floor repair: Tyvek over plywood?

[Bob Blarney]

Originally Posted by dmbecke

Can treated plywood be used ?

In the past, no. It was too corrosive to the frame and/or aluminum, and the fasteners. Read on -

Yesterday I wrote to the American Wood Protection Association, which is a standards and technical information clearinghouse for preservative treatments used in the building industry. Here is the reply:


"Your concerns with pressure treated plywood are understood. Most of the current formulations are copper-based and sometimes contain compounds which may be corrosive to metals. Based on this, I would suggest two alternatives:

1. Plywood pressure treated with a nonmetallic preservative system (borates, EL2, or PTI). I would not expect there to be any galvanic corrosion caused by the preservatives in these types of treated wood. We're primarily a standards developer, so the availability of these products in the marketplace is generally unknown to us. You might contact the preservative manufacturers at the following websites to determine if plywood is available with one of these preservatives:

http://www.wolmanizedwood.com/home/p...ucts/wolmanag/
http://www.wolmanizedwood.com/home/p...ducts/sillbor/
http://www.koppersperformancechemica.../advanceguard/
http://treatedwood.com/products/ecolife/
http://treatedwood.com/products/timbersaver/

2. Surface-applied treatment with borates. Just as you indicated that you were considering a preservative solution around the edges where the leakage typically occurs, you could apply a boron-based preservative:

Bora-Care: http://nisuscorp.com/homeowners/products/BORA-CARE (they also have a Bora-Care plus mold care). This could be applied to untreated plywood per the label instructions, then allowed to dry prior to installation.
Tim-bor: http://nisuscorp.com/remodelers/prod...r-professional You would make a saturated aqueous solution with this compound and thoroughly soak the wood. I would probably recommend several applications over a few days’ time to load the wood up with as much as possible. Then, allow the wood to dry before installation.
Boric acid or Borax: Slightly less effective than the tim-bor, you would follow the same procedure.

That said, the borates will eventually be depleted if subjected to running water over a long period. As long as these leaks are fairly small and only dampen the wood before drying out again, they’ll do their job. If, however, they’re subjected to water that has enough volume to run across the wood surface (or direct exposure to water coming from under the trailer during travels), then the borates will deplete over time.


I hope this information gets you pointed in the right direction…please let me know if you have any questions or need additional information.

Colin McCown
American Wood Protection Association"

[Bob Blarney]

Originally Posted by Jeremiwvu

The only way to prevent rot is to prevent moisture. It is also important to prepare for the inevitable leak.

To prevent moisture the best policy is regular inspection and maintenance of the exterior. One factor not considered is mold. Even if you prevent the rot by keeping up with exterior waterproofing we all know you will have a leak occasionally.

My wife has a severe mold allergy, we had issues in our old airstream and had leaks in our current one when we bought it. We replaced floors and consulted a mold mitigation specialist with how to treat the existing plywood, they recommended kiltz primer and said it is the only product they use to prevent mold. We painted the floor with it and installed the new floor in such a way that we can check under edges for moisture and stay on top of exterior maintenance.

Bottom line is no matter what products you use (even expensive ones) that you should install and not be on top of preventing moisture in the first place. Even if the product used will not rot that is only part of the problem. Moisture is a problem even if the plywood substitute won’t rot. There are still structural steel components and other areas that are vulnerable to long term exposure to moisture.

If you had a roof leak in your house which lead to rotten floors the logical solution should not be to replace the floor with a product that won’t rot... same logic applies here IMHO.

I do think that a mold inhibitive paint and primer are more advantageous than tyvec or any other sheet, and it would be much more straight forward installation.

Good luck with the project.

This is advice that is certainly worth consideration. I have used Kiiz in the past, and I see that Rustoleum makes a similar mold-killing product that can be applied directly over existing mold. Glidden Gripper is also a good product, and has been used successfully as an adhesive for gluing canvas to XPS insulation on Foamie tiny trailers.

https://www.rustoleum.com/product-ca...killing-primer

[TouringDan]

Originally Posted by Jeremiwvu

The only way to prevent rot is to prevent moisture. It is also important to prepare for the inevitable leak.

To prevent moisture the best policy is regular inspection and maintenance of the exterior. One factor not considered is mold. Even if you prevent the rot by keeping up with exterior waterproofing we all know you will have a leak occasionally.

My wife has a severe mold allergy, we had issues in our old airstream and had leaks in our current one when we bought it. We replaced floors and consulted a mold mitigation specialist with how to treat the existing plywood, they recommended kiltz primer and said it is the only product they use to prevent mold. We painted the floor with it and installed the new floor in such a way that we can check under edges for moisture and stay on top of exterior maintenance.

Bottom line is no matter what products you use (even expensive ones) that you should install and not be on top of preventing moisture in the first place. Even if the product used will not rot that is only part of the problem. Moisture is a problem even if the plywood substitute won’t rot. There are still structural steel components and other areas that are vulnerable to long term exposure to moisture.

If you had a roof leak in your house which lead to rotten floors the logical solution should not be to replace the floor with a product that won’t rot... same logic applies here IMHO.

I do think that a mold inhibitive paint and primer are more advantageous than tyvec or any other sheet, and it would be much more straight forward installation.

Good luck with the project.

In general I completely agree with you. My only comment is that I don’t think you need to be concerned about mold unless some one in your family is sensitive to it.

Dan

[J. Morgan]

How many years should an Airstream floor restoration last, and why?

[Jeremiwvu]

Originally Posted by J. Morgan

How many years should an Airstream floor restoration last, and why?

It will last virtually forever if it never leaks. If it Leaks and isn’t discovered and fixed it could rot within a couple of years.

[Dingo Girl]

I used ACX plywood saturated with Smiths Penetrating Epoxy.
This was 3 years ago. I made a sample piece and put it under the eave of my storage barn.
Other than being curled up now there is no sign of rot or.....
I'm not sorry I went this route.
My floor will outlast me.

[Bob Blarney]

Originally Posted by Dingo Girl

I used ACX plywood saturated with Smiths Penetrating Epoxy.
This was 3 years ago. I made a sample piece and put it under the eave of my storage barn.
Other than being curled up now there is no sign of rot or.....
I'm not sorry I went this route.
My floor will outlast me.

I don't know if there is a 'perfect' or even 'best' way. I'm exploring options for materials & techniques that give good performance at a price that is within the budget. I figure I'm looking at 15-20 years of use, and more if the maintenance is meticulous.

Heck, I'm still getting used to the idea that it's likely that I'll burn out before the lightbulbs that I buy.

[sgschwend]

The trailers are designed to not have a leak. I think you should focus on keeping the trailer leak free.

[Bob Blarney]

Originally Posted by sgschwend

The trailers are designed to not have a leak. I think you should focus on keeping the trailer leak free.

? Designed to not have a leak? Well, maybe that was the good intention, but I think that they needed better designers. I think that maybe one of these days, that a Japanese or Chinese or European company will eat their lunch with a better design.

[slowmover]

Originally Posted by Bob Blarney

? Designed to not have a leak? Well, maybe that was the good intention, but I think that they needed better designers. I think that maybe one of these days, that a Japanese or Chinese or European company will eat their lunch with a better design.

Avion and Silver Streak rarely see the leaks that AS does, even though construction was different from each other, not just from AS.

I haven't said impossible, but I have said improbable (in a comparison).

The biggest problem is time, thus the aging of gasket materials at the exterior, past skin construction.

On that, the foreigners would have the same problems.

.

[TouringDan]

Originally Posted by Dingo Girl

I used ACX plywood saturated with Smiths Penetrating Epoxy.
This was 3 years ago. I made a sample piece and put it under the eave of my storage barn.
Other than being curled up now there is no sign of rot or.....
I'm not sorry I went this route.
My floor will outlast me.

Dingo Girl

Good for you. Now just make sure the joint between the front bumper cover and the rear exterior panel is properly caulked with Trempro 635.

Dan