Okay, you all are going to love this next reader feature! When Robert posted pictures of his camper remodel on our Facebook page, I was absolutely floored. Robert, his wife, Kelli, and their friend Jessica took on a remodel that was so labor intensive, most of us would have run away screaming. Robert’s uncle had given him a neglected pop up trailer that had been stored on his property for a long time. Upon towing it home, Robert and Kelli quickly realized that there was some major structural damage to the camper.
They foundthat subfloor was rotted away and would need replacing. The camper also had waterdamageon both ends, and thepaneling and flooring had rotted beyond repair. Robert and Kelli were undeterred. They had always been up for a good project, and knowing full well what was in store, they enlisted the help of their friend, Jessica, to begin the demolition process.
Theypulled the old canvas off, and ordered a replacement. Then they completely gutted the trailer and pulled up the old flooring. The bunkends had also rotted, so those would need to be replaced as well.
Once they had taken the camper completely down to the frame, they cleaned, primered, and painted it.
They replaced the subfloor with treated 3/4″ tongue and groove plywood, using self-tapping epoxy coated screws to secure it to the frame.
With the subfloor installed, theymoved on to rebuilding the side walls. Theytackled the curbside wall first, pulling the old wood paneling off to get a better look at what was underneath. Some of the panels were in pretty good shape, but most of them needed to be replaced.
So Robertripped down some 2×4’s and used the rotted braces as templates to build new ones. Then theyglued theoldskins to the new frames and filled the voids with foaminsulation.
While the girls cleaned the exteriorskins, Robertrebuilt the supports on all of the other panels. Thegirlsused WD-40 and an adhesive remover to remove the old decals and prep the panels for paint.
With the new supports all built and glued into place and the insulation installed, they faced the panels new interior paneling. Then it was time to put all the pieces of this big puzzle back together. 🙂
Robert used an oscillating tool to cut a recess in the floor, then hestarted mounting the walls back on the frame. He usedplywood to rebuild the ends, knowing they would be covered by diamond plate. Next Robert started prepping the walls for paint. The girls had pulled all the old decals off, but were having a hard time removing the adhesive. They tried a few different chemicals, but they were slow going at best. So Robertgot out the drill and a 3M Adhesive remover wheel,and it worked like a charm.
With the residue removed, theywiped the walls down with paint thinner, and taped everything off. Then Robertsprayed the exterior walls with Rustoleum Ultra Cover 2X paint. The girls picked a satin Nutmeg color to hide imperfections, and also accent the camo and black trim work they had picked out.
Next came the diamond plate… Robert made the bends in the plating himself (with the help of friends and family) and usedPL400 and clamps to glue itto the plywood. How pretty is that?
When inspecting the roof, they found a pretty significant amount of rot on one side. Robertremoved that whole panel and rebuilt it with a1x8x10′ solid piece of lumber. While Robert was working on the roof, Kelli and Jessica laid the flooring. They went with a beautiful click-lock plank vinyl.
Robert painted the sides of the roof to match the rest of the camper. Then hereinstalled the trim work on the corners, put in the new cable hatches, water inlets, drain, and tail lights. He also fixed the door frame, installed that, andfinished the wheel wells. They had a custom camouflage graphic made for the side of the camper to complete the exterior.
While Robert reinstalled the roof, the girls got to work priming and painting the cabinets. Robert cut new countertops out of MDF, and a neighbor was kind enough to build them a gorgeous new dinette table out of walnut.
Once the cabinets were dry, they installed them in the camper. Robert also rewired the whole trailer and installed new outlets for the mini fridge. Then they got to work on the countertops. To finish the those, they useda textured Rustoleum stone spray paint. Theysanded between coats and finished them off with several coats of polyurethane. I love it!
To cover the cushions,Robert and the girls used camouflage fabric and the “wrap and staple” method found here. It’s a simple way to update your cushions, but it yields such fantastic results.
With all the interior components complete, it was time to put the inside ofcamper back together. The installed all the countertops and got to work installing the new canvas.
Robert and Kelli purchased the canvas through Canvas Replacementsand are very happy with it. The fit was good, and the quality was outstanding. I love that color, too! 🙂 It took the crew about 2 1/2 hours to install the new canvas, and it looks absolutely amazing.
They added a camouflage valance around the ceiling, and the camper was complete!
And just in time, too! At the start of the remodel, Robert, Kelli, and Jessica set a deadline for the camper project. They wanted to have it finished in time to take it to a local music festival. Through hard work and determination, they made their goal!
It took about 2 1/2 months from start to finished, but the results are definitely worth it. Robert, Kelli, and Jessica have a unique pop up camper they can be proud of–and they know the workmanship is sound. Let’s take a look at those after shots!
Pretty amazing, right? Most of us wouldn’t have given such a dilapidated camper a second thought. I know I would have been super intimidated by such a big project, but their hard work definitely paid off. And who knows? They just might inspire someone here to do the same! 🙂
Robert and the girls documented their remodel meticulously. There was absolutely no way I could include all the pictures and information that Robert passed along. If you’d like to see more details, check out his post on The Pop Up Portal. You’ll be amazed.
And keep those pop up camper remodels coming! You guys rock!
Happy Camping!
