Restoring a Vintage Camper? Beware of These Hazards - GearJunkie

Posted: 04 Aug 2020 12:00 AM PDT

Restoring a vintage camper can be a great DIY project and a good way to own an off-grid vehicle on a budget. But beware of these hazards when restoring a camper trailer.

As more people begin to camp and fall in love with affordable, easygoing outdoor vacations, many will upgrade from tent camping to a travel trailer. However, when they see the price tag of a brand new trailer, it's likely they'll look to cost-effective alternatives such as restoring a vintage camper.

There are a plethora of resources out there for restoring an old travel trailer. However, these do-it-yourself guides overlook some of the hazards that come with vintage camper restoration projects.

Things such as carbon monoxide, asbestos, and water damage can pose serious health risks if not dealt with properly. It's important to know some of the most dangerous hazards before one dives into a restoration. Cutting corners is never worth risking the safety and health of yourself and those around you.

Old Camper Hazards: Tips for Restoring

Carbon Monoxide

One of the most common hazards in campers is carbon monoxide (CO). Although this may not be an issue during the restoration process, it can be deadly while camping. Each year, at least 500 people die of carbon monoxide poisoning in RVs and campers.

Some signs of CO poisoning include dizziness, nausea, intense headache, confusion, and sleepiness. When you undertake a restoration project, it's paramount to ensure that CO-emitting appliances are properly functional.

The most common cause of CO poisoning in campers derives from equipment failure. Usually, exhaust from a camper's generator that leaks into the living quarters is the culprit.

Thoroughly inspect any exhaust pipes. If broken, repair them before use. If the generator is housed in a storage compartment, it's imperative there are no leaks into the living quarters. Campers should avoid generator use while asleep, if possible.

Another cause of CO poisoning can come from the exhaust of nearby vehicles. While camping in close quarters, this poses even more of a risk. Never allow vehicles to idle unattended, especially if you plan to remain inside your camper.

Propane Appliances

One other common source of CO gas build up in campers and RVs is propane gas appliances that are unvented or faulty. A buildup of liquid propane (LP) gas poses a risk not only for CO poisoning but also a risk of explosion.

Propane lines can easily succumb to dry rot when stored for long periods of time and not inspected, especially on vintage trailers and RVs that have not been used for several years. LP gas is heavier than air and will sink as low as it can. That means that tanks stored inside the camper or RV there should always have a vent at the lowest point.

It's pertinent to make sure all CO-emitting equipment is up to date when you restore your vintage trailer. Not only during the restoration process is this important, but one should have propane systems, generators, and appliances inspected annually by a certified RV technician.

Regularly replacing old propane and CO detectors is beneficial in avoiding CO poisoning as well. Always make sure they are functional and install them in the proper places. Because propane is heavier than air, the detector should be installed at the baseboard level. Carbon monoxide detectors are often paired with smoke detectors, which you should also have in your camper.

Asbestos in Vintage Campers

One of the best parts of buying a vintage camper or RV to restore is the ability to completely redo the interior. You can't go out and buy a brand-new travel trailer with a customized interior without spending a fortune. By gutting and redoing the interior of a vintage camper, the options are endless. However, removing old parts and pieces comes with its own dangers. Restorers should be prepared to protect themselves against exposure to harmful substances and know what to look for.

Before asbestos was partly banned in the United States in the 1980s, it was used in many building products. Asbestos is a group of silicate minerals that can cause mesothelioma, lung cancer, and asbestosis. When breaking up tile, asbestos can easily become trapped in the abdomen if inhaled or ingested and lead to the development of peritoneal mesothelioma. With mesothelioma usually having a life expectancy of 12-21 months after diagnosis, exposure to asbestos is nothing to take lightly.

Typically, you will remove the floor and any old tile when restoring a camper. Old vinyl tile often becomes worn and dull after years of use. Both the tile and adhesive could contain asbestos if the camper is older than 1980.

Asbestos could also be present in loose-fill insulation. Although batt-style insulation is most common in campers, take precautions against inhaling this material.

If your vintage camper is large enough to be equipped with drum brakes, take care if you perform a brake job yourself. Brake pads and shoes often contained asbestos because of its incredible heat resistance and strength.

To mitigate your risk of inhaling or ingesting asbestos, one should wear a high-quality organic respirator and Tyvek suit during the demolition phase. It's also important to double bag asbestos-containing products in a minimum of 6mm plastic. Before leaving the worksite, remove the Tyvek suit. Immediately wash clothing that was worn, and shower to reduce the chances of asbestos fibers embedding themselves into furniture or other household items.

Inside Vintage Camper — Photo credit: Ken Ratcliff

Water Damage and Mold

Another important part of any restoration project is inspecting for water damage. Travel trailers, both vintage and brand new, are known for springing leaks. Even the smallest leak can result in an immense amount of damage to the structure of the camper. If left unrepaired, this could cause the camper to collapse in on itself.

Possibly more dangerous is the presence of mold. Mold loves moisture, and if water has penetrated the camper shell, you can be certain mold won't be far behind.

Once you've torn out the walls and old insulation in your camper, carefully inspect the wood framing for damage. If any soft spots, black spots, or wet spots are present, you will need to repair them. You can do so by removing the old framing and replacing it with new material. You can sister the new framing to any old framing that hasn't succumbed to damage.

However, you should remain cautious to make sure the new framing is strong and structurally sound. If you're not sure how to do so, it's important to seek professional help in reframing your camper.

Remediating Mold in a Camper

You can remediate mold in a multitude of ways. The first step is to discard any porous material with mold such as cloth or carpet. You can attempt to get rid of mold with white vinegar, but often bleach and soapy water will be the best solution. If the mold is resilient to these treatments on wood framing or interior features, they may need to be removed entirely.

If mold is present, it will certainly need to be dealt with. By allowing mold to grow, you risk serious health side effects. Mold can cause wheezing, coughing, and itchy eyes. With prolonged exposure, mold can also cause more severe chronic lung illnesses from infection.

Vintage Camper Mold

Get Out and Enjoy It!

Now that you have your vintage camper clean from harmful toxins, customized, and freshly painted, it's finally time to take it out on the road. Once you have your camper, it will be hard to not want to take it out right away. However, getting out for a weekend at camp isn't worth the risk of lifelong or life-ending hazards that should be dealt with first.

A vintage camper should be something that fills you with nostalgia and joy — not itchy eyes and wheezing. Take the time to restore your vintage camper safely and properly so you can enjoy it for years to come.

On the Road

A Florida landlord got a big PPP loan. Tenants get rats, mold and evictions. - Tampa Bay Times

Posted: 22 Aug 2020 12:00 AM PDT

TAMPA — James Flanning thought he'd outgrown his childhood asthma. But after he moved into Timberfalls apartments five months ago, he started waking at night with his lungs clenched like fists.

When that happens, he walks to his balcony to draw small breaths of midnight air. Lately, Flanning, 37, has been using an inhaler for the first time as an adult.

In his son's room, the carpet peels back easily to reveal streaky patches that smell of mildew. The bathroom air vent is crusted with splotches of mold, and the paint bubbles in places where the wall crumbles like cake. On a recent afternoon, a rat skittered onto his 1-year-old daughter's arm while she munched breakfast on the living room floor, his wife said.

The issues in his family's unit are not isolated. Last week, a neighboring tenant said she caught her ninth rat this year, squirming on a sticky trap in the kitchen. A few doors away, another neighbor's closet flooded — for the fourth time, she said.

The Miami company that leases out these apartments, Tzadik Management, boasts a billion-dollar portfolio of residential complexes nationally, including at least 12 in Hillsborough County. Several in Hillsborough have been repeatedly cited by code enforcement.

Federal records show Tzadik Properties, which lists the same address as Tzadik Management, recently received between $2 million and $5 million as an emergency loan through the Paycheck Protection Program, created to help companies avert layoffs during the coronavirus pandemic. The government doesn't disclose specific loan amounts, only ranges.

Mi'Lan Mack, 4, left, and her sister Myla Mack, 9, play outside of the Timberfalls apartment complex on Monday. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

But while Tzadik got a bailout from the government, some of its residents could soon find themselves homeless. The company is threatening dozens of tenants with eviction, even though many said they lost their jobs to the coronavirus.

Tzadik has filed more evictions during the pandemic than any other company in Florida, according to a July analysis by the Center for Public Integrity.

"They should be a little more lenient if they got that loan," said Anastasia Lee, who also lives in Timberfalls and is facing eviction. "That's a lot of money."

In an emailed statement, Tzadik Management defended its eviction filings. It said that it dismissed any cases that fell under a federal moratorium on evictions, part of Congress's pandemic relief package. The company did not directly respond to 17 detailed questions sent by email, and instead provided two statements that addressed some questions but ignored others related to living conditions and its federal loan.

"Tzadik is, and has been, operating in compliance with all applicable laws, and will continue to keep the safety and well-being of its staff and tenants as its priority," the company said, in part. "Employees are on-site completing work orders as they come in and working with tenants during the pandemic."

Mold is visible on an air conditioning vent in the bathroom of James and Christina Flanning's apartment on Monday. James Flanning said he has had to use an inhaler since moving into the apartment. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

Flanning begged to differ, saying his family had moved into the unit knowing about some of its issues, but the landlord had promised to fix them. Months later, the problems have only worsened.

The landlord company doesn't care "at all," he said. Despite the fact that he lost his construction job and only recently was re-employed, he and his wife have been scraping together money to stay in motels, because they're concerned about the health of their kids. At this point, that's much more important than trying to get caught up on rent.

"I struggle right now," he said. "Real deal struggle."

***

Since Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a state moratorium on evictions and foreclosures April 2, the number of filings in Tampa Bay area courts have been down compared to last year, a signal that many landlords could be waiting for the freeze to expire.

Not Tzadik Management. It has filed more than 70 evictions in Hillsborough County alone since that moratorium took effect. Nearly all cited nonpayment of rent.

Then the company dismissed roughly half of its eviction filings, a move that Tzadik said was designed to comply with the federal eviction moratorium enacted in late March. The CARES Act prohibited landlords in certain types of properties from initiating evictions based on nonpayment of rent.

But starting June 1, while that moratorium was still in effect, the company began delivering notices to some of the same tenants whom they had tried to evict for failing to pay, court documents show. Because those people were renting month-to-month, the landlord can end their tenancies if they give 15 days to vacate. Tzadik then used the termination as the reason for the evictions.

"As we all adjust to new policies and procedures that have been put in place to protect Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic, Tzadik Management is also adjusting to new and evolving laws and deadlines," the company said. It declined to answer emailed follow-up questions about the evictions, saying: "The company is compliant with all applicable laws and will not be issuing additional statements."

A cat climbs the wall of an apartment on Monday at the Timberfalls apartment complex in Tampa. The balcony above the apartment shows evidence of damage and disrepair. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

Because of the eviction freeze imposed by DeSantis, the cases that weren't dismissed haven't been finalized. But many of Tzadik's Hillsborough cases are teed up for a judge's order when the moratorium is lifted. It currently extends through August.

Lee, Flanning's neighbor at Timberfalls, said she lost her temporary job with a catering company because of the coronavirus. The extra money she makes braiding hair also dropped off.

Now, Lee, 36, who lives in the apartment with her three kids, is looking for another job and hopes she can save enough to move before she's evicted, since the conditions in her apartment aren't improving anyway.

Even though her closet carpet was soaked, she believes from a leaking AC unit, she couldn't move her clothes to the bedroom's other closet — because she's afraid to open it. For weeks, the distinct smell of a dead animal has been seeping through the walls.

"You put in a maintenance order, and they ignore it," she said. "They don't do anything for these apartments."

Anastasia Lee, 36, sits in her bedroom on Monday at the Timberfalls apartment complex in Tampa. Lee is among the complex's residents who say their property management company, Tzadik, is ignoring maintenance requests. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

Another tenant of Tzadik's, Robert Murray, who's also facing eviction, lives in a different Tampa complex called Columbia Oaks.

Murray, 30, who according to court documents was a delivery driver for the Hillsborough school district but has been out of work, said an employee of the landlord knocks on his door every week asking for rent. He applied for unemployment but said the checks have been arriving irregularly.

"They don't care what's going on, they just care about that dollar," Murray said. "They ain't giving you any solutions."

Although Murray and his girlfriend, Erial Wilson, said they would like to stay in their apartment, where they live with Murray's father, they've also had their share of unaddressed maintenance issues.

Since they moved in two years ago, they noticed decay in their second-story balcony. Then in November, Wilson's leg went through the wood, injuring her hip and leg, she said.

In a court filing, Murray said it took three months after the incident for maintenance to address the porch, "and it's still not fully fixed."

In Georgia, Tzadik got into legal trouble in a case involving rigid rent collection.

On July 29, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced it was charging Tzadik Management Group and its Georgia portfolio company with discrimination for refusing to waive $100 monthly late fees for a tenant who paid rent with disability benefits, which arrived late in the month.

Tzadik said it decided not to renew the tenant's lease because of his late payments, as well as a "confrontation he instigated at the leasing office."

"The company consistently works with its tenants in financial distress to create payment plans, or other proactive measures, to keep its residents in good standing," Tzadik Management wrote in an email. "That being said, the company does not provide preferential treatment to any of its tenants and adheres to lease and community rules to ensure all residents are held to the same baseline of standards."

Water from a kitchen sink drains into a plastic storage tub under the sink of James and Christina Flanning's apartment kitchen. The Flannings say building maintenance workers have avoided repairing plumbing issues, leaving them no option but to discard the water outside. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

***

Tzadik Management received its federal loan to retain 204 employees, according to federal data. Under the program, the loan will be forgivable if the company uses the majority of it for payroll, with allowances for companies' rent, utilities or interest on mortgages. (The Tampa Bay Times and related companies received an $8.5 million loan.)

The pandemic didn't prohibit Tzadik from expanding. On July 16, Tzadik announced it had acquired JM Real Estate, a commercial property management, leasing and sales company in Brevard County.

According to its website, Tzadik has managed 19,000 residential rental units and 15 million square feet of commercial real estate in more than 20 states.

James Flanning, 37, listens for animal activity on Monay while using his fist to wake up a colony of bats which he says lives within the walls of his Timberfalls apartment in Tampa. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

State business filings show that Tzadik Management or its subsidiaries own at least five of the 12 Hillsborough apartment complexes it manages: Avesta Del Rio Apartments, Timberfalls, Tzadik Oaks, TZM Bella Mar and TZM Lago Bello, all clustered in the northwestern part of the county, less than five miles from Busch Gardens.

The other seven complexes list different owners, most with addresses in New York, but Tzadik performs management services, such as finding tenants and filing evictions.

An online biography of Tzadik Management CEO Adam M. Hendry describes him as "a charismatic and visionary leader with a bias for action." One of his primary focuses, it continues, is "developing and growing ... relationships with tenants that cause them to be raving fans."

A Times reporter left a voicemail on Hendry's phone, but he referred questions to the public relations firm that issued statements over email.

Martel Nealey, 42, who lives at Tzadik Oaks Apartments in Tampa and is facing eviction, said he was disappointed to hear about the company receiving financial assistance that has not been available to him. He lost his warehouse job at Raymond James Stadium and submitted records in court showing he applied for unemployment but said he did not receive it.

"If I received unemployment, I would've given them their money, but I can't give what I don't have," Nealey said. "They're pressing everybody, trying to get them out, and they got a loan? That's crazy."

***

Across Tzadik's several properties, the complaints raised by tenants follow similar patterns.

The company was cited for more than 50 violations over several years by code enforcement. Problems included mold, plumbing leaks, severe water damage, non-working air conditioning and pest infestations, including cockroaches and bed bugs, county records show. In many instances, inspectors returned after the citation to find the issues resolved.

A rat lay incapacitated on a glue trap on Monday at the Timberfalls apartment complex in Tampa. The rat, which was still alive, is one of nine rats trapped in this apartment this year, the tenant said. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

In one case in 2018, Tzadik accumulated $48,250 in fines and fees after it took nearly seven months to fix all its violations. The inspector had found "a black organic substance" growing in the bathroom vent, cabinets and doors falling off hinges, a leaking fridge and a peeling bathtub.

On several occasions, the tenants who filed the complaints said they had tried asking maintenance to fix the problems.

"She reported the issues when she originally moved in back in January but nothing has been repaired," one complaint reads. "Landlord is aware of the issues but is not addressing them," says another. In a complaint where an investigator found mold growing on the walls, the tenant said the landlord was only willing to paint over it.

Tzadik did not respond to several questions sent by email about its tenants' hazardous living conditions, code violations or the complaints about poor maintenance service.

In court documents filed by tenants facing eviction, they allege similar inaction.

One tenant who's being evicted from a Temple Terrace complex called Heritage Cove said Tzadik Management can't evict her — because she already left. Lori Neal's husband had a stroke Feb. 10 that required him to use a wheelchair, yet despite calling seven times over two months, a ramp was not installed to the entrance of their apartment, she said.

"On April 17, 2020, there was still no ramp nor any indication that one would be built," the court document reads. "Plaintiff left Defendant with no choice but to find a wheelchair accessible home for her husband."

Back in Timberfalls, Flanning and his family came home after the stint in a motel and returned to their usual routine of battling their apartment: laying poison traps for the rats, using an inhaler for the air, and having to order take-out because the refrigerator doesn't keep anything cold.

The exposed wood and damaged fascia of a Timberfalls apartment building. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

Another constant task is dumping a large bin of brown foamy water over their balcony. Because the pipe under their kitchen sink doesn't fit properly, it blocks the drain, he said. So the dirty water flows into the bin instead.

Flanning recently got a job at a Checkers restaurant and is hoping to save money, so the family can move and replace furniture that might be unsafe because of the mold. The rent for their two-bedroom unit is $950, with a $100 fee if they're more than five days late, according to the eviction paperwork filed against them.

He sent his 11-year-old son to live with a cousin, because he, too, is having trouble breathing.

But Flanning worries about his youngest daughters, who are 1 and 2 years old.

"I've got my two babies in there," he said.

Times staff photographer Douglas R. Clifford contributed to this report.

One-year-old JaNayla Flanning sleeps in the living room of her apartment on Monday. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

Jayda Flanning, 2, left, with her parents, James Flanning, 37, and Christina Flanning, 29, in front of their Timberfalls apartment. [ DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Times ]

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