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PeterH-350LE · 01-28-2003, 05:59 PM

i am one of those.

My floor is going long ways.
I don't see a logistical problem with going at 45 degrees, just a few delicate cuts. Since my carpet transition moulding is running at an angle already, a diagonal installation would have insulted both (logic and artist)

Kistler · 01-28-2003, 06:13 PM

Ah, logic and artistry in Austin....hmmm.... well what can I say this is the new age...

So what was that about creeping? I have layed/lain (verb bothers me tremendously) fake wood before on slab floor in earthquake country and it never creeped.

Do Airstreams flex? Is that what they are talking about?

Kistler

PeterH-350LE · 01-28-2003, 06:44 PM

Not sure what Mark was refering to with his statement. Forward movement due to braking?
My floor is short and intertwined with the coach, it doesn't move. If I would put pergo style flooring throughout my coach, I would make sure to have 1/4 expansion space in the front and rear. Humidity levels vary a lot more than in a climatized home.

j54mark · 01-28-2003, 07:26 PM

Pergo type floors are known as "floating" floors. They do not attach to anything. They are usually installed with a factory recommended gap around the perimeter to allow the floor to move with changes in temperature and humidity. This gap is then hidden with quarter round molding, which is also not attached to the floor, but rather to the wall - again to allow the floor to move.

If you install a snap-together floor longitudinally with a 1/4" gap around all sides, you will return from your first road trip with NO gap in front and a 1/2" gap at the rear. You may be able to defeat this with a thin strip of foam placed along the front. I simply put in some thin stips of plywood along the couch.

Snaping pieces under counters and working around partitions is one of the real tribulations of working with this flooring. Some thought needs to be given to which side you will work from to minimize this problem. Also, you can sometimes snap a piece in then slide it back under a overhang.

Mark

wb13798 · 01-29-2003, 09:08 AM

pergo
have been riding along and reading. i was at HD yesterday and was asking a lot of questions and i have a flyer from pergo that states in damp areas to use a sealer on the seams. and they had a bin full of this sealer and it is a color match to the flooring you will be installing. i have some prodigy available at a good price. it is the wide flooring with the backer installed. i was going to do the bath and bedroom. now i dont know if i want to. the sales man says due to the narrow width there will be a space about 1/8 inch that you cant get out and that would be sufficient for expansion. the prodigy would only be 3 or 4 boards wide. i wouldntallow 1/4 in the front if it is going to slide forward put a sponge spacer in the read for the 1/4 and let it go . 1/4 inch is the space required in a large room . i think i would use the sealer even though you should not get any water on the floor except the bath area. then it isnt enough to do any harm . i always stand on a towel when i get out of the shower. well that is my 2 cents . i will keep reading and maybe i will try the flooring.
al

bhsl8 · 01-29-2003, 12:51 PM

My fellow floating floor afficianados, does temperature/humidity expansion occur in all directions symmetrically or more lengthwise? If there is a difference the orientation of grain would dictate where the buffer zone would be. With respect to the floor moving forward, is the assumption that we brake harder than we accelerate...Has that thing gotta hemi?
Brouck

PS Peter,logical artists rule!

COArgosy78 · 01-30-2003, 11:25 AM

Don't want to muddy the waters, but wondered if you had seen (read) the thread on the cork floor that was posted here a while back. Beautiful pictures and sounded like the installation was trouble free. That is what we are going to look into when we are able to replace our carpet! Just another thought to chew on. Leigh

64GT · 02-13-2003, 06:41 AM

Brouck - I was told the expansion is lengthwise.

After putting in this floor - I would not recommend a diagonal installation unless you enjoy banging your head against the wall. The curves and 'not true' lines will be enough fun!

FTR - I used the snap together, Shaw Prodigy with the backing and put it in the bathroom. I'm very satisfied.

j54mark · 02-13-2003, 11:26 AM

"My fellow floating floor afficianados, does temperature/humidity expansion occur in all directions symmetrically or more lengthwise?"

As a laminate material it does not really have "grain", so expansion/contraction should be more or less equal in both directions. It is cumulative, however, so if you lay it lengthwise the total expansion will be greater in that dimension.

To try and simplify, say it expands 1/4" in 10'. If your floor is only 6' wide, total expansion in that direction will be about 5/32". If it is 25' long, however, total lenghtwise expansion will be 5/8".

Yours,

Mark

bhsl8 · 02-13-2003, 12:08 PM

64GT and Mark, thank you for your info. I still have not completely hatched my plan so any and all info is helpful; especially that which is based on experience.
Brouck

rcaldwel · 02-13-2003, 12:17 PM

We have a 2001 Bambi which I took out all the carpet and put in a floating wood floor. It is a Bruce flooring that is a real wood put on a thing laminate board. You have the rich texture of real wood and the ease of installing like a laminate.

I have attempted to post some pictures.

Chas · 02-13-2003, 12:48 PM

I'm putting commercial carpet tile in my Overlander for the best reason of all, I got it for almost nothing. I had some in a truck camper some years back, you roll down a thin coat of easy release tack glue and then just lay it like tile. It is easy to lay, comes in various sizes, usually 2'x2', can be easily removed and repositioned to clean or replace. Most commercial flooring installers or distibutors have small stacks of it laying around left over from jobs that they will happily part with for little money. I have taken pieces of it out, took it down to the carwash to clean, put it back in and it still looks great!!

Chas

rcaldwel · 02-17-2003, 07:18 AM

Hope this is with an attached picture of our Bambi with the wood flooring.

bhsl8 · 02-17-2003, 08:17 AM

Real wood eh? Glue or snap? It is beautiful. Did you figure cost vs laminate?
Brouck

rcaldwel · 02-17-2003, 11:58 AM

bhsl8,

I got the flooring on a clearance at Lowe's. It was Bruce snap together and it was originally $93 a carton. I got three cartons at $28 a carton so I really didn't do any comparison shopping. It was something I stumbled onto at Lowes. Just enough left to do my Bambi.

mlmarch · 04-13-2003, 08:38 PM

I put a snap together laminate floor in my 345 last year. I ran the pieces across the mh and started just behind the raised drivers area and went all the way to the end. With the snap together you have to start at one end and work to the other. There were some pieces that were hard to get in place. My problem was the shapes of the built ins. It was impossible to cut the laminate to fit the cabinets. I tried quarter round but the corner trim on the cabinets make the cuts very difficult. I therefore ended up with gaps betweeen laminate ends and the cabinets etc.

The problem with the laminate is water which gets under the slats. I had a water leak in the ice machine and it ran down the walls and got under the slats.

I am really looking at the vinyl slats just to see if the transition is better to all the built in pieces. I would like a better fit(no gaps). Carpet covers small errors but I do not want to put carpet back in.

Has anyone replaced the carpet on the drivers area and the engine cover?

Silvertwinkie · 04-14-2003, 06:43 AM

When I finally trash the carpet (or I should say the dog does), I plan on going with a lightweight wood product like Pergo or Bruce flooring. I've seen and heard many great installs.

Regards,

Eric

ALANSD · 04-14-2003, 11:46 AM

I have been toying with using the cork tiles in my motorhome from the area behind the raised driver/pass seats to the bedroom. I wonder about the plug for the two removeable tables that go into the hole in the floor. How would I pull out a cork plug? With carpet you can grab it and pull out the piece.
Also you have to seal the cork?
I figure cork might be quieter than laminate, although not as quiet as the carpet/pad combination.

87MH · 04-20-2003, 08:19 PM

For a variety of reasons Pergo Prodigy has been selected to replace the carpet in the living area of the 1987 345 motorhome.

I removed the carpet after an attempt to salvage it by professionally cleaning (even after the steam cleaning it was nasty, nasty, nasty). The chair pedestals have also been removed.

The motor home underlayment is an aligned wood chip polymer composite in pretty good shape. The question I have is would anyone not recommend sealing the exposed underlayment with a Latex paint prior to installation of the Pergo?

I intend to hit the exposed particle board with a deodorizer to neutralize any odors that may have permeated down from the carpet, and I think that the Latex would breath enough as not to create a moisture barrier. Another advantage that I may realize would be the leveling benefit that a good Latex would afford.

After studying this and other threads, I intend to lay the panels lengthwise and pretty much do the entire living , bedroom, and bath areas. Any negative thoughts on this scenario? We tend to use camp showers, so I don’t think water saturation of the Pergo will be a problem in this scenario.

This would leave the cockpit area to redo in carpet. Anyone have any hints or traps to avoid in this area?