Slide leakage

[Shurik]

Hello guys,

Last spring we had a leakage, the water was coming in where the slide touches the wall. There was a bit of water, standing between the wall and the floor (front of the trailer).
I fixed the leakage, replaced the insulation (from the bottom), cleaned the mold. It wasn’t too bad.

The problem now, the floor a bit uneven, next to the leakage place. I don’t have a way to clean the floor. I will need to remove the linoleum and somehow put it back…

Question, is there a reason to remove linoleum? Can I leave it as is? Can we breathe it?

Thank you!

[BeatCJ]

The vinyl flooring should be glued down. To remove it, you will end up destroying it, and replacing it. Vinyl flooring is a relatively simple job, but it tends to be something that is best left to someone with experience. Sure, you can do it, and do it well just by being meticulous.

As for should you, I think if the floor is damaged enough that it is uneven, you have subfloor/underlayment water damage. That's not something I would want to leave alone. You probably won't get any molds with dangerous spores, but I would be more concerned with the structure of the floor. The particle board they use is essential worthless, if it has gotten wet.

As for can you breathe it? The vinyl material is pretty benign, and it doesn't make much dust. The glue that is used is usually an acrylic latex, so again, pretty safe.

[Shurik]

Thanks BeatCJ. Any chance I can use the same linoleum (that will be removed)? Or I will need to look for the same type/pattern of linoleum?

[YosemiteBobR]

If the Leno is entirely glued (some glue only around the edge) it will be useless after taking it up, as mentioned already. Figure on an area or even a bigger area depending on what shows.

[Shurik]

Originally Posted by YosemiteBobR

If the Leno is entirely glued (some glue only around the edge) it will be useless after taking it up, as mentioned already. Figure on an area or even a bigger area depending on what shows.

I see... So the only option is to get new Leno and glue it after the board fix?

I thought to sand it, to remove the mold. Is it good enough for minor damage?

[BeatCJ]

I guess after typing out the following long answer, I may not have understood you question. I just added the next two lines.

You can't sand the surface of your vinyl flooring. The printed pattern is paper, with a thin plastic layer over the top of it. Sanding will damage the surface of the floor covering.

Yes, if your underlayment only has minor damage, you can probably sand any high spots out. If you have any low spots, gouges or seams, you should feather those out, too. Anything you can feel with your hand will transfer through to the surface of your new flooring. You can find feathering compounds in the paint section of most hardware stores. It's a Portland cement based compound, mix it to a creamy paste, and trowel it on smooth. Then you go back over it to smooth any of that, I use the same trowel to shave it off that I used to place my feathering compound, I prefer a 16" steel concrete trowel.

And no, that's not the only option. There are lots of flooring types, but there's a reason sheet vinyl is the most commonly used. It is affordable, it does provide a waterproof layer, it's easy to clean.

Laminate flooring planks are pretty popular, and don't need glued down. Most use a particle board substrate, so the flooring itself is susceptible to water damage. It is thicker than vinyl but to me, the biggest drawback in a travel trailer is that it is free floating. You need to leave some space at.the same for expansion, so it can move side to side, front to back while you are traveling. I would fear.that I would end up with all my gap on one end, and the joints would rattle apart.

There are also vinyl planks that glue down. So they aren't one big piece, and may be more manageable. But they also have quite a few joints, so opportunities for misalignment.

I can't foresee you being able to reuse your existing flooring, but this wouldn't be the first time I would be wrong (today).

Even though I have done vinyl work as a second job for quite a while, I dislike it. I would do my own, I might do it for a friend, but I would strongly consider getting (paying) someone else to do it.

[YosemiteBobR]

Originally Posted by Shurik

I see... So the only option is to get new Leno and glue it after the board fix?

I thought to sand it, to remove the mold. Is it good enough for minor damage?

I could not give you a better answer than BeatCJ just did. But I might add if you got mold, cut it out or treat it first, when it is exposed.