Step 10: Stain/Paint the interior

[mikeschn]

Step 10: Stain/Paint the interior

In the past I have painted or stained the interior after the headliner was already in position. In retrospect I realize that it would have been so much easier to do the finishing work prior to installing the headliner.

You might want to make the headliner panel, as per the directions in step 11, and finish the headliner at the same time that you finish the interior.

Finishing the interior is mostly a matter of personal taste. Some folks like to finish it with a dark stain and a high gloss polyurethane. Others prefer the light look and just brush the polyurethane directly onto the wood.

One could also paint the interior, hiding a cheap looking woodgrain, or in the case of my first teardrop, hiding a huge mistake. More about that later. Others use moisture resistant paneling, forgoing the need to paint at all.

Here’s some things to think about as you choose your interior finish.
1) A teardrop is small already, a dark finish will make it feel even smaller.
2) Finishing all sides in paint or polyurethane will tend to make your voice echo. The bedding and curtains dampens that echo quite a bit. But you might want to consider something soft and textured for either the walls or ceiling. How about a white carpet on the ceiling?
3) Water based stains go on blotchy. Remember that BIG mistake I made? I tried water based stain on my interior, without testing it first. I assumed it would go on just as nice as oil based stain. It doesn’t. It’s blotchy. Really really blotchy. At that point I was ready to drag my teardrop to the curb for trash pickup! The next day I regained my senses, and painted the walls purple and the ceiling white. And I never thought about that mistake again. But the lesson here is test on a piece of scrap wood first. And if you want to keep it easy on yourself, use the oil based stains.
4) I’ve used oil based polyurethane as long as I can remember, so I was hesitant to try the new water based polyurethane. I was finally convinced to try it because of the short drying times. Now I use water based polyurethane for everything. It goes on with a foam brush and dries in about 15 minutes. I’m usually applying the next coat of poly within the hour. Depending on what I’m doing, I’ll usually apply 3 to 5 coats of poly. Once the poly has cured, it’s very hard and very durable. And poly can be sanded between the 3, 4 and 5th coats for a nice smooth finish. Use a fine sandpaper though, don’t use steelwool, as that will put rust in your finish.
5) If you don’t like painting, staining etc, you can always get a moisture resistant paneling for the walls or ceiling. Just glue into place instead of a plywood headliner or inside wall skins. I have never tried wallpaper, but I imagine that if you used a moisture resistant adhesive and a moisture resistant wallpaper, it should work. I’d be more inclined to get preprinted paneling.

After you have finished your interior and allowed the paint or polyurethane to cure then proceed to the next step.

[dacrazyrn]

Step 11