Improving my Cougar High County TT

[ras100]

Just coming off warrantee on my 2015 Cougar High County Ultra Light Model 33RES Travel Trailer and need some advice. We bought this camper because of the great layout and multiple conveniences. Unfortunately we are noticing some areas of manufacturing are substandard. In the name of reducing weight, cheap paneling has been used on the exterior of the sink island and throughout the closet/shelving system. Since we're on the road almost full-time now, things are "shaking out" so to speak. The paneling around our sink island is coming off, only held in by small staples that don't hold. The shelving under the sink is also made from the same material and collapsed early in out trip (we started in October). Here is my question: what can I do to start reconstructing the island using decent wood while not adding a huge amount of weight. I'm not too handy so I plan to hire a carpenter or cabinet maker to do the work. I want to replace the exterior paneling and redesign the shelving using proper wood and construction. Any suggestions would be appreciated. We plan on keeping the camper at least a few more years.

[CaptnJohn]

There are many wood products and non-wood products to choose from. If the frame is holding up it can be covered with anything. A better grade of paneling may be your least expensive option and not add much weight. Cut to fit and glue it to the frame with a few staples to hold until the glue dries. Anyone with access to a table saw and tape measure can do that in no time.
The shelving is a little more difficult for long term sustainability. More so with aluminum framing as the lightest is the aluminum shelving most often used in closets. Just for giggles as I cannot see the under sink project, I'd probably build a freestanding shelf with the closet type shelving. Just have to build it snug~~ After measurements and a trip to Lowes probably less than 1/2 day job for both.

[sourdough]

As was said, there are lots of ways to attack the problem. It sounds like you don't have a lot of wood to replace so you could almost go with normal cabinet construction BUT I doubt the framing would support full on cabinet grade materials. Paneling would work, 1/4" plywood or there are several types of manmade products that you might look into. All of it should be pretty straightforward as far as construction. Access to pneumatic tools will be a great help. If you want to try to match existing wood/colors, sanded and finished plywood will let you stain and finish to match what you have.

You could even get some thin T111 to use and stain it although it has a rough finish that I don't think you will want. For shelving, depending on the size, you could use plywood or regular lumber. For simple shelving I like to just use 1x stock, glue and join with a biscuit joiner, cut to fit then finish. Options are many and the work would be fun.

[ras100]

Thank you all for your suggestions. It really needs to match all the other woodwork which is all around the interior. It's a dark finish. I want to keep things light but strong and sturdy. We know how much stress is placed on everything when you're on the road.

[jsmith948]

I would suggest doing a forum search. Several of us have modified our interior cabinets and there are many threads regarding staining/finishing the trim. As an example, our Cougar has what Keystone calls the 'cherry' cabinets. When we modified several of our cabinets, we found that red oak shelf frames and trim pieces stained with MinWax 'Gunstock' resulted in an acceptable match (for us).
Take your time, sand every thing you do to at least 150/200 grit, then stain and use two coats of poly. Good luck.:)