Bathroom Medicine Cabinet Retrofit

[gbaglo]

Good job. But doesn't that make converting the 19' to a 21' more difficult?

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Well, let me say this...not for the faint of heart, but it did turn out great.

Escelllent! This will be a great mod for those with Classic Escape's.

[MyronL]

Great work. I am surprised by how huge the cabinet is-- that mirror's sharp corners could hurt. No wonder recessing it is the better way to go. Must go check the cabinet out at Lowes.

[cpaharley2008]

Looks great and with the light being lower will not blind you at night...

[freespirit]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Well, let me say this...not for the faint of heart, but it did turn out great. Got it located in the perfect spot and leveraged the existing wall support framing on both sides. Needed to use dremel to cut out the panels and then jigsaw to trim framing. Took out one small horizontal piece of wall framing. Went with screws on the inside and into the framing on the sides to secure, plus it rests on the layers of fiberglass and wall paneling at the bottom. It is also a very snug fit into the wall because I didn't oversize the hole. No additional blocking was added.

It does not protrude too deeply at all into the wardrobe and it sits nicely against the wall in the bath with only an inch or so protruding. The protrusion lines up well with the door frame edge. If you didn't know better you might think this was factory installed. I definitely would not wall mount it. It would protrude too far into the bath and you could hit the edge of the mirror as you walk in. Also when you are standing in front of it the swing of the door would be too awkward if it were out further. I don't show it but it swings toward the outer wall so you can access the cabinet while standing outside the bath as well.

Had to relocate the light and the shower head holder but no big deal.

Next step will be to wire the outlet...

your mission it seems is..to boldly go where none have gone before and explore the universe within your trailer...and show others who follow the path forward!
good job Captain!

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by MyronL

Great work. I am surprised by how huge the cabinet is-- that mirror's sharp corners could hurt. No wonder recessing it is the better way to go. Must go check the cabinet out at Lowes.

Myron: Thanks. It sure seems bigger when you get it into the little bath. Definitely needs to be recessed on the sink side. I needed to do it that way too to integrate my power outlet. It could probably be surface mounted on the other wall over the toilet without issue. Short screws unless you want a coat hanger on the dinette wall! The nice thing is the area for the door swing would then be over the toilet and may work really well. You also would not need to worry about relocation of the light and shower holder. There is framing in that wall you could leverage. See pic. For many owners the surface mount would make this a MUCH easier modification to manage without cutting a huge hole through the bath wall.

Just an FYI...the Lowe's website would make one believe the door is reversible. It isn't. The door is riveted on and you flip the unit over to reverse it. This just changes the orientation of the fixed shelves on the inside.

[Ron in BC]

You have a few photos of visible structure that I don't have. I'll add them to my photos that I've taken when I had exposed structure. Handy to be able to refer to them when doing mods.

Thanks for posting it.

Ron

[ReagentGrade]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

As long as you recognize your weirdness, all is good.

Jim, anytime I forget how "special" I am, my wife doesn't hesitate to remind me.

Rich

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

It could probably be surface mounted on the other wall over the toilet without issue. Short screws unless you want a coat hanger on the dinette wall! The nice thing is the area for the door swing would then be over the toilet and may work really well. You also would not need to worry about relocation of the light and shower holder. There is framing in that wall you could leverage. See pic. For many owners the surface mount would make this a MUCH easier modification to manage without cutting a huge hole through the bath wall.

What I describe is basically what Pat did with a homemade solution:
http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f7...html#post93965

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

What I describe is basically what Pat did with a homemade solution:
http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f7...html#post93965

I wonder what cabinet ETI uses? If they can be surface mounted and available for purchase it may be another good option. Basically in the position shown in pic but obviously without the new mold bump out to accommodate recessing it.

[rubicon327]

Got to the wiring of the outlet tonight that I custom fit into the medicine cabinet. I cut the 120V wire down in the cabinet space under the fridge that used to be dedicated to the rooftop A/C (now have a mini-split heat pump on another breaker I added). This puts this outlet on a dedicated 20A breaker but since it will likely be used for a hairdryer that can't hurt. I pulled the furnace for room to work and swung the wire back towards the front of the trailer and then fed it up with the piping that goes up into the closet for the outside shower. This was just the perfect length of wire to feed it into the outlet box, complete the wiring of the outlet and get it all back together. Tested that the outlet was wired correctly and that the ground fault (GFI) functionality works. Happy with the results.

[Patandlinda]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Got to the wiring of the outlet tonight that I custom fit into the medicine cabinet. I cut the 120V wire down in the cabinet space under the fridge that used to be dedicated to the rooftop A/C (now have a mini-split heat pump on another breaker I added). This puts this outlet on a dedicated 20A breaker but since it will likely be used for a hairdryer that can't hurt. I pulled the furnace for room to work and swung the wire back towards the front of the trailer and then fed it up with the piping that goes up into the closet for the outside shower. This was just the perfect length of wire to feed it into the outlet box, complete the wiring of the outlet and get it all back together. Tested that the outlet was wired correctly and that the ground fault (GFI) functionality works. Happy with the results.

Nice ! Thinking outside the box ! Pat

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by citabria90

I would consider adding some sort of lip or retainer bar to the shelves so that when you open the cabinet all the items don't all of a sudden slide out.

Thanks for the suggestion. Expanding cabinet bars would have fit but I felt the diameter would take away from the useable shelf space. I came up with a way to create some retainers using small bungee cords. The ends were bent into right angles and were inserted into small holes I drilled into the cabinet surround. They stay very secure but can be easily removed or moved up or down as needed.

I also cleaned up the wiring in the closet so the Romex wasn't exposed. I simply added a small section of Liquidtite conduit and attached it to the wall.

[rubicon327]

Just a follow up to this retrofit if anyone attempts it. As we've used it we noticed the edges come to a really sharp corner on the mirror. This could be especially problematic for kids on the lower outboard edge. To address this I found 3/8" clear car door edge protector. It is self adhesive and comes with (2) 27" strips per package. Bought 2 packs and cut to fit around the entire mirror edge. Works perfect.

www.amazon.com/Cowles-T3800-Clear-U-Door-Edge/dp/B001EA0LVS

[cpaharley2008]

That can also be used on your propane tank bottoms for rust prevention...

[mcdonner]

Love the bungee cord idea. We've had our 19 for a year now and so far no problem with medicine cabinet coming open. I am very careful opening it though upon arrival. I think the bungees may be on the to do list this year.

[W@nderer]

I know it is a bit late on this but here is a photo of the way ETI mounted the medicine cabinet I our 21 if anyone is interested. The wood seems to be 1x2 or so.