Purchased Used Trailer- Its Complicated

[whatmeworry]

My question is for other TT owners who also encountered a problem trailer w/ limited resources.

You guess it, first time purchase 18ft travel trailer w/ rot.
Interior is immaculate. No stains, mold, etc. All appliances look new and work perfectly.
The trailer itself looks decent on the outside w/ lots of chalking.
At first found a few sml floor soft spots. Well, this grew to finding about 1/3 w/ floor probs.
About 18" deep along full length of front, 12"W x 5ft along side where all the water appliances to fender well and
L shape along rear side where tub and head is. The opposite to middle is solid.
Basically where all the water appliances are.

Roof feels solid except around a/c. Heard some crunching in some spots.

At time of purchase, owner guaranteed if I didnt like it, to bring it back.
He did not disclose any rot. I havnt said anything, yet, about my discovery. My take is that he had to know, something.
It also needs brakes all around. And havnt mentioned that yet. For me thats an easy job.
Now it gets complicated. Hes willing to take it back but he doesnt have the money. How convenient.
Wont have it for a month. In the meantime, said he would advertise and sell it, I would show it to buyers.

It gets better. I need to move in about 3-5 months. Dont own a house and cant afford one.
Have enough funds to survive about 2yrs w/out income.
Relocating to another part of country to live and find work. Im a older po-boy.
I purchased the trailer for this reason, temporary housing while I look for a "warm" place to find work.

This was a $3000 2004 TT. I estimate $800-1000 materials repairing myself. That includes new roof.
Im capable of fixing just about anything. Have lots of tools. (Po-people have lots of tools ;  )
18ys mechanic, 7 yrs machinist. Worked on 80ft boats to buses, auto dealerships, 18 wheelers, etc.

Sell it w/ full disclosure and a loss ? Im a straight up person, unfortunately. If I do, still need to do something about traveling and living.
Start discovery of problems ? havnt pulled anything apart. If I do repair, at least I know its condition.
Wait till he might come up w/ the money ? and wait, and wait.

 

[Frizlefrak]

You're in this deep, and you have the DIY skills.  Fix it, and do what us poor ol' rednecks do.....chock it up to experience.  The guy is already giving you a song and dance about money....that one month will turn into 2...then 3....then 4....until Judgement Day.  Head south before it gets cold, find work even if it's flipping burgers, and start work on your trailer. 

Nice thing about making a mistake like this is that a person generally only does it once.  You can fix stuff....you're miles ahead of most that find themselves in this predicament.

 

[whatmeworry]

Thats only part of it.
Need to sell off 30yrs of personal items along w/ machine shop.

Its been 3 days since I spoke w/ seller, no ad placed for trailer.

 

[SeilerBird]

I think if it were me I would put an ad in Craigslist and give it away for free. It sounds like it will be a lot more trouble than it is worth and it will cost a small fortune to get it fixed. Water leak issues are never cheap and easy.

 

[RedandSilver]

Won't have the money for a month?

Tell the PO that if you don't get your money back in 30 days (from whenever he said a month)
that on the 31st day you will file in small claims court against him.  If you tell him this
be ready to back it up and do it.  If he gets away will selling you junk - he will probably do it to someone else too.

Take lots of pictures - so if you go to court you have proof.

I'm not sue happy but letting someone screw you isn't right either.

I agree IF you let it go there is a good chance 1 month will turn into 2,3,4 etc. as long as he can get away with it.
Some people like that hope you will get tired of their excuses and just give up.  Then they move on to their next target.

It's your decision - but I assume you wanted opinions or you would have posted here - unless you just wanted to vent.

Good luck and hope it turns out OK for you.

 

[regval]

I'm with Frizlefrak. I got burnt on my first TT, found it had roof and floor rot. Bought it from my sister's boyfriend. Took their word it didn't have problems and didn't know what to inspect. So.... $1200 in material later, new roof, 75% of the floor replaced, front nose wall repaired, and enjoyed a couple of years camping with family before selling it. I'm sure you can handle it. You'll likely dump more on an apartment or house rental in a short period than you will in your investment in the TT and repair material and in the end have something you can live in that is yours.
Good luck,
Reggie

 

[whatmeworry]

No venting, just unsure about TT repair. And the TT world in general.
For me its quite different than buying a car. I have a better sense for cars/trucks.
Im alittle taken back that I didnt see this coming.

I talked to my GF's brother. Bought a new 38ft 5th wheel. Month after the warranty expired, the frame cracked.
Luckily he was a tractor trailer mechanic, welded it himself.

 

[Frankedj]

The repairs will usually cost more than you estimate and they will take longer than you planned.

You already bit off a big chunk of bad without having first thoroughly inspected the TT before buying it. Now you are thinking about taking another big bite out of the same mess. Research what you are getting into before you break out the saw. I have spent decades doing carpentry but how things are done in an RV are quite a bit different than how they are done in a home.

You have a short window before you must move so you have to make your decision soon.

I would fix what must be fixed without fixing everything. The roof/water leaks and any spot on the floor that your foot easily goes through. Do the minimum to get yourself to where you need to be and then sell it once you find something better.

From what that seller said to you, you won't get anything from him but more of the exact same. It is a waste of time to even try.

 

[dan680fl]

If you have friends with the time, have a strip party. A friend of mine was in the same situation only about 20 years ago. Fortunately, I had hangar space available, another friend had a large grill, and several friends volunteered their time and talenst. In one weekend, we stripped the TT down to the frame, replaced all rotted wood and reassembled it to completion including all new fabrics. Those of us with the required skills preformed the task and the others cooked, served beverages and cleaned up. It was a geat time for all of us. Oh, and total cost of materials was around $70.00 in 1995.

 

[whatmeworry]

Pulled off front and rear siding.
I was thinking was more of a floor and header prob.
Looks like was/is leaking roof edges. L rear is the worst.
I would guess to say the roof looks similar and the whole L wall, where the floor is the worst.
All is still wet.
About 99% positive the seller knew this.
The interior was just painted. It looks like Kilz, maybe to hide mold and or smell.
Found new exterior screws w/ silicone over them. Must of put these in before I picked up.
Im a very fair person and give people the benefit of the doubt. But deception brings out the worst in me.

 

[whatmeworry]

Will absolutely not get involved w/ the owner reselling thru me. Still hasnt posted an ad.
btw- the seller's occupation is a home remodeler. Not to infer any "true" journeyman carpenters a bad name.
Ive started documenting and called a local restorer for an estimate.

Worst case selling as is for parts.

 

[JoeFatz]

Rot sucks, but honestly unless there was some evidence it had been taken apart the guy might have been clueless.
looks to me like the corners where leaking for a long time, being a GC it doesnt look like that bad of a job, sure it may look horrible at first look but even if there was only a 2x2 are that was rotted the process of repairing it wouldnt be much less, in fact removing the whole wall might make it much easier than trying to piece in a section.
The worst part is making the inside match the other walls, worst case just paint the whole thing and freshen it up, get rid of the dreaded dated camper look.
Small claims court, refunds etc probably more trouble than its worth, use that energy on the project, at least you will know its done right if you do it.

 

[whatmeworry]

Had an independent estimater over today. Claims 20 ys in biz. $2500.
I figured $1500. He laughed, about 80 hrs work.
Doesnt include the bathroom floor.
Will do the work from inside out.
Yes, the corners where the problem started.
He said couldnt believe it was a 2004.
Pointed out modifications it went thru.
Said has an aluminum roof w/ epdm mat placed over. Reason why I could walk on it.

I dont have a place inside to do it myself. Nov is the rainy season and will get cold.

 

[Stephen S.]

I dont have a place inside to do it myself. Nov is the rainy season and will get cold.

PVC pipe, blue tarps, and duct tape. Build a work tent over it?

 

[whatmeworry]

About a week an half ago duct taped the corners and towed the trailer back. The owner refunded every penny.
The modifications mentioned in previous post, owner said he did. Though did not mention it at sale.
I didnt push it.
We have a amiable relationship and wished each other a good Thanksgiving yesterday.

 

[NY_Dutch]

It's good to see that he was a stand up guy and made good on his word! Don't let it discourage you from pursuing other RV's though. Just think of it as a learning experience, and now you'll know better what to check for on the next one. In that price range, expect some issues, but as long as they're not structural and can be fixed with a modest cost and labor layout, it can still be a good deal for you.

 

[Rene T]

About a week an half ago duct taped the corners and towed the trailer back. The owner refunded every penny.
The modifications mentioned in previous post, owner said he did. Though did not mention it at sale.
I didnt push it.
We have a amiable relationship and wished each other a good Thanksgiving yesterday.

You are so lucky. Never thought that would happen especially where you already tore into it. 
Next time you find something you like, before you put anything down on it, get back to us.

 

[kwbush]

You are lucky and the previous owner, regardless if he knew or not, is an honorable guy even if he took a little more time to return the purchase price.

Hope you learned a lesson, not only about buying an RV but buying anything... make sure it's worth what you're paying for it!

Good luck going forward.

Keith

 

[BigLarry]

Every once in a while, we are fortunate to see examples that help restore our faith in humanity

 

[keymastr]

Well, now you know what to look for and that it will always be worse inside the walls than you think. Glad it worked out for you.