member of the caravan club you also get 20% off your order, we ended up paying £480 which was not bad as they were quite large cushions, our motorhome has a 4 person dining area and a u shaped lounge and all the base foams were replaced, the foam we chose also has a 5 year guarantee. I would definately recommend this company. They also offer a full upholstery services aswell, with a vast range to choose from.
Hi, we had our van recently done, there was nothing wrong with the old, we just wanted a change, we had pelmets, curtains, carpet and seats re-upholstered and it cost me £1,000, its a totaly different van now and it worked out far cheaper than changing it.
Andy
------------- A man with one watch knows what time it is; a man with two watches is never quite sure.
We are having all of our seat bases and back rests fitted with loose covers to protect the original covers in our Adiva.
The Caravan and Boat Seat Cover Centre in Bristol are doing it and they have been really helpful all the way through the job. We received a bundle of samples of the material that we liked along with their catalogue.
The seats are an odd shape in the Adiva (circular lounge) but they didn't bat an eyelid.
They sent us two massive packing bags that we put our seating in, the following day they were collected by a parcels firm and we were told by telephone that they had arrived in Bristol the day after. The service that we have received from them has been brilliant and we would happily urge people to use them.
Incidentally, the whole job has cost us £584, that is at least £150 less than 2 other quotes that we received and most of the people who advertise in the caravan press wouldn't do them because they are 'odd' sized.
Contact them at: www.cbscc.co.uk or phone them on 0117 941 0222.
Hi quite easy to cover seating and if you don't want to try there is a caravan breakers in Wales that has all types of second hand seating info at caravanbreakers.net
with regard the flooring if you are careful with the carpet when taking it out you could use it as a template
My mam & Dad used to infuriate me with rugs and blankets they put over the upholstery in their van " too keep the cushions nice". Mind you, when they finaly had to sell the van with galloping damp and 15 years wear and tear the cushions looked fantastic.
Hi all i used a Re-Upholstery Specialist Crystal Upholstery they recovered all of my caravan seat's with covers, they also made them so that they were removable.
There website is here Caravan Seat Covers
IF original caravan carpets should just lift up if fitted carpet by previous owners could be
stuck down onto lino with spray glue but will lift easily clean lino after with meths not white spirit (oily), carpet could be fitted to hide floor delamination ??.
Unless your an experienced machinist I would not tackle seating cushions unless you donot mind the home made look.
There are several re-upholstery companies advertising in practical caravan magazine. but I am sure you could find a local upholsters who would do the job as they make new seat cushions to fit on remodeled furniture, Maybe they would do at a reduced price and make a good job so youwould broadcast far and wide how good they are and get them into the caravan upholstery buisness. Good luck.
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Topic: Reupholstering a van
