Has anyone bought an RV/Camper/Trailer, then parted it out for....

[Rovobay]

Who has bought an RV/Camper/Trailer and then parted it out for the items to be transferred to your Skoolie? Was it worth it? It seems like a good idea to me if you can find the right donor. I am looking at a camper with front end water damage. but the items I am interested in are unaffected. for around $800 I could get a stove/oven, fridge, a/c unit, sink, hood vent, electric panel, and so much more. I think buying individually would be a lot more. in the end I would scrap the metal, burn the wood, and take the rest to the dump. I am just curious who has done this and if it was a good idea.

 

[Life And Stuff]

Sounds like a very smart idea!

 

[Whiskeyjr]

I can’t point out any specifics, but I have seen build threads on here before where this has been done.

 

[Rovobay]

did I mention it has an awning too? I am working on finalizing a price right now. think I might be doing a lot more to my skoolie than I first intended but it could be a good thing.

 

[mikerob643]

I am very new to skoolies and early on in my build so I could very well be completely wrong but I have done a ton of research for our build and I thought this was a great idea at first as well. The more I read, the more I started seeing this maybe wasn't such a good idea. Most components that come out of RV's aren't necessary the most durable or quality. We are looking to turn our bus into our home so durability and overall quality are big for us. As well as usefulness. Like we have room for a full size kitchen sink, which will be much more user friendly than the shallow rv sink that I was looking at.

 

[Tryonis]

I think this person did that exact thing. http://www.skoolie.net/forums/f11/4-curious-georges-2001-saf-t-liner-18205.html

 

[david.dgeorge07]

I did this and it is documented in my build thread.

Totally worth it, but not a magic bullet.

The stuff you don’t use you can sell or trade, but you will end up with some nice stuff in your bus that you had not planned on, you will get an education and how systems work, and you will save quite a bit of money overall even if you only use a modest amount of the content.

 

[Jshaul]

Can anyone post pictures of their salvage operations?

 

[mikerob643]

I did this and it is documented in my build thread.

Totally worth it, but not a magic bullet.

The stuff you don’t use you can sell or trade, but you will end up with some nice stuff in your bus that you had not planned on, you will get an education and how systems work, and you will save quite a bit of money overall even if you only use a modest amount of the content.

David's bus looks great and is a huge inspiration so it looks like completely disregarding my comment above could be in order

 

[david.dgeorge07]

I am very new to skoolies and early on in my build so I could very well be completely wrong but I have done a ton of research for our build and I thought this was a great idea at first as well. The more I read, the more I started seeing this maybe wasn't such a good idea. Most components that come out of RV's aren't necessary the most durable or quality. We are looking to turn our bus into our home so durability and overall quality are big for us. As well as usefulness. Like we have room for a full size kitchen sink, which will be much more user friendly than the shallow rv sink that I was looking at.

You are not wrong, but I still think worth it. The trailer I won bid on went for $350, although with auction fees and driving 10 hrs each way to get it I ended up with about $1k in it.

But.

Pieces I used:
Furnace $350
Water tank $75
Propane plumbing components: $150
Wire, switches, etc: $50
Water plumbing parts: $50
Flatbed trailer: $500
Slide out hardware: $300
Stainless steel sheets $50
Shower fixtures/drain $45
Propane and CO detector ?
Storage bin hatch ?
Fire extinguisher?
Dump tank valves $15


Stuff I have sold or bartered:
Fridge and power converter $500
Aluminum siding recycled $50
Cook top
Sink

Still selling:
Windows
Rooftop ac unit
Water heater

Holding tanks and shower pan were destroyed in incident that totaled trailer.

Trailers and the furniture in them are not robust, but the appliances, plumbing and wiring are pretty much what you would be likely to purchase yourself for your build.

I have found many unexpected ways to make use of the salvaged supplies.

I think it is good to be realistic in expecting your component use to be partial though.

 

[Rovobay]

I did this and it is documented in my build thread.

Totally worth it, but not a magic bullet.

The stuff you don’t use you can sell or trade, but you will end up with some nice stuff in your bus that you had not planned on, you will get an education and how systems work, and you will save quite a bit of money overall even if you only use a modest amount of the content.

started reading your thread. so far it is coming a long nicely. I still have a long way to go. quick question. did you have to do anything related to DMV after purchase or when you got rid of the bits you didn't use?

 

[david.dgeorge07]

started reading your thread. so far it is coming a long nicely. I still have a long way to go. quick question. did you have to do anything related to DMV after purchase or when you got rid of the bits you didn't use?

The trailer was sold with a certificate of destruction that I have to keep on file for a few years. Basically it just stipulates as a term of sale that I didn’t try to repair and sell it. It is fine to sell parts from the wreck, I just can’t sell it as an RV again. I would be really surprised if anyone ever came looking to see what I did with the trailer, but if they do I have that certificate and can show that I parted it out.

 

[ol trunt]

That's the way I built out Honeysuckle Rose. I bought a damaged 5th wheel and used all the tanks, propane system, space heater stove and oven, complete bath and the kitchen sink. I sold off the roof A/C and generator and scrapped the trailer remnants. Were I to build another Skoolie I'd do it the same way. Besides, tearing up a trailer is fun and EDUCATIONAL to boot. Jack

 

[david.dgeorge07]

5th wheel is the way to go if you can.

 

[dan-fox]

What's the possibility of taking the remaining chassis after the teardown and repurposing it as a flatbed or stakeside trailer? Worth the hassle? Would it be saleable as such?

 

[Rovobay]

Well... I went ahead and bought it. I found a place where I can strip it down, take what I need, recycle what I can and take the rest to the dump (which shouldn't be too much) The fact that it is a camper is great because it has a small footprint and everything is very compact so that will save me from too much waste. probably even repurpose the wood for something or at worst case scenario, I will use it in the fire pit.

Final price $750. I will post pics on my build thread when I get it home.

 

[Rovobay]

just added my signature..... I think. test...

 

[o1marc]

What's the possibility of taking the remaining chassis after the teardown and repurposing it as a flatbed or stakeside trailer? Worth the hassle? Would it be saleable as such?

You'll notice in Davids post he salvaged and resold the "flat bed trailer" for $500. So they do have a resale value to someone, just don't think it would be more than a light duty trailer.

 

[Rovobay]

You are not wrong, but I still think worth it. The trailer I won bid on went for $350, although with auction fees and driving 10 hrs each way to get it I ended up with about $1k in it.

But.

Pieces I used:
Furnace $350
Water tank $75
Propane plumbing components: $150
Wire, switches, etc: $50
Water plumbing parts: $50
Flatbed trailer: $500
Slide out hardware: $300
Stainless steel sheets $50
Shower fixtures/drain $45
Propane and CO detector ?
Storage bin hatch ?
Fire extinguisher?
Dump tank valves $15


Stuff I have sold or bartered:
Fridge and power converter $500
Aluminum siding recycled $50
Cook top
Sink

Still selling:
Windows
Rooftop ac unit
Water heater

Holding tanks and shower pan were destroyed in incident that totaled trailer.

Trailers and the furniture in them are not robust, but the appliances, plumbing and wiring are pretty much what you would be likely to purchase yourself for your build.

I have found many unexpected ways to make use of the salvaged supplies.

I think it is good to be realistic in expecting your component use to be partial though.

Through post! I plan to re-purpose what I can and sell what I don't need. learning a lot from your build by the way. mine will not be that in-depth! your attention to wiring was insane!