Finally Sealed Up Properly?

It's the eve of my next trip; a journey to Starved Rock State Park with my son. I think I've finally gotten the teardrop sealed up the way it should be. First, I let all the caulk we applied in Ohio dry. Then I tested it with a jet of water directed at the entire under side of the teardrop. I found two small areas where water was sneaking in. I re-sealed those areas again with more caulk and then applied another layer over the entire area where the gap was. Finally, today, I applied a rubber membrane (aka inner tube) to the edges.

I applied more adhesive to the rubber to 'seal' it in and then lastly I put the linoleum in place. The rubber, when the adhesive fully cures, will keep the moisture from penetrating the seam. We are planning on pulling out pretty early in the morning and then a full day of hiking and exploring tomorrow at the park. I'm excited!

Visual Journal: From Beginning to End and a Meditation on Window Making

I finally had the chance to complete a visual journal of the entire process of the restoration and renovation of the Carpe Diem.  What amazes me is that the whole process, from purchase to 'completion' took about six months.  However, of those six months, we only 'had' the Carpe Diem for three.  I drove to Tennessee to pick it up during spring break at the end of March and immediately began restoration.  I took hundreds of photos of the process and it was tough  weeding through those to find just the right ones.

 

The passenger side window before.

Driver side window before.

As is typical on most projects like this, I would take a step forward and three back.  For example, one of the projects I began after cleaning and sealing up the inside, was to rebuild the screen windows.

After cleaning and installing new hinge.

Inside of door.

The remains of the original screen portion of the window.

Cobbled together to make a template.

Replica above; original below.

Dry fit: inside.

Dry fit: outside.

Completed frames ready for screens.

After more than two days replicating the originals, decided to use these sliding windows.  In my defense, I hadn't been able to find a suitable window until I came across a window on, of all places, Pintrest!  A few days later, they were here and installed.  

With that, I give you the before, during and after video of my work on the Carpe Diem:

Carpe Diem Before and After from Todd Burleson on Vimeo.

I'm Back in the Game!

Two weeks ago today I had my second Carpal Tunnel surgery.  I met with my doctor yesterday to have my stitches removed.  All looks good and I'm already feeling the relief.

 Stitches out.  

It's amazing to think that a small probe was inserted in the incision and basically they hollowed out the tunnel that the nerves move through; the purple dots are the farthest point that the 'probe' was extended into my hand.  I have so much empathy for people who have had intense surgery.  Mine was incredibly minor and it took a lot out of me.  The biggest thing I missed: showering with both hands!  When I washed my hair and shaved today it was wonderful to use both hands. 

The teardrop sat under our pop up cover for the past two weeks.  I was able to get in and check to see that the caulk had set up properly and that everything was dry.  I used a jet nozzle on the hose to try to pinpoint the leak in the cabin.  It ended up being a tiny spot under the bulkhead and one of the screw holes.  Now that it is all dried out again, I'll be able to touch up those tiny spots.  I'm going to, just for good measure, caulk underneath as well.  I'm going to use some caulk that is designed for roofing applications.  It's black and will blend in well with the frame.  Once we are sure all is sealed up, I can put the linoleum and mattress back in place.

I will need to wait for the rock guard to dry.  Of course, we had the pop up in place for two weeks; no rain.  Take it down; rain.  I didn't get the aluminum strip glued in place yet; hopefully a dry evening will allow the rock guard to dry.  Then, a few minor fixes in the interior and we will be ready for our next road trip.  We are planning a family get away to Starved Rock State Park soon.  We've heard a lot about it, but never made it there.  This will be our first time with the kids too!

Re-Thinking Plans and Inspiration

When my wife and I decided to purchase and renovate the 1947 Tourette, my mind shifted immediately into 'trip mode.'  I started thinking about being able to travel, but sadly I sort of thought of those trips as being just 'two people' trips.  By that I mean that the teardrop really only fits 'two' people.  Of course, we 'could' always bring a tent along and the kids could sleep in there, but not having to set up and, more importantly, wait for it to dry before putting it away, was one of the big draws for us to buy the teardrop.  I started to dream and plan a trip for next summer with my daughter.  I was excited to think of having that time with her as she will only be around a few more summers before college.  I was hoping to make some substantial memories.

It was quite early into that planning that my wife voiced something that I had been knocking around in my head a lot; why is only Grace getting to have this awesome trip?  Shouldn't we 'all' get to have this incredible experience?

The answer, of course, is an emphatic yes!

With this in mind, I started to think differently.

I am a huge fan of family home movies.  I don't have any of these movies of my own youth, but I've found the Prelinger Archives to be full of family movies that kind of fill that gap for me.  It was one such exploration of the archives, a free resource of all sorts of historic and archival movies, books, and much more, that lead me to the two films you see below.  The two films tell of the Barstow Family of Connecticut.  They set out over three summers to visit every state in the United States (48 at the time).  The film must have been a huge undertaking when it was created given the technological challenges.  The original 8mm film was converted to VHS and the VHS tape was then edited and titles and a voice over by the father many years after the trip was added.

I found the films to be mesmerizing in a very interesting way.  The family 'hams' it up for the camera from the very beginning.  They are such terrific sports, from the initial scenes where they come out to the station wagon with their 'sacks' in which they brought their books, games, and puzzles, to the cheesy posed segments in front of the landmarks that help identify many of the states on their quest.  Their road trips across the country lasted nearly a month.  They

My favorite part of the film is actually seeing how they evolved as a 'camping' family.  They started out in one big and pretty elaborate tent.  The next summer, the parents slept in a much simpler (and quicker set up) pop up tent.  The kids, and this is the brilliant part to me, slept in the station wagon.  If you watch the video, you can see that the father created a platform for the back of their station wagon.  It had three compartments for each of the children's suitcases and when the seat was put down, it became a platform on which the two oldest children were able to put their inflatable mattress.  The youngest child was comfy and cozy on the front bench seat.  The father created all sorts of little customizations from the screen he used when the station wagon's windows were open to the chuck wagon box and the ingenious single wheel trailer with the rotating wheel.  This got me thinking.

Obviously my wife and are sleeping in the teardrop, but what about the kids?  I'm thinking that we might be able to do something similar to the Barstow Family.  For those camping times and locations where time is critical might allow us to simply fold the seats in our CRV down and inflate a mattress for the kids.  I could see this option being ideal if it were raining too.  We purchased a EZ Up to give us an area of shelter in which to cook, etc.  This could be put over the CRV's hatch back as well and give shelter the kids from bad rain, etc.  When there is more time and or space, we could easily set up one of our smaller tents for the kids.  And that settles it.  Now we can start planning and mapping our route.  If  you have some time, you would probably really enjoy watching this family's journeys, I know I sure did.

Two Week Hiatus

We arrived home on Wednesday evening.  Thursday was a day of catching up and taking care of the yard and other projects that needed tending to.  Friday morning I was scheduled for surgery.  This would be my second Carpal Tunnel surgery (I had my right wrist done a couple of years ago.)  I knew what I was getting myself into and was stocked up on books, movies and the like.  The long road trip certainly proved that I needed the surgery; my arm would fall asleep while driving after only a minute or two.  That and being woken up several times in the night with the throbbing pain let me know the time was here for the second surgery.

Me coming to from the anesthesia.

My son giving me a hug post-surgery.

My 'orange' arm in the elevated position.

The joke with my family was that my surgeon dipped my arm in Cheetos after the surgery.  Of course it really was the iodine that they use to make sure everything is sterile, but it's a fun joke.  

I've now had almost a week of recovery.  My biggest 'problem' is itching under the bandages.  A chopstick works darn well for that purpose.  I'm typing quite well I must say; once again I'm thrilled that I learned to type 'properly' in high school because my fingers intuitively know where the keys are and I don't even have to think about it.

The teardrop has had nearly a week of hot, dry weather.  It's still quite humid, but there has been no rain since we've returned.  We've been able to have the doors open to allow plenty of air to circulate inside.  I checked yesterday on the caulk.  It appears to have completely 'cured.'  Unfortunately, I am not sure how to 'check' to see if the leak(s) have been fixed without hitching up the trailer and driving it through a rainstorm.  

Before we do that, we are planning to take further precautions.  I plan to caulk the 'gap' from underneath as well.   I am going to use the spray on rubberized coating called "Leak Stop" to  give me some assurance of a seal.  Additionally, I plan to add a rubber membrane (probably another inner tube section over the area that has been caulked.  Lastly, I'll use the same Leak Stop product underneath and along the gap on the teardrop.  I don't think there is anything else I can do.  The thing that stinks is that I won't 'know' for sure if it is fixed until I pull it through a bad storm. 

Teardrop Stories

One of the things that I heard when I started exploring teardrops is that people are very interested in them.  I read lots of stories of people stopping teardrop owners at gas stations and at camp grounds and asking lots and lots of questions:  "Do you sleep in there?"  "Where do you get dressed?"  "What is that thing?"  Those are just a few of the questions I heard people would ask.   So, when we started out on our very first road trip, I was ready for the 'looks' and the questions.

It started right in my own neighborhood.  I was finishing preparing the teardrop for the trip when a family of four stopped on their bikes in the street in front of our house.

"Did you make that?"  "Do you know how to weld?" the father asked.
"No, I restored it." I answered. "It's a 1947."
"I have a 1947 too.  It's a little taller than yours.  I bought it thinking it would fit in our garage, but its too tall to fit, so I have it in our driveway.  Stop by anytime and take a look at it if you would like."

Hitching it up and starting our 2,300 mile road trip northward, we got lots and lots of fun looks and double takes.  More than a few times I saw people point and get very animated when they saw us on the road.

The Carpe Diem at the rest stop in Escanaba, Michigan.

Whenever we pass a 'classic car,' we see a big smile on the driver's face.  There's a mutual respect for the labor of love put into bringing a piece of Americana back to our modern times.  

When we were camping at Agawa Bay in Canda, which was our first 'official' night in the teardrop where we had to 'pay' to camp, we loved seeing people walk or drive by and look.  We saw a modern, factory made teardrop in the campground.  They didn't seem very interested in us, but we were fascinated by their teardrop's pop up expansion design.  It looked much like ours, but when they parked, the whole roof lifted off to create a huge living room and a second 'bunk.'  When we got home we looked into the design and found out more about it.

It is called a Safari Condo Alto.  It's a slick design that surely game me trailer envy.  We didn't bother the owners, but we did walk by several times, v-e-r-y slowly.  

When we had it parked in my brother-in-law's driveway, we had several families stop to inquire what it was and what it looked like inside.  

As we started back from our visit to Athens, we stopped for gas in Nelsonville, Ohio.  One gentleman came up to me in the filling station.  

"How old is your teardrop?"

"It's a 1947."

"My dad had one just like that," the man from Tennessee told me.  "I had my first spanking in a teardrop like that!  My dad said I was misbehaving and he tossed me inside.  I'm 67 years old!"

"Well, that's how old this teardrop is!"

"I think we had the same one, but yours in a lot better shape than I remember ours.  Everything that should be old, is new!  You've done a really nice job on that thing.  It's beautiful!"

"Thank you!"

"We passed you several times on the freeway, I was hoping you would pull over so I could talk to you.  I was telling my son all about the teardrop when we saw you on the freeway."

It's wonderful how the teardrop pulls people together like that.  There's something about them that breaks down barriers and encourages people to share and ask curious questions.  One of the things I hope to be able to do with this blog in the future is to record those stories. 

First Trip Review

The Carpe Diem's first road trip is in the books!  We had an awesome time; we camped a total of 9 nights, traveled over 2,300 miles through five states and two countries!  In a very roundabout way, we made a loop around Lake Michigan.

We learned about how narrow the turning radius is with the basket on the front of the teardrop. Thankfully, the bumper that I damaged pretty significantly at first glance, literally popped back into place after about 45 minutes.  I don't know how it did it, but the plastic coating was all that was 'damaged' on the car.  It returned to its proper place and you would never know that it had been damaged by me turning too tightly.  Adding the 12" extension made a monumental difference.  It is now so much easier to maneuver the teardrop. We learned how important it is to check that the coupler has completely latched onto the tow ball.  Thankfully, we learned this lesson on a backcountry road away from heavy traffic.

Kenosha to Sugar Island.

Sugar Island to Agawa Bay, Ontario and then further north to Wawa, Ontario.

Back to Sugar Island and then onward to Powell and Columbus, Ohio.

From there we went back to Powell, then to Granville and finally to Athens, Ohio.

Then it was time to close the loop and head home.

Google has us at about 1,950 miles, but in fact, we put on just over 2,300 miles in all.

We had one major repair; the caulking and repairing of the area under the doors where lots and lots of rain got into the cabin.  The 'fix' never really properly set up and in fact, we had more rain on the return trip.  Not to worry, we removed everything, yet again and are currently drying out the teardrop.  When it is dry, we'll re-caulk, add a rubber barrier along the seam and try it all over again!

All in all it was a very successful road trip!  We learned a lot about what we want to add to the teardrop and tiny adjustments we will make to make the Carpe Diem even better!

The Carpe Diem Visits Ohio University and Narrowly Averts Catastrophe!

Both my beautiful wife and I attended The Ohio University in Athens, Ohio.  It is in fact, the place we met and fell in love.  It was quite fitting then that the last 'leg' of our first trip in the Carpe Diem go through there.   

The Carpe Diem at the College Gate in Athens, Ohio.

Before we get there, we need to catch up a little on the trip since the last update.  We loaded up and headed to Granville, OH where our good friends Mike and Christina were in town to visit their family.  We met them for a nice brunch at a place called Day y Noche.

Mike and I with the Carpe Diem.

After a great visit with them, we dropped them off at Mike's parent's home.  We were able to see his Mom and Dad too.  I was very close to them too.  

Erica and I turned towards Athens and things were looking well.  Then, near disaster struck.  We were on one of the many small roads that lead towards Athens.  We heard a loud plunk and then the sound of metal scraping across concrete/gravel.  I was able to quickly check to be sure that it was safe to pull over.  I did so and we carefully got out to take stock of what happened.  The tongue of the trailer popped off the tow ball.  Thankfully the safety chains held, the tongue of the trailer actually rode up onto the basket on the front of the trailer.  If we had been on a larger road, or going faster, things might not have turned out as well.  

The basket took a little bit of a hit; nothing a sledge hammer can't fix.

I learned to pull up on the tongue to make sure it has properly latched! 

The road rubbed the tongue a bit, but nothing a little Rustoleum can't fix.  

We took a huge breath, hugged each other and counted our blessings.  We started back towards Athens.  The rain had held off all morning, but it started again along the way.  Almost everything had changed.  Even the freeways were different; the small towns of Lancaster and Nelsonville had bypasses which were terrific for travel, but I'm not sure they will be good for the small businesses in those towns.  We made it to Athens and went to The Strouds Run State Park.  Neither of us had camped there before and mid July, during the week, is apparently the least visited time in the park.  In fact, we were the only people in the park.  It rained almost all evening and into the night.  Something was going on with our battery and it did not fully charge while we were in Powell.  So, the hot and humid weather, and the relentless rain made for a less than perfect night of sleep.  Well, that and the fact that we were the only people in the entire park, in the middle of Appalachia, without any cell service... Nonetheless, we made it and here is the view we had when we woke up this morning.

Here was our campsite.

I love the panoramic feature on the iPhone!

We hitched up and headed back to Athens.  We thought that early morning would be a good time to try to take the photo of the Carpe Diem at the top of this post.  Then, we headed north to pick up the kids.

My parents and my nephew with my kiddos!

The skies looked ominous as we started toward home.  About half way home the skies opened up.  We stopped for gas and I checked on the teardrop.  I was not happy to see a white, milky-type substance dripping from the front of the teardrop.  The caulk was clearly not dry and it was obviously not reacting well to the pounding rain.  I decided to not think about it and deal with it when we finally got home.  

The arch at the border of Ohio and Indiana; a brief respite from the rain.

About five hours later, we pulled into our driveway.  The kids were great; they jumped out and started clearing out the car and the teardrop like a pit crew at the Indianapolis 500!  A little while later, we had the teardrop on the concrete patio, the luggage and laundry emptied and were ready to assess the damage from the rain.

The aluminum 'drip guard' that we had glued in place came off again.  Thankfully, it fell into the basket again and we were able to retrieve it.  One corner started peeling away a bit.  We'll need to re-glue that corner once everything has dried out.

All our gear washed and ready to dry.

The sheet of linoleum on the back of the teardrop drying after being washed of the liquified caulk.  We put the EZ Up overt the teardrop so that we could let everything dry.  Once it does, we'll start all over with the caulking process.  Hopefully we'll get a stretch of dry weather.  We were all very happy to shower and head to a much needed night of rest.  It was a terrific trip, but we are all glad to be back!

Change of Plans...

Well, the best laid plans of mice and men...we ended up with some problems this morning.  We went out to check on the teardrop's cabin.  It had rained seriously hard overnight and was down pouring  as we ate breakfast.  Unfortunately, the caulk had reacted with the intense humidity and heat.  The caulk, which is pretty thick, began to liquify and was not solidifying like we had hoped it would.  We knew we would not be able to put the mattress in as it was.  We tried backing up the CRV and putting the teardrop in the garage, but it was just way too tough to maneuver with the basket on the front of the teardrop; it impacted the turning radius in a big way.  We gave up after a few minutes of trying and being completely soaked by the rain while we tried.

We decided to go ahead and take the kids to my parents to visit and we would stop at Harbor Freight on the way back and get some of the things we would need.  The first thing we bought was a 12" extension to the trailer tongue.  After buying a coupler lock, a new pin and a few other supplies we headed back to Powell.

Putting the extension on the tongue made a HUGE difference!  I was able, with some support from Erica, to back the teardrop into the garage quite easily.  I can't believe I didn't buy that thing before!  After getting the teardrop in the garage, we plugged in two fans and started airing the interior out and charging the batteries.

Installing the extension was simple; just insert a new coupler pin.  

Drying out in Powell.

Two fans drying the caulk.

We've decided that we would stay the night here while the cabin dries out and the caulk cures.  We hopefully will be able to load up in the morning and head to Athens.

Just an aside, I noticed some water in the galley area too.  I'm not sure what the cause of that is, but it has to be partly due to the poor seal and fit of the hatch.  That's not nearly as important to me as the cabin is, but it will have to be addressed when we get home.  For now, we wait and pray for no rain.

Mid-Trip Reassessment

We headed south from Sugar Island, Michigan, and as we did, we were met with lots and lots of heavy rain.  The Carpe Diem pulled well; we ended up taking two lane freeways the last half.  Our destination was Columbus where we were staying the night with Erica's brother and family.  We woke up this morning and went out to grab some laundry to wash and found a very unwelcome development...

The marine fabric that was on top of the floor in the bed area of the teardrop.

The first thing I noticed was that the bedspread was wet.   Upon further inspection, I saw that not only was the bedspread wet, the mattress cover was completely soaked.  I pulled the bedspread out and soon saw that under the mattress the marine fabric was also completely soaked.  

The foam of our mattress.

After pulling out the mattress and the marine fabric, I found the problem.  We knew that there was a small problem with the floor under the doors.  There seems to be some kind of bowing of the plywood floor that pulls it away from the metal frame of the walls.  I had jacked the frame up earlier and then bolted through the bowed wood before I caulked and weatherproofed the side walls.  Over time, the bolts pulled out of the wood and the 'gap' opened again.  Unfortunately, the rains penetrated the gap and the marine fabric and the mattress pad simply absorbed and wicked the moisture up from the bottom of the floor.

After removing the marine fabric from the floor.

The gap, look at the space between the silver sheet metal screw and the black wood floor.

I went to Menard's and picked up several tubes of caulk, some backer rod and a remnant of linoleum and necessary adhesives.  I've decided that the marine fabric is not the best material to use for my flooring.  Of course, I kind of knew this, but I didn't see a 'need' to do so until now.  Thankfully, I was able to purchase a small remnant that will fit very well for our use.  

I removed the old caulk and backer rod.  Then, I added a layer of caulk in the gap and then inserted the backer rod into it.  After an hour or so, I added another layer of caulk and some more backer rod.  In all, I probably have an inch of 'caulk' in the gap with the backer rod.  I am planning to cut the linoleum a little wider than the flooring so that I can use it to bridge the gap in the frame/floor.  I am hopeful that the linoleum will protect the mattress from any moisture that might possibly get in.  I can't imagine that any moisture will make it through the incredible amount of material I put in there today, but you never know.

The aluminum flashing at the top of the neoprene rubber rock guard needed to be re-glued today.

Somehow, quite miraculously, the small piece of aluminum that is at the top of the neoprene came unglued and landed in the basket.  So, since I was caulking, I cleaned up the area and re-glued the piece of aluminum.  We are hopeful that this will prevent any water from seeping down under the neoprene layer.  

The linoleum remnant has a wood grain look.  I cut it a little wider than the mattress to allow for some overlap of the metal.

Looking at the linoleum in this view, it makes me think about the storage boxes on the floor; it would have been slick to have the linoleum down to create a water-tight layer.  

The linoleum cut very easily with a razor knife.

I used a straight edge to cut the 'lids' to the storage boxes.  For now, I'm just going to leave the marine fabric on the 'lids.'  I will switch them out when we get home.

I think it looks pretty nice!

My next step was to add yet another layer of caulk to the edges.  I pulled up the linoleum along the edges to let the caulk dry overnight.  Like I said, I'll replace the marine fabric on the lids when we get home.  I am thinking about not using the adhesive that is usually used in a household application.  I think the heavy duty contact cement should be just fine. 

While we were on the first couple of legs of our journey, we made a list of 'additions' or improvements we wanted to make to the Carpe Diem.  Some of them are practical, some of them are creature comforts, some of them are fun things to do.  Here is the list up to now:

1. Add hat hooks (possibly use velcro to hold the hooks).
2. Make a square 'key' for locking the locks inside the cabin.
3. Come up with some kind of system for pulling up the triangle brace.
4. Velcro corners on the curtains
5. File down bolts on the door locks.
6. Re-do the driver side door lock (not matching up properly).
7. Glue driver side cup holder back in place.
8. Side table or folding table to hold stove and a space to work and prepare meals.
9. Fresh scent for inside the cabin (lavender oil or air freshener?)
10. Remove and vacum the vent screen and window screens.
11. Cover the door hinges in the same rubber used on doors.
12. Trivet for putting hot pots while cooking.
13. Add tea and sugar to our supplies; both regular and decaf.
14. Spoon rest for cooking.
15. Salt.
16. Clorox wipes.
17. New Stove (propane; our Coleman is not optimum for cooking).
18. Propane (we saw someone who kept their propane tank in a milk crate for ease of moving it around and being able to lash it to the cargo basket).
19. 12" extension for the tow tongue (We learned that the cargo basket cuts down on our turning radius an awful lot!)
20. Crock Pot: if there is 120 volt power we could use it to cook a meal while we are away, or if needed we could use the inverter in the cabin.
21. Crossword puzzles/word finds.
22. Mancala Game.
23. Cribbage (we want to learn how to play.)
24. Cards
25. Electrical Tape
26. Duct Tape
27. Random electrical connectors.
28. Screwdrivers
29. WD-40
30. Carabiners (the two 'hooks' we used to hold the chains in place were bent and broken during travel.)
31. Fly Rod and associated gear.
32. Assorted Rubbermaid containers to store food in the cooler and prevent it from becoming contaminated from water, etc.  Also to put ice in to help ice last longer.

Just a 'few' things to add to the Carpe Diem!

We are planning to head south tomorrow morning to drop our children off with their other grandparents for a few days.  Erica and I are going to revisit our College Alma Mater, Ohio University.  We haven't been there together in over 15 years.  We look forward to spending some time in the place where we fell in love.