Sub floor

[paulmichie]

Is it true you have to remove the wall panels to access the plywood subfloor? I do not see any screws I would need access. Thinking I could cut down middle and rip out

[Lumatic]

An Airstream is a semi-monoqocue. The walls, floor and frame are all structural members. The floor is attached to the C channel and so are the walls to get to the C channel you have to remove lower inner skins. How much floor do you want to remove and what is the year and model of your Airstream?

[Panama Red]

You will have to remove the inner skins to get to the bolts through the c-channel (at the tip of every outrigger). I also removed the wraps (outer skin below the belt line that wraps from the side down to the belly pan). I had to replace so many outriggers... But you need to anyways, to be able to hold the nut as you tighten the new c-channel bolts.

-Red, master of the belly pan...

[Panama Red]

Also, be very careful "ripping down the middle". My waste tanks are very close to the plywood... But mine's a center bath. Not sure what you have.

-Red, reliving the rebuild...

[paulmichie]

1970 sovereign

[paulmichie]

Floor in bathroom, kitchen area, front window all rotted out

[sgschwend]

I would say the floor is the C channel filler between the wall and the frame. You really won't get an increase in stiffness with such a thin layer of OSB or plywood with large screw down spacing. You need solid wood in that C channel.

You would need to decide how much frame and wood floor repair you need to do. Certainly a wood floor and or frame can be repaired without removing the skin. My 2 cents.

[Panama Red]

Paul, you're probably going to run into quite a bit of frame repair to go along with the floor repair. Dig up my thread, "Resurrecting Big Bertha" on here... I replaced the rear eight feet of floor, the front six feet of floor, and a lot of steel in my frame. The outer skins are attached to the c-channel, and the C-channel is held to the frame by the bolts at the end of each outrigger. If you're going to all the work to replace the floor, which will involve removing the kitchen and bathroom, pulling the inner skins is nothing. I completely removed my wraps, belly pan, and inner skins where I was replacing the floor.

Just check out my thread. Lots of pictures... Hope it helps.

-Red, been there, done that...

[Twinke58]

Mine 24' Tradewind is having a complete floor replacement. It's the shell off the pan. We had to take the inter wall panels off to do this. But we numbered and marked all the panels and the wall so when we put it together we know where to them back.


Sent from my iPhone using Airstream Forum

[Jukeboxfun]

Why do they use plywood anyway? Couldn't they use some sort of composite material that wouldn't rot?

[cameront120]

Originally Posted by Jukeboxfun

Why do they use plywood anyway? Couldn't they use some sort of composite material that wouldn't rot?

That's the $1000 dollar question that the mother ship doesn't seem interested in addressing.

[Twinke58]

It's marine board.


Sent from my iPhone using Airstream Forum

[Panama Red]

Originally Posted by Twinke58

It's marine board.


Sent from my iPhone using Airstream Forum

Does it have "Oorah!" Or "Semper Fi" stamped on it somewhere?

-Red, again with nothing to add...

[Lumatic]

Originally Posted by cameront120

That's the $1000 dollar question that the mother ship doesn't seem interested in addressing.

Newer Airstream flooring is OSB

[vintageracer]

When I built my new home and mountain log home I used "Advantech" Engineered wood subfloor manufactured by Huber Engineered Wood Products. This is a resin impregnated engineered flooring material that is highly water resistant, very stable and seems like it might be a good replacement for marine grade plywood in our trailers as the original floors ROT with Marine grade plywood.

I have found no other "sheet" composite to replace the marine grade plywood for floor replacement.

Anyone use Advantech flooring to the our trailers or have an opinion on it's use in our trailers?

Here is the website:

AdvanTech Flooring, AdvanTech Subflooring, AdvanTech Floor | Huber Engineered Woods

[SilverQueen]

Now working shell-on frame repair and floor replacement. Ordered Advantech as it is available locally in 5/8" thick and is the most weather resistant affordable option I have found. I used 3/4" T&G Advanech for the floor of a storage building last summer and was impressed with this product. Time will tell how it performs for our 67 Overlander.

[Bill M.]

Have you soaked a piece of the Advantech in warm water for a couple of days? Still looks like OSB to me.

[rugjenkins]

I built my house with it 13 yrs ago and left a full sheet outside for 7 yrs laying on the ground. Ended using it for a project- no damage to sheet. It was discolored but still solid. I was so impressed that is what I have in argosy. Btw, I live in Alabama so this stuff is really great. No separation at all. If you can find it- use it

[vintageracer]

Originally Posted by Bill M.

Have you soaked a piece of the Advantech in warm water for a couple of days? Still looks like OSB to me.

YES!

I have done exactly that soaking a section of Advantech floor board for over 30 days starting in warm water and then left to whatever temperature the water was in the bucket and personally saw NO change in the composition, integrity or straightness of the product. Just as strong as the day I put the board in the water.

That's is why I installed Advantech subflooring material in my new home built in 2001 and my mountain home built in 2005.

Why did I do this test in the first place?

15 years ago when I first considered using the Advantech product that's what Huber had advertised and was doing with their product to show its stability and resistance to water damage. I personally wanted to see if it was true or advertising BS since I was building a new house and wanted a better subfloor material than plywood or coated OSB.

The result of my test was their advertising was TRUE!

This is why I originally asked the question of why not use Advantech flooring in a Airstream as a better floor material replacement in the first place!

As to your statement that it "Looks Like OSB":

Yes Advantech "Looks" like OSB as it is an "Oriented Strand Board" type of engineered wood product that is thoroughly impregnated with resin unlike the regular OSB board you are probably comparing Advantech to.

[Freedman]

I've been thinking a lot about this lately myself. I read a lot of negative info about advantech on this forum a while back and gave up on it. Thinking back no one who panned it had any experience using it in this application.

Recently I remembered that I have first hand knowledge of the product. In 2000 and again in 2005 I purchased enclosed landscape trailers that had floors made from advantech. I used them both heavily for 13 and 8 years respectively in New England for landscaping.

That use involved rolling wet equipment in and out. Clumps of wet grass and leaves sitting on the floor indefinitely. Spilled gasoline, motor oil and god knows how many other solvents over that time.

I sold both trailers last year and both floors still seemed rock solid. The trailers were steel chassis, steel square tube ribs clad in painted aluminum. I couldn't be happier with both trailers performance. I think my failure to recall my use of advantech flooring is a testament to their problem free nature. It should also be noted that both floors appeared to me to be unpainted/untreated though I can't say for certain as I never paid them any attention .

IIRC the trailers were manufactured by Cargo Express.