1978 28' Southwind Project

[Crazedmomo]

Hi all! My husband and I recently purchased a 1978 Southwind for $900. We knew we were getting into a bit of a project but the engine is strong and its large enough for our 6 person family so we decided we were game. Upon closer inspection ( starting to tear the ceiling inside down), we found that it has water damage down both sides, behind all the cabinets and throughout the ceiling around the vents and what not...yikes! On the plus side it has the beautiful orange shag carpeting which appears to be completrly dry .

We have decided we need to take the skin off and attack it from the outside, basically we need to rebuild the entire thing. It does have a metal frame under all the rotten wood so I think it will be fairly easy.

I dont know exactly what our budget will be for this but I need to have it done by November.

So, my first question is if the rubber roof looks ok is it possible to reuse it? Has anyone ever replaced their rubber roof with an aluminum roof?

Thanks all! I will post some pics as soon as I can!

[sam-3]

We rebuilt our 1990 25ft. HiLo Classic. We had to tear out our walls from the inside. It consisted of three layers. First the 1-8th vinyl coated wall board/paneling . Then 1/8th luan and then sheets of foam insulation. It is extremely important to coat the inside of the fiberglass with 3M bondo . It can be purchased at Auto Zone or most auto parts store. This will dry to a clear hard finish and will seal up any pinholes(water leaks) you can't see. Follow all the directions on the can. A good caulk to use is Lexel caulk that can be purchased at ACE hardware or online. I would never reuse a rubber roof that you have taken off. It probably would break up when you scraped it off. It is possible for you to change to a metal roof. Metal roofs are noisy when it rains. It can be hard to carry on a conversation. It is extremely important to remove and reseal all windows. Use butyl tape and Lexel caulk. It is a lot of work and time to rebuild a trailer/motor home. I'll see if I can find the link to our photo bucket story with word descriptions.

[Crazedmomo]

Originally Posted by sam-3

We rebuilt our 1990 25ft. HiLo Classic. We had to tear out our walls from the inside. It consisted of three layers. First the 1-8th vinyl coated wall board/paneling . Then 1/8th luan and then sheets of foam insulation. It is extremely important to coat the inside of the fiberglass with 3M bondo . It can be purchased at Auto Zone or most auto parts store. This will dry to a clear hard finish and will seal up any pinholes(water leaks) you can't see. Follow all the directions on the can. A good caulk to use is Lexel caulk that can be purchased at ACE hardware or online. I would never reuse a rubber roof that you have taken off. It probably would break up when you scraped it off. It is possible for you to change to a metal roof. Metal roofs are noisy when it rains. It can be hard to carry on a conversation. It is extremely important to remove and reseal all windows. Use butyl tape and Lexel caulk. It is a lot of work and time to rebuild a trailer/motor home. I'll see if I can find the link to our photo bucket story with word descriptions.

Thanks Sam, would love to see your link. How did you get around the cabinets...ours appear to be attached from the outside in. I would like to not have to take off the skin...ours is aluminum I believe. Seems like way more work than just ripping everything out from the inside.

[Crazedmomo]

Here is our beast in its current condition:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/125611258@N04/

[wblynch]

Resist the urge to pull it all apart.

Just do one section at a time. Inside and outside.

If you pull too much apart it will lose its shape and you won't get it back together again.


Go to YouTube and look for the videos, "restoring the 1957 Shasta". You will learn everything you need to know.

Good luck! It will come out great.

[ahicks]

I can tell you that when that motor home left the factory it had an aluminum roof on it. What you have on it now might be a different story, but I doubt that the rubber roof process that's so common today had even been thought of in '78?