Blank floor

[PhilMateo]

Ok....I've read every post on floor replacement options going back 5 years (?).

I have a 65 overlander. I removed everything inside it this week.

Just repaired 2 places with floor rot. Rest of plywood in great shape. No noticable cracks or gaps at seams.

So....what is best option for new floor (no carpet). I like idea of wall to wall sheet vinyl over a freshly sealed and cleaned wood floor. I'd think that this would help keep water from getting under floor and rotting it. Also give a reprieve from cracks from flexing frame.

However, older posts say sheet vinyl will crack at wood floor seams.

What is today's feeling on modern sheet products?

If sheet is out, do I seal wood, reinstall walls, beds, etc, then add a laminate floor?

Lastly, glue or no glue? Underlayment or none?

Thanks for your opinions.

[uwe]

Originally Posted by PhilMateo

So....what is best option for new floor (no carpet). I like idea of wall to wall sheet vinyl over a freshly sealed and cleaned wood floor. I'd think that this would help keep water from getting under floor and rotting it. Also give a reprieve from cracks from flexing frame.

However, older posts say sheet vinyl will crack at wood floor seams.

What is today's feeling on modern sheet products?

If sheet is out, do I seal wood, reinstall walls, beds, etc, then add a laminate floor?

Lastly, glue or no glue? Underlayment or none?

Thanks for your opinions.

I used cork flooring, floating installation, no glue. It's nice to have it under everything, not just where you walk. The underlayment is already built into the cork.
I have seen Linoleum used in one piece installations, looks great, and should be finefor your purpose. Don't know if it can float or if it needs glue to stay down.
Laminate is nice, but heavy. Adds a few hundred pounds to the trailer, empty weight.
If I had not done the cork, I would have gone with Marmoleum. They have the nicest colors and patterns in sheet flooring, in my opinion.

[tin sista]

Nice topic. I'm seriously considering linoleum after reading this post (which you've probably already seen debating the merits of vinyl v. linoleum). I also saw a bit on this old house where Tommy installed some linoleum, I think its on their website( http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/know...202857,00.html) too. I'd love to hear more details about installation from folks who have put it in their trailer.

[GetOutDoors]

I looking at installing a fiberglass backed free-floating vinyl.

Does anyone know what Airstream is currently using in their new units?

[startrekker2001]

When I got our 78 Excella I tore up the carpet and put down vinyl tile. After a while the tile would separate probably because of the flexing. I took that up and have just finished installing a laminate. The laminate had underlayment attached but I put down a thin layer under it anyway. The tile had left a sticky residue on the floor and the floating floor made a noise when I walked on it. The floor has a springy feel to it with all the underlayment. It is quiet and comfortable.

I am a bit concerned about how the floor will react to the flexing. The flooring weighs about 300 pounds and cost about $500.
The added weight isn't a concern since, fully loaded I had almost 1300 pounds of unused cargo carrying capacity. I am a long way from being overloaded. Plus the weight of the floor is pretty evenly distributed over the whole unit.

I will keep you posted on how the floor survives the flexing on the road. It looks great, I hope it continues to look as good as it does now.

Here is a after and before pictures. Please excuse the condition of the unit in the after picture. We are having the lounge upholstered and doing a lot of other "little projects" during the cool weather of the winter here in Florida.

[cloud55]

Here's the website to order a sample of marmoleum and the catalog with great colors www.themarmoleumstore.com Don't know the best place to actually purchase it and there are way too many choices! Love Uwe's cork floor...we could all copy him and wouldn't have to decide.
Marmoleum requires glue and a veneer skin underlayment is a good idea to ensure a nice smooth finish. I'm not sure about the cracking but if you install it correctly and use an underlayment I don't think it would be a problem.
Lynn

[Stefrobrts]

I know you said no carpet, but I thought I'd add my opinion on the issue. I love my carpet! It's warm on the feet, is easily removed for cleanup or leaks (which I had to do a couple times this year - once when a rainstorm forced water in through the open vent cover, and once when I forgot I had an open can of pop in the fridge before we hit the road), and can be easily replaced when the time comes. It's lightweight and you don't have to worry about cracks. I do try to knock most of the mud and pine needles off my boots before I track it inside, but I'd do that with a hard flooring too. I just gotta say, carpet may not be as cool and modern as other floorings, but it's actually pretty practical.

[myboyburt]

Originally Posted by startrekker2001

When I got our 78 Excella I tore up the carpet and put down vinyl tile. After a while the tile would separate probably because of the flexing. I took that up and have just finished installing a laminate. The laminate had underlayment attached but I put down a thin layer under it anyway. The tile had left a sticky residue on the floor and the floating floor made a noise when I walked on it. The floor has a springy feel to it with all the underlayment. It is quiet and comfortable.

I am a bit concerned about how the floor will react to the flexing. The flooring weighs about 300 pounds and cost about $500.
The added weight isn't a concern since, fully loaded I had almost 1300 pounds of unused cargo carrying capacity. I am a long way from being overloaded. Plus the weight of the floor is pretty evenly distributed over the whole unit.

I will keep you posted on how the floor survives the flexing on the road. It looks great, I hope it continues to look as good as it does now.

Here is a after and before pictures. Please excuse the condition of the unit in the after picture. We are having the lounge upholstered and doing a lot of other "little projects" during the cool weather of the winter here in Florida.

We have a laminate floor in our Excella, my parents had it installed 5 or 6 years ago when they owned "The Tube". It is holding up very, very well. No problems at all from flexing. I love it because it is so easy to clean and gives the interior a "richer" look.

BTW, your unit is the most beauitfully polished Airstream I've ever seen (seen you twice, at Region 1, 2004 and 2005 rallys).

[malconium]

Take a look at the following website for another alternative type of flooring that I think looks pretty interesting. Take a look at the coin pattern one in particular.

http://americangaragefloor.com/

I do not have any personal experience with the products however so I hope that someone reading this could comment. Some of the key features that seem appealing to me are the following:

1.) The material is PVC which should be pretty rugged. Its billed as garage flooring if that says anything about the durability.

2.) It is available in one-piece rolls (or tiles if you want to vary the color) that are big enough to cover the entire floor seamlessly. One of the available widths is 7'5". If I am remebering right this is about perfect for the width of an AS without a lot of waste material that you would have if you had to go with something that was 9' wide. Marmoleum, while an awsome product, comes in 7' wide rolls if I recall correctly. That is not quite wide enough.

3.) The sheet products are advertised to be installed without any glue. I it really works that way then this would accomodate a lot of flex. It would also make it very easy to remove and replace later if that ever became necessary.

4.) It does come in some bright and snappy looking colors.

They also have an interesting interlocking tile that might work for some people.

Does anyone have any experience with this type of flooring?

Malcolm

[ankornuta]

I've been going crazy trying to find Armstrong Excella "Straight Grain" 9" tiles to match what my trailer came with originally. I guess they contained asbestos, so they're a little hard to find nowadays

It's interesting to note that when they put the floors down on these trailers they applied it before putting the body and belly on, so it's under even the the channel which the clamshell attaches to. I can't help but wonder if that creates a more resilient flooring surface, more impervious to expansion and contraction. It certainly doesn't seem to have protected my (now rotten) wood floor very much....