This post is part of a series documenting Sam Breen’a Spartan Restoration Project. Please see his first post here and check out the archive here. The CSPA is helping Sam by serving in an advisory role, offering modest support and featuring Sam’s Progress by syndicating his feed from http://spartantrailerrestoration.wordpress.com as part of our CSPA Supports Program.
Monthly Archives: October 2010
Window Replacement
This article is taken from http://www.spartantrailer.com/ about a restoration on a 1946 Spartan Manor:
One of the first restoration tasks on this trailer was to make it water tight. This meant that all water leaks from the windows had to be stopped. All the windows save the front Plexiglas picture windows were in great shape.
The other windows on the trailer are glass, therefore much more stable. Plexiglas was a fairly new technology for 1946. Plexiglas was used extensively for the first time during WWII for aviation purposes as can be seen here in the nose cone of a B17 bomber. It allowed for much lighter and complex forms.
Spartan Aircraft having had experience with this material readily adapted it to their line of trailer manufacture. It was a well suited match. When I originally found this trailer, Â two of the front windows had been poorly replaced . They had been sized poorly and installed with a messy application of caulk. The curved left panel was original with heavy crazing. Most of the seal had severe dry rot and was barely holding the window in place.
Removing the old windows was a fairly easy task. The original windows were held in by a gasket sandwiched between the outer shell and an interior strip of extruded aluminum, which was screwed into the trailer frame.
This photo shows the right front window removed and the aluminum cleaned to accept
1946 Spartan window repalcement Credit:spartantrailer.com
the new window. I used large sheets of heavy paper to create templates for the new windows to be cut from.
The old windows were used as patterns. Some adjustments were required in order to get an optimal fit. 3/16 inch.
Plexiglas was used for replacements at a cost of about $150. This included them being cut to my templates. Instead of using a gasket for the window replacement I opted to use a newer product Dow Corning #795. This is an industrial grade glazing material. This close up shows the new window set in the sealant and shimmed with penny’s. The excess sealant was cleaned off with mineral spirits.
1946 Spartan window replacement Credit: spartantrailer.com
The new Plexiglas is in place. It is amazing how fresh the new windows make the trailer appear. It is nice to be able to have a clean view from this great picture window and the best part is there are no more water leaks! After almost 3 years the windows seem to be doing great. The plexi is exposed to full sun and has not discolored and the seals are still tight.
This post is part of a series documenting Sam Breen’a Spartan Restoration Project. Please see his first post here and check out the archive here. The CSPA is helping Sam by serving in an advisory role, offering modest support and featuring Sam’s Progress by syndicating his feed from http://spartantrailerrestoration.wordpress.com as part of our CSPA Supports Program.
Suppliers and other contacts
Ad courtesy spartantrailers.com
- Gaskets: http://www.restorationspecialties.com/
- Window weather stripping and more: Â Â http://www.jcwhitney.com/
- Aluminum sheets and rivets: http://www.airpartsinc.com/products/trailer-restoration.htm
- Reclaimed Wood – Resource Conservation Group http://www.resourceconservationgroup.com/
- Vintage Trailer Supply http://www.vintagetrailersupply.com/?Click=161
- Vintage Campers (Peru, Indiana)Â http://www.vintagecampers.com/
Architectural Salvage
- Silverlake Architectural Slavage, Bruce Baker/ 323.667.2875 / 1085 Manzanita St. (Fountain and Sunset), L.A. http://www.silverlakearchitecturalsalvage.net/pages/store.php?i=8
- Timeless Travel – they restore vintage trailers
- http://www.timelesstraveltrailers.com/
Lumber
- Stock Building Supply / Robert Lopez, Sales Manager/ 23125 Drayton Street/Santa Clarita, CA/ 661.254.3113 / cell: Â 818.683.3332
- Furniture and Finishes / Zola Furnishings http://www.zolafurnishings.com/ecstfi.html
- AJAX POWDER COATING/ Bill/  7933 Gloria Ave in Van Nuys and also Valencia  Tele:  818 781 5667
- Eric Domeier, AIA /Â Domeier Architects Inc. Â / 2055 Corte del Nogal /Â Carlsbad CA 92011 /Â 760.930.0202 /Â www.domearch.com
This post is part of a series documenting Sam Breen’a Spartan Restoration Project. Please see his first post here and check out the archive here. The CSPA is helping Sam by serving in an advisory role, offering modest support and featuring Sam’s Progress by syndicating his feed from http://spartantrailerrestoration.wordpress.com as part of our CSPA Supports Program.
Ripping Out The Floor – And Ceiling
Here are some remarks comes from various discussions groups and web sites about ripping out the floor and ceiling. The first post comes from Frank @ http://56spartan.blogspot.com/2010_07_01_archive.html
July 6, 2010
It’s fourth of July weekend. Not exactly a weekend I want to go up for a day because of the traffic on the tollway. After sitting home all day on the 4th watching TV I decided to go up on the 5th to do some work instead of repeating a day of TV.
I bought myself a respirator mask that filters out asbestos and furnace filter from Menards to make a air filter from my box fan. Maybe it will filter some of the stink out!
I washed out the inside of the upper kitchen cabinets with pinesol and water. I couldn’t tell if this made a difference since I had the mask on the entire time I was there.So I tested some of the floor by walking on it. It appears the floor under the side windows are the softest. Some spots are actually so soft you can put your foot right through the floor.
After cutting the 3/4 plywood from the floor with my circular saw it reveals the insulation. You can see the holes in the insulation where little critters made tunnels in the past. I will remove the insulation from these areas as well since removing all the floor and insulation is not a feasible option for me.
The belly pan is fairly complete. There is one spot toward the front that has rotted away and that section of pan is now loose and hanging a bit lower. Perfect “doggie door†for animals big and small to make a home. That needs to be repaired ASAP.
I noticed a drop of water hitting the floor and it was too far away from me to be the sweat poring off me. The light fixture in the dining area had a steady drop of water coming from it. This ceiling panel is scheduled to be removed and discarded anyway so no better time then the present to remove it. I cut the power to the light, removed the screws from the underside of the fixture and carefully took it down.
The panel is also held up partially by the decorative room divider which divides the kitchen from the living area. I carefully removed the divider since I want to restore this piece of non painted wood. I removed all the screws from the panel and pulled and tugged and was pelted with mouse pellets until it was down and out the door it went.
The worst part of demolition is the removal of the old insulation. It is falling apart, full of mice droppings and sometimes wet. I am never fully prepared for the job and most of the time have on short sleeves and I am left with itchy arms for days.
This post is part of a series documenting Sam Breen’a Spartan Restoration Project. Please see his first post here and check out the archive here. The CSPA is helping Sam by serving in an advisory role, offering modest support and featuring Sam’s Progress by syndicating his feed from http://spartantrailerrestoration.wordpress.com as part of our CSPA Supports Program.
Window replacement
Here is a picture of a kitchen vent from a 51 spartan
From Spartan discussion forum:
My husband and i are currently working on a 1950 Royal Mansion, she came to us gutted of all her period glory save for her stove. However we are still under her spell! We are going to outfit her in as close to original style as possible. We are trying to find somereplacement window latches for the jalousie windows. I have heard they are not a very common style,unfortunately. I have pics of some in my album titled Central Texas Royal Mansion. We need 5 sets. vtc has the arms and clips but not the other pieces. Anyone willing to part with them i’d be much obliged!
This post is part of a series documenting Sam Breen’a Spartan Restoration Project. Please see his first post here and check out the archive here. The CSPA is helping Sam by serving in an advisory role, offering modest support and featuring Sam’s Progress by syndicating his feed from http://spartantrailerrestoration.wordpress.com as part of our CSPA Supports Program.
MAS Summit for New York City
This October, the Municipal Art Society will convene its first conference devoted to New York’s livability, examining the challenges the city faces in its seemingly contradictory roles as a growing global capital and as a city of unique neighborhoods.  More than 400 civic-minded New Yorkers and leaders in the fields of urban planning and design, housing, economics, and research and development will gather to discuss whether the many diverse corners of New York can retain a small town feel while facing significant increases in population.
Day One – Thursday, October 21
The Summit will begin by examining who lives in New York, what New Yorkers feel makes our diverse communities livable and where they think New York falls short. Then, the focus will shift to learning how real change is created on a grassroots level with civic participation. Finally, we will explore new media and how its proliferation is transforming the city’s development and growth in surprising ways.
Keynote:           The Big Idea – Livability
Panel:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Release of and Reaction to the MAS Survey on Livability
Panel:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Demographics in a Changing New York
Panel: Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Civic Activism in the Spirit of Jane Jacobs
Panel: Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Art Works
Panel:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â People Behind the Screens: Social Media and New York City Bloggers
Presentation: Â New Tools for Civic Engagement: Betaville
Evening Program
MASterworks Design Awards, sponsored by Helaba Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen – 6:00 p.m.
Day Two – Friday, October 22
Day Two of the Summit will examine new ideas on how leveraging private investment with public policy is driving the future of New York. Summit panels will address specific issues that are of vital importance to all New Yorkers including access to sustainable housing, preservation of manufacturing neighborhoods, recreation of transportation hubs, and access to public spaces and the arts.
Tours:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Morning Walk or Bike to the Summit (guided)
Keynote: Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Public and Private Investment in a Livable City
Panel: Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Moynihan Station and the Far West Side
Panel: Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Garment District
Panel: Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Sustainable Housing
Tours:               James A. Farley Post Office and “Ugly†Streets
Presentation: Â Â Yolanda Garcia Community Planner Award
Keynote: Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Reclaiming the Public Realm
Panel:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Vibrant Neighborhoods
Keynote:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Closing Keynote
Insulation: Part 1 – Green or Greenwashed?
PIC foam with aluminum facing Credit: timelesstravel.com
The good, the bad and the truly ugly truthiness of insulation.
Glass Fiber Insulation
Fiberglass insulation
Glass fiber insulation is made or glass, new or recycled, and held together with binders.  It is cheap and non-combustable.  But it’s far from perfect. It has a relatively low R-factor and there are considerable concerns about the product’s impact on our health and the environment.  There’s a yuk factor.  Ask anyone who has gotten into the guts of an old trailer and they’ll gross you out with tales of what they uncovered in the insulation: rat’s nets, bug bodies, etc. Got leaks?  When rain and snow seeps into fiberglass, insulation turns into a soggy, moldy mess.  There are the considerable health concerns:
If you have ever worked with it you know how it makes your skin itch; imagine it in your lungs. Some have claimed that it is the next asbestos and is cancer-causing; one website calls it “The Asbestos of the 21st Century. Packages of insulation carry cancer warning labels, based on a 1998 study. However the American Lung Association lists the studies and the most recent ones conclude that “It is currently considered not classifiable as a human carcinogen. Studies done in the past 15 years since the previous report was released, do not provide enough evidence to link this material to any cancer risk.† – Planet Green
What are the alternatives?  Here are some types of insulation that are more or less “friendly†to the environment.
Hemp
Hemp
Hemp insulation is made from hemp fibre with polyester added for strength.  Soda is added as a fire retardant.  Hemp is naturally resistant to moths and beetles. Hempflax (it comes in bats) is manufactured by a Dutch company that claims their product is low in dust which helps contribute to cleaner indoor air.  They say their product can be recycled after use.  The hemp comes from Germany and the Netherlands.  Imported.  See the company web site for a PDF brochure – and a mind-expanding history of industrial hemp (what is it about the Dutch and weeds?)
Denim
Denin
Denim insulation is mostly made of the leftover bits from blue jeans and treated with a “natural†fire retardant.  Bonded Logic is the company that makes UltraTouch Natural Fiber Insulation from 85% post-industrial cotton fiber. It is 100% recyclable, VOC- and formaldehyde-free. And it won’t itch like fiberglass insulation.  (Seems like there’s a lot of dust that comes out when you shake it. )
Recycled Newspaper
Recycled Newspaper
Excel Building Solution’s Warmcel  made from 100% waste recycled newsprint. Thermal conductivity of  0.036 W/mK. Said to be an alternative to blown fiberglass or bat insulation. layered into walls being built, or blown into atticspaces and already sheetrocked. Warmcel insulation by Excel
Icynene
icynene
Water-blown policynene that creates an foam blanket of millions of tiny air bubbles. It does not shrink and adheres to the surrounding structure, so there is no settling and no air gaps. It has no VOC’s no formaldehyde, Recognized for LEED credits and is becoming very popular as a clean, green, long lasting insulation. When holding a piece, it seems the most benign and friendly insulation ever, it is like filling your walls with sponge cake. ::Icynene
Procell
procell
Procell is a mix of 100% recycled newspapers, adhesives and fire retardants that fills voids and dries quickly, and appears similar to Dom’s Warmcell from the UK.  Pro-Cell is “specially treated to repel vermin and insects, and to prevent the growth of harmful mould, mildew and wood-rotting fungi†“::Thermocell
Heatlok-Soya
Heatlok-Soya
This is a polyurethane foam system made out of recycled plastic (a barrel of Heatlok-soya contains 1000 plastic bottles) and soya oil.  zeroozone depletion and is even coloured green. The manufacturer, Demilec, “is the first Canadian manufacturer of Spray Polyurethane Foamto meet the requirements of the Montreal Protocol. DEMILEC uses recycled plastics, renewable natural oils, and water, all while maintaining the high quality and performance of its foam systems. ::Heatlok Soya
Aerogel
Aspen Aerogels has started selling aerogel blankets for use as insulation in buildings.
“Aspen Aeorgels says that its Spaceloft blankets have two to four times the insulating value per inch compared to fiberglass or foam. It’s also relatively easy to work with, allows water vapor to pass through, and is fire resistant–a common demonstration of aerogels is to have a person fire a Bunsen burner below the aerogel while putting a hand on the top side.†(source)
The fact that it’s just 2 to 4 times better than fiberglass or foam makes me think that they paid a pretty big performance price to bring costs down, since pure aerogel would provider higher thermal insulation, but it’s still a pretty big step in the right direction. We’re not talking about a few percent improvement. Over time, in a big building, this could represent a lot of heat that would otherwise leak out (or heat that would leak in when the air conditioning is on).
Other companies that are coming out with more affordable aerogel derivatives to be used as building insulation are Cabot and Thermablok.
I wouldn’t be surprised if in a few years (or decades at most) very high-quality aerogel was used almost everywhere for insulation. Unless we make something even better, that is.
Other types of insulation such as straw bale aren’t appropriate for trailers.
Some Links:
“Green Insulation: More Choicesâ€
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/12/green_insulatio.php
“Why the choice of insulation mattersâ€
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/06/why-the-choice-of-insulation-matters.php
†Space age insulation: it’s already hereâ€
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/02/materials-monday-aerogel.php
This post is part of a series documenting Sam Breen’a Spartan Restoration Project. Please see his first post here and check out the archive here. The CSPA is helping Sam by serving in an advisory role, offering modest support and featuring Sam’s Progress by syndicating his feed from http://spartantrailerrestoration.wordpress.com as part of our CSPA Supports Program.
Art, Justice & Global Aesthetics: The Equity and Diversity Lecture Series
Sponsored by the Office of the Provost and the Diversity Committee at CalArts, this lecture series was established to bring renowned artists and speakers to campus to address issues of equity and diversity and their intersections with aesthetics and art making practices.
Chris Abani: Art as Witness
October 20th, 2010, 6pm in the Coffeehouse Theatre
Chris Abani’s prose includes Song For Night (Akashic, 2007), The Virgin of Flames (Penguin, 2007), Becoming Abigail (Akashic, 2006) GraceLand (FSG, 2004), and Masters of the Board (Delta, 1985). His poetry collections are Sanctificum (Copper Canyon Press, 2010), There Are No Names for Red (Red Hen Press, 2010), Feed Me The Sun: Collected Long Poems (Peepal Tree Press, 2010) Hands Washing Water (Copper Canyon, 2006), Dog Woman (Red Hen, 2004), Daphne’s Lot (Red Hen, 2003), and Kalakuta Republic (Saqi, 2001). He holds a BA in English (Nigeria), an MA in Gender and Culture (Birkbeck College, University of London), an MA in English and a PhD in Literature and Creative Writing (University of Southern California). He is a Professor at the University of California, Riverside and the recipient of the PEN USA
Freedom-to-Write Award, the Prince Claus Award, a Lannan Literary Fellowship, a California Book Award, a Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, a PEN Beyond the Margins Award, the PEN Hemingway Book Prize & a Guggenheim Award.
For more information, contact:Â Matthew Shenoda, Assistant Provost for Equity and Diversity/Â shenoda@calarts.edu/661.222.2785Â http://calarts.edu/about/diversity/lecture-series
via Art, Justice & Global Aesthetics: The Equity and Diversity Lecture Series | School of Theater.
Polishing:Â Step-by-Step
How to polish a trailer
http://www.airstreamguy.com/polishing_info
This post is part of a series documenting Sam Breen’a Spartan Restoration Project. Please see his first post here and check out the archive here. The CSPA is helping Sam by serving in an advisory role, offering modest support and featuring Sam’s Progress by syndicating his feed from http://spartantrailerrestoration.wordpress.com as part of our CSPA Supports Program.
Reverend Billy and the Life After Shopping Gospel Choir at REDCAT
ADDED PERFORMANCE DUE TO DEMAND
Highlighting the Alpert Award in the Arts
“It’s an Art. It’s an Act. It’s almost a Religion.†–The New York Times
In the spirit of a Gospel Revival, Alpert Award-winning artist Billy Talen takes to the pulpit as Reverend Billy, a “pop-gnostic Jimmy Swaggart,†to deliver an electrifying and poignant Obie Award-winning performance. Directed by Savitri D., Reverend Billy and the joyous 25-voice Life After Shopping Gospel Choir draw upon their “retail interventions,†staged inside Wal-Marts and Starbucks, to transform consumer nightmares and biblical narratives into an inspirational showdown. Appropriating the style of some of America’s most reactionary icons, Reverend Billy proselytizes with supreme power and delivers the tenets of his Church of Stop Shopping with such infectious passion that your experience of shopping may never be the same.
Funded in part with generous support from The Herb Alpert Foundation. The Alpert Award in the Arts, a fellowship program that supports innovative practitioners in the fields of dance, film/video, music, theater and visual arts, is administered by CalArts on behalf of The Herb Alpert Foundation.
MORE:Â Reverend Billy and the Life After Shopping Gospel Choir | REDCAT.