With a forecast of rain for the entire week, it seemed an ideal time to remove Smidge's wallpaper and begin sanding the interior ready to be painted. When I began taking the wallpaper off, it peeled away as though there was no glue behind it at all. It fell off! How it managed to stay on the wall is one of life's mysteries.
The photo above shows the dark embossed wallpaper that literally fell off! The photo below is the original wallpaper, which is firmly stuck to the wall.
However as pleasing as it was that this was an easy task, the feeling was soon replaced with disappointment. When I began removing wallpaper from underneath one of the side windows, the wall felt slightly spongy. After further investigation it appeared water had been leaking from around the window.
I guess being an older van these 'surprises' are to be expected and as it's the year 2020 (aka -the year from hell) a water leak or two seems like such a minor problem. One I'm hoping will be an easy fix.
I'm the first to admit I'm an absolute novice in regards to renovating, but I figure if we remove all the wood that is water damaged and replace it with ply or whatever wood is best for a Mitzi L300...then all we should need to do is apply new sealant around the window to prevent further leaks. I hope it's going to be an easy fix!
If you have any ideas or suggestions on repairing this, please feel free to comment below. I'd be grateful to hear your thoughts.