Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Hello guys I need your help.

Got a nice deal on a teardrop (manufactured one - you all know the company) but found out too late that one of the sidewalls is rotten. I called the company, and they were less than helpful.

So I need to replace the wall. It looks like 1/2" plywood with a filon coat. I am hoping I can peel off the filon and reuse, but am very limited in my resources and really need to plan my repair before opening everything up to the elements.

Can anyone give me a heads up on how these things were put together. How they were connected to the floor...how the ceiling connects. How I can tear it apart.

And before you offer, PV is not much help.

Philly:

If your tear drop is the same name brand as mine, here's what I found when I drilled the 2.75" hole in the side. Carpet on the inside, glued to 3/4" birch plywood, glued to 1/8" plywood, which is glued to the "alumilite" (sp?) or filon, or fiberglass...whatever it is. While the carpet came off very easily, I'm at a loss as to how you would separate the two different layers of plywood.

Look at the picture--it's not the best for your question, but it's all I have tonight. I can take a picture of the circle that came out in the hole saw tomorrow night if you want.

If you go to your galley, can you remove the screws to the inside of the rear wall below the galley surface? I did, but I don't remember if I could see how the wall was assembled.

That's all I can think of that I've discovered....hope it helps a bit.

Hi, I am in the same boat with you on the water damage. I paid a high price for this Teardrop and the rot and water damage is everywhere. I have successfully taken off the back Filon and cleaned the wet cardboard off the Filon. Now I am using a putty knife to take the Filon off the sides. Getting a veneer layer of the 1/8" plywood but I will deal with this later. So far so good. I think I will end up with good sidewall templates for the 4k price I paid and be able to reuse the Filon as long as I remain patient.

I was looking to travel around with my wife in this teardrop but have to repair it first. Anger has subsided and the rebuilding game is afoot. I will put up some pictures later today of the starting look and the tear down process.

Good luck on your rebuild. Keep us posted on your progress.

Here is wha I got from Crane. Manufacturers of Filon

Max,
 
We would recommend to NOT reuse the Filon from the old wall for the following reasons,
 
1)      Dyne level is not guaranteed to ensure an adequate bond
2)      Residual lauan and adhesive on the b-side surface of the Filon will compromise the bond to the new substrate
 
Lauan was likely used because the Filon was bonded to the lauan first to create a “skin”, this skin was then bonded to the plywood.
Lauan is desirable  over plywood because of its smooth and consistent surface. This surface aides in uniform glue coverage and contact between the substrate and the Filon
(Substrate: Material to which Filon is bonded, in this case Lauan)
 
 
Contact adhesive can be used for bonding Filon to a substrate, ensure you have uniform coverage of the adhesive following adhesive supplier application instructions.
 
I have attached a list of our distributors that can sell you new product.  Thanks for your patience and good luck with your project.

Jake
 
 
Jake Carr | Lead Generation Coordinator | [email protected]

Thanks for the update and the information from Crane. I will contact Jake to see if there is a dealer for Filon near Minnesota where I currently am. The problem for me is the cost of shipping is more than the cost of the Filon so the price is doubled at the very least. New Filon would be great and make my teardrop new again with all new materials.

I did get the Filon peeled off and in whole sheets. I do have a layer of Luan veneer and I am thinking of sanding this off and cleaning or sanding off the contact cement as well. I do understand the possibility of a poor bond when reusing the Filon but adding $500 to $800 to the cost of my teardrop, advertised as new, never slept in, is appalling to me. maybe there is another alternative.

Yeah Having the filon shipped is an issue for me too. I am in the process now of checking aorund different RV repair places to see if they have it. I know RVsurplus will sell it at about $22 per linear foot on 102" wide rolls but I havent costed out shipping yet