DIY RV Camper Remodel Journey. 

When I purchased this 1984, 13' Scamp trailer, I was planning on a LIGHT DIY Remodel.

I had NO IDEA it would turn into an entire gut job, but I discovered moldy smells that made it hard to breathe!

The before picture...

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Below is the after picture.

I use scrubbable, bendable, UV material (like this) for the door and all the walls inside the camper! I'll give more details on the walls.

The moldly smell was coming from the carpeting, that was factory installed, all over the floor and walls.  Plus, a horrible moth ball smell, that was also factory installed under the bench, next to the water holder.  It all got ripped out and replaced.

Here's a look of the inside, before the remodel.  The AC unit was draining under the carpeting on the floor.

The wood table was warped, and the hardware did not work for the bed.

I created a new table (plywood with this thickness here), using the old table as my template, plus new hardware for the table to convert into a bed. (I purchased the table hardware on official Scamp website.)

The bed doubles as the kitchen table!  What a fun place to sit now! The cowhide throw pillow covers (like these) and cowhide koozies (Get them here) were the perfect accessory to the black and white theme.  

Removing the walls:

Replacing the carpeting on the walls was the hardest part of the entire remodel.  Halfway into replacing the walls, I discovered an Easier way, which I'll share in a bit...

To make a long story short, I began by pulling off all the carpeting on the floor and, to my surprise, the wall carpeting came off fairly easy. I did use this tool to help the process.  There was bubble wrap behind the carpeting, acting as insulation... and it stayed on! Bonus

Prepping the Walls:

I covered all the cabinet surfaces with paper and sprayed the walls with this to kill the moldy, toxic smell! 

 This view below, is the back of the trailer, where the bed and kitchen table go. The cabinetry is all covered in paper, ready for primer to be sprayed on the walls.  The pink color is the bubble wrap insulation on the walls.

This view is the front of the Scamp, where the bunk beds were.. can you believe this Scamp slept 4? haha.. This bunk bed area will get a Horse Trough Bathtub! 

 Prime Walls & Paint Cabinets:

After spray priming all the walls, I began working on the cabinetry. First, a light sanding with a fine sanding sponge, (I used this grit sanding sponge to prep the cabinetry) then this Primer. 

Final Coat:

Before the final coat, I sanded with this grit sanding sponge, just to knock off any imperfections.  I finished with Benjamin Moore High Gloss, white Advance Paint.  I used the High Gloss paint on the exterior of the camper too! Amazing results, because it's self-leveling. 

I used this tool for the Advance High Gloss paint, because it's water soluble.  Definitely one of my favorite tools for painting! Just keep the nozzle clean and it sprays like a champ!  Seriously, I've used this tool for painting the entire exterior of a house before! It's perfect for women because it's lightweight!  It doesn't spit paint like some of the expensive competitors! 

You will see, in the picture below, the pink walls turn to grey after using the grey colored primer.

Replacing the Walls:

Once all the cabinets were painted, I began the HUGE job of replacing the walls.  I used something similar to this material, because it had to be bendable, scrubbable and I wanted to brighten up the space inside.

I tried to replace huge sections, copying what I pulled down, and used this durable Clear Glue to glue it directly to the bubble wrap. I used lots & lots of glue...  and straight pins to keep it in place until it dried!  When the glue was dry, I had to use this tool to pull out the straight pins.

For the windows, I placed the material over the window and pinned it, then cut out the window area. These larger areas would have been so much easier if I'd used the method I used for the ceiling and bathtub area. More about that below...

Close up picture with tons of straight pins (these pins worked the best) to allow glue to dry.  

Now... for the ONE THING I WOULD DO DIFFERENTLY! 

Do this for the walls: 

I finally got smart and cut the material in long strips, about 12 inches wide.. OMGosh was this so much easier,, and it looked more updated,, like wood tile planks! Here's a picture of the ceiling! I glued on this to cover the seams.

Everything got covered in material! Even the insides of the cabinets! 

See how cutting the material in strips worked so much better for tight spaces?! I had to use painters' tape (instead of straight pins) for the door, until the glue dried.

Air Conditioner:

The picture above shows the closet area where the A/C goes.  This leaky air conditioner about killed me trying to figure out how to deal with the poorly designed original construction, because AC units leak and there was nowhere for the water to drain! 

So I had a metal shop make me a custom tray to go under the AC unit,, to catch the water drippings and ran it into a hose and out the trailer.. like it was supposed to.  The AC unit now sits on top of this.  The front hole is for the electrical cord. The back part is where the water will go and run into a hose.

Exterior Paint:

The picture below, I was prepping to paint the top of camper with my favorite painting tool.  I used this tape to cover the areas not needing paint. I lightly sanded with a very fine sand sponge, then primed with this paint to make the Advance High Gloss Paint adhere better.

 

The top of the Scamp looks beautiful with the high-gloss finish! You can really see the amazing shine.

The Kitchen:

Next, up,, the Camper Kitchen.. this is the before picture! Yes, that's factory installed carpeting on the backsplash! 

I took off the cabinet doors and filled the holes from the old pulls with this.  All the cabinets and doors got primed and painted with high gloss white paint.  I got new silver handles for the cabinets.  I spray painted the old hinges with this paint, which I've used on projects for cabinet pulls and it holds up great. I used something similar to this, for the kitchen backsplash, because walls move slightly on a small RV while traveling.

The Kitchen Bling:

The BLING on the kitchen... and it's all about adding the bling, ... this little accessory made the kitchen pop and one of my favorite part of the kitchen remodel!   I replaced the original black, double lined stickers, throughout the trailer with this Diamond Bling! 

The Bed:

In the picture below, I began playing with the bed cushions to see if they would fit in the bed.  My color scheme would have red and white, since the Scamp trailer exterior is red & white.

I already had the black & white zebra, black-out curtains, and sewed them to fit. This picture is before the white faux leather went on the walls, and after the cabinets were painted, and I wanted to see my vision.

The Cushions:

I looked on Amazon for thick bench cushions, similar to this and this, which I found to be cheaper than making them myself!

OH..... DO NOT THROW AWAY those ugly old cushion covers!!  I washed mine (3 times) and sold them on Ebay to buyers wanting to remodel Scamps to original! I can't believe they sold, in fact, there was a bidding war!  And to think I almost threw them away! 

I added lots of colorful pillows like these and these.

Below is a picture of original area with the bunk beds..

The Bathtub:

The picture below is the bunk bed area where I installed a Behlen Country 90 gallon horse trough bathtub (purchased at MFA).  But I found this sleek black bathtub I like better (see it here) or this Portable tub (see it here) and like it better with the cover.

 I cut a hole in the bunk bed area with this tool and dropped the tub down into the base of the cabinets. I installed a short hose, so it was simple to drain the tub outside the trailer, when needed.

Like what I used to hold the shower head? I have them on the opposite side too, and they double as towel holders! :)

This tub is 4 feet long x 2' wide x 2' height. It's long enough to sit and extend my feet out to relax in a warm bath; or I use the tub to wash my clothes. Because this camping trailer does not have a bathroom, I can take a bath or a shower with the portable shower head or even put the porta-potty inside the tub and pull the curtain for privacy.

Amazing.. OH here's the thing I installed to take a hot bath or shower!!  (I actually got a professional electrician to install it, plus a few electrical fixes on the exterior lights.)

Reading Nook:

Next to the tub was just enough space for a comfortable reading nook. I created a table to go over the tub, so the tub doubled as a computer desk.

The Bed:

The picture below, is the kitchen table, folded down into a queen size bed, with all my cushions!  This bed was super comfy with double cushions. Custom black-out curtains with material I already had and double sided the curtains with red material for the exterior view. 

I had new flooring installed.. professionally! Love it! For the door, I removed the old screen door and installed this door ... it worked so much better! I just had to cut it down to size, to fit.

The Door:

The door had the same dirty carpeting as the walls. 

The camper door is so much better and cleaner! I used this, instead of the old curtain rod, to put the curtains up.

The Awning:

Oh, that awning,,, I thought I was done with the camper, but when I opened it up,, the awning had holes in the material,, So, I ended up cutting it off,  spray painted the metal container, and figured out a way, to insert a new piece of material (something like this) into the original holder. 

I searched for a new awning to fit, but couldn't find the right size, so I used the old hardware and added new outdoor material.

The awning getting inserted... somehow! ;()

Watch out for the Awning!

It all worked out great until I drove on a highway, and the awning container opened up,, and the awning fell on the highway,, and I lost one of the awning legs!!

I'm pretty sure a Scrapper on a bicycle took my awning leg!!  haha  I looked for hours but ended up having to remake the leg. I would have paid the scrapper a lot of bucks to get my awning leg back! :()  I'm lucky the material didn't rip while hanging off the camper, going 65 mph!

As luck would have it, I found a square piece of metal at Menards,, the exact same size! Crazy story, but I wont ever drive down the road without this to tie around the awning!

More Bling:

I splurged on this adorable accessory for added bling.. and these for sitting around the campfire!  Its all about the fun accessories after the remodel!

Below is the finished exterior of Scamp RV with a new paint job and new stickers to match the original paint job. 

I got a new tire cover on the official Scamp website,, and exterior stickers too! 

It's ready to go camping.. once I lift the newly painted legs!  I spray painted the legs with this paint, in case it was dark out and I could see the legs better.

Ready to roll.. Adorable! 

 I'd love to know what you think and please share your camper pics too! :)

 

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