Advice needed on soft floor replacement

[429CV23]

I got everything out of the bedroom; twin beds, carpet/pad, water tank, etc. The floor in the rear passenger side corner is wet & soft in about a 1.5sqft area. The tank and all its hose connections were in that corner. Looks like it has been wet for some time, probably long before I acquired it.

What is the best way to replace that section of floor?

[Full.Monte]

Ouch! You are going to have to remove at least some of the plywood floor.
I'd start small. Set your saw to the thickness of the floor and cut out a piece. Your floor is likely a sandwich construction of plywood on top of styrofoam, wood stringers, and a bottom piece of plywood. If it's all spongy, you will likely have to replace all the wooden wet parts. Once you open it up, the needed repairs will become more obvious. Of course, eliminating the source of the water is most important or you will have to do it all over again one day. When replacing stringers, you can "sister up" new wood next to the original, but attached to remaining good wood still in the floor. Glue, screws and some "green" anti-mildew coating on the wood are in your future, too. Leave no part of the new plywood that is unsupported by new stringers. Good luck!

[429CV23]

I think I'll delve into this issue tonight, assuming I get all the electrical reconnected so I have some power and lights. I was happy to see that they installed the floors after the walls, so the repair won't be horrible.

[steined]

CPES™-Wood based epoxy products to repair and resist wood rot.

I used this on the porch of my old 1890 vintage house to repair spongy wood with spectacular results. Might be worth sending them a photo! They were great to work with.

[429CV23]

Originally Posted by steined

CPES™-Wood based epoxy products to repair and resist wood rot.

I used this on the porch of my old 1890 vintage house to repair spongy wood with spectacular results. Might be worth sending them a photo! They were great to work with.

Thanks for the info, looks like good stuff. I'm waiting for a shipping quote. If these products work as advertised, it'll be worth the cost in time saving alone.

[steined]

Originally Posted by 429CV23

Thanks for the info, looks like good stuff. I'm waiting for a shipping quote. If these products work as advertised, it'll be worth the cost in time saving alone.

Take a picture and email it to them and call them. At least when I talked to them a few years ago they were super helpful and helped convince me to try it out. I also used it in some old window sills in that house that needed repair instead of replacing everything. I had to cut out a little, but this saved me a ton of time.

[steined]

Since I had to get some for a project with my father, I did a little more research and found out these guys: Smith & Co. Products are the manufacturers. They have some pricing and other info in their site. Maybe that will make for a better price?

[steined]

How's the floor repair project going? I'm curious if the CPES helped at all or did you need to remove/replace?

[429CV23]

The CPES worked very well. I probably should have just cut it out and replaced the section. There was a low spot, about 6"x8", that looked like half the plywood layering was rotted and gone. What I was seeing was the underlying foam that was stained from the rotting wood and dirt. I went ahead and used the CPES and their laminating epoxy. I applied two layers of fiberglass cloth to the low spot along with the epoxy. Once that was cured, I used regular Bondo epoxy resin along with two more layers of cloth in the low spot, then two layers of cloth over the entire rotted area. There is still a low spot, but it is solid enough to walk on now. I'll probably build up the low area with either Bondo filler or wood filler prior to putting the carpet down. I'm using 18"x18" carpet tiles for now. Maybe next year I'll tear out the inside walls and replace with fiberglass panels; along with that I'll install whatever permanent flooring we choose.

[bap]

did you find out where the leak was or id i just miss it...

[429CV23]

Originally Posted by bap

did you find out where the leak was or id i just miss it...

I'm only assuming it was either a hose connection at the fresh water tank or pump. The tank was under that twin, and all the water connections were originally in that corner.

[bap]

i hope your correct,,,have you had any hard rain or hose it to see if there were any leakage,,,,,i hate to see a man put in a hard job and it not cure the problem---i have been there and done that..lol-----i wish you the best of luck....bap

[429CV23]

Originally Posted by bap

i hope your correct,,,have you had any hard rain or hose it to see if there were any leakage,,,,,i hate to see a man put in a hard job and it not cure the problem---i have been there and done that..lol-----i wish you the best of luck....bap

We have had more heavy rains this year than in the last decade. I've been diligent about checking the interior after and have found no leaks at all. The PO did a decent job of resealing the roof and windows.

[bap]

great news,,,,,same here with the wet stormy weather---lol..