How the experts repair van panels
Does repairing your caravan feel a bit like taking a sledgehammer to a nut? Some companies employ a more subtle approach to fixing panels, as Nigel Hutson discovered
Nigel Hutson finds out how the specialists at Panelworks carry out expert repair work
YOU’VE GOT A caravan that’s getting on a bit in years, and you have a bit of a mishap. Unfortunately, you put a hole in the rear
ABS plastic panel, which you think to repair might mean fitting a whole new rear panel. You call your insurance company, who ‘write off’ your pride and joy because either the cost of replacement is more than the caravan is worth
(to them) or the parts simply can’t be obtained any longer.
When Jonathan Goulden was general manager at the family business of Yorkshire Caravans (he’s now the chairman) back in 2004, he had come across this scenario too many times, so he began experimenting in his spare time (he’ll now tell you that he doesn’t have any of that!) with repairing ABS plastic.
“I’d seen so many caravans written off for what was relatively minor damage, it was bonkers,” he told me on a recent visit. “It was always such a waste. Either the caravan was written off or we replaced the whole panel, and then the original had to be disposed of.”
In June 2008, Panelworks Ltd was founded, its premises set within the grounds of Yorkshire Caravans, where it remains. From experimenting with ABS plastic, Jonathan and his team became highly proficient in repairing not only that material, but also GRP and aluminium, even where there’s ribbed or stucco detailing.
I last visited the company back in 2012, and remember being impressed with the repair that they’d made to a silver Grp-sided Buccaneer caravan. I was convinced that they’d resprayed the whole side, but Jonathan convinced me (and showed me photographic evidence) that it had only been a localised repair. Now, anyone who’s had experience of silver work damage will know that it’s very difficult to get a match. It may look perfect from one angle, but from a slightly different position, the repair is as plain as the day. I have a very critical eye (as a number of caravan manufacturers/dealers know too well!), but I could not see the repair on that Buccaneer.
The HQ
In the intervening years since my last visit, the company has gone from strength to strength, and it’s now very often the first port of call for many insurance companies and even caravan manufacturers, as it’s far more cost-effective (and ecologically friendly) to make a repair, rather than replace.
“We generally have between 40 and 60 vans awaiting repair,” Jonathan said, as we left the office to have a look at the repair process in the adjacent workshop. One of those was a Lunar Clubman that had sustained the ‘classic’ rear offside corner damage, which at one time, would have meant
a full new rear panel and quite likely a side panel, too. “We’ll cut out the damaged areas in the aluminium side and put in a new piece after any structural damage is repaired. The new piece is bonded in and then painted and finished. Where the ABS rear panel is damaged, we’ll plastic-weld the repair using a section from an old panel that we have in stock in the panel graveyard,” Jonathan laughed.
The panel graveyard is a large shipping container full of old panels. Nothing is ever thrown away, and many of the panels have areas missing that have already been used for repairs.
The caravans are worked on, repaired and prepared for painting in the large workshop.
First of all, everything is cleaned and the decals are removed. That way, they know what they’re dealing with.
When it comes to ribbed or stucco aluminium panels, a mould of the pattern is made with latex. The mould is stuck over the area to be repaired before a specialist liquid filler is injected, which on setting, forms a perfect match.
The process
We left the workshop, and I was shown Panelworks’ stateof-the-art Dalby Genesis Q spray booth. “We’ve invested over £56,000 in this,” Jonathan told me, “but it’s worth every penny. It’s the same unit as used by Jaguar Land Rover, and what it means is that, what used to take three days can now comfortably be completed in a single day, so it’s so much more efficient.”
It’s something the company is rightly proud of. Jonathan also had the foresight to ensure that the doors would be high enough for large motorhomes, as well as caravans.
To obtain a perfect colour match, a spectrometer is used. There was a Bailey caravan in the booth, which had just been completed and had been given a localised repair.
“Using the spectrometer, we can get that match,” Jonathan said. “It’s no good just getting the paint from stock and hoping for a good match, as no two caravans are the same.
“For example, one might have been taken abroad and exposed to bright sunlight for extended periods, which can cause fading, while the other has only been used here in the UK.”
The spray booth is heated to 26 degrees Celsius before the caravan is painted. Once the paint has been applied, it is ‘baked’ at 50 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes. In that period the paint cures and hardens.
The booth can heat up to much higher temperatures, but Jonathan said that, with caravans, there could be implications for seals and windows if they did heat up higher than 50 degrees.
A few days later, I returned to see how the Lunar Clubman was progressing. The repairs were complete, and what a fantastic job had been done.
Finally, Panelworks supplies exact-match touch-up paints for caravans.
Panelworks
Address
Unit 1 @ YC Leisure, Doncaster Road, Bawtry, Doncaster DN10 6DG
Tel 0844 800 6574
Web www.panelworks.co.uk
Email info@panelworks.co.uk