# Outback Makeover Extreme Edition



## Dub

I guess I'm bored being that it's winter and I don't have much to do outside...so I'm starting to find projects for when it gets warmer. I'm really not thrilled with the interior of my 310BHS...I got the green, I should have went for red. I'm tired of looking at the bland walls and the green colors so I've been researching painting the interior walls. I like the idea of having different colors in different "spaces." One color for our bedroom, one for the living area, one for the bathroom, one for the bunk house and maybe an accent wall in the kitchen...might be a bit too ADD though.

What I like more than that is getting rid of the carpet. I hate carpet with a passion and have put in hardwood floors on the top two levels of my house. The stick-on floor in the link looks pretty nice and might work well...not sure about expansion issues with it. Either way, no carpet on the slides would give the appearance of a bigger space. Plus our camper vacuum died this summer so I'd rather make the entire floor broomable.

I'm not a fan of the cushions on the dinettes either and have been talking about getting new cushions and new upholstery since summer. I'm sure we could find some nice fabrics to match or contrast what wall color choices we picked.

The headboard in my bedroom has staples sticking out just beneath the surface...so when we sit up against it to watch TV at night if you don't stack pillows high enough they get ya! So that would be another nice thing to replace. Adding curtains would be great for helping to block out the sun that the blinds lets through...currently we just hang towels over. I would imagine that could help block out some heat too.

I did a quick search and didn't find much but has anyone here ever attempted this with their outback? I'm not concerned with any loss of resale value from doing this as I plan to keep it awhile. Pics would be great if anyone has went down this road before.


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## KTMRacer

DW (and I) weren't (aren't) real thrilled with the patterns in our 295RE either. Picked the color scheme that we liked best, but still the patterns really aren't to our tastes. First thing DW did was toss the bedspread and pillows and replace with a bedspread and pillows she liked. Then made a matching headboard, curtains and valance. Her plan is to redo the window valances in the living area this next year. I'll see if we took any pictures.


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## spepi

Ditto on the headboard tacks sticking out...Ouch!!


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## Dub

spepi said:


> Ditto on the headboard tacks sticking out...Ouch!!


That'll be the first thing I fix once we pick a color for the bedroom.


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## Joonbee

We removed the carpeting in our main living area. The pics are in my gallery.

What we learned was to make sure there are no screws under the slide that will cut the floor and watch for wear areas when the slide goes in and out, but it can be done. We pulled the carpeting out, removed all the staples and it took some scrubbing to get the glue off the floor.

Never thought of the painting, but that is a good idea as well. Can't wait to see the pics when you get done.

Jim


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## 4ME

The headboard comes off real easy.Just pry off the cloth caps and unscrew the heads underneath them.
You will only have a couple of small holes to fill if you want to leave it off.
I bet they just loaded their staple gunns with the wrong length or the plywood came thinner than usual.
You could replace the staples and or recover the headboard.

I replaced all the curtains and bedding in ours.I added some spring pole drapes to seal off outside the bathroom for a dressing room.


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## Dub

Joonbee said:


> The headboard comes off real easy.Just pry off the cloth caps and unscrew the heads underneath them.
> You will only have a couple of small holes to fill if you want to leave it off.
> I bet they just loaded their staple gunns with the wrong length or the plywood came thinner than usual.
> You could replace the staples and or recover the headboard.
> 
> I replaced all the curtains and bedding in ours.I added some spring pole drapes to seal off outside the bathroom for a dressing room.


I'll probably just recover it and add some padding to it to make it nice to lean against when watching TV. We have that rotating TV that switches from the living area to the bedroom and the bedroom is the best place to watch since the couch in the living area is at a weird angle.


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## Calvin&Hobbes

I'll be watching this closely as well- we spoke about changing the color of the master BR, but wasn't sure if there was wallpaper there now, and if so does that need to be stripped out first.


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## Nathan

It might hurt resale slightly but I'd say go for it and customize it to exactly what you want. Strip off the border and then just paint. You could even put up a different border if you want afterward. Someone did proper molding (baseboard and door trim) a year or two ago, so that's another idea of how to personalize things.


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## Dub

It will be awhile before this happens, probably the spring. I don't have a garage or even a driveway I can park it in and work on it in the winter, plus I would imagine the sub-zero temps wouldn't be good for getting paint dry. However, when I do some winter camping I will probably start stripping the borders off. I will probably do the bedroom and bathroom first. I'll be working on color schemes soon.


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## KTMRacer

4ME said:


> The headboard comes off real easy.Just pry off the cloth caps and unscrew the heads underneath them.
> You will only have a couple of small holes to fill if you want to leave it off.
> I bet they just loaded their staple gunns with the wrong length or the plywood came thinner than usual.
> You could replace the staples and or recover the headboard.
> 
> I replaced all the curtains and bedding in ours.I added some spring pole drapes to seal off outside the bathroom for a dressing room.


X2 on the headboard. I took ours off and took it apart, pretty easy, DW recovered it with fabric matching the beadspread and brown vinyl background. Pretty easy to do with short staples, glue gun to tack down the material. Take your time and you can do a very good job.


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## Joonbee

Dub said:


> We removed the carpeting in our main living area. The pics are in my gallery.
> 
> What we learned was to make sure there are no screws under the slide that will cut the floor and watch for wear areas when the slide goes in and out, but it can be done. We pulled the carpeting out, removed all the staples and it took some scrubbing to get the glue off the floor.


I'll keep that in mind when I remove the carpet. I looked in your gallery for the photo, there were 42pics but I didn't see one of your main living area, maybe I missed it?

Sorry you had to take that journey for nothin









here ya go.

Jim


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## Dub

Wow, that looks really good...really makes the space look bigger too. I want to do the exact same thing except I want it under the dinette and in front of the couch two. I have two little ones and there are mac and cheese stains on my cushions and on the floor...so the fake wood floor under there makes sense.


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## Joonbee

That part is the slide section and the last 6" or so is just carpeting. I couldnt go any farther than we did.

Good luck.

Jim


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## huntr70

I don't think they put the vinyl flooring under the carpet in the slide floors.

That should just be carpet with the flap at the end to cover the slide gap.


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## Little_Country_Gal

Couldn't agree more about that headboard!!! We added an extra 4" memory foam mattress to the king slide out bed and every time I changed the sheets my hands were dripping blood like something out of a horror movie. Once I finally figured out who was after 'em, I couldn't get that headboard outta there fast enough! (Pretty easy job, just pop the fabric covered tops off and unscrew a few screws.)

As for the color scheme, I'm not a fan of ours either. In addition to the mandatory toss the blankets/pillows/new curtains etc., I added wall stickers to the walls. I had originally thought about decoupaging the walls with maps/travel brochures/ski slope maps etc. but realized that I didn't have nearly enough of them on hand to cover all of the walls and opted for non-concentric circle cut-outs made from vinyl. The kids choose orange, blue, neon green, and brown for colors. Since it was a small space, I did everything (pillows/comforters/curtains/dishes even found some orange pots and pans) in the same colors to keep it connected. It has a real retro-vibe now! This was significantly easier than painting (or decoupaging), and pretty cheap. I'm totally satisfied with the look (and I'm really picky). If you are interested, do an internet search on wall stickers. (I got mine from ebay, but there are plenty of other places.) There are tons of different styles to choose from. I initially was interested in the silhouette trees etc., but the 210s just doesn't have enough wall space for them. I loosely taped them to the wall to adjust the spacing etc. then went back and applied each one. I did the whole camper in a few hours. It is totally do-able in the winter too. And the best part is if you decide to sell the camper, they come right off!!!

Just like you, I also hope to re-cover the dining pads soon. The colors are OK, but they just keep sliding around. That's gotta stop! Temporarily, I may just sew some velcro on the backs of them and then glue/staple the other side to that thin ply-wood (maybe it's Luan?).

Soo glad that we don't have carpet!

Sorry I don't have any pics (I looked), and the camper is currently "skiing". However I'll be back up to it over MLK weekend and can snap a few pics for you if you like.

Good luck with the remodel!
-Renee


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## Dub

Little_Country_Gal said:


> Couldn't agree more about that headboard!!! We added an extra 4" memory foam mattress to the king slide out bed and every time I changed the sheets my hands were dripping blood like something out of a horror movie. Once I finally figured out who was after 'em, I couldn't get that headboard outta there fast enough! (Pretty easy job, just pop the fabric covered tops off and unscrew a few screws.)
> 
> As for the color scheme, I'm not a fan of ours either. In addition to the mandatory toss the blankets/pillows/new curtains etc., I added wall stickers to the walls. I had originally thought about decoupaging the walls with maps/travel brochures/ski slope maps etc. but realized that I didn't have nearly enough of them on hand to cover all of the walls and opted for non-concentric circle cut-outs made from vinyl. The kids choose orange, blue, neon green, and brown for colors. Since it was a small space, I did everything (pillows/comforters/curtains/dishes even found some orange pots and pans) in the same colors to keep it connected. It has a real retro-vibe now! This was significantly easier than painting (or decoupaging), and pretty cheap. I'm totally satisfied with the look (and I'm really picky). If you are interested, do an internet search on wall stickers. (I got mine from ebay, but there are plenty of other places.) There are tons of different styles to choose from. I initially was interested in the silhouette trees etc., but the 210s just doesn't have enough wall space for them. I loosely taped them to the wall to adjust the spacing etc. then went back and applied each one. I did the whole camper in a few hours. It is totally do-able in the winter too. And the best part is if you decide to sell the camper, they come right off!!!
> 
> Just like you, I also hope to re-cover the dining pads soon. The colors are OK, but they just keep sliding around. That's gotta stop! Temporarily, I may just sew some velcro on the backs of them and then glue/staple the other side to that thin ply-wood (maybe it's Luan?).
> 
> Soo glad that we don't have carpet!
> 
> Sorry I don't have any pics (I looked), and the camper is currently "skiing". However I'll be back up to it over MLK weekend and can snap a few pics for you if you like.
> 
> Good luck with the remodel!
> -Renee


I'd love to see some pics, the more ideas I get this winter the better.

I saw on the other thread that your camper was up at Canaan Valley. I was just up there and also at Timberland. Good amount of snow but kinda made me mad each resort only had one lift running! Maybe it was because we were there during the week? We own a cabin in the area near Alpena and Glady. Dolly Sods is my favorite Wilderness Area east of the ole Miss.


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## KTMRacer

Little_Country_Gal said:


> Couldn't agree more about that headboard!!! We added an extra 4" memory foam mattress to the king slide out bed and every time I changed the sheets my hands were dripping blood like something out of a horror movie. Once I finally figured out who was after 'em, I couldn't get that headboard outta there fast enough! (Pretty easy job, just pop the fabric covered tops off and unscrew a few screws.)
> 
> As for the color scheme, I'm not a fan of ours either. In addition to the mandatory toss the blankets/pillows/new curtains etc., I added wall stickers to the walls. I had originally thought about decoupaging the walls with maps/travel brochures/ski slope maps etc. but realized that I didn't have nearly enough of them on hand to cover all of the walls and opted for non-concentric circle cut-outs made from vinyl. The kids choose orange, blue, neon green, and brown for colors. Since it was a small space, I did everything (pillows/comforters/curtains/dishes even found some orange pots and pans) in the same colors to keep it connected. It has a real retro-vibe now! This was significantly easier than painting (or decoupaging), and pretty cheap. I'm totally satisfied with the look (and I'm really picky). If you are interested, do an internet search on wall stickers. (I got mine from ebay, but there are plenty of other places.) There are tons of different styles to choose from. I initially was interested in the silhouette trees etc., but the 210s just doesn't have enough wall space for them. I loosely taped them to the wall to adjust the spacing etc. then went back and applied each one. I did the whole camper in a few hours. It is totally do-able in the winter too. And the best part is if you decide to sell the camper, they come right off!!!
> 
> Just like you, I also hope to re-cover the dining pads soon. The colors are OK, but they just keep sliding around. That's gotta stop! Temporarily, I may just sew some velcro on the backs of them and then glue/staple the other side to that thin ply-wood (maybe it's Luan?).
> 
> Soo glad that we don't have carpet!
> 
> Sorry I don't have any pics (I looked), and the camper is currently "skiing". However I'll be back up to it over MLK weekend and can snap a few pics for you if you like.
> 
> Good luck with the remodel!
> -Renee


to keep the dining seats from sliding around, just throw some of the rubbery shelf liner on top of the plywood and plop the dining seats back down. No need to staple it or anything. Worked great for us and was quick and easy.


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## luckylynn

Dub said:


> I guess I'm bored being that it's winter and I don't have much to do outside...so I'm starting to find projects for when it gets warmer. I'm really not thrilled with the interior of my 310BHS...I got the green, I should have went for red. I'm tired of looking at the bland walls and the green colors so I've been researching painting the interior walls. I like the idea of having different colors in different "spaces." One color for our bedroom, one for the living area, one for the bathroom, one for the bunk house and maybe an accent wall in the kitchen...might be a bit too ADD though.
> 
> What I like more than that is getting rid of the carpet. I hate carpet with a passion and have put in hardwood floors on the top two levels of my house. The stick-on floor in the link looks pretty nice and might work well...not sure about expansion issues with it. Either way, no carpet on the slides would give the appearance of a bigger space. Plus our camper vacuum died this summer so I'd rather make the entire floor broomable.
> 
> I'm not a fan of the cushions on the dinettes either and have been talking about getting new cushions and new upholstery since summer. I'm sure we could find some nice fabrics to match or contrast what wall color choices we picked.
> 
> The headboard in my bedroom has staples sticking out just beneath the surface...so when we sit up against it to watch TV at night if you don't stack pillows high enough they get ya! So that would be another nice thing to replace. Adding curtains would be great for helping to block out the sun that the blinds lets through...currently we just hang towels over. I would imagine that could help block out some heat too.
> 
> I did a quick search and didn't find much but has anyone here ever attempted this with their outback? I'm not concerned with any loss of resale value from doing this as I plan to keep it awhile. Pics would be great if anyone has went down this road before.


Hi there....sounds like you have some very good ideas. I came across this sight http://www.ehow.com/how_4481481_rv-more-homey.html today while reading some other articals on campingRoadTrip.com and thought about you,so I decided to come back here and make a reply to your post. Maybe lots more than you had in mind to do,but I did think it was very interesting.

Hope you have time to look at it and that you enjoy the sight.

Happy Camping....Lynn


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## Dub

luckylynn said:


> Hi there....sounds like you have some very good ideas. I came across this sight http://www.ehow.com/how_4481481_rv-more-homey.html today while reading some other articals on campingRoadTrip.com and thought about you,so I decided to come back here and make a reply to your post. Maybe lots more than you had in mind to do,but I did think it was very interesting.
> 
> Hope you have time to look at it and that you enjoy the sight.
> 
> Happy Camping....Lynn


Thanks! I'll check them out, still gathering ideas this winter and will attack this makeover starting in April or May whenever the last freeze occurs and our season begins.


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## 5th Time Around

I have to say, I want to remove the couch and dinnette! I already unscrewed the dinnette and switch positions with the couch to see the TV better. But my couch and dinnette cushions are horribly flattened out and just down right uncomfortable! I can't believe how quickly they broke down. I am going to ikea next weekend and hope to come out with at least a free standing table and chairs.


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## Boret

I would love to see some pictures of the mods you guys are making!!


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## 5th Time Around

The is what the table & chairs look like. We removed the booth dinnette.


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## John Janiszewski

Thanks for the post, I love how it looks with the carpet removed. My wife and I are looking at a 2006 31RQS and she really wanted to have the carpet removed. The salesman wasn't sure if it could be done. Definitely makes the space look better and is much easier to clean.


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## roadtripRN

I know this thread is old as dirt, but wondering if any of you are still around and can answer if you had any problems as a result of removing the carpeting? Or removing the dinette? That thing is so solid on its aluminum framework that I'm concerned it has a structural purpose.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk


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