Friday evening, after two rainy weekends, I finally had a chance to remove Lola’s Aluminum skin on the front curb-side and asses the damage. It was a pleasant surprise to see that the damage was primarily curtailed to the bottom boards. The insulation was untouched. The only other damage was a split in the top center crosspiece where nails had been driven through the skin and water entered.
The round lower corner piece was very brittle and had separated into several pieces. From a structural perspective it had failed entirely. The lower skirt board was rotten and essential fell apart when the skin was removed. The “two-by” lag screwed to the frame stringers was in fair condition.
Here are a few pictures of the damaged wood:
Sunday afternoon, using the damaged wood as patterns, I cut the new wood and installed it. The Kregg pocket hole jig made fastening in the new wood an easy task. The repairs went much quicker and easier than anticipated.
A few pictures of the repairs:
Afterwards I temporarily reinstalled the skins and prepared Lola for her return to the storage yard. Since the J-Rail was off, I taped all the seams and exposed joints with white Gorilla Tape.
Next weekend, the rear curbside! Possibly a start on the street-side????