Camper Repair
Interior Disassembly
After removal of closet door, frame, and floor sill/trim in order to look for any delamination between the vinyl and the subfloor. Even in the worst area by the door sill, using a pick in existing screw holes, found no breakdown on the top side of the subfloor or vinyl attachment.
Underbelly Inspection
Opened fabric, found and removed delaminated rotten subfloor base. The top layer of this plywood is still adhered to the foam above it. I tested this adhesion by making the small hole in the picture and attempting to separate it with a pick.
Remove Entry Steps
Ground off huck bolts to remove steps in order to gain access to this area of the subfloor.
Cut fabric to expose bottom of subfloor
Ground off huck bolts to remove steps in order to gain access to this area of the subfloor.
Wall below door frame
With the bottom trim piece removed, it's obvious there is something not right with this area. The bottom of the door assembly isn't fully sealed, and the wall skin under the door frame isn't straight, and there's 1/4" of space that shouldn't be empty.
Remove rotten and delaminated wood in the forward section
This is where the steps are, under the entry door. The damage seems to be worst under the middle of the door sill, with a small area of delamination of the top layer of plywood from the foam. As we get farther away from this area, the damage is reduced.
Aft starboard corner, cleaned up
Down to foam and aluminum, with room to tuck the new fiberglass board under the frame/edge trim piece on at least 3 sides.
The debris pile
Plenty of rotten plywood there.
Forward section glue-up
G10 1/8 fiberglass sheet from Defender attached with West System epoxy and colloidal silica
Used closed end (sealed) aluminum pop rivets to mechanically attach the fiberglass to the aluminum tubes that were there (picture below)
Aft section and door sill glue up
Aft section attached by existing flat head screws along the outboard rail
For that huge gap underneath the door I added another piece of 1/8" G10 fiberglass board to fill the gap and create a stable structure for sealing
Closing things up
Ran a bead of proflex RV sealant around the edges of the new fiberglass underbelly
Taped over the rivet heads just added insurance
Taped up the plastic cover (which now really does nothing )
Filled the gap at the edge of the fiberglass with butyl tape
Cleaned up and applied new layer of butyl tape to the corner trim piece, and reinstalled
Final steps
Reinstalled steps with new stainless hardware
Reinstalled inner door sill with new stainless hardware
