Top Rotting Out

So the seal under the A/C unit was bad and water leaked inside the ceiling and then down inside the opposite corner walls (L front & R Rear). It pooled inside the bottom trim of the top unit and had destroyed the wood in several places now causing the sides to bulge outwards when the cable tension is tightened.
Anybody ever had to replace the bottom wood of the top half? This reminds me of a rotten transom on a boat. Same kind of deterorated wood.

(I just need another 18' upper half unit, that's all.) I'm just at a loss. I was thinking about filling the voids from the deteriorated wood with bondo and puting strongbacks as braces on the sides. It's a mess.

thoughts?

1997 18' Travel Lite

DISCLAIMER: Everything that I am about to say is not personal experience, just what I was told (credibility unknown), but I am about to experience nearly the same issue.

Apparently inside the walls there is basically a wood frame (picture your house framework). If you CAREFULLY remove the aluminum siding and windows you can remove all of the rotten wood and then basically rebuild the wall by re-framing and then installing new plywood. I don't know if the roof is the same way, but shouldn't be too different, if any. This may not be the professional way, but its what the PO of my trailer "say" they did to one of the walls and it doesn't look too bad. I can't even tell unless I am looking for it.

Hope this helps!

P.S. I am going to have to do the same thing with my trailer, 18', where water leaked in near the A/C, but went directly to the door and then down the wall around the door.

Good luck, and I'd love to hear about the results.

Jason