Floor Repair

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   The problem is that the floor structural strength resides primarily in the laminated plywood/foam sandwich, which acts much like a structural insulated panel (SIP). The floor metal framing is not where the strength is. So if water damage has compromised the floor panel the  edges of the floor which cantilever out past the main rails (which are inboard)  will sag under the load imposed on them by the walls. 

Many folks have reported this problem abd some have even had the floor metal framing spot welds break. 

So even if you get in there and replace foam and plywood  you should add outriggers underneath to support the floor. There isn't any way to effectively recreate the laminated sandwich construction  of the  original continuous floor when patching in foam and plywood. 

Probably it would be as effective and much easier just to jack up the walls and floor till things are level, install outriggers and underfloor bracing as required, pull up the vinyl, let the floor dry out, then lay down a new layer of plywood, new finish flooring, and be done with it. 

You can use a moisture meter to ensure the old floor is dried out. Even in the southeast running the air conditioner and a space heater simultaneously (so the air in the trailer has as low humidity as possible)  for a month or so ought to do it. 

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offgrid Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 23 Jul 2018 Online Status: Offline Posts: 5290	Post Options Post Reply Quote offgrid Report Post Quote Reply Topic: Floor Repair Posted: 06 May 2022 at 12:33pm
	The problem is that the floor structural strength resides primarily in the laminated plywood/foam sandwich, which acts much like a structural insulated panel (SIP). The floor metal framing is not where the strength is. So if water damage has compromised the floor panel the edges of the floor which cantilever out past the main rails (which are inboard) will sag under the load imposed on them by the walls. Many folks have reported this problem abd some have even had the floor metal framing spot welds break. So even if you get in there and replace foam and plywood you should add outriggers underneath to support the floor. There isn't any way to effectively recreate the laminated sandwich construction of the original continuous floor when patching in foam and plywood. Probably it would be as effective and much easier just to jack up the walls and floor till things are level, install outriggers and underfloor bracing as required, pull up the vinyl, let the floor dry out, then lay down a new layer of plywood, new finish flooring, and be done with it. You can use a moisture meter to ensure the old floor is dried out. Even in the southeast running the air conditioner and a space heater simultaneously (so the air in the trailer has as low humidity as possible) for a month or so ought to do it.
	1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold

ChewadaJ Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 03 Jul 2020 Location: Southj Carolina Online Status: Offline Posts: 18	Post Options Post Reply Quote ChewadaJ Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 05 May 2022 at 8:49am
	True, but when I tore up the floor, I saw the metal framing around each section. The walls are famed, as is the floor The frames touch each other. So I was able to rip up everything and replace the material between the metal frame sections.

marwayne Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 25 Oct 2011 Location: Edmonton AB Can Online Status: Offline Posts: 1003	Post Options Post Reply Quote marwayne Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 04 May 2022 at 6:29pm
	When FR gets the undercarriage the first thing they do is put down the floor, the lino then the walls. If they put the walls up first, the floor would be floating all around the perimeter.
	If you want something done right, do it yourself. 2011 RP172, 2016 Tundra 5.7 Litre, Ltd.

ChewadaJ Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 03 Jul 2020 Location: Southj Carolina Online Status: Offline Posts: 18	Post Options Post Reply Quote ChewadaJ Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 04 May 2022 at 10:59am
	To some degree yes, but the walls sit on the frame, and the floor is connected to the frame. I don't remember the walls sitting on the floors. What I did was tear out off the floors and the walls half way up the walls in the back to find the leak (rear window of course) and to get it dry. I am in the SE, so that's the hard part when I don't have a car port to put it under. It took forever. I found some thin laminate I was using for the wall replacement, with new insulation behind it. For the floors, I put in new press styrofoam. Then put a 1/4' ply wood over the top of everything. My plans was to weld some metal supports, or maybe bolt some supports in below for extra support since the floor wasn't as firm as before. But the foam and plywood seemed to work. I had a leak up front too on the seams on the sides, so I had to take out the walls on the curved front wall. That was going to be tricky. Between having it i storage that was 20m away, no power, no cover, not enough time...I just couldn't finish it. I sold mine to a carpenter who was set up for the project much better than me. I did all the hard work though of sealing it all back up and tearing out all the mold! It's doable to fix them. I'm not sure if I'd take mine cross country until I saw how it went on short trips. I bought mine used, and it didn't figure out the leak situation until much too late. It was in really bad shape. I think I deleted all my pictures of the project already unfortunately. I'm happy to talk you through what I did if you want to chat sometime.

offgrid Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 23 Jul 2018 Online Status: Offline Posts: 5290	Post Options Post Reply Quote offgrid Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 04 May 2022 at 5:45am
	If you have significant floor damage/sagging around the perimeter you have to find a way to lift the walls off the floor and replace the lauan plywood in the floor sandwich. I don't know any other alternative because the floor sandwich supports the walls. Granted that its not fun or easy.
	1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold

cbardy58 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 25 Sep 2021 Online Status: Offline Posts: 6	Post Options Post Reply Quote cbardy58 Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 03 May 2022 at 10:48am
	I am in the exact same boat and looking for solid info on how to go about the repair. The FR videos on "floor" construction do not help.

ChewadaJ Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 03 Jul 2020 Location: Southj Carolina Online Status: Offline Posts: 18	Post Options Post Reply Quote ChewadaJ Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 08 Apr 2022 at 6:12pm
	Denis, it's a pain. I got 50% through the rebuild and sold it cheap because it was a bigger project than I could handle, having to store it in a lot where I had to drive to work on it. You have to fine where the leak came from. In the rear, my guess would be the window. That means you'll have to take off the wall partially too. Get a humidity tester. Get it under cover, and find the leak. Then start ripping it down to the bones. You might not need to rip out the foam and subfloor if not to damaged. The thing to remember is how the R pod is built. The floor is a plyboard/foam/plyboard layered thing that is glued together for lightness and strength. Anything you'll do won't be as strong, so you'll need to build it back a bit better. Let me know what other questions you have, and good luck!

lostagain Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 06 Sep 2016 Location: Quaker Hill, CT Online Status: Offline Posts: 2595	Post Options Post Reply Quote lostagain Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 08 Apr 2022 at 6:08pm
	It will be a challenging project. Everything above the plane of the floor is mounted on the floor, so replacing the floor is a bit like replacing the foundation of a house. Here are a couple videos of how they are built that may help in coming up with a repair strategy. The second video is from a 2014 build, which is really not much different from the 2015. Good luck. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMXneKc_fDo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXNYA73rCNE
	Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost

cbardy58 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 25 Sep 2021 Online Status: Offline Posts: 6	Post Options Post Reply Quote cbardy58 Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 08 Apr 2022 at 3:47pm
	Hi Denis, I have a 2015 178, which I bought last fall. I found a very soft floor in the rear under the bed and pull the linoleum up and found rotted plywood. I also pulled a small piece of the foam out and the underside is rotted too. I imagine I will need to replace the sub floor, on top and under, from the slide out to the rear. Do you have any help on how to go about doing this? I am a pretty handy guy and can handle just about any project. I have a plan in mind, just thought I would get advice from someone with experience. Thank you!

ChewadaJ Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 03 Jul 2020 Location: Southj Carolina Online Status: Offline Posts: 18	Post Options Post Reply Quote ChewadaJ Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 13 Sep 2020 at 12:19pm
	Denis, I'm attempting a similar repair on my rpod. The whole top layer of plywood is pretty much worthless. I can tell from underneath where the bellyboard (black waterproof layer, not sure what else to call it) has come loose, the bottom layer of plywood is rotten in a few spots, but not all over. I have several questions about how you worked around the bolts joining the floor to the frame, how you put the bottom layer of plywood back in, etc....Could I contact you through DM or give you my number to give me a shout sometime? Thanks in advance!