Water damage to bathroom floor

We had the same problem...leak around the toilet that leaked into the wood but not visible on top of the vinyl until the floor went soft.

We took out as much as we could and replaced with good solid plywood for wet areas but the damage was so extensive it went under the wall to the adjoining side cabinets and probably under the refrigerator so...we'll need to pull up the vinyl in most of the whole middle of the coach and just begin pulling out rotted wood then rebuild from there up putting down all new vinyl in the whole rig.

I'd say the only thing you or we can do is put the rig down for repairs for a while and start in or find someone else. Its a matter of time and money. In our case most of that area is only accessible from the top because it's right over the tanks so even getting a look at it from the bottom is impossible. Oh the messes we get into!!!

I have had good success with GitRot, available at a lot of stores. The last I bought, obtained at Lowes.

OK, I looked at the cans of epoxy and they were the CPES from The Rot Doctor. www.rotdoctor.com

Here is a link to the products page:

rot doctor

I also bought the large bore syringe and it was excellent for some tough to reach areas and injecting right into really soft wood elsewhere on the TT I was working on but I would not have personally needed it for the bathroom floor portion.

They have warm and cold weather epoxies but that only refers to the temperature when and where you are applying the epoxy.

It wasn't an absolute miracle but it worked very well and boy does it penetrate.

When we had our '96 Pace Arrow we found a soft spot in the bathroom floor and decided to just replace it. Our Granddaughter had left the shower running without shutting off the faucet so we had a water overflow. When we got the entire bathroom floor up we found it was all OK but was really sub 1/4" plywood. There was also a 2X3' stretch that had no support under it. I put in 3/8" marine plywood, added a brace where there had not been one previously and put down laminate flooring. I did the kitchen area at the same time and same mmaterial so it looked great.

We had to replace the flooring in our bathroom due to an unknown leak in the
shower drain. Flooring underneath was soggy and weak. Took the unit to an
RV shop to have repaired. They did a marvelous job, but had to take out
the shower stall, one wall, vanity, and toilet in order to do the job right.
Replaced flooring with marine plywood and new linoleum. No problems since.
Wasn't cheap, but at least the job was done right.

Here is a link to a thread on another forum with some pictures I took when repairing the floor on our TT I referenced. I don't know how much they will help but you never know.


bathroom floor repair

That's a tough one and pictures may help with a proper repair

but

Here's how to "fix" it best without replacing. I will reiterate of course that pulling the wet wood and replacing it is the only 100%right way to do it.

Take up the vinyl flooring again. Soak all of the wet wood and even any dry wood that is near what was wet with ethylene glycol which is automotive green antifreeze. You can get it from any parts store for about $15 a gallon. do not get the pre-diluted 50-50 mixture. I used a medium size paintbrush when I did our bathroom in a previous TT. Keep lathering it on as it will seep in and wick through even OSB. It will also combine with any water that is in the wood. The antifreeze will kill any mold or dry rot that has started to grow in the wood and treat to keep it away for about a year or so. Take out the wood you already patched with and try to get some on the underside as much as you can. Obviously after putting all that antifreeze on it, DO NOT LET ANY KIDS OR ANIMALS IN THE RV.

The sucky part is that you now have to let it dry for at least a week or so. I left a fan blowing on ours so that air would get underneath as well. After it is COMLETELY dry, apply some penetrating epoxy to everywhere that was wet. A lot of people love and recommend the West Marine band stuff but after doing a TON of research, I went with another company that had an amazing 2 part epoxy that was much cheaper. Of course I don't remember where and of course I will forget to update with that info but will try to when I get home because I kept the empty containers. The epoxy I got just seeps right into the wood and hardens up in a day or two. After that it is actually pretty darn resilient to any further water damage.

Then, just re-patch your hole and smooth it out with wood filler like you did before and go shopping for some nice flooring to put down.

Can you redo the complete floor connecting to the steel beams and build up to the correct height?

AS you know, to do it right, the damaged flooring must be removed and replaced. You may consider just cutting out a 3/8" plywood piece to lay over the damaged floor and cover that piece with a floor covering, but that will be a band aid.