Road debris damage to fiberglass underbody

[Chasing Trials]

Looks great! Small self-employed is the way to go.

[Ron in BC]

Thanks for posting the end result. A very nice job done for a very reasonable price and a good example of how repairable f.g. is.

I don't know about the other outrageous bid. Some companies do things like that. They might not get most of the quotes like that but it only takes one to make a it very profitable for them.

Ron

[Ron in BC]

Actually I realized that I've had a similar experience in the last few months.

I have a grove of tall, about 100 foot plus trees in my back yard. I noticed that one hemlock was dead. I wanted it down because we do get periods of high winds and it was close to the house.

I called some name brand tree companies and they either did not bother to reply or sent out someone who tried to B.S. their way into the job by telling me how experienced the were and how difficult the job was. The two quotes that I did get both were in the $2,000 range. Quotes were for, on the ground, me to deal with the wood.

Saw a guy trimming a tree at a neighboring house. Asking him to look at the tree. No problem he said, $400. Expert climber, pro approach, learned a bit about rope work from him and down came the tree. Gave him $500 and thanks.

A couple of days later he phoned and asked if I still had the wood. Said yes. He said that he had a customer that could use the wood. Came over, bucked up and took everything. No charge.

So, yes, sometimes finding the right person makes all the difference in the world.

Ron

[ghosthunter]

Very nice

[Jill]

Originally Posted by wr9r

Update information:


When I contacted Escape to see what type of resin and mat to use on the fiberglass repairs, they did not answer my questions, but suggested going to a boat repair facility or an auto/RV center that are familiar with such repairs.


Senior Member Willy B suggested I check with Crain Collision Center of Conway (AR) for fiberglass repair. After looking at the trailer, here is their estimate:
- - - - - - -
Body Labor 17.0 hrs @ $165.00 / hr $2,805.00
Paint Labor 15.0 hrs @ $165.00/ hr $2,475.00
Paint 15.0 hrs @ $50.00/ hr 750.00
Body Supplies 17 hrs @ $10.00/ hr 170.00
Total $6,200.00
- - - - - - - -
I about choked when I saw the total, so I stopped by to see if there was any room to negotiate on the basis of total hours or cash payment. After all, I thought fiberglass repair involved layering, and each layer would not require an entire hour. They apparently bill for a whole hour even if only part of an hour is actual work. Bottom line – no negotiation – take it or leave it.


For that amount of money I can buy equipment, supplies, and get lots of practice before doing the job myself!


Are the hours estimate and the charges involved reasonable? I have attached another photo that shows the size of the hole in the fiberglass underneath the trailer behind the left rear tire.

Thank you for sharing this. I got a 1/2" hole just above the belly band in the front of our trailer on our last trip. No idea how it happened. I got a quote for $1400 from our local RV repair shop and thought that was outrageous. So I came to the forum and saw your experience and realized that it wasn't as outrageous as I thought. Also it was worth a try to get my insurance to cover it. So while the trailer was at the RV shop for other work the insurance adjuster came out and agreed the repair was $1400 and sent me a check for $900 (after the $500 deductible). Then I found a marine fiberglass shop to repair it for $700. I'm sure they will do a better job too, as they weren't worried about matching the gel coat color etc. So thanks to this forum, where I was once looking at a $1400 repair, or me doing a lousy patchwork repair, I'm getting it professionally fixed for free. Woohoo!