Bringing it home
 

Now that the winter is over, we are finally bringing our new (to us) hi-lo home either tomorrow or Saturday. I just want to be sure that I'm not over looking anything before hitting the road.

Camper: 1987 22' Hi-Lo Fun Chaser
Tow Vehicle: 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo (3.7L V6)

I know that the dry weight of the camper is equal to the max rated towing limit of the tow vehicle however I never plan on towing it with any water in it or in any extreme conditions. This is just the temporary tow vehicle until I purchase a truck within the next year.

I've had new tires mounted on the rims, taking up the back of my jeep, that will be bolted on.

I've installed a Tekonsha 90160 Primus IQ brake controller. After reading the differences between proportional and time delayed controllers I've determined that this one would work best for my vehicle.

Bearings are all in good condition and grease is clean.

Lights will be tested before leaving

Brakes will be tested before leaving

The old owners (grandparents) have owned it since 2007 and have taken great care of it. When they first bought it they took it to a few local places before deciding to park it at one for the past 4 years.

The is one thing that worry's me about the trip. For some reason, the ceiling lights come into contact with the counter top when the top is lowered. To prevent this, they've placed pieces of 2x4 under the top on the front and back where it meets the frame to hold it up and allow for the additional clearance. Should I be concerned about towing it with it slightly raised (1.75")?

Have a safe trip. We have a 1989 22' Funchaser and there is clearance between the lights and counter. I don't think the 1.75" will be a problem, but it is definitely something I would have checked out.

I would send an email or call the former Hi-Lo folks in Ohio that still service Hi-Lo's after Hi-Lo shut down. Tell them about your issue and see what advice they can offer.

Test the trailer brakes to be sure they work. Sitting that long they maybe inoperative due to rust on the magnets/contact disc, rusty brake parts or mouse chewed wires.

You did not mention a Weight Distributing Hitch-maybe you already have it and it's adjusted properly?

Jeff

They purchased the camper from Wratten's RV in Adams, NY where their son works. They replaced the ceiling and wall panels so I'm assuming that they are not the factory lights. I plan on replacing them once we have it home with something more energy efficient. I will also be removing / changing some items to reduce weight, such as the bunk, until we need them.

I will definitely test the brakes before leaving with it. There is a napa not too far from where I'm picking it up so if needed I can run and get parts.

The Weight Distributing Hitch was included as part of the sale so will be good with that. Will have to adjust it to level the jeep properly but don't foresee any issues with that.

Pretty sure you wont find any brake parts for a Hi-Lo at Napa, but good luck with the trailer.

Corbett,

In February, my wife and I towed home a 1988 model 22' Funchaser from Grantsville, Utah, to Lubbock, Texas. That was a 950 mile journey home. My tow vehicle was a 1996 Toyota Landcruiser (4.5 Inline 6), rated to pull well above the weight of the trailer.

The two major issues we had included:

Lights. Our trailer had been left out in the elements in Utah (it snows there). Most of the marker light covers were broken or missing. So we went to the big rig parts store, and got new ones for two bucks a piece, and wired them up.

Mountains. We crossed three big ranges getting home, and we ended up sitting on the side of the mountain twice because my poor old Landcruiser overheated. It was NOT up for the drive home with that trailer on the back. So, I must admonish you to consider your vehicle and terrain prior to dragging that sucker home.

The Toyota made it (barely), but I have since upgraded to a 2002 Chevy Avalanche, and it tows like a dream! Our trailer was a gift from my new in-laws. It had all kinds of water damage and other stuff wrong with it. But fixing it sure had been fun for us, and we've got it all working. We're taking it on a two-month odyssey around the US this summer as a late honeymoon.

I would love to talk '80's models with you. Feel free to send me a private message. Having just re-worked one from top to bottom, I might could help some.

Good luck!

Thanks for the replies. Aside from a few marker lights being out there were no issues getting it home. Didn't worry about replacing the lights as I was towing during the day. The jeep didn't have much trouble pulling it but is definitely underpowered. I didn't take it over 55, which meant taking the long route, but got 13 mpg which is far better than I was expecting.

I've spent the afternoon and evening cleaning it out, mostly trying to remove the smell of the moth balls. Just at first glance, I will need to replace the top half of the interior walls. They appear to have been water damaged over the winter due to snow building up on the sides of the camper. I don't believe the roof is leaking but will check to be sure.

I'm looking to replace the walls with standard paneling from Lowes however I'm concerned that it will not be thick enough. What did you find to be the best wall material?

You will find that the paneling is very thin, you will probably have to remove the insulation also as all water damaged stuff has to come out. The roof seams must be leaking , that's how the sides get water damaged.

Glad to hear that they are thin. What I'm thinking of should work well then. I don't believe the water damage is from the roof as it was dry when we looked at it in the fall and it has been covered since then. Regardless, as long as I'm removing the wall paneling, what is the best material to seal the roof seams from the inside. I'd assume standard silicone caulk but could be wrong.

Also, it looks like the paneling is just held on with screws. Would that assumption be correct or are there other hidden fasteners or glue holding it on? Can the panels be removed without removing the top from the trailer?

If you had it covered with a plastic tarp that could have trapped moisture and damaged the walls. Not covering is better than using those.

Thanks for the tip Rich. They've owned it since 2007 and have always covered it with a tarp for the winter so I didn't think anything of it when helping them cover it up last winter after we gave them a down payment to hold it till spring. Is there something better that we should cover it with? We live in an area of NY that measures a typical snowfall by the foot on a near daily basis so I'd rather not have that much snow lying directly on the roof if I can prevent it.

I know how your weather is, I am in NW PA. We may not have as much snow as you but the weather can still be just as crappy.

The most popular covers are Adco which are shown in Camping World catalogs or online. The ones that have breathable material, like Sunbrella, are the best for our area. It keeps the rain and snow out but allows moisture to pass through. They are bit pricey, but are worth it in the long run. Or, if you can shelter the trailer that would be better. I got lucky, my friend has a large shed with some open space where I put ours.

https://www.campingworld.com/order/wi...&cord_Group=28

Looks like I've got my work cut out. I'd say the roof has been leaking for years and has gone unnoticed. The entire right side of the top was soaked when I pulled the wall boards off. Although I was planning on replacing the boards, I was not planning on replacing the foam. I'm thinking the reason it is still wet is that the tarp held the moisture in over the winter. Once I get all the foam out, which is proving to be a challenge, I want to seal the roof to prevent any new materials from damage. To seal the seam from the inside would I use a standard silicone or do I need something special to bond to the aluminum?

There are a number of members that have tackled your same type of problem. Someone will step up to give you advice or you can do a search here to see what you can find. There have been many posts and photos all about roof and wall repair and replacement.

We just (yesterday) finished our water damage repair on our 2288. We pulled off all the paneling and ripped out all of the foam in the affected areas. We sprayed it all down with bleach water, and left all the windows open for it to dry. We have zero humidity here, and it was 105 yesterday, so it took about two shakes of a lamb's tail to be ready to fix. We packed the affected areas with styrofoam blocks and "Great Stuff" foam sealer stuff. We used big sheets of Masonite as paneling ('cause I'm too cheap to spend money on real paneling, and I have lots of Masonite sitting around at my shop). We paneled the entire trailer, with breaks every 24 inches, and trimmed it out with shoe molding and flat trim on the joints. We caulked, primered, and painted it. I think it looks like a million bucks.

My trailer had snow blown all around it in Northern Utah, and I think that our water damage came from the snow getting up under the walls when the trailer was down. But we re-sealed every seam, crack, hole, and every other stupid thing we could find with industrial silicone (five tubes on the outside).

We bought new markers at the big rig store for two bucks a piece, put 'em on, and sealed around each of them, too.

If insulation is an issue, you can take the window frames off (from the inside) and foam in the space around the windows.

I'm glad you got your trailer home. I hope you have as much fun fixing it up as we have had with ours.

I might also add that my theory on silicone is that you get what you pay for. And I have an "accuracy by volume" policy.

I also have a 1987 22ft fun chaser..it has the 2x4 on the front frame and back... was that way when I bought it.. seems to have no problems.. has a small piece of 1/4 in rubber on top of the 2x4.. wish you luck with yours.. I pull it with a big 6 ford range and up over the mountains in pocono pa.. no pro
blem..

You might want to check out this thread with photos. This is my 96 that I more or less rebuilt the top half section including the walls and ceiling. I don't think you want to seal the roof from the inside and don't use silicone caulk because it not going to last, use something like lexel even though it costs much more. Your roof probably has pin holes in it if it is an aluminum roof. To patch and seal you will need a roll of eternabond tape and 2 gallons of KoolSeal 63-600 or equivalent. Good 1/8 inch paneling is anywhere from $30 to $40 a sheet I used five sheets for the walls, the ceiling I used five sheets 1/8 inch painted lauan at around $13 a sheet. I painted my ceiling with the roof coating that I had left over.

https://www.hilotrailerforum.com/f17/...n-begins-1532/

After two days of gutting we're finally down to the skin on both side walls and the ceiling. i left the foam in the sections that weren't wet on the ceiling but for the most part it came out. Will be caulking around everything. My only question is how to properly seal along the roof line where the top meets the sides. From what I can tell, that is where most of the water came in and was wicked up into the ceiling. I asked at Camping world and the guy recommended a self leveling caulk but i don't see how a self leveling caulk will work on a horizontal surface.

I thought possibly removing the weather strip on the outside, resealing it along the original seal, screwing the strip back on, and replacing the rubber gasket. I'm sure I'm using all the wrong terms but I'll catch on.

I'll be posting pictures to my facebook album is anybody cares to follow along.
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?...1&l=f433e6337b

If all goes as planned, we hope to have it back together by the end of next weekend.

when was the last time your (body)seal was changed?(the top to bottom seal) tney now have a newer type seal, just call j & r and they can fill you in

I'm going to have to assume that nothing has ever been changed. I know that the prior owner noticed pitting in the roof and when they contacted Hi-Lo for advice they were given information on a thick coating that they applied.

I see many references to J&R but haven't found any information on how to contact them or where they're located.

We've now been working on this for a few weeks. We removed the old materials and determined that the leaks appeared to be around the seam under the top trim. Camping World recommended Dicor Lap Sealant for all of the seams. I took off the trim, removed all of the old caulk and tape, applied a very thick bead between the aluminum roof material and the frame, and the reinstalled the trim which seamed to evenly distribute the sealant and create a good seal. I also used the self leveling sealant on the roof seams which appeared to level out very well. Monday night we managed to work extra late and get the first wall back up and the windows and door reinstalled and sealed with the lap sealant as well.

We had a steady rain on Tuesday and all looked good. Last night we had a quick very heavy rain and when I checked this morning there are a few wet spots on the new wall boards. Extremely frustrating at this point and I think I'm going to need to seal the entire roof. What have other people had luck with? I see that Dicor makes a paint type sealant but not sure if that is the way to go. I'd assume that it would take 2 gallons which would be another $100. I've already spent $200 on the lap sealant and $300 on new wall materials so the price tag is adding up fast! Any advice would be appreciated!

HiLo restoration
 

I must have been in the hospital when these repair postings were done. Here is the link and description of our restoration. 3SamTLPX's Library | Photobucket
We do not claim to be experts however we received advice from our HiLo dealer and JR in OHIO. It has been two yrs. since our restoration and everything is nice and tight. High and dry. Ours is a Classic. Never ever use silicone caulk. Lexell caulk is $8.00 a tube and can be purchased at Ace hardwear or on line. We removed all the water damaged upper walls. Pull everything out to the fiberglass. Use rustoleum primmer and paint on the metal supports. Use 3M bondo on the interior fiberglass. This will seal up any holes you can't see. Replace all insulation then 1/8th underlay and then 1/8th paneling. We used heavy duty liquid nails,some poprivets and white paneling nails. We caulked and used expanding foam any place we could. Every inch of exterior caulk was removed and Lexell used. Every window needs to be taken out and reinstalled with butyl tape and then Lexell caulk on the exterior. In short a proper restoration takes lots of time. The payoff is a water tight properly repaired HiLo that will give you many more good yrs. of service.

Thanks, Sam. Someone had used regular silicone caulk in the past and it was all dried out. I've replaced every bit of caulk with Dicor Lap Sealant. Leveling on the roof and non sag everywhere else. It seems that there may still be some leaks from the roof under heavy rain so I'm looking at the Dicor sealant that you paint on. It's a bit pricy but at this point we've invested quite a bit into it so it's too late to turn back.

We're hoping to get a year or two out of it and then sell it to get something a bit newer.

Leaky HiLo
 

We also had some rainy times during our restoration. The walls were still open to the fiberglass and we could see where we had to use additional spray foam insulation or more Lexell caulk. My guess on your roof is that you will have to use externabond tape on the entire roof. Some one posted a reasonably priced source to order this from. I believe it was JCurtis 95. I strongly recommend Lexell caulk be used every where possible. I will be in the Syracuse area in June. Let me know by PM if you need an in person house call. It is easy to get discouraged. Keep keeping on. The older HiLos are solid quality.

After doing a little homework yesterday I found that people have had good luck with Kool Seal. It has all the same properties as the Dicor coating at half the cost and it comes with a 7 year Garuntee. Scrubbing the roof clean now and hoping that I'll be able to get the first coat on today. Our garage doors aren't tall enough to sneak it inside overnight but the direction say that as long as it starts to cure then the water shouldn't hurt it.

I'll be in Niagra Falls next Saturday, Hunter Mountain the following weekend, and then working out of town for most of the month. Hoping to get as much done as possible this weekend as we already made reservations at our favorite park (limekiln lake near Inlet) for July 4th weekend. If the camper isn't ready by the. We'll be putting up the tent one last time.

My former HiLo dealer friend uses Kool Seal and has for a long time.

We use it on home roofs in the Southwest deserts too. It is VERY durable, except it will fail if there is an area where water is allowed to "pond". You can buy "pond repair" filler to fix that problem.

The other thing I've seen it used for is as a coating on outdoor awnings. It stops the breakdown of the fabric due to UV action. It can be dyed to match a color other than white also.

- Jack

coming to Niagara Falls
 

Send me a PM if you want to see anything on our HiLo while you are in Niagara Falls. I hope your HiLo is ready for the July 4th campout. What a bummer to use a tent vs a HiLo. Doing the Kool Seal should seal up your roof. We also need to reseal up our roof again this year. Sat. evening and Sunday afternoon it is raining. DH is having a time trying to get the garden in when the soil is so wet. Our lawn mowers are getting a workout also the weed wackers. I don't regret getting a ridearound or the bagger.

Calk
 

Hello aznd welcome to you new guys and girls. It's especially nice to have another good ol' Texas owner on the forum. We're from Sugar Land, just outside Houston (down here in the Sauna area) and know about the heat. We have a 3389b affectionately known as the beast. The best calking material I have found (as suggested by my friends on this forum) is Lexel. It seals real good and doesn't get hard like silicone. Good luck with your repairs and happy camping. Maybe us Texas guys can start a yearly get together somewhere and get to know each other.

Bear :D

The Kool Seal seems to have done the trick. After hours of scrubbing the roof clean and removing the loose parts of the old coating I put two coats of the Kool seal on. It dried just in time for the storm to move in Saturday night. After a night of heavy rain and on and off showers on Sunday it was dry as a bone. I still have a gallon left so after touching up around the AC and roof vents I'm going to put on a third coat for good measure.

Roofcoating
 

Glad to hear the Kool Seal worked for you. The only slight mod DH is going to do when he reseals our roof is to use blue painters tape. This will be applied where the roof meets the side and you want a real crisp paint line. Remove when done coating. Sounds like you had the same rain storm we had in Niagara Falls.