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With an area that size the best method would be to fibreglass it, unless you take the van to a motor factor that mixes paint and can mix paint to match it'll probably look a bit obvious, Or you could seal the holes and then try to find an airvent to cover the area, most people wouldn't even realise it was a dummy vent

is it to far up the caravan to turn that section onto a locker.

neil

if it was mine,and so much damage i would go for the overall look of the van.what i mean is decide where it starts and finishes from top to bottom and draw a line.in this area after pushing in the damage you could use a car body filler.fill in then sand to a fine finish.afterwards paint a dark blue line down each of the sides.you need a filler for alloy.maybe a boat yard could help. 

http://www.yachtpaint.com/uk/default.asp

I would repair the area with fibre glass or car body filler , then have some graphics made up that will cover the area , get 2 sets made so you can match it up on the other side of the caravan . http://www.vizualimpact.co.uk/HOMEx.html

atb

Wizard

Quote: Originally posted by michael on 13/9/2008

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great minds m8.lol

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Ok tell the truth , you've been waiting for me to start posting haven't you LOL .

atb

Wizard

Ok tell the truth , you've been waiting for me to start posting haven't you LOL .

yes

yes

Pmsl .

I have a similar problem but I don't think it is to such a big area.  Not wanting to sound stupid could someone tell me exactly how to treat this affected area?

Would I have to rub it down with something? I am frightened of making it look worse but I suppose that I will have to get down to the undamaged part  Then what would I fill it with? Someone has said silicone but where would I buy this from and diy shop and is it the same as you would use to seal around baths?

Sorry for needing a fools guide but I will have to be sorting this problem out before the caravan is put in storage for the winter.

Thanks in anticipation

Hi barbaratomo , i would use one of the idea's above .

Do not use silicone sealant , if it's a really small area i would use Sikaflex 512 caravan mastic . 
For bigger area's , seal with Sikaflex and then cover with a dummy vent or stick on graphic .

atb

Wizard

However you look at it, you'll have to make it look worse to make it better.

I would agree with Wizard, a graphic might even improve the overall look of the van.

Firstly tho, I would start to remove the effected aluminium, This will probably leave a sizeable hole,

The full extent of the damage is over a 20x6 inch (50x15cm) area with the appearence of holes like a shotgun would make.

This is a pretty big area, so my suggestion would be to treat it like a car body. I'm assuming you are working on it from the outside.

Halfords or somewhere like it will have some of that P38 putty, along with the aluminium mesh that acts as a base to fill the gaping hole. I used it to rebuild the back corners of my fibreglass light array (That were missing when I bought my van).

Trick here is to work in thin layers, and sand down each layer before building a new one. Once dry this stuff goes rock hard, and if your lucky, once sanded and either sprayed or under a decal, no-one will ever know.

Good luck.

 Hi all,  I too have a similar problem on a 1998 van though just small areas scattered around the vans exterior I have no problems with doing the filling/sanding etc, but

would like advice on painting I seem to remember a post saying to use a combination of gloss paint and varnish? also would it be ok to apply paint by roller as I cant get the van under cover.I would probably have to paint both sides of van.