Plywood underside repair

Mar 2, 2023
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Hi all. Brand new here and already asking for assistance. I've had a Sterling caravan that I love dearly for the past 6 years. A few years ago I had a prang with a bollard that damaged the wheel spat, lower rail and plywood underside a little. Wasn't a huge prang and I fixed up the wheel spat fine. The sideways force of the prang cause the plywood underside to crush in on itself if you know what I mean. The top side inside the van under the vinyl is just as it ever was. The base ply is all splintered but not all the way through to the foam. I continued using the van and it has been perfect. Water never caused an issue underneath and the rest of the van is as dry as a bone according to my damp meter. I'm getting a new van soon and want to sell this but thought I should get it looking a little nice underneath. Not sure how to best tackle it. I thought about brushing some adhesive into the ply as far as I can, then have it supported from underneath, pushing up against the repair until it sets. Not sure. Any ideas? It looks worse in the photos as it's all zoomed in. Any help offered would be great, even to reccomend a particular adhesive.
 

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Jun 16, 2020
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I think I would glue 3 mm shaped marine ply over the damage. Then coat with bitumen paint.

Was the wheel arch still OK? The spat is normally just cosmetic, but the inner arch has to be sealed.

John
 
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Mar 2, 2023
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Thanks for the suggestion John. I wasn't sure if that would be the best think to do or not. I wasn't sure if bonding something over it would look great, especially for a prospective buyer who may think there is something worse hiding under it. But I can't think of anything else. Yes, the wheel arch is fine. I just brushed against a metal bollard of some sort and it damaged the rail and pulled half of the spat away from the body.
 
Nov 16, 2015
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Thanks for the suggestion John. I wasn't sure if that would be the best think to do or not. I wasn't sure if bonding something over it would look great, especially for a prospective buyer who may think there is something worse hiding under it. But I can't think of anything else. Yes, the wheel arch is fine. I just brushed against a metal bollard of some sort and it damaged the rail and pulled half of the spat away from the body.
Why not do the repair, but have photos, whilst doing the repair, to show a prospective buyer what was done in case they ask.
 
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