You all wanted a budget breakdown of my latest RV renovation so I have rounded up everything I used, as best I could to give you an idea! If you want to see another example from my prior renovations, check out the Cost Breakdown from my 1968 Prowler here. So lets gets down to business and break it up into systems.
Many do not know this, but Archie was actually purchased and restored to document detailed tutorials on how to complete RV renovation projects. You can find all of them in my book DIY Camper & RV Reno: Restoring and Designing Vintage, Retro, and Classic Trailers and RVs with Nailgun Nelly.
Table of Contents
So how much did it cost to buy this rig?
We found this gem on Facebook marketplace, locally. The couple had two trailers and this one had a better shell. They asked for $2000 and we took the deal. I would say we overpaid for it, being in such bad shape and I absolutely know they would have had a hard time selling it. But…we were writing a book on trailer renovations and had to have a project to highlight asap. Normally, I would have offered far less. Like $800. They would say no way and I would walk away and wait for them to come back to me. So, $2000.
Exterior - Paint, Repairs, Lighting & Tires
One of the main things we look for when considering an RV is how the siding looks. If it has massive dents or missing sections we usually pass. You can always reseal, clean and replace easier things like tires and lights but body work is a huge job! This portion of the project is not super expensive but A TON of work and elbow grease! We replace all the butyl and seals around windows and seams, along with the screws. Most of this section is actually low on cost but high on time! Below are the expenses.
- Butyl Tape $25.00
- Lap Sealant $39.00
- Exterior Screws 1.5″ $90.00 (6 boxes $15/ea)
- Exterior Screws 1″ $90.00 (6 Boxes $15/ea)
- Epoxy Primer/Sealer $149.00
- Paint $150 (3 gallons $50/ea) Color 75% of Shaker Beige by Benjamin Moore
- Accent Paint colors $72 (3 colors $23.98/ea) BM Autumn Bronze, Suede Brown and Desert Mountains.
- Tires $460 (4 tires $115/ea)
- Baby Moon Hub Caps $0.00 (we refinished the originals)
- Wood Window Trim $70.00 (10 8ft boards $7/ea)
- Awning Wood $ 21.00 per (3 8ft boards $7/ea)
Total: $1,166.00
Exterior Functional Items
Here is a list of functional items for the exterior, including running lights, propane tanks, and plugs. These are all very standard and you can’t really avoid the cost, though I would say these items are pretty reasonable in cost.
- Propane tanks $114 (2 tanks at $57/ea)
- 7 prong plug with junction box $36.00
- Running lights $25.00 for a set of 14
- Brake lights $35.00 for a set of 2
- Propane regulator $38.00
- Exterior light $71.00
- Electric brake break away cable $8.50
- Electric tongue jack $148.00
Total: $475.50
Interior - Demo, Repair & Wood Structures
This, just like the exterior work is not super costly on your wallet; rather your time and energy! I also am including anything used (mainly lumber) to build out the main structural changes we made. This includes the shelving, multiple arches, counters, banister, oven cabinet, and beams.
We had to replace framing around 4 of the windows and rebuild the front closet area, but everything else stayed.
- 2x2x8ft lumber for reframing windows & building banister: $78.00 (approx 26 boards at @2.98/ea)
- Wavy Trim: $14.00 (2 at $7/ea)
- Utility Board wall repair and shelving tops (4) 4’x8′ sheets $ 48.00 (4 Sheets at $12/ea)
- 1x2x8ft $28.00 framing shelves and beams (approx 16 boards at $1.75/ea)
- 1x3x8ft for shelf fronts $5.26 (2 boards at $2.63/ea)
- 1/2″ MDF sheet for counters $48.00
- 1/2″ Plywood for small, arches and oven cabinet $40
- 1x4x8ft $33.48 for beams (4 boards at $8.37/ea)
- Fluted wood for the benches: $223.60 (20 boards at $11.18/ea)
- Fluted trim for the bathroom vanity: $83.70 (15 pieces at $5.58/ea)
- Kitchen Railing Baluster Spindles: $10 for pack
- 2x3x8 lumber for front window casing/corbels: $6.50 (2 boards at $3.25/ea)
- 1x10x8 lumber for front window ledge: $21.98
- Cedar Planks for Bathroom ceiling: $54 (2 boxes at $27/ea)
- Bondo Wood Putty: $42 (2 at $21/ea)
Total: $736.52
Interior Functional Items
Up to this point, the demo and structural repair are pretty cheap! Just a lot of elbow grease. But the functional items can add up. We go all out in my opinion and you don’t have to! For example, do you really need an A/C in California….no, not really, but we got one. Did we really need a ceramic toilet…no…but we got one. My point is this cost can probably be shaved in half if you wanted to. Below I will link all the goodies we added to the interior of this trailer to make it function appropriately. This mostly includes plumbing and electrical “behind the scenes” necessities.
- A/C $1,399.00
- Charger/converter $139.00
- Solar panels $165.99 for a 2pack (100watt/ea)
- PVM $33.00 (solar panel controller)
- Lithium Battery $278 (one 100amp hr)
- Battery monitor $73.00
- Fuse panel $37.00
- Fuses $12.99
- Fresh water tank $150.00 (21gal)
- Black water tank $321 (18 gal)
- Water pump $130.00
- Water inlet $17.00
- pex plumbing $120.00
- Electrical wire $35.00
- USB electrical Outlets: $29.00set of 2
- 12v lights: $34.99 set of 3
Total $2,974.97
Bathroom Items
Although this was a small bathroom it made a huge impact on the design. I was so happy to be able to keep the original avocado green bathtub but pretty much everything else was upgraded!
- Venti fan $199.99
- Toilet $239.00
- Bathroom sink $118.00
- Bathtub faucet $128.00
- Bathroom Faucet $50.00
- Vanity Light $53.89
- Faux Stone Shower Panels $193.32 (6 panels at 32.22/ea)
- DAP Platinum Patch $20 (2 at $10/ea)
Total $1,002.20
Kitchen Items
Probably my favorite RV kitchen that I have done. So much character was packed into this little space. A few of these items are a huge splurge but absolutely not necessary to get a very similar look!
- 12v Fridge $639.00 (4.3 cubic ft)
- 2 burner Stove top $79.00
- Kitchen sink $694.00
- Kitchen faucet $175.00
- Sconces $31 set of 2
- Rattan Dinette Light $39
- Kitchen Light above sink $34
- Backsplash Mother of Pearl Tile $1,188 (16 sheets at $69.90/ea)
- Cabinet Hardware $70 (2 boxes at $35/ea)
- Faux Wood Glaze for Cabinets $21
- Dinette Peel and Stick Wallpaper $13
Total $2,983.00
Other Important Expenses
Most of these items couldn’t really be appropriately placed in one area of the trailer. These items were the flooring, epoxy counters, cushions, microcementing the walls and interior decorating expenses.
- Epoxy Kit $129 (colors in FAQ section)
- Microcement Product applied to the walls and arches $990 (3 kits at $330/ea) – Color C1
- Flooring $180
- Interior wall/ceiling paint $100 (2 gallons) – Color Shaker Beige by Benjamin Moore
- Window Coverings $288 (6 at approx $48/ea)
- Blue Throw Pillow set $20
- Yellow Throw Pillow Set $20
- Brown White Plaid Tassel Pillow $24
- Brown and Beige Lumber Pillow $25
- Baskets for front Shelving $63 (3 sets at $21/ea)
- Rug $44.61
- Bathroom Soap Dispensers $20 (2 at $10/ea)
- Dry Food Storage Glass Jars $38 (2 at $19/ea)
Total $1,941.61
FAQs
- Exterior Paint Colors: Main color is 75% of Shaker Beige by Benjamin Moore. Accent Colors were all Benjamin Moore, Autumn Bronze, Suede Brown and Desert Mountains. Rustoleum spray paint color Chestnut Brown for the rims and awning. Minwax Dark Walnut stain for the wood awning and window trim.
- Interior Wall Color Benjamin Moore Shaker Beige and Microcement was color C1 from Smartcrete
- Final weight of the trailer was 4,240lbs which is under the GVWR.
- This renovation took about 5 months.
- Epoxy Countertops were done with a Creme Pigment for the base color and I added Metallic Powders Silver Pearl, Satin Bronze, and Olive Green to create the look of swirls. Veining was done with the Metallic Powders Copper Brown, Bronze Brown, Silver Grey. All of this was from ZCounterform.
The much anticipated Grand Total:
$13,279.80
I always keep it real with you guys and I do want to thank the wonderful brands that I was so lucky to partner with for this renovation! I have done multiple renovations in the past and I will say some of the finishes in here are more than I normally would spend, but I do hope that you know I reached out to all of these companies because they offer top notch, quality products. Without all of YOUR support none of this would be possible! Be sure to check them out as I have them listed below! With that being said, a large portion of this project was sponsored and my total cost was $6,622.51
Recpro
PatioLane Cushions
The Tile Club
Rustoleum
Sinkology
ZCounterforms
LAZBlinds
Smartcrete
WoodGrain
Don’t forget to check out my book, a wonderful manual full of detailed tutorials to help you achieve your RV renovation goals! DIY Camper & RV Reno: Restoring and Designing Vintage, Retro, and Classic Trailers and RVs with Nailgun Nelly.
Is this what you expected? We are now looking to sell Archie as we have another trailer waiting to be restored and I just can’t justify holding on to all of my projects! I hope you follow along on my Instagram account where I show all the day to day happenings!
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