Community Forums

Bad Bolt · 05-22-2017, 07:50 AM

Have you considered, or is there even a product available, some kind of super good waterproofing agent to apply to the new patch areas?

Something to shield the OSB until the moisture evaps from any leaks.

I understand about not wanting to jack the walls after they have possibly sagged a bit from the soggy OSB not supporting it.

You could custom measure each block to snug fit where it is going and go from there. I wish was close to help out. It would be great to help tackle such a job!

slowmachine · 05-31-2017, 10:38 AM

I've been puttering along at a slower pace, trying not to make my wrist any worse. My daughters are in two different softball leagues, and that is consuming lots of my time anyhow.

I ordered a 4' x 8' sheet of 1/4" 5052 aluminum, and am waiting it for it to arrive at the shop. When it arrives, we (meaning the expert metal fabricator and I) are going cut a couple of small pieces to test-fit in to the I-beam cavities. I want as tight a fit as possible to avoid future movement. When we're happy with the fit, we'll put the sheet on the CNC plasma-cutting table and cut a couple of straight and curved inserts to see which works better. Once we have decided on a course of action, we'll produce as many as we need, with bolt holes already precisely cut in the desired locations.

With all of the wall and ceiling panels removed, I used a tape measure to see just how low the deformed I-beams are in the middle, compared to where they attach to the wall. The worst are bowed-down about 7/8" in the center. The worst area is in the forward half of the coach, because the interior walls toward the rear gave some support to that area of the roof.

Today's photos are of the wall and floor where the old Splendide vented washer/dryer sat above the Atwood LP/electric water heater. I'm the fourth owner of this rolling disaster, so I have no idea who did the installation. I'd like to believe, though, that it was not done at the factory. They completely missed the nicely-fabricated metal reinforcement for the dryer vent, and the end result is that the dryer vent was never firmly attached to the outside wall. Water has been leaking into the wall at the dryer vent for a very long time. The lauan is destroyed, as is the OSB flooring that was hidden beneath the raised water heater platform. This is probably a good spot to test my ability to repair the sub-floor beneath the outside wall. You can poke your finger just about all the way through the OSB, so it's going to have to come out.

This will not happen again. We have a ventless washer/dryer combo that we like. It's a Dometic (AKA Midea, Edgestar, etc.) and it does a good enough job for us. All of you ventless dryer haters can mutter under your breath if you want. The fewer holes in the wall, the better.

laheze · 06-02-2017, 09:49 AM

I would make a mixture of epoxy and glass fiber we use for building experimental aircraft or same used in the boat building business. West system epoxy for example can be found at West Marine stores and many others. I would paint epoxy resin in between all those angles of plywood under the potty hole, then I would fill the gaps solid with the cotton epoxy mixture to make sure water could never get into that area again. Pure epoxy resin painted on all that wood surface to seal it. Later give it a roughing sanding if you need to adhere flooring to it.

laheze · 06-02-2017, 10:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by slowmachine

I'm sure that I'll need some type of filler like this to correct uneven spots. I have no idea what the maximum thickness may be, but I'll be looking into it. I'll probably buy or rent a laser level and mark the floor out in a grid to get an accurate picture of the problem. OSB compresses over time, and I can tell without measuring that there are low spots where the front seats mount to the floor and in some high-traffic areas that may have seen many wet/dry carpet cycles. I want to get the sub-floor as flat as possible to minimize the thickness of the plywood that I want to lay beneath the vinyl plank flooring.

Don't forget that the floor on these big coaches twists when driving on uneven ground, if they didn't tires would come off the ground in some situations right? Since this is the case I would recommend flexible glue on flooring. We have a few tiles that are loose in our coach right now. I'm positive that the flexible twisting of the frame causes this.
On another hand we all should be more careful what awkward dips, twists we put on these coaches while driving up into a filling station for example in a small town where roads are much lower than the driveway entering the filling station. I talked to a fellow while in Florida a couple weeks ago who has had his windshield replaced 3 or 4 times just from this same scenario. Maybe this is a common thing, I have seen a lot of advertisements for windshield replacement. All I know is I will be more careful about how I enter, drive, twist my frame entering awkward situations. I will certainly avoid them if I have a choice to go elsewhere, it's not worth the risk or expense. I believe that fellow said it wasn't cheap to have someone come and put the windscreen in or replace the broken one.

slowmachine · 06-02-2017, 04:54 PM

The need for elasticity in the flooring is one of the main considerations for removing the ceramic tile. Weight is an issue, too. We are tentatively planning to use Mannington Adura edge-locking vinyl planks, in a floating installation. I've been living in New Hampshire for nine years, and have seen the temperature swing from -10 to +95 degrees. Regardless of flooring material (carpeting excepted, but we won't have anything to do with the upkeep) there is going to be some thermal expansion.

I have replaced one side of my windshield glass. $600 parts plus $600 labor. I keep it on flat ground.

veraken · 06-03-2017, 04:42 AM

I recently replaced all of my carpeting with hand scraped engineered hardwood flooring. With the hand scraped, you can easily repair any nicks, etc. and it blends in. We glued the flooring down with urethane glue. When gluing down, I found it much easier to backbutter each piece rather than spread the glue over the floor. Not much room to move. May take longer, but alot less mess.

The expert on flooring is Ernie Ekberg and this is his recommendation. If you have any questions he is very helpful. You can contact him and look at some pictures at:

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/...andrepair/info

TheIceKing · 07-05-2017, 02:24 PM

Slowmachine and others,

I had to completely gut my interior wall to the fiberglass skin, fill with rigid foam, and reface interior with t/g vinyl bead board. Floor was cut to metal framing, and replaced with PVC 3/4" deck, surfaced with 1/8" coroplast, and laid with new vinyl laminate flooring. Looks great and has held up fantastic!

https://youtu.be/JwLFKbmeMwg?list=PL...ElROh6wU6WtZ6k

slowmachine · 07-05-2017, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheIceKing

Slowmachine and others,

I had to completely gut my interior wall to the fiberglass skin, fill with rigid foam, and reface interior with t/g vinyl bead board. Floor was cut to metal framing, and replaced with PVC 3/4" deck, surfaced with 1/8" coroplast, and laid with new vinyl laminate flooring. Looks great and has held up fantastic!

https://youtu.be/JwLFKbmeMwg?list=PL...ElROh6wU6WtZ6k

What a mess! Many of us are in the same situation. Thanks for posting and adding to the collective wisdom for repairs. What is the PVC decking, and where do you buy it?

TheIceKing · 07-07-2017, 11:38 AM

I bought a sheet of 3/4" PVC sheeting (4' X 8') at Home Depot for $110. No more issues with floor rot in that area!

TheIceKing · 07-07-2017, 11:40 AM

Here is another link https://youtu.be/a-d9DvMh6RQ

Andy_Law · 07-26-2017, 06:20 PM

Did I read that you aren't going to use the AC ducts? I always like going to the local RV shows to check out the new models. The new DP models all have fancy ceiling work, with various types of LED lighting. I must admit, I'm a bit envious of those ceilings/lights, but most envious of the ones with ceiling fans!
Have you considered install a ceiling fan? Here in AZ, it would virtually stay on at all times. But installing one seemed like a ton of work.

slowmachine · 07-26-2017, 08:31 PM

No room for a ceiling fan in a 6 1/2 foot ceiling. I have a couple of ideas for alternative duct systems. We have what I believe to be a good enough design for ceiling beam reinforcement, and the plasma cutting table is doing its thing. I'm waiting now for the shop to finish some smaller mechanical items, as well as the annual state safety inspection. The MH should be home in 7-10 days, and I will be hard at work installing the ceiling repairs.

Bmwtech · 07-28-2017, 09:08 PM

Wow and I thought I had a big job! In progress of remodeling my 99 pace arrow. But yours is an even bigger job good luck. Loved to see how yours comes out

slowmachine · 08-01-2017, 10:03 AM

I had an accidental meeting with my own MH as I was returning from Lowe's. As I approached the RV shop, my own Endeavor entered the highway in front of me. Of course, I had to following back to the shop to see what they were doing. They had taken it to a local scale to confirm the the weight did not exceed the capacity of their lift. It crossed the scale at 20,500 pounds, with a full tank of fuel, driver in the seat, and ~260 pounds of interior stuff (165 for washer/dryer combo, and 95 for the refrigerator) on board. GVWR is 27,500 lbs, so I'm about 7,000 pounds below the maximum with no interior in the coach. Right now, my tow capacity is limited to 5,000 pounds of the total 32,500 GCWR. I have some hope to install a 10,000 pound hitch so that I can tow something the size of a Tahoe/Yukon when we are loaded for travel.

So, the MH is on the lift this morning. They are removing the propane tank, replacing a hydraulic leveling jack line, and performing the annual state safety inspection. I should have it back in two or three days, and will launch immediately into installation of the ceiling reinforcement pieces. I'll have photos as it happens, of course.