Morris Minor Owners Club

Had my Traveller all of 2 weeks now.

Today I checked the drain holes on the main long wood sections on each side. All are ok except rear n/s above the fuel cap - and with a bit of moss where the rear side window meets the wood, that might presumably indicate a problem.

I tried poking the holes underneath with a screwdriver, which went in and out very easily, but water doesn't drain through the holes like it does elsewhere.

Any experience of this, or tips? I'm new to all this, but enjoying it.

Welcome to Traveller ownership.
Try and have a look to see if the drain holes in the felt strip that the window sits in line up with the drain holes in the wood, if not make a small hole in the felt strip in line with the drain hole using a drill then just clean regularly. It important to get the water away as quickly as possible.

The holes do go at a bit of an angle, and you will see that the top of the hole ends up in each window channel.
If the stainless steel and black felty lined sections are fitted correctly, then the holes should go straight through, so pocking something it at the bottom, you should see the top.
Keep the sections clean of leaves and moss, I use an old stiff paint brush and hoover it out at the same time!
If your timber is dry, Steve Foreman the woodwork expert, and thoroughly nice bloke, recommends blocking up the holes at the bottom, then filling up the channels with "Cuprenol Five Star" wood preservative. This is good stuff, soaks into the wood and stops more rot and preserves the wood. This you should do once a year. Don't forget to un-block them afterwards!

mbo145 wrote:The holes do go at a bit of an angle, and you will see that the top of the hole ends up in each window channel.
If the stainless steel and black felty lined sections are fitted correctly, then the holes should go straight through, so pocking something it at the bottom, you should see the top.
Keep the sections clean of leaves and moss, I use an old stiff paint brush and hoover it out at the same time!
If your timber is dry, Steve Foreman the woodwork expert, and thoroughly nice bloke, recommends blocking up the holes at the bottom, then filling up the channels with "Cuprenol Five Star" wood preservative. This is good stuff, soaks into the wood and stops more rot and preserves the wood. This you should do once a year. Don't forget to un-block them afterwards!

Brill idea never thought of that

Thanks. Appreciate the suggestions.
When putting the small screwdriver up the holes they did go at an angle, not straight up. Maybe I was being too timid with pushing up to see if they would come up at the top. I'll try the offside ones again tomorrow, which seem to be fine, then I guess I'll have a reference for how it's supposed to be. Maybe someone replaced the felt on the nearside and thats why the hole doesn't go all the way.

Great idea re the Cuprinol - I'll have to wait for a dry weather spell.

N.B. Protect your paintwork as Cuprinol can mark it. Small meat skewer does less damage than a screwdriver when cleaning out the waist rail holes. Use cotton wool impregnated in Cuprinol to bung up the hole. Leave in overnight for it to soak into sides of holes. Beefed up cotton wool buds work well for this job but you may need to add a bit more cotton wool to fit the hole.
Don't forget to remove them.

Good idea with the cotton buds! My paintwork hasn't been marked by the Cuprenol, but is is under 5 years old, the Dum Dum black filler can dissolve a bit, as it is oil based like the Cuprinol!

Does the cotton wool bud technique need to be done in warmer, drier weather than we have now?

No - if you're worried about the state of the wood this is the weather it really needs as much protection especially if its outside.
I wouldn't recommend you do it on a freezing day - wait for a sunnier one. It only takes 24 hours to do the drain holes.

Thanks. So here's hoping for a sunny day asap!

You really need to get the timber nice and dry - internal dry storage for a few weeks ! And scrape off any horrible varnish - to let the timber dry out completely. Then treat overall (not just in the holes...) with the Cuprinol 5 star - several dousings - allowing to dry in between.. And then treat with timber oil of your choice.