Renovation of 1997 Northern Lite fiberglass truck camper

This camper had extensive dry rot, mold, and water damage when I bought it. When it was built, the installer at the factory stripped the threads when tightening a fitting on the fresh water tank. It must have leaked for years. The design of the floor was such that when it got wet, it would never dry out--it just rotted and grew mold! Here are some photos of the renovation work:

Northern Lite fiberglass camper. I liked that it came with a Stabile-Lift jacking system. It has a lower profile, is more aerodynamic, and weighs less than my previous Bigfoot camper. All in all though, I'd rate the Bigfoot as much better constructed.

The old floor and cabinets removed. The previous owner had paid $2,000 to have the floor "repaired," but the repair person never discovered that the water tank leaked. So the new floor got saturated also. And he didn't touch the soft and moldy cabinets. Some repair job! Very musty smelling camper.

The diseased interior on its way to the dump. The brown stuff is mold. Yuck.

Another view of the stripped floor. The repair guy had glued two layers of 3/4" ply down as his new floor, which came up with great difficulty. Yes, construction adhesive can really grab.

I got a good deal on some used fir flooring, which I installed over pressure-treated 2x4 sleepers as the new floor. I also ventilated the floor so if it got wet in the future, it would dry out. I didn't care much for Northern Lite's previous layout, so I moved the battery from the back wall and turned that area into a trunk accessible from the outside. The battery now lives in the cupboard under the two drawers. It is in a sealed compartment that is ventilated to the outside.

The theme is cars from the late 40s to the early 60s. My wife made the curtains and cushion covers. The hinged hatch over the water tank lifts up.

Cars and more cars help brighten the interior. I added a new stereo/CD player and speakers.

The new light is from a boating catalog.

The door to the closet. The images were decoupaged to 1/8" birch ply which was glued to the oak panel doors. They are from a book titled "Retro Rides."

The cupboards over the stove. The camper required extensive cleaning as the previous owners were slobs.

Close-up view of the storage under the dinette. This space is not used efficiently on most truck campers.

View of the storage compartments above the repaired fresh water tank. The door at left gives access to the water pump and also lets me check the water level in the tank. The converter/charger at right is new as the old one buzzed. The switch above it disconnects the negative line to the battery.

Sliding door to the bathroom.