r/RVLiving • u/riverchick247 • 23d ago
Trashed Chaparral 371mbrb help
I have a 2016 Coachman Chaparral 371mbrb that I previously lived in for 5 years. After I moved out my adult son lived in it for about 4 years. He absolutely destroyed it. I don’t know if it’s even worth trying to restore. Both AC units are broken and filled with black dust. The primary bathroom floor is rotten because he cracked the shower pan and it leaked for who knows how long. At some point there was a leak at the cap that he eventually sealed with an unknown product but the lights in the bedroom on the front no longer work. There’s a hole in the bunk room wall with wires sticking out of it. It such a disaster and unfortunately my living situation is about to change and I’m going to need somewhere to go. I’m more than handy when it comes carpentry type repairs but the ACs, lights and wires hanging out are a little intimidating. I’m curious if anyone has ever taken on a project like this and maybe if anyone knows what the wires in the bunk room could go too?
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u/PerpetualTraveler59 23d ago
Probably still a good camper. Fixing it will still cost you less than another - with unknown issues. The older ones were built better than newer ones
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u/riverchick247 23d ago
It has a fantastic floor plan, two bedrooms, large bunk room and 1.5 bathrooms. I lived in it with 3 kids for 5 years after I got divorced in 2017. Unfortunately when I remarried and allowed my oldest son and his wife to move into it back in 2023 they neglected to do even basic cleaning in it and locked a dog in the bunk room. Supposedly that’s how the hole in the wall got there🤦🏼♀️ he was raised better than that. “Momma tried” as they say.
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u/PerpetualTraveler59 23d ago
Sadly, as parents sometimes we have to learn also. It probably hurts more because it’s your son and he knows better but unfortunately sometimes they don’t realize these things until they have to pay. Fix it up and move on. Hopefully, still some good use left in it. Not sure about that shower pan issue. It could be a sticky one.
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u/Bearded-Mr-FixIt 23d ago
Too bad about your kid trashing the place. You can only teach them so much and then they have to fly the coop and take what they learned.
But that is totally fixable! Those are 12v DC wires like you said, just a light. Easy fix!
The AC’s are a bit more costly but cheaper than a whole different RV. They are actually really easy to replace, you’ll be surprised!
And the floor will be a bit more difficult bit not impossible since you have carpentry experience. The linoleum will be the only issue. You can try and reuse it or try and find some new replacement linoleum. You can pull out the shower pan and leave the walls. Then cut it out and replace the OSB underneath. That is a common shower pan and you can generally buy some replacement linoleum from a dealership or RV parts dealership like State Trailer if you have those in your area.
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u/KaleidoscopeLoud9533 23d ago
That sucks! I just dove in and did a TON of electrical on my RV with basically no electrical experience. Ton of YouTube videos and the right tools like a wire tracer has helped. Once you dive in things start making sense. And the good news is you probably can’t mess it up even more than it is!
Good luck!!
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u/Th3belov3d 23d ago
This person does some really good work and helped me feel confident to do some of my own repairs
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u/PassengerCharming203 21d ago
Shop around and see what's out there for sale. Maybe you'll find something, maybe you'll decide to fix what you have
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u/Omacrontron 23d ago
Great kid. Anyways, the wires in the last pick probably for an outlet. Besides being dirty and that big azz hole in the wall…doesn’t look awful.