Dinette Padding Completed

I had mentioned in a previous post on the expense of foam upholstery padding.  After a little research on the net, in an attempt acquire the materials cheaper and of better quality than what can be found at JoAnne's Etc., it became obvious that finding them through CList was the best route to take financially.  Purchasing and parting out the Coleman Newport camper made a lot of sense as the padding alone would have cost about $150-200 and this didn't count the OSB backer boards or the upholstery!

I had a little free time a couple days ago so I used it sizing the longer than required seat cushions from the Newport to fit the dinette seating of the Banner.

The end result looks as if it came with the camper straight off the production line.  The only exception is that the pads are bit wider and therefore they don't lay perfectly flat when converted to the bed.  I thought about cutting down one of the pads, but liked the coverage of the current dimensions.  So, we'll see how the craftmatic-bed like pillow area is over a night's sleep and adjust later if need be.


I've got a couple more things I'm going to try my best to get done this week as well.   There is a stainless steel tank in one of the seat compartments that I'm going to remove.  It was part of a "Steven's" pressurized water delivery system that is found on many of these old time campers.  The pressurized systems are prone to leak as the copper tubing and fittings age.  I'd have to inspect every run and squeeze into some confined areas underneath the camper, in the walls and in some of the cabinets.  A scenario that I'm going to pass on.   We'll have water at Trout Camp via an auxiliary tank.  I'll likely run new flexible tubing and use a gravity fed delivery system for both the sink and shower.  It'll be something that we can use when we're there and take down and store when we're not.  Having a tank out in the open just invites destruction and/or damage whether on purpose or by accident.  Over the course of removing the 12volt air pump that pressurizes the water tank, I was able to finally locate the source of that sweet yet rancid smell in the camper.  I'm hoping that I don't find more, but it is unbelievable on how one dead field mouse in a semi-enclosed compartment can make an entire camper reek so badly!  He's found a new resting place and purpose; fertilizer in the garden!


I'd also like to remove and resell the 510A Dometic Propane fridge.  It isn't in incredibly bad shape, but whether it works or not is the question.  I'm sure there is someone out there in CList land that'll buy it and I'll use the proceeds toward the re-roofing in the spring.

Finally, there is another galvanized tank under the fridge that I believe to be the "gray" water tank.  That'll be removed as well after the fridge comes out.

I'll put up some photos later this week to show you the removal steps and progress.