Mods to RVs

[Dunner]

Another convenience feature of a National; My arm rests just slide out.

[ctpres]

First - where to put it. Quite a few options but concentrated on space above frig and microwave. Finally decided over MW as any frig conversion in future may need that space. Turned out to be good decision. With MW out found the two trim boards above were screwed in! Five minutes later and hole ready - maybe a little trimming on side. Decided to use four inch PVC pipe for bottle holders and slightly smaller holes in wood front. This solved problem of hiding wood to pipe transition and provided a ledge to help keep bottles in place.
For proper wine storage I looked into installing pipes at a down angle but could not find any technical reason to do so. Biggest point is to keep corks wet. Did learn that vibration can effect wine in good and bad ways. So maybe it’s not a good idea to store wine in RV for long term. Just an excuse for me to have another glass!
Probably the biggest problem for me was deciding on bottle spacing. How may bottles and space between holes. Finally decided on five bottles with equal spacing between bottles and at ends. I used a compass to lay out full size circles on paper and once happy, drilled holes in scrap wood to be sure.
Two boards with 4¼ inch holes to support PVC pipes on each end and one oak board with 3½ inch holes for front. I would recommend plywood for pipe support boards. By the time you drill five 4¼ inch holes in a 1x6 there won’t be much wood left . I managed to break one and had to glue it back together. Finished front board holes may need to be larger if you drink champagne or anything in the larger bottles. Glued one pipe board to front board and covered one side of the other with scrap to act as a bottle stop.
Decide if you want end of bottles flush with front or sticking out. I opted to have necks visible and cut pipes to 8 inches.
Yes pipe is green, since I could not find any black ABS pipe locally, it was the was cheapest. I painted inside black, so color didn’t matter. If paint does not hold up I will look for the black pipe during our travels.
Next project - sliding trays in basement. Cost per tray, UNDER $100.

[Tyler6357]

Nice job on the wine rack, that's pretty flashy!

[Razzman]

So here's my latest project, taking the free-standing quartz infrared fireplace and installing it in an existing cabinet. Sorry for the blurry pics, done with phone camera. So I decided to install it in the hutch cabinet, I removed the cab doors, shelf and supports. Then removed the carpet down to the floor in the cab floor and built and screwed platform to the floor.

[Razzman]

I only had an outlet underneath the upper cab so i had to get the electrical down to the bottom. Could get the romex to run inside the wall or remove the mirror as they'd user a mastik. Ended up having to remove bathroom trim and pull back the wall to get the wire run. I then cutout the inner cab wall for the new outlet and installed it. What a pain!

I cutout a 9x9 hole in bath wall for the 10x10 vent. I cutout the hole along the stud and added a 2x4 piece along the other stud for the vent to screw to. Painted the vent a complimentary color and installed. Installed some vertical supports for the fireplace to screw to and slid the fireplace in place and plugged it in.

[Razzman]

I went down to Home Depot and picked up some red oak to build a surround for it. The cabinets are a cherry finish but any cherry at HD didn't match. I finally found a MinWax Polyshades Satin Pecan that matched my sample real close so I got that. After cutting the pieces and the pocket holes I couldn't get it screwed together as i didn't have big enough clamps so i gave to a buddy with a cabinet shop. He glued and screwed it together, ran it through a plainer and routed the edge. Took it home and applied the finish. Haven't figured out how to attach it yet though and I want to add a carved wood onlay to the top so there it sits for now. Sorry for being so long winded!

[Dogpatch]

Originally Posted by Razzman

I went down to Home Depot and picked up some red oak to build a surround for it. The cabinets are a cherry finish but any cherry at HD didn't match. I finally found a MinWax Polyshades Satin Pecan that matched my sample real close so I got that. After cutting the pieces and the pocket holes I couldn't get it screwed together as i didn't have big enough clamps so i gave to a buddy with a cabinet shop. He glued and screwed it together, ran it through a plainer and routed the edge. Took it home and applied the finish. Haven't figured out how to attach it yet though and I want to add a carved wood onlay to the top so there it sits for now. Sorry for being so long winded!

Nice job Rick!

You could use a pin nailer and some glue. If you put the few pin nails in the right place, you can get a matching wax crayon from HD to fill the nail holes. A few nails will hold the face till the glue sets.

[ctpres]

Razzman - Great job. Let us know how bathroom return air vent works out. Don't think I would glue or otherwise secure trim in any way that would prevent service on FP. DW was not real excited about my plan to add FP - but now wants it on even if heat not needed.

[Dogpatch]

Originally Posted by ctpres

Razzman - Don't think I would glue or otherwise secure trim in any way that would prevent service on FP.

The fireplace is electric and is an enclosed unit. There should be no need for service as none required.

If worried, or as a second means of attachment, you could use some strong magnetic catches, although if the face frame is at all suspended, it would likely slide down with travel movement. If it rests on the floor at base, should not be an issue.

Personally, as a carpenter, I'd opt for the more solid mount given the enclosed system. IMHO.

[Razzman]

Originally Posted by ctpres

Razzman - Great job. Let us know how bathroom return air vent works out. Don't think I would glue or otherwise secure trim in any way that would prevent service on FP. DW was not real excited about my plan to add FP - but now wants it on even if heat not needed.

ctpres, so far the bathroom vent is working well. BUT I do think it's presenting a little problem for the thermostat. The sensor sits in a top vent and with the full surround on front it's only polling the colder air coming from the bathroom vent and not the air in the living area. I'm going to monitor but i'm guessing i'll have to move the sensor to the front somewhere.

I'm thinking of using 1/2"x1/2"x1/4" NdFeB, Grade N42 mounting magnets. With one at each corner and almost 10 lbs pull force they should hold it in place no problem at all. As the fireplace front protrudes through the wood surround with only 1/8" gap all around there's no sliding issues either. A little felt all around the fireplace edge solves that problem. This way i can remove it anytime i want without any visible hardware showing.

[emoney]

The fireplace looks great! You could always go the "push-in" secure route. Pretty much like a lot of "doghouse lids" are held in place. It would require maybe added 4 blocks inside on the framing and then probably gluing the "push-in" parts onto the trim itself. That way there'd be no permanence, nor could anyone figure out how it was attached. Just a thought.

[ctpres]

How about securing with some drop down hooks. Think picture hanging - hook on wall and slot on back of frame. Keyhole slots on frame?
Re need for service - stuff breaks. Most elec. FP's have lights, motors and heating elements.
Re thermostat. Pick one: front vent picks up warmed air directly from heater vent above and shuts off early or rear vent picks up much colder air from another room and shuts down late. Guess we need to look into two vents, with dampers. Also with wiring mods to FP could add battery powered wall thermostat.
Think I will leave ous as is and move on down the the road.
In any case yours looks great and you will enjoy it.

[MandG-Fun]

Those narrow kitchen drawers are so narrow and deep it is hard to use them efficiently. I turned this into a quick mini project that served several purposes, including an easy way to bring our utensils outside for meals.

I made the bottom holder for knives and large spoons and then glued in rails that sit at the same height but in the back section of the drawer. This allows the top holder for forks and small spoons to just slide back for access and keeps the lower holder from sliding back.

Now the drawer makes a little more sense.

[Pricejh]

Love the look of the fireplace. Mounting solution: combination of magnets and Velcro. Should keep it in place for a long time.