Removal of entertainment cabinet

[moultonpsc]

Bought a 2005 sprinter 303BHS which has some water damage to the wall and floor of the camper. Problem is that it is behind and under the entertainment cabinet leading to the bunkhouse! How do I remove the cabinet without completely ruining it so I can reuse it after I repair the wall and floor! It has the electrical panel and the hvac thermostat built in to the cabinet. Any advice or information would be most helpful. Thanks Mike

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by moultonpsc

Bought a 2005 sprinter 303BHS which has some water damage to the wall and floor of the camper. Problem is that it is behind and under the entertainment cabinet leading to the bunkhouse! How do I remove the cabinet without completely ruining it so I can reuse it after I repair the wall and floor! It has the electrical panel and the hvac thermostat built in to the cabinet. Any advice or information would be most helpful. Thanks Mike

I am pretty sure I have no idea what our entertainment cabinet looks like. Pictures would help. I doubt anyone will be able to tell where in the cabin this cabinet is located. Have you fixed the leak yet? Have you examined the roof? On an older camper, the roof maintenance may have been neglected and that should be taken care of ASAP.

[chuckster57]

As far as removing it, look at the framework. There should be screws through the 1X1 framing into the wall and floor.

[travelin texans]

! How do I remove the cabinet without completely ruining it so I can reuse it after I repair the wall and floor? (QUOTE)

VERY CAREFULLY!

[wiredgeorge]

Saw a pic of the entertainment center which is located on an interior wall between bunkhouse and cabin. It is floor to ceiling. The electrical wires will be a chore to pull then replace. Take off all the outside panels you can as well as the doors. As noted, hunt for screws going through the 1x1 framing and there will be some that are very hard to see so get a mirror and check towards the front and other hard to see locations. Probably screwed through the top, back, maybe the outside wall and definitely the floor.

[jsb5717]

I agree that pics would help. Can you see areas where the cabinet is up against the wall? As suggested you might find 1x1 cleats that are screwed to the wall and the cabinet screwed through the cleat from the interior to the cabinet. That would be best case. However, I've also seen cabinet paneling stapled to the cleats from the exterior of the cabinet with another interior panel stapled from the interior. It makes a nicer finish but also buries the cleat in the cabinet wall. That's more worst case scenario.

But, again, pics of the inside of the cabinet and the wall would be helpful in providing guidance.

[wiredgeorge]

Found a pic of his entertainment center online:

[moultonpsc]

Thanks everyone for the helpful advice, next time I will add pics. Cabinet is out, time to repair the water damage and reinstall the cabinet.

[jsb5717]

Glad you got it out. I may have missed it but did you discover the source of the water damage and get that repaired already?

[flybouy]

Just as a side note. an inexpensive moisture meter can really come in handy in these situations. They are battery powered anmd have 2 sharp probes that you can pierce flooring or wall paper to get to the surface below. The meter will give you the moisture content of the wood (or drywall in a house) and you can tell where the water intrusion is and how far it transits so you know how far it's involved before tearing things apart. It comes in real handy when checking for walls as you can tell where the moisture is or isn't. For example a if a wall is dry under a window and the floor is moist then you know the water likely came in from below. If the wall is wet above the window then start with the roof or drip rails, awning rail, etc.