Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill
It won't be a fun project, but I bet you could cut new frame members out of wood or (better) aluminum U-channel and/or square tube, and put them in place as you remove the old rotted members.
I'll be brave and suggest that if you decide to go with wood, you might even consider pressure-treated wood, so it doesn't happen again. After cutting each piece, you might want to seal all surfaces to confine the preservative.
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I would be very careful about using pressure treated wood in the shells. In my experience, newly-purchased pressure treated wood has a TON of moisture (which why it weighs so much), presumably at least part of which is the preservatives used in the treatment process. The problem is that as the wood dries out naturally, it can crack, warp, split, and do all kinds of crazy acrobatics. On a fence or deck, this isn't that big a deal, and even if it is, it usually is fairly easy to replace because everything is exposed. On the inside of a TM, it would be a dog to access if you needed to, and if you let it in there, it could deform the shell, break seals, etc. as it continued to dry out.
There are lots of other alternatives though, as Bill suggested. Aluminum framing is probably the best solution, but absent that, you could maybe use naturally rot resistant wood like cedar or redwood, or perhaps better than that would be to use pine treated with a penetrating epoxy (probably 2 coats). I've used "Clear Penetrating Epoxy System" (CPES;
rotdoctor.com) on boats before with great success, at the suggestion of a friend of mine who used it on work he'd do on 6 and 7-figure $$$ yachts. It is very easy to use -- easier than painting.
Dave