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Old 01-29-2013, 11:29 AM   #1
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1991 E250 needing a few small changes

I bought my new to me Sportsmobile and drove it home. The inside is a little rough. I'm looking to make it nice but I don't want to go crazy spending money here.

1) It has carpet. I'd like to pull it and replace it with marine vinyl or something else that isn't carpet. (I have dogs who are going to ride around in it). Anyone have any suggestions for flooring materials other then the vinyl? Any thoughts on what this is going to cost (I'm not sure I'm up to removing the cabinets and dealing with the flooring myself).

2) Some of the wood paper is peeling. And one section of the back cabinet looks like it's got some damage from the back door leaking. It looks like it's mostly peeling, no real structural damage. Can I dry it out really well and put up new "wood" paper or is there a better way to handle this?

3) Is there anywhere I can find a 2nd hand 2 way fridge? Or any place (other then Craigslist) to get used appliances?

Thanks all!

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Old 01-29-2013, 01:31 PM   #2
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Re: 1991 E250 needing a few small changes

1. Are you handy? a DIY'er? Consider pergo or other laminate flooring. Pretty easy to go in, pretty durable, and pretty cheap. Then you can throw in a rug that is easy to pull out and clean.
2. Sand / blend in any peeling edges on the cabinets and just paint them?
3. 2-way fridge - check out truckfridge.com

How does she drive?
congrats!
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Old 01-29-2013, 03:11 PM   #3
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Re: 1991 E250 needing a few small changes

1) Pergo may work. I think I'm just intimidated by the pulling out the cabinets/working around the pipes and such. If I were to hire someone to remove the cabinets/pull out the carpet/prep and then install Pergo any thoughts on hours/cost? There's three cabinets and the dinette if that matters.

2) Sand and paint? That's almost too easy! Wow am I overthinking this.

3) Love the TruckFridge! That may be the answer as it's a few hundred dollars cheaper then anything I've seen. And I'd be quite happy with a 2 way fridge.

The van is in pretty good shape otherwise. Couple of little rust spots and lose things that I have started work on. Driving is...a challenge. It's pretty loose (I was tired driving it from Portland to Seattle) and have to use 2 hands. I'm going to see about getting some help for it. Scheduled for new tires this weekend which should help.

Thanks for the reality check.
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Old 01-29-2013, 04:19 PM   #4
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Re: 1991 E250 needing a few small changes

I'd stay clear of the marine vinyl by itself. Mine scratched/ripped easy and it sucks to walk on. It is fine for throwing a carpet on though.
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Old 01-29-2013, 04:47 PM   #5
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Re: 1991 E250 needing a few small changes

Some of the adhesive backed vinyl squares they sell at Home Depot and Lowes are pretty easy to work with. It's pretty simple to cut them to odd shapes. In order to get those things to work you need to have the proper base layer for them to stick to. That's something you won't know about till you pull the carpet.

If you do use the vinyl squares you could always throw a sticky backed welcome mat on top to give you and your dogs some traction.
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Old 01-30-2013, 11:34 AM   #6
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Re: 1991 E250 needing a few small changes

Let's see some photos!

regarding the pergo, or other flooring for that matter, I don't know if I'd bother pulling the cabinets as long as the doors/drawers still open. Just butt it right up to the cabinet edge.
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Old 01-30-2013, 03:06 PM   #7
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Re: 1991 E250 needing a few small changes

I plan to take pictures on Saturday and will get them posted shortly. There's more right with it then wrong but now I'm catching myself thinking all day about little things I want to tweak.

Thanks guys for the advice. I'm going to stop at Home Depot on the way home to see what my flooring options are.

I think I found the source of the leak last night and patched it. I'll know when I get home. I'm really hoping it was the back door not having a good seal and not the roof leaking. The carpet was soaked when I got home last night. I cut out a square of it and found the wood under it rotted through. So now that is my #1 thing.
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Old 01-31-2013, 11:49 AM   #8
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Re: 1991 E250 needing a few small changes





So it looks like my leak is in the roof. Specifically in the back passenger corner near the back door. At first I thought that the leak was between the door seals. However, I found it strange that nothing near the top of the area was damp. The only area that appears damaged at all is the floor and the base of the cabinets.

The little strip of carpet between the cabinet and door was soaked and had some spores on it. There is water all across the back for the first half inch of the doorway. Then in that corner it is under an area that's about 18" square. And as you can see the base of the cabinet is pretty soaked also. The underflooring crumbles near the back and is pretty black. I don't see any damage to the van floor itself (so far). After pulling out the carpet I was a able to reach behind the paneling and feel the plastic shielding. It's damp back there. The paneling itself doesn't look damaged. So I'm thinking the leak is in the roof and it's running down the shielding/plastic sheet in the back and pooling on the carpet and rotting out the underflooring.

So now it's a matter of how I should fix it.

I noticed that the previous owner didn't use the rear latch to secure the roof down. Could this be the issue? (Really really hoping as it seems so easy). Or should I plan on getting some eternabond? Is this a matter of getting up there with some soapy water and looking for bubbles? I suspect the leak is where the roof sits on the van which is why I'm hoping it's about securing the back.

I will finish tearing out the carpet and underfloor when I get home tonight. I'm also thinking of just taking out that small cabinet. I'd lose two shelves and two drawers but it would open up that back area and allow me to haul some stuff around that would otherwise be awkward to pack. So carpet out, cabinet out, wipe it up, put in the heater to dry things out and spray the edges of the area with bleach to kill anything that may try to grow?

In happier news, I fixed two lights that had a lose wire and went and looked at my flooring options. Thinking that the allure laminate flooring that Home Depot sells may work well for this.
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Old 01-31-2013, 02:22 PM   #9
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Re: 1991 E250 needing a few small changes

What kind of a top is this? I'm asking because any roof leaks I've had in the past
caused water to come out of the light fixtures attached to the roof.


Type +roof +leaks in the search and you'll get tons of info on roof leaks but
much depends on what kind of top; most address a PH top.

The water can come in through the bolts and run up and down the roof. I don't know if
it could be the gutter, but a window, or anything bolted to the van (like an awning)
can be an issue.
The lower boot holding the PH to the van can leak as well as the third brake light
but I don't think a 91 has one.
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Old 01-31-2013, 02:25 PM   #10
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Re: 1991 E250 needing a few small changes

Thanks Dave. Did a search for all the roof leaks (and various other combinations) on these forums and it gave me some ideas on what to check for. It's a penthouse top. Checked the canvas and the "pop up" part of it and it all looked good. So trying to track down how it gets inside the wall and runs down. But I will check the windows/vent tonight. Didn't realize that it didn't have to be directly in line of the destination to be the source.
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