Damp

[FatherTed]

Aahhhh!! It happened.

I've been trying to convince myself for a while that the damp problem in my Swift Challenger wasn't too bad...but it has gotten worse.

The van is old ( 1990 ) , so hardly worth the expense of a professional repair, but I can't really afford to replace it, so I'm going to repair it myself.

I have traced the water ingress to the skylights and awning rails, ( not all the same incident ). These have now been re-sealed and I am gong to work on the interior woodwork. The damage to structural timbers seems to be very isolated, think I've been lucky and spotted the problems quite quickly each time they occur.

I think I might end up stripping all of the wall boards out, so I can see clearly all of the timber structure and, after replacing any rotten timbers, re-lining with fresh plywood.

So, two questions:

Has anyone gone to this extent, is it as straightforward as I hope?

Two, what is the best way to "finish" the ply? I was thinking of using "Fablon" or something similar.

Sorry for such a long posting.

 

[S_374382905]

Look no further than the following web-site - http://www.1carpc.co.uk/wcdr/

Loads of links to DIY'rs who have fixed their caravans - some which looked beyond repair. I used some of the advice on here to fix a very slight damp problem on my van which I had been quoted a couple of hundred pounds for. The whole job took me a couple of hours and cost about

 

[FatherTed]

Thanks for that. I 'll have a look at that site.

I completed some temporary repairs last night and it wasn't too bad, so I think it is a job worth taking on.

My biggest fear is damaging the fittings as I take them out. Once I get back to the bare walls it should ( hopefully )be quite straightforward....fingers crossed.