What to do with old RV - rough condition

[NC25T]

My dad has a 1997 (I think) recall rexair, I believe 365 is the model, it's a single slide ford engine

Has 13k miles
Parked outside its entire life
Water damage up front above driver and on dash
Smells like mold pretty bad in the summer......
Most if not all furniture is dry rotted and I am sure also smells of mold

I have been trying to get him to sell the RV for years and talking to him a few days ago he still thinks it's worth $40,000!!!!!


Should I just try to,find a wrecking yard that can scrap it? It's not something imwoukdmtruat driving far, a few years ago relatives attempted to use it and the entire RV would shut off for a second every once in a while when driving.

[Ray,IN]

Craigs List perhaps? Conversely he could donate it to one of the non-profit organizations who accept them, then re-sell them to obtain operating capital. He could then write off the agreed value on his taxes, but it would be nowhere near $40K; $4K at most.

[NC25T]

My brother and I talked about it earlier, he thought we could get $8-$10K.... I said no way... I would be happy with $2K. To me it's worth more what the value of the engine/trans would be plus a little more....

I didn't think about donating it somewhere.... I will do some looking

Craigslist is a option..... thanks for the $.02

[Inthe70s]

Those Rexairs, especially with only 13K miles, do keep some value so I wouldn't be too quick to give it away but it all depend upon the condition. It might clean up pretty nice. It has a 1 piece Fiberglas roof so I'm not sure of where the front leak is coming from but that could be repaired. It probably looks worse than it is since its been sitting outside and is probably oxidized with white streaks running down the sides. Where are you located?

[George Schweikle]

Consider contacting the Rexhall club Rexhall International RV Club

Originally Posted by Inthe70s

Those Rexairs, especially with only 13K miles, do keep some value so I wouldn't be too quick to give it away but it all depend upon the condition. It might clean up pretty nice. It has a 1 piece Fiberglas roof so I'm not sure of where the front leak is coming from but that could be repaired. It probably looks worse than it is since its been sitting outside and is probably oxidized with white streaks running down the sides. Where are you located?

[LETMGROW]

If you really want to help your Dad out hire someone who knows RV's to look at it and estimate what it would cost to get it into useable or saleable condition. Perhaps it is too far gone to restore but an outside opinion would be helpful in making that decision.
If it is junk at least you or your brother won't be blamed for declaring it so and underselling it.
The final decision of what to do with it would ultimately be up to your Dad. You don't want hard feelings within the family over a few thousand dollars.
If your Dad wants to hold on to it then so be it. If it were restored he might regain interest and actually use and enjoy it. He made the investment in it to begin with.
To me giving it away to a charity wouldn't be an option. There has to be some value there. To get a tax deduction would require an estimate of value from someone qualified to do so. You can't just decide for yourself what it is worth. Deductions such as this can throw up red flags for the IRS. You don't want to deal with them.
Get all your ducks in a row and don't let one step out of line.
Lynn

[TQ60]

Fiberglass roof indicates not a low end unit.

Most likely source of leak is the seam at front cap so get a roll of eternabond and seal everything.

[LETMGROW]

There are services out there also which may be able to help with mold and mildew abatement. "Servicemaster" comes to mind but there are others too. Maybe having an assessment of what it would take and cost to freshen the MH up would make a decision on what to do easier.
The outside would require some elbow grease to bring back to life but you might be surprised how well it would respond to a real scrubbing and some wax applied.
If it was my Dad's I would do everything I could to get the MH back to a serviceable condition and make it valuable again. I wouldn't accept any low ball offers until I really knew where I stood with this unit.
You could get a couple thousand bucks for it now or after some work and spending a few dollars getting it back in shape you could recoup your investment many times over.
Dad deserves the best you can do for him. Give it your best. Get your brother on board too.
Lynn

[89sandman]

A 97 RV that has sat outside its whole life with little or no care will have little to no value. Throw in mechanical issues and its worth even less. I would put it on craigslist and dump it for whatever I could get for it. It will end up being one thing after another if you try to fix it and you will probably end up spending more to fix it than you end up selling it for.

[NC25T]

I am located in Dayton Ohio

Yes the RV is VERY faded.... I am sure it could clean up a little but not much. All windows are also showing their age, the foam inside the windows that crank out and the seals are falling apart plus all the other stuff I mentioned.

The water entered from the seam between the front cap & the roof. I estimate it's leaked for probably 12-15 years?? The cabnets up front are buckled, some covered in mold, some just rotted. The padding that surrounds the front TV is also shot.... as well as water damage on the dash.... it's curled up/warped.

My dad is 75 & his health wouldn't let him operate the RV, been that way for many years actually which is sad due to our profession. Mostly just to much weight making it verd difficult for him to do anything, he wouldn'tbe able to drive it let alone hook it up to power, water etc.

[Sweetbriar]

An RV with extensive water damage is in the same category as rust for a car. It might be a high end European sedan but if the body is rusted out and the interior shot the value drops to going scrape metal rate. Donation isn't an option based on the condition described. It needs to be functional, both road and living, so they can auction it off which it isn't. After sitting an extended period, even if it starts the brakes might be frozen in place along with the tire rot. Just these two items are going to run $2000 plus to correct along with getting the engine reliable.

List it on Craig's List and describe the condition as you did here and see if someone is willing to take it off your hands without costing you anything. Other option is part it out but once that option is done you'll still need to get it to a recycler which could cost another few hundred for a heavy wrecker to tow.

[barmcd]

Originally Posted by LETMGROW

There are services out there also which may be able to help with mold and mildew abatement. "Servicemaster" comes to mind but there are others too. Maybe having an assessment of what it would take and cost to freshen the MH up would make a decision on what to do easier.
The outside would require some elbow grease to bring back to life but you might be surprised how well it would respond to a real scrubbing and some wax applied.
If it was my Dad's I would do everything I could to get the MH back to a serviceable condition and make it valuable again. I wouldn't accept any low ball offers until I really knew where I stood with this unit.
You could get a couple thousand bucks for it now or after some work and spending a few dollars getting it back in shape you could recoup your investment many times over.
Dad deserves the best you can do for him. Give it your best. Get your brother on board too.
Lynn

Mold remediation is a arduous process to go through. We had a water leak in a new house which was repaired under warranty. The builder had a mold test conducted and the house tested positive for mold so they had a mold remediation company do the cleaning. First they darn near hermetically sealed the part of the house that suffered the damage. Then they pretty much removed anything that remotely looked like it had mold on it--carpet, woodwork, drywall, and framing lumber. Before they'd take the refuse through the rest of the house they bagged it and sealed it. Once all the moldy material was removed they ran a dehumidifier 24/7 for about three weeks and then cleaned the duct work, heater and AC system. Finally, after they retested the house and it passed they began the rebuilding process. I can't see doing that for an old RV.

[LETMGROW]

Originally Posted by barmcd

Mold remediation is a arduous process to go through. We had a water leak in a new house which was repaired under warranty. The builder had a mold test conducted and the house tested positive for mold so they had a mold remediation company do the cleaning. First they darn near hermetically sealed the part of the house that suffered the damage. Then they pretty much removed anything that remotely looked like it had mold on it--carpet, woodwork, drywall, and framing lumber. Before they'd take the refuse through the rest of the house they bagged it and sealed it. Once all the moldy material was removed they ran a dehumidifier 24/7 for about three weeks and then cleaned the duct work, heater and AC system. Finally, after they retested the house and it passed they began the rebuilding process. I can't see doing that for an old RV.

I know what you are saying. I have not seen this MH so I really have no knowledge of how extensive the mold damage is. From what I have read on today's post by the OP it may be too far gone. This was not explained in detail in the original description unless I missed something somewhere.
Lynn

[Cat320]

If the price is right, read low enough, somebody will buy it.