Community Forums

NovaScotiaRV · 05-11-2022, 05:45 PM

Hello everyone,

Thanks for taking the time to read my thread.. I'm feeling quite a bit discouraged as I type this out..

I recently acquired what I thought what a good bargain on an '01 forest river windsong 34ft motorhome with 18k~ miles on it.. It seemed to be very well kept.. I was wrong.. Ran into a few situations already that I've thankfully taken care of..

Today when I was walking toward the back bedroom I noticed 3 mushrooms growing from the freaking carpet.. and this is how it all began.

I'm going to attach some photos as I feel it'll be much easier to do so.. But ultimately the slide in the back bedroom is more then likely the culprit based on what I'm seeing so far.

Essentially I am wondering how I'm supposed to get the rotten floor out while putting in a new piece of plyboard with it being 'sturdy' at the same time.. I'm willing to learn but I'm only 28 and have never taken any sort of carpentry schooling / lessons before.. I've dabbled but I'm no pro.

The area from what I can tell runs along the wall in the back bedroom about 5 maybe 5 and half feet by about 2 feet out.. So I'm guessing the only option is to cut it out and somehow get a new piece back in.. Have any of you ever done so?

craigd853 · 05-11-2022, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NovaScotiaRV

Hello everyone,

Thanks for taking the time to read my thread.. I'm feeling quite a bit discouraged as I type this out..

I recently acquired what I thought what a good bargain on an '01 forest river windsong 34ft motorhome with 18k~ miles on it.. It seemed to be very well kept.. I was wrong.. Ran into a few situations already that I've thankfully taken care of..

Today when I was walking toward the back bedroom I noticed 3 mushrooms growing from the freaking carpet.. and this is how it all began.

I'm going to attach some photos as I feel it'll be much easier to do so.. But ultimately the slide in the back bedroom is more then likely the culprit based on what I'm seeing so far.

Essentially I am wondering how I'm supposed to get the rotten floor out while putting in a new piece of plyboard with it being 'sturdy' at the same time.. I'm willing to learn but I'm only 28 and have never taken any sort of carpentry schooling / lessons before.. I've dabbled but I'm no pro.

The area from what I can tell runs along the wall in the back bedroom about 5 maybe 5 and half feet by about 2 feet out.. So I'm guessing the only option is to cut it out and somehow get a new piece back in.. Have any of you ever done so?

Hello sir and sorry for your troubles but there are no photos attached to this thread. You will more than likely have to pull everything in the room that's in the way out of the way. The carpet, wood and possibly substructure will have to be replaced. Easier just to get everything off the floor and evaluate once you have removed the carpet. Don't know what your substructure is but I had to replace an area around my bathroom 5x6 and there was metal angle iron to attach the new flooring to. Also make sure you find out where your leak is coming from so you won't have an issue in the future. Good luck and let's see some pictures please

NovaScotiaRV · 05-11-2022, 07:11 PM

https://youtu.be/s6ygUS6R2o0

I just made this video for reference

153stars · 05-11-2022, 09:58 PM

RV MH or trailer repairs like this are half MacGyver, half carpentry. You have to be real careful what could be under any cuts and use just enough depth to cut through . Any unsupported seams use a board under and screw and glue with construe adhesive as well as the seam to block moisture.

TheWoodBoss · 05-12-2022, 08:16 AM

First get the slide seals fixed, remove the bed frame. Rip out the carpet, padding and staples. Dry it out. Get some mold remover and clean it real good. If you are worried about the mold and your floor is solid you can get some primer/sealer to seal over it after you clean it. Unless the floor is super soft I would leave it. Dry from below as well. Go with a new LVP floor throughout the camper. It will take time and money but you can do it. Good luck and take your time. Also when you level your RV you can tilt it ever so slightly away from the slide out seals to keep water moving away from the seals, this helps in heavy rain.

NXR · 05-12-2022, 08:22 AM

Water can travel from one end of an RV to the other before it finds a way out so your leak(s) could be anywhere. Consider buying a moisture meter, sketching the floorplan, and then marking each area for what the moisture meter reads. This will be less invasive than drilling test holes and more definitive.

I carry this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I certainly am a novice with that tool so I've found it to be more valuable as a trend meter. In other words, place it on a dry area and start moving it around. To me, small % changes could just be structure changes in the wall or floor. I mapped my motorhome out so I know what looks normal for ours.

I did get to use it on a person's Class C and the meter really jumped high where she thought she had a leak. We ran it on the outside of the cap and the % jumped by dozens in a few inches.

Also, carpet rarely is used in an RV anymore for a variety of reasons including hiding and retaining moisture. You might want to take a bigger picture approach and just rip all of the carpet off and replace it with vinyl tile or something.

Good luck,

Ray

TXiceman · 05-12-2022, 08:33 AM

The best you can do is repair the slide seals, and make sure you have no other entry points for water. Next is to get rid of the mold. There are sprays for mold. Repair what wood you can. If will be a lot of Mac Giver repairs.

Use the RV for as long as you can and write the experience up to a learning experience

RVs are a continual repair nightmare, and their worst enemy is water. Manufacturers continue to use the cheapest construction techniques and materials possible,

The Windsong is an entry level motorhome, there is OSB and particle board everywhere. and they do not work well with moisture.

Ken

rssnape · 05-12-2022, 10:29 AM

Looking at the wall under the window makes me think that is where the leak is. Since it has such low miles for the age, it probably sat parked either in use or storage. The slide seal is another area to check for leaks as well. You may be able to check the integrity of the floor from underneath the slide area.
Find the leaks, fix the rot, and then re-floor.

-Gramps- · 05-13-2022, 03:53 PM

Even if the wood is soft you can coat it with Gorilla Glue Construction adhesive, it is water activated and pulls out moisture, and then gets very hard and waterproof. I used it in the corner of my main slideout which had a similar problem, a leaky slideout that allowed water to wick up into the floor. I had an actual hole in my floor above the fiberglass sheet, the bottom of the slideout, which was sealed with Quick patch and then we injected the wall with the Gorilla Glue adhesive. This was done at the bottom of the wall, in the gap between the wall and the floor. This was all discovered when we replaced our old sheet vinyl and carpet floor last October with a high-end LVP floor made by Earthwerks.

NovaScotiaRV · 05-13-2022, 09:35 PM

Thanks everyone. I ended up ripping the entire floor out from the back of the bedroom all the way up to the front of the motorhome.. Just got a little more carpet to take care of and the front slide carpet to remove properly. I'm going full vinyl. Started laying in the back already; got half the bedroom done.

I'm going to focus my attention on fixing the slide gaskets. Had an RV tech guy that's been helping me pro bono with a few things come out and look at it all; and his advice was similar that he would not start cutting the floor out and would let it dry out and try some kind of sealer on top of it and lay new vinyl down. He also thinks this leak is coming from the rear slide gasket.

Another thing to mention, while ripping the carpet up and vinyl in the bathroom I discovered a way bigger leak. My entire bathroom floor was soaking wet ; I had my dehumidifier on for the past few days drying it out and sprayed with cleaning vinegar to hopefully control some of the mold. I'll buy an actual mold killer tomorrow and spray it on.

Essentially both slide gaskets rear and front (in my kitchen / dining table area) are leaking by the looks of it. The RV Tech looked at it immediately and pointed out that there is also slight delamination going on around the wall of the front slide out which is too convenient and sort of showed me the path he believed the water was taking. It all makes perfect sense; and it doesn't resemble a pipe burst at all.

The previous owner was very anal about winterization and kept stressing the importance of doing it properly to me when I was viewing / buying the MH.
He also mentioned that he had stored it every year except for last year as he had health issues to deal with and basically missed his spot in storage and couldn't find anywhere else to go last minute.

Does anybody know of a good product to apply on top of the semi-soft (dry) OSB flooring in my bathroom area so that it can hopefully become more 'sturdy' or hard before I apply new flooring down?

Sam 3 · 05-13-2022, 10:09 PM

Mold spray doesn't cost much. I got ours at Home Depot. You will need to take out the window above the wavy wall. You tube has a video on how to do this. Reseal with butyl tape and Lexel caulk on the outside. With the window out you can see the extent of the wall damage. You may need to cut the paneling out under the window. This is a DIY job. I did remove all the windows in two TT. Glad you have a RV Tech giving you advice. Look in Home Depot or like store for hardener products. Minwax should have something in the refinishing isle. So Sorry the seller was dishonest. Keep the questions coming and we will help you. Also had to deal with a rotten floor under the toilet. Common area for leaks. DH put in a new piece of plywood.

PanJH · 05-14-2022, 05:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NovaScotiaRV

Thanks everyone. I ended up ripping the entire floor out from the back of the bedroom all the way up to the front of the motorhome.. Just got a little more carpet to take care of and the front slide carpet to remove properly. I'm going full vinyl. Started laying in the back already; got half the bedroom done.

I'm going to focus my attention on fixing the slide gaskets. Had an RV tech guy that's been helping me pro bono with a few things come out and look at it all; and his advice was similar that he would not start cutting the floor out and would let it dry out and try some kind of sealer on top of it and lay new vinyl down. He also thinks this leak is coming from the rear slide gasket.

Another thing to mention, while ripping the carpet up and vinyl in the bathroom I discovered a way bigger leak. My entire bathroom floor was soaking wet ; I had my dehumidifier on for the past few days drying it out and sprayed with cleaning vinegar to hopefully control some of the mold. I'll buy an actual mold killer tomorrow and spray it on.

Essentially both slide gaskets rear and front (in my kitchen / dining table area) are leaking by the looks of it. The RV Tech looked at it immediately and pointed out that there is also slight delamination going on around the wall of the front slide out which is too convenient and sort of showed me the path he believed the water was taking. It all makes perfect sense; and it doesn't resemble a pipe burst at all.

The previous owner was very anal about winterization and kept stressing the importance of doing it properly to me when I was viewing / buying the MH.
He also mentioned that he had stored it every year except for last year as he had health issues to deal with and basically missed his spot in storage and couldn't find anywhere else to go last minute.

Does anybody know of a good product to apply on top of the semi-soft (dry) OSB flooring in my bathroom area so that it can hopefully become more 'sturdy' or hard before I apply new flooring down?

I've used Git Rot on bad wood with great success. https://www.westmarine.com/buy/boatl...UaArd5EALw_wcB

NovaScotiaRV · 05-14-2022, 06:12 AM

Here are some photos I took of the other water damage

Note the leak appears to be coming from the slide in the kitchen. Still have more carpet to rip up, just a bit worried if I cut too much off that there’s a chance the slide may get jammed up as I’m guessing there has to be wheels of some kind underneath?

(Btw the structure in the first photo is the back bedroom bed frame, Which was very poorly constructed, couldn’t believe the craftsmanship.. terrible.. but that’s another story lol)

jacwjames · 05-14-2022, 09:42 AM

If the OSB flexes a lot when you walk on it IMHO I think it needs to be replace.

I ran into this on the front of my coach, the floor started to flex when I walked on it. This was not from a leak but rather where my wire her dog crates stacked and over the years of the dogs spilling their water it finally caught up.

I pulled up the old laminate flooring and found the OSB did not have any strength at all. I could put my foot right through it. Ended up replacing a ~4X6' piece. The original OSB had a vapor barrier glued to it and when I pulled the old OSB (actually 2 layers) in pieces it separated from the vapor barrier. I was careful not to rip the barrier. I replaced the OSB with 3/4" treated plywood which I painted with an exterior primer before laying down. I also spread a thin layer of liquid nail on the bottom of the plywood before dropping into place and then went underneath and used a foam roller to push the vapor barrier against the plywood to adhere it tight. Seemed to work pretty good. I did also use some Flexseal after I was done to insure the vapor barrier was water tight. Not a perfect solution but the best I could do.