MadFinnHockey
Sandown, NH
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Well, today I started my project to repair a soft spot on the floor of my 03 coyote and its going to be more of a project than I expected.
The wet piece of flooring goes under the wall that separates the main living area from the bathroom, and one of the structural cross members that I need to lay the plywood on is in the bathroom side of the wall, and the other is in the main living area, so that wall has to come down so I can take out the old flooring and put in the new.
Question, how do I remove that wall????
Thanks
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fordsooperdootydieselsmoker
OrangeCountyCalifornia
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Joined: 08/13/2004
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Hope this helps, search here using the RVing FAQ at the top in the blue bar also. One member had step by step pictures of how he did his RV floor replacement recently!
Trailer floor replacement
RVDoctor.com Scroll about half way down for floor article.
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MadFinnHockey
Sandown, NH
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I looked but that didn't give me what I needed. I've been able to separate the bottom of the wall from the floor, but what I can't get done it, separating it from the ceiling.... argh this is frustrating. Once I get that short wall out I'll be able to tear up the rest of the floor and get going.
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cm
Dillon, CO USA
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Joined: 08/01/2002
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Most likely the wall paneling is stapled to what ever framing they used. There is a possibility it may be glued but I doubt it. These kinds of walls are not usually not load bearing, just built as a partition.
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camperforlife
Richmond IN
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Joined: 01/22/2004
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Can you cut around the walls, add new cross members at the walls edges and proceed from there?
2004 GMC Sierra 5.3, 3.73
2003 Antiqua 195CK SOLD and shopping for a replacement.
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Gale Hawkins
Murray, KY
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Joined: 07/22/2007
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There is a chance the wall is part of the roof system and you will not find a clean breaking point at the top. You guys are brave to tackle these rebuild jobs. The roof is the last thing that goes on I think.
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MadFinnHockey
Sandown, NH
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oh my gosh, what a pain lol. So here's what I've got after I started tearing things up.
CM was right, they build the frame for the wall and screwed it to the floor and ceiling by putting screws through the bottom and top plates, then they put the wall material on, that thin veneer stuff, stapeling it on the edges of the frame. That veneer would be easy to remove, but the trim that they put on the wall edge (bathroom wall, end where the door strike goes into), that trim is glued, and I can pry it off to slide the veneer off, argh!!!
Tearing up the floor, its a layer of plywood, then sheet styrofoam, then a thin layer of plywood, then the black fabric thats under the trailer.
I've cut to the point in one direction (towards the front of the camper) where I've found a metal floor joist going the width of the trailer.
Cutting towards the back of the camper,(towards the toilet, where I think the leak started) I've come to a wooded floor joist, 22 inches from the metal joist.
But the wooden joist I think is only making a frame around the toilet drain pipe, because it only comes out from about a foot from the wall to the far edge of the toilet drain.
I've stuck a straightened out metal coat hanger through the sheet styrofoam under the floor towards the other end of the camper looking for another floor joist, but I can't find one.
I think I've got most of the wet flooring out, a 3 x 2 foot section. I'm thinking that I could add a cross member between the two joist I've found, then I'm thinking of just laying a 3/4 inch sheet of plywood over the entire bathroom floor, and over the living area just outside the bathroom door. If I were to do that, I the toilet would be raised about 3/4 inch and I'd have to put some sort of spacer in.
Thoughts?
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tom_kat
way upstate new york/lake george area
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the paneling to the wall frameing are probably stapled on, take off any molding and pull the paneling off one side of the wall then the frameing is screwed to the floors ,ceiling and walls inside ,haveing a air powered brad or stapler gun helps a lot going back together makes very small holes to fill or cover with the trim and brad or staple trim back on.
1985 Class A Holiday Rambler Imperial 33 +1979 Class C Holiday Rambler Statesman 1000 = 24 ft
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MadFinnHockey
Sandown, NH
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I ended up cutting off an inch off the bottom of that wall to remove the old flooring.
Now I have to fix everything and find the source of the leak. I'm suspecting it might be coming from the wheel wells (cause the wet flooring is directly above that area). When I cut the floor out, the plywood on the very bottom, next to the black fabric on the bottom of the trailer, was the wettest. The styrofoam on top of that, the bottom of it was wetter than the top of it. So it seems like its wet from the bottom up.
Ideas on that?
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MadFinnHockey
Sandown, NH
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got to say this bites, I really thought this would have been a 2-3 hour job. But here's where I am now.
I removed all of the linoleum in that area, which includes the bathroom, and 3 feet outside the bathroom walls.
I've removed the worst section of the soft floor, which was just outside the bathroom wall. I needed to remove the flooring under the wall, but I couldn't remove the wall, so I cut off about an inch off the bottom of it to be able to remove the old flooring. Pulled out the flooring and the styrofoam, so the hole in my floor is probably 3 ft x 1.5 ft. Its a little wet around the hole, but its drying out very fast.
Looking at everything more closely, the plywood just above the black fabric on the bottom of the trailer, that was very wet, and the bottom half of the styrofoam was wetter than the top half, so I'm thinking whatever is leaking, its coming from the bottom up, and its right near the wheel well. Its as if the fabric had a rip, but I don't see one. I'm wondering if the wheels are throwing up water from the wet roads, and its getting in somehow thru the wheel well.
But then the adventure keeps going. All this is happening on the right side of the trailer. On the left side, directly across from where the soft spot was, the floor is wet there also. I drilled a 3 inch hole to check it out, and on that side, it appears to be wet from the top down, the styrofoam really didn't seem wet. But the location again is right at the wheel well.
Opening one of the outside access doors near the wheel well, I can see some stained linoleum right on top of the wheel well housing.
But to add more confusement to it all, I don't know what to think now regarding where the water is really coming from.
So what I think the repair will be, I'm going to let this dry out for a few days for starters. Then I'm thinking of laying down some 3/4 plywood over whats there. I'll have to add a spacer to the toilet drain flange to bring it to the level of the new flooring. To make the area over the big hole I cut out stronger, I'll screw a short stud to the new plywood in that area.
If this thing was built like a house, with floor joists every 16 inches, then I'd be all set because I'd know where the next joist are, but I have no idea where the joists are. I found 1, and I've gone back almost 3 feet from that one and I can't find another. If I went back any further, I'd have to take the toilet drain out, which is cemented to the pvc going to the black tank, and the bathroom sink and cabinet out to get to it.
Another thought, instead of putting down 3/4 in plywood, I recently had my home bathroom tiled, and they put down sheets of Hardybacker first, how about if I layed down 1/2 inch plywood, then a sheet of hardybacker?
Anyone wanna come to NH and help!
!
* This post was
edited 08/23/08 06:18pm by MadFinnHockey *
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