Background
The stairs and bench at my mum's caravan were starting to show their age, the rubber treads on one set of steps had started to peel in large areas and were becoming a trip hazard. The paintwork on both sets were badly corroded.
i decided to look into either replacing them or refurbishing them if they were viable. The bench i was happy to refurbish as i had done this with an almost identical one at home and it had been very successful.
I investigated buying replacement steps. For the sizes required the typical replacement cost was £140 per set of steps. I felt this was rather a lot and it would be far cheaper to refurbish them. Before starting work i sourced all the parts needed.
1. Metal paint, Hammerite, hammer finish, dark green.
2. Replacement adjustable self levelling feet.
3. Adhesive suitable for external use and that will not damage paint or rubber.
4. Replacement plastic tube end caps.
5. Rubber tread.
The total cost of the parts was less then £50 for both sets of steps. The time to refurbish each set of steps was 2 days in total for both sets and 1 day for the bench. All of the work was done in the summer so it was not unpleasant being outside!
i decided to look into either replacing them or refurbishing them if they were viable. The bench i was happy to refurbish as i had done this with an almost identical one at home and it had been very successful.
I investigated buying replacement steps. For the sizes required the typical replacement cost was £140 per set of steps. I felt this was rather a lot and it would be far cheaper to refurbish them. Before starting work i sourced all the parts needed.
1. Metal paint, Hammerite, hammer finish, dark green.
2. Replacement adjustable self levelling feet.
3. Adhesive suitable for external use and that will not damage paint or rubber.
4. Replacement plastic tube end caps.
5. Rubber tread.
The total cost of the parts was less then £50 for both sets of steps. The time to refurbish each set of steps was 2 days in total for both sets and 1 day for the bench. All of the work was done in the summer so it was not unpleasant being outside!
The repairs to the stairs and bench were fairly straight forward apart from a few problems.
1. The interaction between the Hammerite paint and the Evo-Stik solvent based glue.
2. Obtaining replacement rubber for the treads.
The interaction between the Hammerite paint and the Evo-Stik solvent based glue
As soon as the glue was applied to the steps it was clear that it was interacting with the paint which started to bubble and blister. I immediately scraped the sticky mess off and had to wait 24 hours before preparing the surface and repainting the steps. I had a great deal of difficulty getting any solid information from the paint makers or adhesive manufacturers about what could and could not be used. In the end by some experimenting i found that non-solvent based Evo-Stik as opposed to solvent based which i had used did a good job if applied carefully and thinly.
Obtaining replacement rubber for the treads
Obtaining suitable rubber tread that matched the original was harder than i thought and when i did find a supplier it cost more to ship than the item cost. The figures quoted for one square metre was £40-£50 including delivery. In the end i went to a local independent hardware shop in Jedburgh just a few miles away and they had exactly what i needed for less than £20.
1. The interaction between the Hammerite paint and the Evo-Stik solvent based glue.
2. Obtaining replacement rubber for the treads.
The interaction between the Hammerite paint and the Evo-Stik solvent based glue
As soon as the glue was applied to the steps it was clear that it was interacting with the paint which started to bubble and blister. I immediately scraped the sticky mess off and had to wait 24 hours before preparing the surface and repainting the steps. I had a great deal of difficulty getting any solid information from the paint makers or adhesive manufacturers about what could and could not be used. In the end by some experimenting i found that non-solvent based Evo-Stik as opposed to solvent based which i had used did a good job if applied carefully and thinly.
Obtaining replacement rubber for the treads
Obtaining suitable rubber tread that matched the original was harder than i thought and when i did find a supplier it cost more to ship than the item cost. The figures quoted for one square metre was £40-£50 including delivery. In the end i went to a local independent hardware shop in Jedburgh just a few miles away and they had exactly what i needed for less than £20.
After work completed