Depending on the brand and decade of your vintage trailer,
you may have an original metal or retro laminate backsplash you wish to keep.
(Or once again, it’s vinyl wallpaper.) In case it’s not salvageable, there is
good news if replacement is necessary. Metal backsplashes have never really
gone away, especially in commercial applications. Reproduction retro laminate
is getting easier to find, along with a variety of chrome trim for countertops.
There are at least 2 or 3 online retailers who carry retro laminate. The
following vendor is a frequent advertiser in publications like “Vintage
Trailer” magazine.
Before we address metal, it’s necessary to mention faux
options once again. If you choose to use them, pay close attention to
manufacturer instructions concerning proximity to heat sources and maximum
amount of heat the product will tolerate. Some options we considered were rated
to 140° F. That includes gel tiles and 18” x 24” faux tin backsplash sheets
(PVC). The faux tin sheets average about $20 a piece. Still pretty expensive
per square foot, and 140° F may not be enough behind a propane stove. It’s not
a bad idea to turn on the burners and check the temperature of the stove lid
(if you have one) as it rests against the wall. Also think about your cooking
habits before making any decisions. How many burners do you normally use when
making a meal? If you’re not using the back burner(s) very often, a plastic
backsplash will probably be fine. Otherwise, pay attention to manufacturer
recommendations and make sure the backsplash material is far enough from a heat
source.
Besides safety, other considerations will include ease of
installation and upkeep. Trailers like Airstream and some of her silver
sisters, with their curved walls may not be so laminate friendly, since it’s
hard plastic backed with a very thin sheet of wood. It may have some leeway to
bend a bit, but will crack if you force it. Are you restoring? If it was there
before, it can be installed again, as long as it stays in the same footprint.
Metal doesn’t have the heat issues found with plastic. It
does come with price issues, though. Stainless steel and aluminum are the most
common choices. Stainless is generally one of the most expensive options. It
doesn’t need any coatings to prevent corrosion. Still, it will have to be
cleaned. Have stainless appliances in your house? Then you’re already familiar
with the care of stainless steel. Copper is another high dollar option. For
those who want to keep the new penny look, copper has to be clear-coated. Aluminum
can be somewhat less expensive. Prices will be determined by alloy type, sheet
gage (thickness), and type of finish – such as mill or brushed.
For our backsplash, Kristal chose .040 aluminum. Though a
bit thicker than sheets found in big box stores, it’s still flexible enough to
follow the wall curve. She also wanted a large sheet which would allow a
single, seamless piece to be cut. Seams and textured surfaces are dirt collectors. Since
she was looking for a 4’ x 10’ sheet, it took a bit of digging. Shortly before
giving up, she stumbled on a racing parts store. They have several locations in
Texas and Oklahoma. 4’ x 10’ sheets of aluminum in various racing colors and
mill finish are in their inventory. It can only be picked up in-store, and
we’re lucky enough to have a location just a few miles north of us. Kristal was
happy to find them, especially since the mill finish sheet is under $100. We
purchased 2 sheets and were pleasantly surprised by the thickness and quality
for the price. (The other sheet is for another project.)
You may be thinking a 4’ x 10’ sheet is a bit excessive.
Kristal wanted 2 kitchen backsplash pieces. The only seam she was willing to
tolerate is the corner where the curbside and kitchen walls meet. The larger
piece, for the curbside wall, is 6’ long and 31” deep. The kitchen wall piece,
which will back the sink, is the same depth and 32” long at its widest point. The
upper cabinet covers most of the top edges and the countertop will overlap the bottom
edges. Both pieces were cut from one sheet with room to spare. There is enough
left over to make a bathroom sink backsplash, along with replacement window
frames for the 2 lower Vista View windows, on the street side. (The originals
were plastic.)
The trickiest part of fabricating the curbside piece was
placement of the window. We could have removed the kitchen window, its
hardware, and the inside screen frame before putting up the sheet. Then cut out
the window opening from outside of the trailer. Unfortunately, the window’s
hardware wouldn’t allow it to be so easy. There are slots on each side for the
levers which open and close the window. The locking latches at the bottom of
the window don’t detach with it. Not really possible to put a sheet of aluminum
over those. Using a power tool to cut around the latches and make slots would
have been a no-no. Why risk damage to the window frame? Kristal’s pattern paper
allowed us to make a mock-up which had the window cut-out with accommodations
for the hardware.
Aluminum is another material which may benefit from a clear
coat. Type of alloy can make a difference in oxidation. The one issue we had
with our aluminum sheets is lack of information on type of alloy. We know who
the manufacturer is and tried reaching out to them for more information. They
never responded. Kristal wanted to keep maintenance to a minimum, so she
decided to err on the side of caution. We purchased satin finish, bare metal automotive
clearcoat with a temperature rating to 300° F. The brand we chose comes in 32
oz. cans or spray cans. Kristal decided to try the 32 oz. can because of the
square footage she needed to cover. (Our new stove has a glass lid. Glass isn’t
a very good heat conductor, but it can still get toasty.)
Clear coat can be applied with a brush. The following site
contains instructions for brushing on this type of product. Since she’s more
comfortable with spray coatings, Kristal read thru these instructions a couple
of times. She also recommends practicing on scrap pieces before applying to the
final piece. Part of the reason she found practice useful was more lacking
information – what type of brush is best suited for this job. She kept her
choices limited to brush types which were easy to find in our neighborhood. Thru
trial and error, she determined brushes for oils and varnishes will do a decent
job. The backsplash pieces were clear-coated before they were installed in the
trailer. Clear-coat in the can is thin enough to run on a vertical surface.
Over-spray from an aerosol product will do the same if you get in a hurry.
Follow manufacturer instructions concerning curing. Give your pieces the
recommended cure time before installing.
We installed the backsplash pieces with 3M double-sided VHB
tape. Since each wall has a single piece, installation didn’t take too long. It
was just a matter of adjusting fit around the window a bit, and making sure
each piece was straight before applying pressure to the tape. The tape was
allowed to cure for a few days before we caulked the corner. (Which was done
prior to installation of the cabinetry.) We also used Olympic rivets on the
outside curbside edge to make sure the aluminum stays where it belongs. The
sink backsplash is on a flat wall, so the rivets aren’t necessary. However, we
will come back later when we’re finishing up the trim work, and make it match
the opposite edge.
We’re now finishing the curbside kitchen cabinetry, and
we’re getting excited to create the custom countertops we’ve been dreaming of
for the past 3 years.
