Heat wave

Mid-January found Sonoma County in the midst of over a week of record high temperatures. The gardener in me prays for rain. But those of us with "aluminitus" take advantage of every dry day! Perfect weather for doing some interior wood work on the RR.

I had previously removed all the drawers and cabinet faces and prepped them for refinishing. I dug out my power sander and charged into the task of sanding all of the interior wood. I found new muscles I never knew I had before. Try holding a sander over your head while sanding a ceiling. Kinda torques the neck a bit. I did learn from previous sanding experiences and wore painter's mask the whole time. It was a fine line between too much and too little sanding. Some areas needed to be ground down a bit to remove old water stains. But overall, the birch paneling and cabinetry was in decent shape. I wiped everything down with a wet sponge and left it to dry out overnight.

When I purchased the RR, Paul had told me that Zinsser shellac "Amber" would make the wood look new again. And boy was he right! The finish drys to look like golden honey. Absolutely beautiful - especially on the new panels I had replaced. The shellac was a bit tricky to apply. Because it dries very quickly, it can't be applied with a brush. I found that a piece of clean t-shirt made a good "rag" applicator. The fumes were a bit overwhelming and I had to take frequent breaks. There go the few brain cells I had left over from the 80's! A long day to say the least, but what a difference.

The next day I decided to try and remove the kitchen sink. Ideally, I'd like to replace the counter tops and the sink would need to be pulled. Well, just like the day I removed the water tank, nothing is simple on this old tank. First, the tight access would barely allow room for a Hobbit to get in there and work. Second, everything is either rusted, stripped or frozen. A bit frustrating. So I did what I always do - push and shove until something breaks! I would need to replace the water lines anyhow ... right? I did manage to get the old enamel sink out in one piece. The story of the counter top deserves it own blog entry and will have to wait for another night. I'd kill to know how and in what order things were assembled in this old trailer. All I will say is OMG! Its like a Rubik's cube!!!