Pop Up Camper Restoration

Pop Up Camper Restoration can be scary words but have no fear I am here to tell you it is worth it. Yes, it will take time, money and patience but in the end, you will have a camper you are proud of. As the saying goes you can make it how you want it – put your touch on it. Many people will run away from a task such as this, but I love a challenge. Are you up to the challenge?

Canvas
I am starting with the canvas because I believe this is the easiest part of the restoration. Simply rip off the old canvas and order a new one. When it comes to ordering your replacement, you have a few options. You can order from Bear Creek Canvas, Canvas Replacements, or RV Workshop. Once you are ready to install your new canvas click here to see just how Gypsy Adventures installed his. Sounds easy right? It is not, at one point he breaks out a hammer to do the job. No one ever said camper restoration would be easy, but it is rewarding.
I am not going to list steps per say because you may have a camper that does not need a complete restoration, but I am going to guide you and give you as many tips as I can. You may need to skip some sections and that is okay.

Gut, Clean, Prime, Paint
Now that the canvas is ordered the next step is to gut the whole trailer. Once you have gutted it you will need to clean it, prime it and paint it. I know you will want to get in there and just start ripping things apart, but you do need to be careful with this task. Some parts might be salvageable. When cleaning I use Awesome from the dollar store or good ole dawn dish soap and warm water. For Primer, Kilz is a good product.

Subfloor Repair/Replace
Replacing the subfloor this step may or may not need done. If it is still solid, no water damage then you are good to go. If it does need replaced it is as simple as using ¾” tongue and groove plywood. Make sure it is treated plywood. You may get lucky and only need to replace sections and not the whole floor. For a little help look at Work on Stuff’s video titled Fix Camper Floor – Coleman Pop-Up Camper video.

Flooring
I really enjoy picking out what flooring I want in my camper. Are you going for a retro, modern, beachie, or hippy look? This is where you get to put your touch on it. I prefer retro or beach themed. You can pick up flooring at most home depot stores or hardware stores. The newest trend is peel and stick vinyl plank flooring. Installation is easy; check out this video by The Home Depot. As mentioned in the video you will need to use a primer before installing the vinyl. We talked about Kilz being a good product to use. I did a van conversion a few years where we used Kilz and we used the peel and stick vinyl plank flooring. We chose a design that looked like the ocean floor; a mixture of sand and blue water. It held up well in our travels all the way from Ohio to Florida and back.

Related Read: Installing a New Floor in the RV

Rebuild Side Walls
Again, you may or may not need to replace all walls but if you do just realize this may be a harder task than you might expect. It is going to take time and the right tools. Let’s look at Rick’s tech Talk.

Cabinets
Cabinet replacement is another area where you need to make sure you have the right tools. Measuring correctly is important as well. Measure twice, cut once and measure one more time for good measure. Overland Wanderlust does an amazing job at demonstrating how to build cabinets for a pop-up camper.

Related Read: DIY: Easy Way to Refinish Your RV Cabinets

Roof Replacement
If you have extra helpers that is great because some people can be working on things like painting the cabinet and mending or making new curtains while you are replacing the roof. Go West Fishing makes it look so easy. In his video he rebuilt his roof using Superflex.

Cushions and Curtains
It is time to really add your flare to things. Pick your theme and have at it. You can purchase curtains and cushions or make your own. I crochet so I had fun with it, and I created glow in the dark curtains. I strung them with a heavy duty paracord. I also hand made my own pillows. It really is up to you. In this video we learn how to make simple RV cushions.

Conclusion
Pop-Up camper restoration can be done. However, things to keep in mind are cost, timeline, right equipment and patience. If you are lacking any of these, you might want to rethink the project. As for time frame a realistic expectation would be two and a half months. If you are on our own it will take a lot longer. Regarding cost you can find several free pop-ups online, the canvas is around one thousand dollars, and as for the rest costs can vary. Do not forget the expense of equipment. Patience is free but can carry a heavy weight. Find what fits your personality, your wallet and build the RV of your dreams. You can do it!