Mix, Thin, and Apply the Epoxy to the Wood Framing
The purpose of the epoxy is to seal the wood from future moisture intrustion. The epoxy also discourages mold growth.
Doug thinned the epoxy 50% using xylene. He used a cheap sprayer to apply the thinned mixture to all surfaces of the subfloor, including the floor joists.
You only need about a quart of resin. Doug bought a gallon but that proved to be too much for this job.
Resin is not cheap so only buy what you need.
Doug mentioned to DoItYourselfRV,
If you need a whole gallon you probably need a new trailer.
The resin takes a couple of days to cure. While waiting for the wood to dry and the resin to cure, Doug added new wood to support the sub floor.
Because he had no choice but to cut out the heavily damaged sections, he added a few new cross supports. One problem he ran into was that the floor joists weren’t made of a standard size of lumber. Thery weren’t normal 2×4 framing.
To fix this, he ripped 2x6s down to 2x3s to make the wood dimensions match.
With some simple notching and cut outs, he was able to recreate a stable and structurally sound support for the new subfloor.
After another spray of epoxy on the new wood he let the fresh epoxy cure again.
Insulation was added after the epoxy dried.
Doug added a new sheet of plywood to the cross members on the interior of the trailer.
More epoxy – and another round of curing.
Doug made sure to seal as much exposed wood as he could. Fortunately there was no water damage coming from the roof of the storage compartment.
He thought it was odd that the floor was so badly rotted but the water hadn’t come from the ceiling.
His conclusion: the previous owner stored the fresh water hose in the compartment without properly draining or drying it before hand!
Some vinyl pieces with self adhesive were used to cover the plywood sub floor.
Some vinyl tile was added to the storage compartment and gaps caulked.
Once Doug was satisfied that the wood had dried and the epoxy cured, he reinstalled the kitchen dinette. Instead of trying to match the existing vinyl flooring with a new piece, he simply added some reclaimed carpet to the under table area.
Conclusion
Repairing rotted wood flooring in your RV doesn’t have to require expert help or a lot of cash. If you discover a small area that needs replacing, you can use the steps in this article to fix the problem yourself. Only simple materials and a few hours of time are needed.
Some of the materials used in this project, including epoxy resin and certain thinning agents, are toxic to humans and animals.
It’s important to always use safe working practices, have good ventilation, and wear appropriate personnel protective equipment.
Make sure to wear disposable gloves and a respirator when you’re working around xylene or epoxy.
Doug said that the total cost to repair this damaged floor in his RV was under $200!
Thank you to Doug at CorgiFan for sharing your photos and know-how!
Any advice if you’ve already replaced the floor once and then find out two years later it has rotted and become moldy again? Can water seep through the frame into the floor somehow? I live in the rainy Pacific Northwest.
I just had part of the floor fixed in my StarCraft Hybrid, the RV repair guy said it will cost $5,000 to replace the whole floor…I’m female and love camping but not a floor fixer upper, does anyone know some one that can replace the floor for $2,000, I love in Lowell Massachusetts Thanks Linda
I have a large area of rotted floor which I have removed. The wood supports underneath ware also rotted. How do I go about rebuilding a framework?
About to embark on replacing rotted wood flooring in my rv . This 3×6 area will be a challenge . Looks to be from a roof leak by awning !
Great point Mike, thanks for your comment.
Ensure you use ORGANIC VAPOR cartridges on your respirator! They will say OV on them. These are the only cartridges that protect you from the alcohol/acetone/xylene.
I’m working on a 2004 Rockwood trailer floor. I’ve torn up the vinyl to find an area of wood rot caused by water. The damaged area is approximately 6′ long x 4′ wide. The area is in the kitchen, in front of the lower cabinets. The cause of the ongoing water damage has been fixed. The problem I have is a lack of joists under the plywood. There is one aluminum joist at the outer edge of the cabinet area. Logic tells me there should be another joist at the edge of the cabinets, but having dealt with trailers for several years, logic is not involved in the manufacturing process. The aluminum joist runs parallel to the 6′ damaged area (runs side to side of trailer, not front to back). There is NO bracing underneath. One full weight step and a person would fall through! So, do I jump in and take the damaged section out and pray I find another joist. At this point, what other options do I have? HELP!!
I’m newly retired and new to the RV life . We purchased a 2003 Ragen 21 foot toy hauler. It has needed some TLC. I appreciate all the tips I’ve been getting from this web site .
I could really use some advice and thoughts on where to purchase and how to install a hinged 12 ” X 7.5 ‘ piece of diamond plate to cover the gap created from the trailer floor and the opened rear ramp door. Also where I might find or build a hinged ramp extension to attach to the top of the ramp door for easier transition onto the ramp from the street . Thanks .
Thanks Ken, glad you found the article useful
Thanks for the great tips!
Wood rot can be a bear to repair. Glad you avoided problems Larry.
Wish I had seen this—I turned down 2 trailers because they had rotten places in the floor–Won’t happen again
Larry
Sounds good Chris, great choice
Becoming a RVerin my early retirement