Hamper mod

[Mellow Yellow]

We have ants ! Battling since early June. Finally getting under control, but they seem to have come from under the hamper, which is next to the under bathroom sink cupboard.

SO, Tom is taking out the tilt in hamper. To see what's up there ant-wise. It is useless anyway as it is so close to the toilet when it tips out. We do not ever store dirty clothing in it, preferring the basket in shower mode. So, Tom is handy and wants to build some shelves in there to make it a bit more useable. But what to do with that door? Is there a way to put it on so it can just come off hinges (special hinges? ) It will still be a pain and not so very useful, but better than the tilt out thing for sure.

Any outside the box (or hamper) ideas appreciated.

[Tinstaafl]

A couple of pics might help...

[JohnB]

Hi Deb,

Our T310SR has the Sunline tilt out hamper and we use it all the time. BUT, it tilts out into the open and is useful.

It seems by your description, that yours is tucked into the space between the toilet and the cabinet making it not easy to get in and out of.

Here is a pic of our hamper in the T310SR. It is hard to see it in this pic, the hamper is on the bottom and the pic date is over the tilting door.


I looked up your floor plan in the brochure, and the 2004 T2475 happens to maybe have a similar setup and I just happen to have a project camper of one of them. Si I have pics!

See here the hamper is right next to the toilet and the pull open knob is on top center of the hamper.


A shot more looking at the hamper



Does your look like the T2475 setup? I do not recall what your looks like.

The door, if yours is like the T2475 here is a couple options/ideas to build off of.

1. Take the door off the hamper. Change the hinges from the bottom to the left side of the door and reuse the door. You cannot full swing the door as it will hit the toilet, but you can reach in and out to the shelf's.

2. Make a new door, but it will be 2 doors, half height. The same concept as above, but the doors will be half the length of the hamper door. The top will swing open above the toilet so it can go full open, the bottom door will swing until it hits the toilet.

I know Tom is very handy. I have made our style doors in the 2004's from scratch. Have pics if needed. I used a dado blade in a bench saw to rip the channels for the door panel. If he does not have the dado blade, you can use a normal blade and make multiple passes. But, I think the Sunline oak cabinets, which you most likely have, they are not square like the shaker maple style like we have. Or if Tom has a router, they sell a bit to cut that profile and he can route it out.

Kathy, from old forge (from from Poppy and Nana) had extra doors made for her Sunline at some local cabinet maker. That could be an option in your area.

Post a few pics, and we can maybe brainstorm better.

Hope this helps

John

[JohnB]

It just dawned on me, there is another Sunline in the barn with a hamper in it. My son's 2006 T264SR has the tilt out hamper next to the toilet too.

I'll see if I can get some pics of that setup. It looks close to the T2475 I think.

[Mellow Yellow]

Hi John, yes the hamper is exactly like that. Right next to the toilet and not useful. Another bizarre addition to the Sunline from the week they had crazy Uncle Louie as designer LOL. No wonder they only made a few of the 250-SR's !!

Tom had the idea of a split door as well and will make it a winter project. He can do a new door in his shop or use the existing one perhaps. If the top swings out past the toilet I can store a nice basket on a shelf he will make. Then, below, he intends to use a kind of hinge, slip hinge that you can take the door up out with ease. Will post pictures of the end result at some point.

Thanks for your help ! Deb

[264SRinPA]

Our 264SR had that same hamper setup. We used it all the time and loved it. Not sure why you say it's not useful.

[Mellow Yellow]

Originally Posted by 264SRinPA

Our 264SR had that same hamper setup. We used it all the time and loved it. Not sure why you say it's not useful.

Hi guys! We never use it as a hamper. Have a ventilated laundry hamper we keep in the shower when not using. We can just pick it up and take it to the basement, where our washer/dryer are, when we get home.

The wooden hamper didn't hold much and got used for storage of odd things, a funnel for fresh water, an extra roll of tp, extra soap dish, other weird stuff. So the tp would get wet if there was water on the funnel. Other items would be buried at the bottom. Or forgotten. Shelves will just be much more useful.

The other thing is, important plumbing hoses run beneath this hamper and they were inaccessible before. Tom will leave space and have shelf that comes apart/out so that he can get in there if he needs to.

[JohnB]

Originally Posted by Mellow Yellow

We have ants ! Battling since early June. Finally getting under control, but they seem to have come from under the hamper, which is next to the under bathroom sink cupboard.

Deb,

I missed this part of your post. H'mm, your camper has the hamper real close to the shore line power cord storage area.

Power cords and ants are happy campers. And they can make the camper owners, not happy. There is something about the electricity flowing through the shore line cable or any wire, that attracts ants like a magnet.

Do you treat the ground and the shoreline cord when you have the camper plugged in? If not, the power cord creates a nice bridge and the ants come marching in. Been there, seen that, was ed and learned how to control the problem after getting the little buggers out of the camper.

I use ant spray on the cable and you have to make sure it is "all" the way around the cable for about 2 ft up the cord starting from the ground up. You miss a spot and they find that spot and still come in. And I also spray the cord on the ground for a foot or two. Then they leave the cord alone. I do this every time I plug in the camper during late spring all the way through summer and into fall. By late fall through winter they are hiding for the winter.

If you do not want to use any spray, I have heard these other methods work, I never tried them, but heard of their success.

*Diatomaceous Earth

* Comet cleanser

* Cinnamon. Just heard this one from my neighbor a week ago.

You sprinkle it over the cord to the ground and ants will not cross it. Seems there is something about the fine powder that ants don't like.

Hope this helps

John

[Mellow Yellow]

Yes ! Found them entering on the cord at Robert Moses. So we sprayed like crazy and put goop around the ground at base of box. Then, at home the ants (same? different?) were coming up the front jack. So we put a huge amount of Tanglefoot there, sprayed around the tires. Tried not to spray in the camper. Then, we found (smart little things) they had made a bridge from Tom's gang mowers which reside under the back of the camper in the shed, to the back bumper. It was just touching the camper. So, we finally put spray on puppy pads and plastic pieces and put them around. Sprayed under the hamper once it was out. Noticed them up in the plastic light covers so Tom put an ant attracting goop up there and in one some 20 Mule Team Borax with water as they cannot live without water. The bait is one they take back to the nest, maybe feeding it to the queen, and they are doing that as we see dead ants. Then.. !!! decided to refill the traps with RV antifreeze in case they are down there drinking. Dead ants in those traps. Two wandering up in the new plastic shower cover, the thing that is inside. Took that off and sprayed some really good stuff in the rafters all around. Dead ants now in the shower. It must be coming to an end, but not sure where they nested... up in the roof I suppose. Several Sunliners are having mouse issues already. What a year. But, yes, never ever again will we let our guard down. We have never had ants in the house but found several in the basement, far from the shed. Strangely, a few on the black cord to the dehumidifier. Like you say they love black power cords ! Put ant goop outside and never saw more. So, we are hoping these ants in camper did not come from Robert Moses but were here and haven't been in residence too long. P.S. they are huge black ants and also much smaller black ants. And yes, likely big guys are carpenter ants...

[JohnB]

Wow, just wow...

OK, you win, your ant issues are worse then any of the ones I've seen/had or want to see.

I have seen/had the large black ants in two of the campers I rebuilt for others.

The one camper had an all wet back wall and they were all alive and well in that wall. They came in the camper from New Hampshire and did not like it when we opened up the wall. The where into the romex wiring boxes and the wet wood areas. The electrical I think brought them to that area. They look like black carpenter ants, but I did not see any wood damage, so I'm not sure what specifies they are. I used up about 3 cans of ant spray getting rid of them. From that event, I always am prepare what might be inside dealing with a wet camper repair.

The other camper, the owner ended up getting them from Chenango Valley state park near Binghamton NY. He put the ant bait traps in every bottom cabinet at the floor, under the bed, everywhere he could get the little bait traps before I got the camper. I forget the exact brand, but they would eat the bait and take it back to wherever they were holding up in the camper.

We took all the siding off and the roof off the camper to repair the water damage. I found dead ants all over at the inside floor level. And up above the ceiling. They were under the roof insulation. Again all dead. What they were doing up their, I have no idea. This was winter time when I had the camper apart. So the any bait killed them all. I have no idea how long it took, I think he got them in late summer and by the time I got to them, they could of been dead for a few months.

Our first ant adventure was on our new T2499 at a local CG here in Ohio. These where the little brown guys. It was Memorial day campout and I walked around the camper to see a convoy marching single file up power cord right into the camper. I was lucky, I arrived when they must of just gotten started. Sprayed the cord and the hose storage box in the camper and the all was good. But from then, I learned and take the precautions.

Our son got them in his popup on the power cord, and he even sprayed the cord but I think missed a small section on the bottom and then came up on the bottom. This was at night even. He is even more all over the any spray now during setup then I am.

Dealing with those little buggers, once is enough to train you for life, be prepared!

[j52wf]

I had an ant infestation in my first Sunline. Flying ants all over the place. My exterminator came over and set off insecticide bombs in the rv. Said it was his first rv bombing. Never had a problem after that.