Replacing Flooring

[angler]

I plan on replacing the flooring in my Class A motorhome. Having researched everything and talking to people who have done it, I've decided on luxury vinyl plank and pressure sensitive glue.
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The question I have is with the slide. I'm not replacing the carpet in the slide since the couch covers it The kitchen is part of the slide does not have anything flooring attached to it. The slide is not level with the floor so I don't really have to deal with any transition pieces.

I think the slide uses rollers which roll on the carpeting on one side of the slide out and roll on vinyl on the kitchen side. Do I have to worry about the possible difference in height when all the rollers are all on vinyl? Am I I overthinking this?
Not worried about the kitchen part of the slide with vinyl since I'm removing the old stuff and my height will be the same.

My wife thinks I'm wacko since I seem to overthink everything:) IT career did it to me.

[buc1980]

Wood flooring come in different thickness.If you use wood you need to bevel the edge(45 degree) where the rollers run and then you don't have any problems.I did it 4 years ago and the floor looks like new .

[angler]

I have heard of that as well. I'm hoping to be lower than the carpet and after I pull up the vinyl that's in there be equal in height in that area. It has a kitchen/living room in the slide out. So have both materials in the slide.

[mchero]

my full wall slides on the carpet. I herd MANY stories of people having flooring installed only to find out the flooring is too thick and the slides won't come in.

[angler]

In theory yes. Having no experience in it or other people who have done it this way (except for the flooring person who I talked to) I'm not really sure what will happen. I just know that glued sheet vinyl is used in most trailers and motorhomes and it's pretty durable.
I'm not planing on using the adhesive backed vinyl. Using a trawl and gluing it to the subfloor.
I have floating Laminate floors in two of my rooms at home and am generally pleased with them. But would do something different next time. Especially in the kitchen.

[maillemaker]

When you do this kind of flooring, and you take up the old carpet, can you just cut around all the stuff? My carpet covers the whole floor, and then everything was built on top of it. You'd have to gut the camper to get all the carpet out. Can you just cut around stuff?

Steve

[angler]

This flooring doesn't come with attached adhesive. You would use the same adhesive you would use for sheet vinyl which would was originally used in a camper.

Very Nice looking floors! Can't wait to get rid of my 16 year old carpeting!

[westend]

IMO, any flooring that comes with an attached adhesive installation system is to be avoided. I'm old now so maybe adhesive technology has passed me by (but I doubt it).

Allure Ultra is a click-lock floating floor system. No glue required but if I had a slide, I'd attach the last planks closest to the slide with a cove base adhesive. Cove base because it has more adhesive solids and sticks like no tomorrow, also readily available. The Allure will still have the rest of the expanse of planks to expand and contract.

Have you looked at any composite plank flooring? If this new floor is to replace a carpeted area and an owner chooses an 8MM plank, height and clearances shouldn't be an issue. They are making some nice composite plank flooring. FWIW, I bought one of the cheapest composites on sale at Lumber Liquidators and am real happy with it. It is wearing as well as the Pergo I have in the S&B.



Good luck with the floor!

[jplante4]

Vinyl needs to float or be in a temperature controlled environment. If the floor will see all 4 seasons, do not glue it down and do not screw or nail through the floor into the subfloor. Cut around anything that penetrates the floor (like the co-pilot's seat or the brackets holding down the couch) and do not nail edge trim through the floor. Leave an 1/8 inch gap around the edges use quarter round to cover the gap where it's visible. Nial or double stick tape the quarter round to the wall or cabinet side and let the floor move under the trim. The entire floor needs to move as a unit. Any binding in one area will buckle the seams. You should also put down rosin paper or some other kind of underlayment.

I used Allure with the "grip strip" adhesive along the edges.

[angler]

They have both kinds. Interlocking which is like laminate flooring. And without the interlocking made to be glued down like little strips of sheet vinyl only thicker than sheet vinyl.

Haven't totally decided yet.

[monkey44]

maillemaker wrote:

The luxury vinyl planking is not designed to be glued down, it needs to float, is it still expands and contracts.

Depends on the flooring. They put down vinyl (or maybe PVC?) flooring planks here at work and it is all glued down.

Steve

True on both counts here -- but the best kind for an RV is "Float" not "Glue" ... the floor in an RV expands and contracts with weather change, and because it space is so small or narrow, the contraction sometimes forces it to buckle if glued ...

If you install any floor in an RV (and even a house) you need about a one eighth or one quarter inch space around the edges. Then install molding above the gap, but don't nail into the floor, just into the wall. It allows the floor to breath and expand ...

[maillemaker]

The luxury vinyl planking is not designed to be glued down, it needs to float, is it still expands and contracts.

Depends on the flooring. They put down vinyl (or maybe PVC?) flooring planks here at work and it is all glued down.

Steve

[jfkmk]

The luxury vinyl planking is not designed to be glued down, it needs to float, is it still expands and contracts.

[westend]

I'd suggest to use a click-lock product for flooring and use a heavy duty cove base adhesive near the slide to fasten the flooring. Many have reported failures with a glue-adhesive strip vinyl plank. Maybe I'm not understanding your statements about what type of vinyl plank is being used. If you're gluing it all down, no worries.

[angler]

No I'm not really sure. I just see indentation from the carpeting that looks like a roller when the slide is out. Very good question though. I'm really not knowledgeable on slide outs. Not sure what the indentation is from. Maybe just a way to brace the slid out when its in. Maybe it's time to research the slideout mechanism used on the coach.