Carpet replacement in newer trailer

[Jammer]

The carpet in my trailer is not holding up well and shows noticeable wear after only six months. It is installed under the cabinets.

To replace it, would it be best to remove the cabinets and reinstall them, or can the existing carpet be cut out and carpet fit around the cabinetry?

[NJtoNC]

sounds like you should be installing something besides carpet if it hasn't held up well?
i can't imagine having carpet. mine would get dirty quick, too.

[Jammer]

It has some sort of Pergo-like material in the high traffic area along the galley.

The carpeting is solid beige and appears to be a olefin material. It would be charitable to characterize it as "builder grade." I think that it would get spots and start to look like matted dog hair if someone walked across it once in stocking feet. There are more suitable carpeting products out there.

[Bluto]

I would think that taking out all the cabinets along the floor is the way to do the best job. It sounds like you only have partial carpeting so that will even be easier with less stuff to remove.

[Aviator]

It appears when our carpet was redone prior to us getting the trailer that the old was cut out with cabinet removal. The carpet tack strips run along the bottom edge of our cabinets with the carpet then pushed under the edge of the cabinet. When I have removed some of them to do work, there are pieces of the original carpet still under them.

[Aviator]

P.S. When the cabinets are all in place, it looks good. You can't tell the trailer has non-original carpet by the installation job.

[2airishuman]

Originally Posted by Jammer

...To replace it, would it be best to remove the cabinets and reinstall them, or can the existing carpet be cut out and carpet fit around the cabinetry?

yes and yes.

imo the best replacement is to PULL the sofa, dinette, beds ANY other interior bits screwed down into the carpet...

the use SHEET flooring of some sort over the subfloor and reinstall.

then use area rugs IF they are needed.
____________

many many thousands of streamers have simply CUT the old carpet at the cabinetry borders

and reinstalled carpet or vinyl or floating plank flooring or what ever...

folk that use this approach are generally very HAPPY with the look and outcome.

the carpet is only attached at the perimeter,

so after cutting at the interior cabinet margins the stuff QUICKLY lifts up and is gone...
____________

the problem with this quick/easy approach is...

ALL of the outer access doors and storage bays (on some models) will still have carpet INSIDE THEM...

so anything dirty, wet, smelly or camping seasoned, will be absorbed INTO that storage bay carpet.

that's not an issue for everyone and really replacement depends on HOW MUCH WORK ya wanna do.

they are MANY good threads with stepbystep and photo how2s on this carpet transplant issue in modern streams.

cheers
2air'

[kevin242]

'It would be charitable to characterize it as "builder grade." '...

Wow. You spent big $$$ buying yourself what is supposed to be the best quality RV out there and you got that? I would go back to the dealer you bought it from and voice my dissatisfaction and see what they can do for you to make it right!

[Soyboy]

As a follow up to 2Air, after reading about the floor rot (and finding a bit in mine in the rear trunk) I proceeded to remove all of the carpet from the storage areas and everyplace else that was not exposed (under the closets where the water pump is located etc.). I guess they just lay the carpet and then put the cabinets in. It makes no sense to me to have carpet in a storage area where it can hold water. Now, at least in those areas, I can keep tabs on the condition of the floor. I may loosely install some sheet floor in the storage compartments just to "protect" the wood, but I will easily be able to lift it up and check for moisture. FYI, the PO removed the carpet in the interior (without removing the cabinets etc.) and installed cork flooring. It looks great and he did a very nice job trimming it out along the sidewalls. Although we have some area rugs in the trailer, I like the idea of being able to clean the bare floor, especially after trips to the beach.

[Jammer]

Kevin,

It is well known that the mother ship has a tin ear when it comes to matters of trailer quality. There's nothing really defective about the carpet, in the sense of it having a tear or uneven coloration or something like that. It's just a poor choice for the application. A carpeting made from nylon, with higher twist, more yarn, and a patterned design rather than a solid color would last for years and look good even if a notoriously difficult to clean color like beige. There's maybe 10 square yards of carpet in my trailer and it would have cost them $300 more to put in something of that quality, and I suppose it would have added 10 or 20 pounds to the weight.

One more thing for the list, I guess.