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Old 03-05-2017, 12:07 PM   #11
ShrimpBurrito
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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.
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.

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Old 03-05-2017, 01:54 PM   #12
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Good point about the moisture in pressure-treated wood, Dave. Thanks for making it, and Bronco, he is right. I was focused on the POISON aspect of the chemicals in PT.

I was not aware of Penetrating Epoxy. Gotta get familiar with that one.

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Old 07-18-2017, 01:58 PM   #13
Shane826
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Sorry to hear about your TrailManor...

I don't know if the bottom shell would support an upright camper. Keep in mind the upper shells are supported by the lift arms which are connected to the torsion bars which are connected to the frame, the lower box doesn't support any of that weight. The lower box is made of the same foam/aluminum sandwich as the upper shells. If you do attempt this you're probably gonna have to frame everything from the floor; don't try to stack onto the lower box walls. But I don't even know if the floor would support that kind of weight, either.

That said, several people have replaced the rotted wood in the shells. The info is out there. It's no small job but I don't think it would be any less work to build an upright camper on the TM frame.

Did you insure the TrailManor? May be best to make a claim, they will probably total it due to wind damage. Take the money and run!
Old-ish thread, but I wanted to correct myself. I said the floor of the bottom box doesn't support the weight of the shells. I was wrong. The damage that I'm dealing with now has shown me that the torsion bars are just bolted to the wood frame of the bottom box, and the frame does not support the weight of that system at all.
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