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laneybop's avatar
laneybop
Explorer
Feb 15, 2015

Water damaged floor. Repair tips?

I have a 1985 shasta travel trailer which I am renovating to live in during the warmer months. We got the camper at an extremely (and understandably) low cost, knowing there was some water damage in the bedroom floor. As we have begun demolition we are realizing that it is a bit worse than we were expecting but are up for the challenge!

It seems that pretty much all the 2x4 supports and joists are rotted along with the subflooring, etc. What we weren't expecting was the bottom sheet of metal to be so rusted away. Any suggestions on how to deal with this? Should we try to somehow patch with aluminum flashing? We are planning to put in extra 2x4s this time around for added support but are a bit lost in how to reseal everything at the back of the camper. See image attached.

]https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzUzypz9Y2j4NGxEVHM1YUdPLUFrN0N4QXNtVG9PVFlVTUU4/view?usp=sharing[/img]
  • laneybop's avatar
    laneybop
    Explorer
    Feb 15, 2015
    This is not a joke! We basically got it for free and want a project... both for the learning process and to make it our own. We have access to lot's of free wood and great salvage and second hand stores. Can't just buy another one... we are farmers with a very low budget. Looking for useful advice, not judgement. Thanks in advance.
  • azrving's avatar
    azrving
    Explorer
    Feb 15, 2015
    Sorry to say this but it's often said on the Craigslist auto forum....CLIFF IT. The problem with rv's construction is that the floor goes down first and then the walls are set on top of it. The walls are probably not much better as the water damage most likely came from the roof down. I wouldn't mess with that, junk it and buy something without water damage. I did an old Jayco project that was in far better shape than that and I basically stuffed the whole thing in the back of a Chevy pick up and took it to the dump. I then reinforced, cleaned and painted the frame and started building a new trailer. It was just a winter project but I would never do it again. It almost makes me want to puke just thinking about all that work.

    Maybe you are just joking with us? Are you?

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