I had some work done on our AS at Iron Horse RV here in San Antonio last week. I think they do good work, and their prices aren't out of line for repair work.
They also do custom work on MOHO's and other RV's. I asked them what they would charge to put in a wood/laminate floor in the living room of the AS. The guy said the labor would be about $1,500 if they left the carpet on the slide-out under the sofa.
Do any of you fellow Texans know of someone in the Cen-Tex area that can do this job for a better price. I feel that Iron Horse would do a great job, but I also get the impression they're used to charging a lot to the big MOHO owners who don't notice they are spending a lot.
_________Tom
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Blog: www.travelpod.com/members/wbcci1529
'04 34' Classic S/O lounge, dome king, twin a/c, faux fireplace to keep the wife warm , equa-li-zer, prodigy, 4 birds, cat, dog - no kids allowed!
'05 Excursion 4x4, 6.0 PSD, magnaflow, helwig anti-sway, air lift springs.
Considering I paid about $100 for materials to do roughly sixty square feet, that seems mighty steep to me. Not sure of your square footage or laminate type but even the more expensive at $4 a square foot would still be below $300 for materials in my case. Home Depote had an ad for installation at $2.19 a square foot for home installation (did not read the fine print) but still.
James
From what I read the $1500 is a labor cost only, material would be extra. It sounds high to me. Installing flooring is not rocket science. Home Depot, Lowes and others sell tons of the stuff for DIY projects every day. The greatest cost in labor would be any interior removal that was required to install the floor. I have seen laminate floors installed in many RV's but I can't say I have seen it on a slide out. Three items come to mind when I think about a slide out install:
1. Would the height of the new floor be a problem when the slide is moved?
2. Would the increased weight of the floor be a problem for the slide. The pergo I installed in my home weighs around 2 pounds per square foot.
3. With a slideout would the floor be exposed to water. Water will damage these floors in a hurry.
It sounded high to me as well. I was going to use some lef-over stock I have from flooring my house. The planks fit under the slide when it is in, so I didn't think it would be a problem. I wouldn't have the wood on the slide under the couch, just leave the existing carpet. I do need to check the weight though.
Can any floor installer do it? If they can, I could tow the trailer to them. For that matter they could just come to where it's stored; there's a 110 outlet they could run their tools to.
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Blog: www.travelpod.com/members/wbcci1529
'04 34' Classic S/O lounge, dome king, twin a/c, faux fireplace to keep the wife warm , equa-li-zer, prodigy, 4 birds, cat, dog - no kids allowed!
'05 Excursion 4x4, 6.0 PSD, magnaflow, helwig anti-sway, air lift springs.
If you are not going under the couch, and beds, etc. anyone can do it (even me ) I did my 26' argosy in 3 hours. I just ran the laminate into the closets a bit and edged it. Then put carpet tiles in the closets. Fast, easy, and cheap. And it looks absolutly fantastic. The whole project cost me less than $150!!
But if you want someone to do it, then yes, anyone whos done even a little laminate work will be able to do it in a couple hours.
I guess their installers get $300 an hour, that's pretty good rate for a lawyer or a doctor.
But we're not doing surgey or a trial.
$500 +or- is more like it for a handyman
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Bob
'77 Sovereign Intl 31' CB '07 GMC 4x4 2500HD EC 8.1 Allision six | Bedrug | Softopper | Airbags
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A friend told me about a flooring company that says they have an installer who has installed laminate in trailers. I'm going to give them a call and see what they say.
I agree. That 1,500 labor was a bit too hard to swallow.
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Blog: www.travelpod.com/members/wbcci1529
'04 34' Classic S/O lounge, dome king, twin a/c, faux fireplace to keep the wife warm , equa-li-zer, prodigy, 4 birds, cat, dog - no kids allowed!
'05 Excursion 4x4, 6.0 PSD, magnaflow, helwig anti-sway, air lift springs.
Sounds like Iron Horse felt compelled to give you an estimate - but they obviously don't want or need the work - therefore, HIGH ESTIMATE! I have run accross this with lots of trades, when the job isn't right for them & they DEFINATELY DON'T want the work.... sky high estimates. All they are out is the time
That's OK - There are PLENTY of other ways to get what you want... as your additional posts indicate.
Best of luck, keep us all posted and be sure to include PICS!
I have a 28' Argosy MH and have taken out the couch & chairs in the liviing space. I'm going to be putting down a laminate flooring. I read that you put the laminate down under the couch & beds. How did you attach the couch to the floor. My couch was screwed down to the floor through the carpet when I was removing it. I understand that by using the laminate flooring, I will have to stop the laminate at the edge of the couch and allow it to float. I have storage bins under the couch and would like to have the laminate go from side wall to side wall. Did you have this problem, if so, how did you overcome this delima?
A friend told me about a flooring company that says they have an installer who has installed laminate in trailers. I'm going to give them a call and see what they say.
I agree. That 1,500 labor was a bit too hard to swallow.
Yeah, keep looking and working on the other angles you've got. As has been pointed out, this is not difficult work at all. An entire RV should only take a few hours.