Winebago Adventurer 35U Slide out update for replacing carpet with vinyl

[Jbmsr]

We replaced the carpet with vinyl and had to set the slide out up to work without scratching the new floor. After much resurch and some modifications it is working well. The price to have a dealer set it up was just too much. If I can be of help to anyone just let me know.

Have a great day!

[DAN L]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jesse McGee We replaced the carpet with vinyl and had to set the slide out up to work without scratching the new floor. After much resurch and some modifications it is working well. The price to have a dealer set it up was just too much. If I can be of help to anyone just let me know. Have a great day!

how did you adjust the slide up?

[Jbmsr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DAN L how did you adjust the slide up?

Adjusting the slide up is not possible as the inner side of the slide out is designed to rest on the floor as it slides. With that said your slide out was designed to slide on carpet and needs to be modified to slide on a hard service that you don't want scratched. What you have now is a metal strip attached to the under side of your slide, the length of the slide. It is approx 4"s wide and 1 1/2 "s in high th. It is grooved so that a hard pliable plastic strip about 1 1/2 "s wide (domed after installed) and the length of the slide can be inserted and secured with a few screws at each end. So the original application friction is weighted hard plastic against carpet which works well. The plastic service is a bit rough and with the weighted friction on a new hard service floor would not be good. The metal strip needs to be removed and wrapped with carpet and reinstaled. If you would like to do this I can get into the details of how I did it.

Happy to help if I can

Jesse & Cathie

[Mortgagehomes]

Yep, thats the way it works. Just did this conversion also.

[gopedal]

Jesse,

I'd like some more information about how you did it. I just bought a Winnebago Journey and the carpet cleaned up well but vinyl or other hard flooring is in the near future. I just joined and I think you can get to my email as I approved forum members to get to it. If not, let me know and I'll give you a phone number from work. Thanks.

[Ellis]

I also would like to know how you did it. I have a different model MH but I can feel the metal and domed plastic parts that you described. My email address is open.

Ellis

[Clay L]

Winnebago will sell you wrapped wood pieces to replace the metal strip. The leading edge is angled.
At least they offered them for my Sightseer although I ended up not using them. The covering was the same stuff used in the floors of the storage compartments.

[Mortgagehomes]

Yes, I ordered these new carpeted slide shoes from winnebago and had my local dealer install. Withoud doing this step you will damage your new hard surface floor.

[Jbmsr]

Hi all
We bought our 2001 Winnebago Adventurer 35u at a great deal and loved it. It is our first coach. The previous owner tore out the living room carpet and replaced it with stick on wood planks and it was never completed. We wanted to replace the flooring with vinyl to make it easier to maintain and keep the dust down. We did carpet in the bed room and at the front. When I dine the tear out I had to pull the remaining carpet that was left under the slide that the other owner left. That was the "oh ****" moment. It turned out that when Winnebago built this couch they first installed a 1/4 inch plywood strip the length of the 13' slide about 3 1/2"s wide. They beveled the edge and stapled it to the wood floor so that it would act as a ramp for the slide to glide up onto so that when the slide was extended it would raise the last 3 1/2 "and help seal the slide at the top. Then they installed the carpet onto it. I realized this was a manufactured ramp that the metal /plastic shoe under the slide would ride on (= plastic sliding on carpet which works well even under pressure.) Ok now I just pulled the carpet off the wood ramp which changed the height of the ramp and the ramp protection. I could not see paying the kind of prices that the dealer wanted to do the job correctly in full. One guy told me to extend the slide out, then bring it in 6 to 8 inches, then I could raise it enough to work on it. He was wrong, there was no room to work at all. I called Winnebago support and the guy I talked to said that he used to do this and that he knew that the slide would go out far enough for me to do the repair. At this point I was determined to do the job. I would fix it or ruin it but I wasn't going to cave to the dealer. I then extended the slide out all the way and took the screws out of the frame around the slide (remember where the screws come from as they are different sizes). I then extended the slide another 4" to 5". That was not enough because the slide floor under the booth was deeper. I knew that I needed it to go out at least another 8" to be able to get under the coach to remove and replace the slide shoe. I looked at the aluminum slide beams the slid into the metal frames under the coach and determined that if I could figure how to slide it out another 8 " that the beams were long enough to continue to support the slide out at the inner side. But I was worried about the weight of the slide resting on only a small amount of beam in the frame after extending that much? My brother and I placed a 4'x8' sheet of 3/4" plywood under the slide on the ground to act as a smooth floor to slide a floor jack on. This coach has cargo compartments as a part of the lower slide. I didn't want to bend anything so we got a straight 4"x4"x8' wood post and a placed it under the slide out towards the outer side. This was to take some weight off of the beams as the slide was pulled out more. Then I knew we would need to disconnect the hydraulic rams to be able to pull the slide out further. There was two beams holding my slide and two beveled headed screws at the outer end of each beam connecting the hydraulic rams. I removed them. Then as my brother held the handle of the floor jack , my friend and I each put our back against the coach and pushed the slide out with our feet evenly. This worked well. Now I could work on the floor inside the coach and the slide shoe under the slide as well. It was at this point I felt victory in that I knew we could do this without damaging the slide! We now needed to install a new ramp for the slide shoe to glide onto. We used plastic polymer 3 3/4"wide x4'long x 5/16" thick. We beveled the edge to replicate what was there originally and screwed it to the floor, overlapping the new vinyl. We used beveled headed rustproof decking screws and countersunk them. We then removed the metal shoe under the slide out. The shoe was 13' long. We went to Lowes and bought a strip of 1'x 13' carpet and a can of contact cement. We sprayed the contact cement onto the slide shoe being sure to cover both sides well. We also sprayed the backside of the carpet and let the glued surfaces tack so that when we attached them together they would bond well. We wrapped the carpet completely around the shoe leaving the seam where after installed would be sandwiched against the bottom of the slide to assure it would stay intact under pressure. We drilled the carpet (use the drill in reverse in high speed to somewhat burn the hole in the carpet so that the carpet fiber won't frazzle ) where the original screw holes where so that the head of the screws would be counter sunk and would not damage the new vinyl. After we installed the carpet covered slide shoe we pushed the slide in and reattached the rams. Our slide works very well now and we don't have to worry at all about our new floor getting scratched. I regret that I didn't take more pictures. I only have one that shows the slide out of the coach and I could take a picture of the completed job is someone would like. This forum has help me. I hope this will be some help to someone else.

Quote:

Originally Posted by gopedal Jesse, I'd like some more information about how you did it. I just bought a Winnebago Journey and the carpet cleaned up well but vinyl or other hard flooring is in the near future. I just joined and I think you can get to my email as I approved forum members to get to it. If not, let me know and I'll give you a phone number from work. Thanks.

[gopedal]

Thanks Jessie. Great detail, can't wait for spring.

Glenn

[beanjr]

Sounds like you have solved my problem!! One question I have is if your slide out in a level floor type when extended?...My MH is a 2003, 38ft but sounds as if the set up is the same. I have a metal ramp that is attached the length of the couch opening and flush with the wood floor. Am not sure if this is what you replaced with the plastic polmer strip or is there something I can only see when the slide is extended out per your method? Would like pick your brain a little more if you would be willing to help another do-it-yourselfer. My email is in my profile and would appreciate hearing from you.

[Jbmsr]

Hi beanjr
I want to be sure to answer you correctly. My slide out is 13' wide and when it is fully extended it is level with the coach but it doesn't drop down to match the height of the coach floor, it is about 2"s higher. From what I understand Winnebago has used different slide ramps that attach to the floor at the slide out openings such as wood covered in carpet, metal or plastic. If your ramp is metal, you can use that however I would remove it so that the new flooring can be installed first then the ramp reinstalled over the new flooring. This will assure that the new flooring will not be lifted by the movement of the carpet covered slide out shoe. I would also be sure that what I changed would add up to the same lift to assure proper seal at the top of the slide out. So yes I do believe that if you see a metal ramp there is no plastic. I hope this helps you and email me anytime. I will go into my profile and add my email address.


Sincerely,

jbmsr

Quote:

Originally Posted by beanjr Sounds like you have solved my problem!! One question I have is if your slide out in a level floor type when extended?...My MH is a 2003, 38ft but sounds as if the set up is the same. I have a metal ramp that is attached the length of the couch opening and flush with the wood floor. Am not sure if this is what you replaced with the plastic polmer strip or is there something I can only see when the slide is extended out per your method? Would like pick your brain a little more if you would be willing to help another do-it-yourselfer. My email is in my profile and would appreciate hearing from you.