Community Forums

Dkararo · 08-31-2019, 11:23 AM

I'm hoping some folks on this forum can give their opinion and advice on a problem we are dealing with in our travel trailer.

when we purchased our travel trailer brand new about 5 years ago, we had a leaky slide in the rear of the camper from the get-go. We fought back and forth with cruiser RV to no avail (they kept giving us the runaround and would not pay a dime to try to diagnose and repair the leak) and we eventually took it to camping world to have it pressurized and find the leak. They did find it and $2,000 in repairs later (out of own pocket of course) the slide no longer leaked.

but about 18 months ago when we took the camper out for a spring trip we noticed a significant amount of sponginess in a small area of the floor near the slide. We kept an eye on it and also asked some RV centers for suggestions as to whether or not they thought we should take the floor up to see what was going on. Most people advised against it and said to just tried to run some fans and keep an eye on it. but this summer the area grew larger and very unstable to walk on so we decided we had better investigate.

Well, when we pulled up the linoleum it was worse than we anticipated. Rotted plywood everywhere. and of course the plywood runs underneath the rear cabinet and under the slide outs. I'm going to try to attach some pictures to this post.

originally, before we had pulled up the plywood, we thought we might find some damp moldy wood and we would be able to dry it out and bleach it and just lay some new subfloor over the top of it to shore it up. That's definitely not possible. huge chunks of the floor just come up in our hands and have completely disintegrated exposing the stud underneath which is also black, wet, and moldy.

so I guess I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with a project like this whatsoever or any recommendations on how we should move forward. My husband is in favor of cutting out as much of the damaged subfloor as we can, bleaching and drying whatever cannot be removed and then laying some new subfloor to replace what we took out. Obviously we cannot replace anything that runs underneath that we are cabinet so we're not sure what to do with that.

Feeling a little overwhelmed by the scope of the damage and just looking for advice. and of course worried that there is moisture and mold in places that we cannot access.

We have nine kids, eight who still live at home so it's not easy to trade in our camper because very few floor plans can accommodate our large family. this camper has been the only way that we have been able to afford to take family vacations together.

if you've made it this far, thanks so much for reading and I appreciate your insights.

Blessings,
Dawn

Bahamaniac · 08-31-2019, 12:11 PM

Sorry to hear about your misfortune. The only way to get it done properly is to remove the slide and cabinets. It is a major repair. I would talk to a lawyer.

MSHappyCampers · 08-31-2019, 12:15 PM

Hi Dawn! Welcome to IRV2! We're sure glad you joined the gang!

I don't have a clue what you should do about that. Hope you can find a reputable dealer that can give you honest advice!

Good luck, happy trails, and God bless!

Spoonsize · 08-31-2019, 12:16 PM

IMHO.....The cabinet has to come out. Remove the drawers and search for screws or staples or brads that hold it in place. Really, looks like you need to remove all the floor from under the cabinets, forward to be able to do a square cut from side to side. My heart goes out to you, wish I were closer to be able to help. Myrtle Beach SC.

ransil · 08-31-2019, 12:34 PM

No bleach, use hydrongen peroxide beleive its 12% or higher

**hamm2018** · 08-31-2019, 02:09 PM

We had the same type of issue on our RV. But it was under warranty and just a few weeks prior the company had paid to have a busted hot water heater repaired and the repair guy reported the floor damage, we got lucky it was covered.
But the repair place that repaired our unit was Affinity RV Group in Goshen, Ind. You can check with them on cost and time and get an ideal on what the cost could run you.

Dkararo · 08-31-2019, 03:33 PM

Thank you for all the responses thus far. Keep them coming if anyone else has any advice or input. We truly appreciate it as this is a huge issue and is going to be a major repair.

Dav L · 09-01-2019, 05:17 AM

Forget about the lawyer. That would add more aggravation to the story.
Remove what you can, taking pictures and hire out what you can't.
A decent retired carpenter should be able to take care of it.

You can post pictures and ask questions and someone will be able to help. The challenge is to pick the good stuff from the not so good.

Doesn't look that bad to fix from the pictures.

leadman · 09-01-2019, 06:52 AM

Don't know if it will be possible but check into jacking the slide up enough to slide new wood and flooring under it. Probably have to disconnect any mechanical mechanism so it is not damaged.
My living area slide will go up almost an inch so hope your can also.

The cabinet should not be that hard to take out. I replaced the whole rear wall of my motorhome with one I built and the cabinets were screwed in place.

Since this is a big project that you do not want to do again try to use any treated lumber where you can. Some have harsh chemicals in them so make sure kids and pets can't get to them.
I would also inspect the slideout and the rest of the trailer for any leaks before you start repairs. If you need new seals a good place to get quality seals is Steele Rubber. I have bought from them several times.
Good luck

grindstone01 · 09-01-2019, 07:05 AM

From the looks at the dark wood and live white mold, the water leak is still there. I would first find the water leak and get it fixed. Check all the outside caulking looking for any separation.
As far as fixing the floor, I would get all the rotted plywood removed first, which would require removing the cabinets. I was able to replace our slide out sub floor with out removing the slide out.
I would not be concerned about using pressure treated wood for replacement. The area should be kept dry once the water leak is fixed.