No More Leaks

No more leaks!!! The three holes (craters) have been repaired.

Little Smidge spent a week at 'Nelson 'Motor Homes Ltd' getting the holes covered with fibreglass.  

Bernie had spotted a couple of other minor scrapes around the back of the camper that were also repaired while there.

We're thrilled with the result.

No More Squealing!

Each time we started Smidge she squealed like a banshee! Then after a couple of minutes she'd suddenly stop. So we booked her into the local garage.  

The heavens opened up as we drove to the garage, which was an ideal opportunity to see if the wipers worked effectively. Thankfully they did.

Back home we used the rainy day to start sanding Smidge's cupboard doors. They're painted white but hadn't had the best of paint jobs. We wanted them sanded back so we could apply a couple of coats of fresh paint. We've decided to paint them white again, only we're hoping the finished look will be much better. Plus they'll have new handles and hinges.

A couple of hours later we got a call from the mechanic to say it was an easy fix. Although Smidge had a new fan belt fitted before the previous owner sold her to us, it turned out it wasn't the right size. So after the correct sized belt was put in, she started without any screeches. It was great to hear the engine running without squealing and even better to hear the cost of the repair was much cheaper than I'd anticipated. A win - win.

The last couple of days I've been busy sanding while Bernie has made a start painting the interior. After I'd sanded the first few cupboards by hand, I decided there must be a faster way.

And there was/is. We bought a little sander from Mitre 10, which has made the job so much easier.

A bonus with this little sander is it has a pointed tip that gets into those tricky corners. It saves trying to fold sandpaper into a tiny point when doing it by hand. 

Although I'd like to click my fingers and have Smidge finished and ready for our first adventure, I'm enjoying tackling these DIY projects and learning a few things on how to restore an older campervan. And it's rewarding giving Smidge a spruce up and some much needed TLC. 

Holey Moley ...or words to that effect.

After Bernie removed the awning from the side of the campervan the source of the leak was revealed. Once upon a time the awning must have been hit by a gust of wind and whipped the awning upwards causing it to rip away from the van. 

Left were three gaps ... three decent size gaps!

Nelson Motorhome Ltd in Nelson had a look at the damage and said they would be able to repair it. They're going to cut out the tears and mend them (they said they wouldn't patch over the holes). We've booked it in to be fixed in a couple of weeks so it'll be interesting to see the finished look.

In the meantime we have removed the wood from around and under the window. We've also cleaned the aluminium framing ready to have new 4mm hardboard attached. 

We were advised to use 'no more nails' to attach the board to the framing, as well as rivets. 

It's starting to look better already!

Smidge

Last Saturday Bernie and I went to view a little campervan for sale in Motueka. It's a Mitsubishi L300 owned by a guy who is selling his orchard and other bits and pieces to return to Germany. 

Parked in a paddock behind a barn sat the little camper. And I’m excited to announce - I'm now the proud new owner. I’ve named her ‘Smidge’.

 

Smidge’s interior needs a make-over, which will be a fun project for Bernie and I. This will also be the perfect opportunity to learn how to video so I can make some vlogs on our progress. I've been interested in learning how to create vlogs for awhile and now seems like the ideal time to learn. I'm determined to prove you can teach an old dog new tricks!

I've started this blog as a journal to record the progress and steps taken to transform Smidge. It'll also be a place to share adventures that Oakly, Boo and I have as we travel about.