Stripping the interior was the 2nd of eight projects to renovate my Four Wheel Pop-Up Camper.
The stripping project went like this:
I dismantled the seat compartments, ripped the paneling off the walls, and pulled the carpeting out.
I dismantled all the cabinets, the sectioning, and everything else because there was nothing I wanted to save.
I pulled all of the old wiring (I knew I would have a different, updated system) and the refrigerator, furnace, and the propane plumbing (as it was kinked and looked dangerous).
I pulled and swept out so much dirt it was incomprehensible. Then I vacuumed it and spent an entire day pulling staples out of the plywood and aluminum struts up the side. In the end it was a bare open space of plywood and aluminum.
I cut and installed rigid foam insulation into the aluminum wall between the struts. I tried to find the best R value insulation that would fit in the 1" space between the aluminum shell and the new paneling that would attach to the struts.
Then I lightly sanded the plywood and painted it with gray Gripper primer.
I also repaired plywood joints at the bottom that were starting to separate. I used steel angles and Marine Rx putty. The floor pack had obviously been replaced and rebuilt at some point in its history. Not too bad of a job, but I would have used marine plywood and reinforced the plywood joints with something more than a stapled connection on unpainted plywood. But whoever it was, he probably did a better job of cutting it and putting it together than I would have done.
The lack of painted plywood means it was a previously-rebuilt floor pack.
It felt so good to rip out the carpeting (and remove the accompanying sand).
Even better to get it completely out.
Luckily, I took pictures as I took things apart. This was a lifesaver months later when I had to put things back together. I would have failed if I hadn't taken many photos like this to examine in minute detail later.
These aluminum struts helped the camper to last 38 years, and then to be reborn again.
This picture is actually full of important details to be used later in rebuilding.
This one too.
The camper had only two small sections of wood rot that were repaired somewhat easily.
I cut rigid foam insulation with flashing on each side to fit into the wall.
The 1" thick foam worked perfectly.
The front of the camper already had some rigid foam that I re-used. I applied 2 coats of Gripper paint to the clean, sanded plywood.
Painting my way out the camper door.
Used steel angles to tighten the floor pack.
I didn't want to overdo it with too many angles so I could keep the flex in the camper originally designed by the engineers. My whole approach to renovating the camper was to respect the original engineering, so I'd make as few modifications as possible.
I used a little Marine Rx in the floor pack joints, and later on the roof in a few spots.
Marine Rx white compound in the joints.