Avion flooring replacement

We decided against the plank flooring I had shown earlier. I actually ordered a box from Home Depot...but after some research, decided that it's probably not the best choice for the trailer since the floor is not as stable as a home floor. So, instead we choice a nice "Softstep" vinyl flooring. The nice brown color will not show dirt!!  

But we're not quite ready to install.....when removing the old flooring, we were left with the paper backing and glue. 

I've done a little bit of everything to get the stubborn stuff off.  Several days of heavy labor....

Water actually loosens the paper (or "felt" as some call it)

The glue is really good - and can be removed by using Xylene - a nice solvent.  I had a fan on high while using that for ventilation!

I know it doesn't look like much was accomplished....but this was hours and hours of sanding and cleaning....
it has to be smooth enough to lay down the new glue/flooring.

The next step is to make a template out of "kraft' paper that exactly matches all the little crooks and crannies of the floor.

Again, this doesn't look like a lot of work....but it was most of an entire day on my knees!

And here is the final result....we're lining up the templates to get an exact match when we install it....it's a little un-nerving since we only get one chance at perfection!  Later....

Just a little work

Life seems to be getting in the way of the Avion lately!!! 

We have picked out flooring - since we're pretty close to needing the floor in place so that we can start re-installing the cabinets/toilet/etc.   We've decided to go with a resilient  plank flooring since it's lightweight and appears to be extremely durable.

It's a dark bamboo pattern - looks really neat in place (just from the sample I've got).  Will be delivered next week.  Here's what a single plank looks like:

Other than that, lots of little repairs - most not worthy of notice, but they each take lots of time!

One that I'm halfway thru is replacing the wall cabinet that sits behind the toilet.  It had some water damage - so we're just replacing it all with new boards, using the existing one as a pattern.

Getting closer in the bathroom!

The cabinets are looking nice with their new coats of stain and paint.

And the floor is just about ready for the linoleum.  I have to pick it out first!!

Bathroom door

I know you get tired of seeing all the staining photos, but this one gets a special mention since getting it to this stage took most of a day! It is the folding door that goes between the berth and the bathroom. Unfortunately, there was water damage at the bottom. So, we routed out the rotten wood, leaving the outer veneer mostly intact. Then I mixed Bondo and filled in the hole! Sanded it all smooth and a few coats of stain. Good as new!

This and that

While I've lived for the past few weeks with a paint brush in my hand, Duane has been doing a lot of structural work. Several of the main beams at the rear of the trailer were rusted through and needed reinforcement.

And we decided to remove the rear "bike rack" that someone had (badly) welded on. There are some much nicer methods of attaching a bike rack - one that incorporates a spare tire. We'll decide on that later, but for now we're happy to get the bulky appendage out of our way!

Vanity refinished

The vanity is pretty much finished now.  We had to repair some water damage at the bottom, but it's pretty structurally sound now.

I'm pleased with the nice clean look of the white shelves.  And I love the little built in drawers.

Now I've got to pick out a nice countertop to match the "harvest gold" shower/tub!