Community Forums

W. Willie · 02-16-2012, 08:41 PM

Can anyone tell me about rotten subfloor under the toilet in a 1999 Monaco Diplomat. What kind of structure is under there. Can I put a 3/4in. thick piece of plywood over subfloor, and use a extended toilet flange to hook up toilet?
Any thoughts appreciated.
Thanks,
W. Willie

danes-on-tour · 02-16-2012, 09:20 PM

I can't tell you about the existing structure in your Diplomat, but I can tell you that it is a bad idea to cover up something that is rotten. Everything rotten has to come out and then you can rebuild the floor. After this is finished you shouln't need to extend any of your plumbing.

Maybe this is not what you wanted to hear but this is the right way (and only way) to carry out such a repair.

Good luck.

KIX · 02-16-2012, 09:25 PM

I have to agree that you'll be much better off in the long run if you get the old rot out. If you leave it in and cover it up it will spread and your problem will be much larger.

texnet · 02-16-2012, 10:22 PM

Our 03 Dynasty had a bad place under the toilet when we purchased it. It took me a couple of days but I pulled out the toilet then used a multi-tool to cut out the top section that was bad. The Dynasty had two levels of subfloor seperated by a water barrier. Only the top level was bad. I cut a new piece of plywood to fit, replace the bad section, cleaned the back of he old tile and reinstalled. The floor is as good as new and probably stronger since I used marine grade plywood.

LandKinaMoho · 02-16-2012, 11:11 PM

Definitely need to remove all the cancer prior to making repairs......

steelheadbluesman · 02-17-2012, 01:18 AM

Chances are excellent that you only need to replace a small piece of underlayment or plywood. I agree with everybody -- I would cut it out and clean it up nice. If you destroy the existing vinyl, no sweat, Home Depot or Lowes will sell you peel-and-stick that is super easy to cut and lay down, I just did a bathroom floor with the stuff. These days, it's a great product. About a dollar per square foot.

But to answer your question, yes, you could probably "thicken" the floor to reinforce it and use a flange extension, but not a great fix IMHO.

njs42 · 02-17-2012, 06:54 AM

You need to do this right. Remove all the rotted area, then replace with new substrate.

Basically retore the area to the same as new underneath then you can doll it up with new tile etc; This kind of job can seem daunting but I think if you tackle it you can do a great job and have a secure toilet and no worries.

If you put on a "patch" you will not have peace of mand and you will have a lousy toilet area. Good luck. Let us know how thing work out. Some nice pictures of the "new toilet".

Barrier2 · 02-17-2012, 07:04 AM

Hi,
There is a product used in the Boating Industry called "Git Rot" it is an Epoxy product that if used on Rot works to Kill the Rot and is designed to penetrate and replace it with strong Epoxy. I would remove what is easy to get at and punky (soft damp and powdering) and then apply the product. This from the Wooden Boat people, the product might be hard to find today. You also might want to look up West Marine for a similar product.
Robert

TXiceman · 02-17-2012, 07:09 AM

GitRot will not work on areas that are too damaged. It will work on mildly damaged areas.

Ken

W. Willie · 02-17-2012, 07:21 PM

1999 Monaco Diplomat, rotten subfloor under toilet. I agree 3/4'' plywood over rotten subfloor is not a good idea.
Thanks for the posts, keep it up. If anyone has pictures of the supporting structure under the subfloor, that would be great!
W. Willie

rex · 02-17-2012, 08:37 PM

No pictures but the only thing under the wood is Styrofoam insulation and under that is a thin layer (1/8" I think) of plywood. There should be some steel frame members also. Find the steel and cut the old floor out so that good wood is on half the steel and lay new wood on the other half.