Merlin and Cindi's 1984 Itasca Sunflyer 22rc rebuild.

[Ex-Calif]

I was looking at things today, if i mount the inverter in the closet behind the Dinette, I can install the batterys under the rear dinette bench

Don't forget to consider venting if installing the batteries in the living space. Also any heat consideration for an inverter and battery charging.

front bunk that the foam was cut out of, under closer inspection, I noticed it's right where the front fiberglass top cap attaches t

I am sure you know this but the joints are the most likely areas for leak. I know you sprayed the roof but I would definitely double check after getting the insulation down.

This is what killed the slide in I was working on. After I pulled the panels and insulation away from the overhead corner the wooden framing was completely shot. It was likely repairable but I spent $100 on the slide in so I cut my losses.

 

[Merlin TC]

Don't forget to consider venting if installing the batteries in the living space. Also any heat consideration for an inverter and battery charging.


I am sure you know this but the joints are the most likely areas for leak. I know you sprayed the roof but I would definitely double check after getting the insulation down.

This is what killed the slide in I was working on. After I pulled the panels and insulation away from the overhead corner the wooden framing was completely shot. It was likely repairable but I spent $100 on the slide in so I cut my losses.

yeah I run a bead of sealant all the way across today, and reglued the section of foam that was cut out. I am going to put a section of Aluminum angle across the front side of the board that runs across the front, this will reinforce it and keep it from flexing as much. after the sealant dries I am also going to spray the inside seam with flexseal spray. just as an added measure.

also the batterys I have are all sealed batterys. when I start installing them i will post pics of them.

 

[Merlin TC]

Well today was pretty productive. I ran a bead of sealant across the front board where the top cap and the roof meets and replaced the section of foam the former owner had cut out. then I resecured the over head wire harness that runs to the control unit that mounts under the over head cabinets. used some more power grab to secure the ceiling section the former owner had started to replace. used a heavy Camera tripod and made a arm and cross bar to hold the ceiling in place while the power grab sets up. this will also be used to hold the new FRP panels up while I secure them when installing them next week.
got all my measurements for cutting the panels and last thing for the night is got the side window removed so I can mark the window cut out from the out side in, so I can cut it to fit the window frame. I think this is going to look pretty good when done. I mean anything will look better then it does now.

 

[Ex-Calif]

also the batterys I have are all sealed batterys. when I start installing them i will post pics of them.

While they should not vent, even sealed batteries have a pop-off of some kind in case of overcharging or something. It will probably never matter but it's a thought.

 

[Merlin TC]

Well yesterday I didn't get to work on it any as we had to visit family members for dinner. but today I made up for it, I now have the one side area almost done. I already cut a section to fit to the left of the door. so tomorrow I will get that fitted. also my wife ordered the stuff to reinstall the window. so I am excited to see how it all fits. I have to cut out the opening for the stove vent fan. but that should be fairly easy. needless to say my wife is shocked with how much work I have gotten done already. but since I am unemployed I have plenty of time to work on it. my wife had picked up these Plastic rivets that are used to hold these type sheets. And they have worked out great. I put Powergrab on the wall first. then some of the plastic rivets. I really like the way it is turning out.

 

[Ex-Calif]

Full speed ahead! Looking good!

 

[TheBar]

Here is a product I've used around the house on occasion. It soaks into rotted wood and basically turns it into plastic that will hold screws. I wouldn't use it on anything structural but its ok for the bottom couple inches of door jambs, etc.

 

[Mark_K5LXP]

Just to plant the seed of doubt, you probably won't be running A/C from batteries. Even if you had a giant bank of lithium batteries and a suitably sized inverter, what goes out must go back in. A/C uses a lot of energy and that translates to shore power or extended genset recharge time. Maybe there's a use case where you only run it for an hour or two and you have 22 hours inbetween for solar or genset time to replenish, but that would be a pretty narrow use case. Odds are excellent your AGM's can't source the 120 or so sustained amps A/C requires for very long, so consider your battery/inverter install more for the rest of the house operation (lights, fans, microwave, computers, etc) than the A/C.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

 

[Merlin TC]

made some more progress today, got the old cabinet and control panel with vent fan reinstalled. still have to trace out some wires. but that should be pretty easy.

 

[Ray-IN]

Just to plant the seed of doubt, you probably won't be running A/C from batteries. Even if you had a giant bank of lithium batteries and a suitably sized inverter, what goes out must go back in. A/C uses a lot of energy and that translates to shore power or extended genset recharge time. Maybe there's a use case where you only run it for an hour or two and you have 22 hours inbetween for solar or genset time to replenish, but that would be a pretty narrow use case. Odds are excellent your AGM's can't source the 120 or so sustained amps A/C requires for very long, so consider your battery/inverter install more for the rest of the house operation (lights, fans, microwave, computers, etc) than the A/C.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

Remember the thread about 1 yr ago from a new member? He said his inverter quit. He got mad and left after being told he cannot run his A/C on one lithium battery?

 

[Mark_K5LXP]

Judging by MerlinTC's posts so far I don't think he's going to have a problem accepting technical realities. I hope he continues to update the thread with his progress and that we can offer any/all assistance that will contribute to his success.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

 

[Merlin TC]

well today did not go well, I recently made a barrel wood stove for my shop. now this would not be bad except it does not seem to draw right so i spend half the morning trying to get it to burn. then when I do, the paint on the barrel start putting out toxic fumes that make me sick and i have to open the big shop door to air it out. anyway after vomiting twice, it finanly warmed the shop up enough to use the glue made for the FRP sheets. since this panel was over the drop down bunk. I had to hold the panel up with my knees while getting it to slide under the Aluminum angle I had attached to the front roof board. but by the end of the day I got the one ceiling panel installed. the supplys for reinstalling the side window came today, so now I need to watch some youtube videos or something to see how to go about reinstalling and sealing the window. after living in Florida since 2014, my body does not enjoy these high 30 and low 40 temps in the shop. anyway here are a few pics of todays work. really love these plastic rivets. I had to trim them down so they would not be to long and made a drill stop so as to not drill up thru the roof.

The fun of fixing up an old R.V. ..lol but it will be so worth it once we get it done.

 

[Merlin TC]

Ok so I removed the side window to install the new wall panels. today I reinstalled it. it came out pretty good. now my issue is as you can see in the photo some of the out side rubber trim has shrunk up and pulled away from the frame. is there a way to fix this, or do i have to buy new trim? and if so where do i get it?

 

[Jayflight]

Its hard to tell for me. But if you are talking about the rubber that just covers the fasteners on the frame, similar to door locker molding, I have had good success with this product. If you back fill the area and push the molding back into the caulk and in position. Of course in the curve area I do sometimes use a piece of duct tape to hold it in place until the initial setup.

Hold the molding when pulling it off so it does not come with the tape before the gummy decides to stay on it. It sits up pretty fast, all dependent on the temperature . If nothing else you can use this stuff on the roof membrane trim, if you have a membrane roof. Most big box stores carry this product.

https://www.familyhardware.com/product/LOCTITE-PL-S30-Polyurethane-Roof--Flashing-Sealant/100476?utm_campaign=441171417&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_content=&utm_term=&adgroupid=1159986606019765&msclkid=aa4615e28ee91f5223727089531dba80

 

[Merlin TC]

Its hard to tell for me. But if you are talking about the rubber that just covers the fasteners on the frame, similar to door locker molding, I have had good success with this product. If you back fill the area and push the molding back into the caulk and in position. Of course in the curve area I do sometimes use a piece of duct tape to hold it in place until the initial setup.

Hold the molding when pulling it off so it does not come with the tape before the gummy decides to stay on it. It sits up pretty fast, all dependent on the temperature . If nothing else you can use this stuff on the roof membrane trim, if you have a membrane roof. Most big box stores carry this product.

https://www.familyhardware.com/product/LOCTITE-PL-S30-Polyurethane-Roof--Flashing-Sealant/100476?utm_campaign=441171417&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_content=&utm_term=&adgroupid=1159986606019765&msclkid=aa4615e28ee91f5223727089531dba80

The rubber molding has gotten hard and does not go back in place. I wonder if i could heat it with a heat gun and get it to go back in place.

 

[Merlin TC]

well I got most of my mission complete for today. got the dinette removed, But the over head Cabinets would not come down after I removed all the visable screws, so it's just going to stay where it is and I will work around it. after getting the big side window out I see why the wall has water damage, the seal was dried out and even dirty and somebody went around the whole thing with cheap silicone that was also pulling away for the frame, so all that did was made a bigger job of cleaning the surfacefor the reinstall later. but at least it is clean now.

 

[Jayflight]

The rubber molding has gotten hard and does not go back in place. I wonder if i could heat it with a heat gun and get it to go back in place.

If you use the heat gun, be mindful that if it gets too hot, this may distort the width and length. I can't tell. But is the molding a flat molding or a half moon type, that"s normally fairly thin. If you have some heavy rubber gloves, then heat up some water to boiling point. Then wet a rag and wrap it around on it, or across as much as you can, hold it for a bit and push it back and see what happens.
By the way you may need to go further up the curve, both ways on the flatter areas with the rag or heat.

 

[Rene T]

The rubber molding has gotten hard and does not go back in place. I wonder if i could heat it with a heat gun and get it to go back in place.

Is it all four corners. Is there a joint someplace and where is it. If the joint is at the top of the window, can you tuck in the seal at the bottom two corners then the top two corners letting the ends at the joint go where they want to. This will probably open up the joint. Once all the corners are sat, fill the gap for the ends of the seal for some type of caulking sealer.

 

[Mark_K5LXP]

some of the out side rubber trim has shrunk up and pulled away from the frame

My take on it is to source new. It's a seal, and seals work by deformation. If it's hard/stiff it won't seal well or has shrunk and won't seal at all. Odds are excellent this profile is something you can buy by the roll. I would bet that an R&R would be easier than dorking around heating/stretching/gap filling.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

 

[Merlin TC]

Got the dinette wall done, now to reinstall the side window.