Project Fleury

[yugogypsy]

Hi Gang,

I hope that some of you remember my friend Rob's Fleury from Rudy's thread about Older Motor Homes.

I'm now storing it for Rob and we spent Weds. through today working on it, checking all the propane stuff and we had to do a little plumbing because one of the copper water lines froze and split. Then we had to do a wire chase because the RAT that has been living in it had chewed through the power to the flush switch for the toilet and two front interior lights.

We vacuumed and we scrubbed and we flushed the black water tank because it was empty and there was still an awful smell in the bathroom.

Rob took the toilet apart and cleaned all the parts with a brush and the hose and it smells decent in there now.

We replaced 1 interior light so far, fixed a cupboard door and the drawer slides, we got a new folding leg for the table as the original was broken.

We fixed the curtain rod in the front with a rod from my big travel trailer-now just to find some decent curtains!

We got a lens for the light outside the door and replaced a lot of bulbs in the original light fixtures inside. We took out everything that the rat could possibly chew and left a rat trap wired to the furnace cover.

All the stuff we have done so far has been interior because Rob has to chase the papers for it, somehow the registration disappeared at the last place he stored it.

We are going to give it a bath and it needs a motor mount, a new gas tank and a cap for the black water tank.

It also needs 4 sheets of 2 inch styrofoam insulation and 4 sheets of ceiling panelling.

Then it will be done inside and we'll start replacing clearance lights etc when Rob finally untangles the paper tangle.

Oh and we've got to find some indoor/outdoor carpet for it as the carpet is pretty much worn out.

But the Fleury lives on and it didn't cost much to do all we did, the most expensive thing we bought was the table leg.

In 4 days we made a significant dent in getting it fixed and road ready again, now just to go to Motor Vehicles and get the forms and pay $7 to have the papers found.

Cheers Lois

PS: I've been taking pictures as we've been working so I'll have an album of the project.

[yugogypsy]

Still working on it, Flying Tortoise has updated pictures, and today we are cleaning again and Rob is removing the remains of the air conditioning unit. It sure looks better and SMELLS better after all we did, it even has NICE curtains and cushions out of an Aspen motor home.

As soon as Rob gets the registration traced and does a few mechanical things to it he'll be able to use it.

HURRAY
Lois

[yugogypsy]

Today was a fix a bunch of little things day again, Rob cleaned out the furnace vents and pulled out some of the old damaged ceiling panels. Then he crawled underneath and took off all the remains of the air conditioning, I was watching from up top and spotted the cord for the block heater and we got that pulled through the grill and fastened down so it doesn't get broken.

My friend Carolyn sews, so she came over and did the measuring for making up the 3 small curtains from the big curtain, and took 2 of the cushion covers to fix into one, there's a cigarette burn in one but it has a good zipper and we had one with a bad zipper so 2 covers get made into one good one.

Tomorrow is put a new bottom board in a kitchen cupboard and vacuum some more because we disturbed more dust when Rob pulled the ceiling bits down.

We also moved one piece of insulation, so now we don't have to buy as much insulation, and Mercy Mercedes takes the same insulation so her old insulation is going into the motorhome and I'll get her new insulation before winter.

I advertised on Freecycle for parts and got an email about tires, which it needs badly, no free tires unfortunately but leads to find tires, which is fine too. It takes a 16.5, I've never seen that size before.

I called our local GM dealership and they are going to look for any possible info for me, we really need a manual but no luck so far, I even called the dealership it came from in Saskatchewan and other than being surprised that something they sold when Noah built the ark was getting renovated they just said the same as the dealer here, "we'll get back to you if we find anything"

Local car show is coming up and we'll go and talk to the big truck guys and see where they are finding parts. The dealer who services our transit buses might have parts too.

This is a different project for me. I'll be glad to get back to fixing the hatch seal and the rolling furler needs grease on Anastar.

My van STILL needs a bath, I've got so many projects I've just kept forgetting to do it.

I like being busy though

Take Care All
Lois

[yugogypsy]

A search through Pit Stop revealed a bucket of light fixtures so now all the interior lights work, we found some better insulation slightly cheaper and we found the paneling for the ceiling.

Rob has started on the exterior electrical and some bulbs aren't getting power so he'll have to take the front panel down to find where the bad grounds are, because that's what it seems to be, I sort of expected it after it sat so long.

Today we both took it easy, Rob stayed home and I puttered in the garden and relaxed.

We'll probably start again Monday, do the last few fiddly interior things and then Rob will get back to the mechanical and electrical.

It's been a quick project up to this point, now we can slow down and pay serious attention to the mechanical repairs.

Last thing for that segment will be tires. Then when the papers come through it will be ready to roll.

Lois

[yugogypsy]

Well, except for the more expensive things, like the insulation and ceiling panels + carpet, it's pretty much done.

Curtains are still with my friend who sews because she got swamped with stuff to do and we aren't in a hurry.

I found 2 different "awnings" for it, we just have to adjust them and see which one fits better.

The gas tank is drained and waiting for patching with Seal-All (can't get a new or used tank for it ANYWHERE

The carpet got scrubbed and that was where the last of the stale smell was hiding, it smells great in there now.

Almost everything works except the taps in the bathroom and they are a special set with a valve for the hand held shower. Might be expensive to replace those.

I get my first guest for it next weekend. Was supposed to have company last night but they didn't show--would rather freeze their butts off in a tent, oh well, their loss.

Take Care all
Lois

[yugogypsy]

Well we don't have a fridge for it yet, but when I had company this weekend we used my 12v cooler and that worked well. My company loved the motorhome and said it was better than the room she rents in Vancouver, she's in a rooming house so no private bath or kitchen.

Rob is really pleased with our progress, he's been doing things like fixing the leak in the gas tank, chasing more oddball wires and usually finding they end at the back, like they were wires for speakers or something else a previous owner had in it.

My pal Roly likes it too, if the Kootenays get too cold for sleeping in his car, I think I know where he'll be spending the winter

So the work continues, Rob wants to do the insulation next, that will be easy as it's 2 inch styrofoam "boards" that we just put in and put some vapor barrier over.

The motorhome will be done just in time for me to start on Roly's boat, poor old girl, her keel is in trouble (iron and it's rusting) Hoping to haul her here and work on her--more in boat section

Cheers
Lois

[rlaggren]

Darn Lois

Getting bored now Fleury's done? Getting on the next project already?

Well, be a little careful with the keel on that boat. Don't know exactly what you figure to do, but: It can turn into Big Work, REALLY BIG work. Like you don't want to start it w/out having a totally clear idea how you're going to end it. People who have worked on boats all their lives have spent _weeks_ trying to get keel bolts off and then thousands of dollars putting that keel back on. And then again sometimes it just goes along meekly like a little lamb. But best to have the exit strategy in place before you start.

Cheers, Rufus

[yugogypsy]

Rufus, it's a matter of mending the keel with some kind of epoxy after preparing the surface, then undercoat and then anti-fouling paint. I don't THINK the keel will have to come off.

Lois

[yugogypsy]

We got the insulation today and put 5 sheets of the PROPER ceiling panels that we managed to find on hold at our one independent lumberyard here

So we are both happy campers today.

We brought the insulation home in my van, it would have blown to bits if we tried tying it on top of the Jeep as it's that rigid Styrofoam, 1 1/2 inches thick, 24 inches wide and 8 feet long.
In the van it's a challenge, you have to remove whatever is sitting between the seats and push long stuff like that right up to the dash.

We'll either have to get Rob's roommate to go get the panels with his truck, or get roof racks for the van, I don't have 4 feet of clearance inside the van for the panels

We looked at roll ends of carpet the right size and the prices were outrageous so carpet will have to wait.

Rick found a little piece of indoor/outdoor carpet the right size for a door mat and we made a low step out of a pallet and a piece of plywood, so it's not such a long step up into the Fleury now.

Everything else is working now too. Rob fixed the taps and the valve for the hand held shower. I even found him a portable barbecue to go with the motor home when he gets the papers and wants to take his twin girls camping.

Now just to fix the leak in the roof before we insulate and then panel the ceiling.

We'll be smiling when that and the last back panel goes on (Vinyl covered) Then it's just little things like putting new bits of leftover panelling in the bottom of one food cupboard and getting the curtains and cushions back from a friend of mine who is altering them a bit.

The first 9 days of working on it were exhausting, but now the end is in sight--at least for the interior, still some lights and a vent to fix, another coat of Seal-All on the gas tank and it should be ready to go.

Cheers
Lois

[yugogypsy]

Hurray, all but two of the sheets of insulation are in and we'll work on the rest later this week. It will be interesting to see how much warmer it is in there this winter with the new insulation, panelling and ALL the curtains to keep the warmth in.

Rob has a pot roast cooking in the crock-pot for our supper and is already talking about the next stage of the insulating, the most complicated, involving lowering one kitchen cupboard and getting the insulation in place and then working over the bathroom.

We've got to get the vents fixed soon, before it gets much colder or the goop we have to seal them with won't set and any kind of paint won't dry.

Not much more to do now, just a lot of fiddly little things after the ceiling goes in.

Cheers
Lois

[yugogypsy]

Now we're treating it like home--Rob cooked a pot roast in the crock-pot last night and we ate that for supper and had the leftovers for lunch today.

Because supper was VERY late last night (almost midnight!) Rob stayed over and he says the new mattress cushions are comfortable and the insulation is working TOO well--it was 78 degrees Fahrenheit in there while we were eating lunch and thats with 2 windows and 1 vent open--hope the company I'm getting tomorrow doesn't roast.

So now the dear Fleury is a functioning mini-home again and you folks missed a great pot roast.

Cheers
Lois

[yugogypsy]

All the insulation is in now, ceiling panels next and then take out the vents and seal them properly before it rains!

Rob got carried away with insulating and forgot the vents!

Now he's planning what he'll add to it when he gets working again and can use it.

Sure will surprise his ex, it was a mess the last time she saw it, now it looks great, and smells great.

She detests me so she'd be mad that I helped, but it's a fair trade for me, I help him fix it and I get to use it here for any company I get--good old barter system with some money thrown in.

Most of what we got was second hand, so not much money was spent, maybe $500 for all we've fixed since July, that's not much when you divide it up by the time we've spent on it.

And we got some free stuff too, like the lights I had, the curtain rod I had, and the portable barbecue, which is a nice bonus for our hard work.

No need to check the antifreeze, that's good, so it will be fine for winter now that it will be so much warmer.

Cheers Lois

[rlaggren]

That's great news Lois. Good on you guys for keeping up keeping up. Now you got something useable to make life a little better. Sounds like you've got some "test drivers" lined up too. <g>

Rufus

[yugogypsy]

oops, there's a new leak in the roof, have to take down 2 pieces of insulation and somehow seal the holes. Rob nearly got hit by a gush of water that had pooled behind the insulation . Will have to dry insulation thoroughly so we don't get mold.

My van is leaking around the sunroof like it does every winter, one day I'll fix it

Cheers
Lois

[rlaggren]

Golly, Lois. It sounds like you're getting no joy on that boat. Might want to just stand back until the guy(s) responsible step up and assume their duties... or it just sinks (and, notably, not on your nickle). Some things are just not meant and the boat may be one of them; the karma just doesn't sound like it's going the right direction there...

Maybe, by chance, there's other stuff to do... A little bit of this or that if you look really hard? <g>


Cheers

Rufus