Replacing Flooring on Bigfoot

[adamis]

I purchased my Bigfoot used and the floor has seen better days. The linoleum is rather dated and the carpet seems to hold onto every single piece of dirt that gets tracked inside.

I was wondering if any other Bigfoot owners have replaced the flooring in their camper and if so, what the experience was like? Are there some suggested flooring options that are better suited to a camper? I think I also want to replace the carpet under the dinette as well.

[Kayteg1]

I put marble/granite on couple of RV before and it worked great, especially for beach camping.
But conversion had really strong floor, while vintage Airstream TT had very small floor and I did not put grout between the tiles.
I am considering doing the same on my camper, where vinyl is beaten, but seeing how camper flex when on jacks makes me scratching my head.
Meaning don't think I would put 12" tiles, but 6" with no grout should work fine.
Here is Airstrem if you have the bucket fix, or copy http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w266/kajtek1/FS%201965%20Airstream%20Safari/IMG_0361.jpg

[bigfootford]

Replaced our BF flooring with Linoleum. Used metal floor trim around the basement and access door. Looks good. Used news paper to get the pattern to cut the linoleum. Used double side carpet tape to lay the linoleum down. Oh yea, it was a chore! Used 1/4 round on the edges.

Jim

[RamblinAnne]

I replaced the floor on my 2004 25C10.6E Bigfoot TC and it was a total pain. But was absolutely worth it and made the world of difference in appearance.

Yes, Bigfoot laid the carpet and linoleum down before installing any furniture and cabinets so unless you plan on gutting the entire thing, your best bet is to nearly cut along the edges. That part was simple enough but I'd recommend one of those hooked blade tips you can put on your utility knife, as they're specially designed for cutting carpet. Bigfoot clearly never intended for that carpet to be removed.. there are a million staples holding it down. You're going to want fencing pliers or tower pincers to get all those staples out. And a breathing mask!

The linoleum peels up easy enough but I did have to brush on some heavy duty adhesive remover (the super toxic goo that comes in a metal can) on the tricky spots to get a nice and clean working surface.

Finally... there were a few areas where there are some raised screws and bolts that were going to interfere with my vinyl plank flooring that I was going to install (wouldn't have been an issue if I were using carpet). I needed a flat surface so I went ahead and sanded down the bolt heads (with an electric sander.. lots of sparks flew). I'm crossing my fingers that I'll never need to remove these screws and the electric sander decimated the screw heads.

For areas like the the basement door and the door under the dinette, I got rid of the hinges completely. I didn't really need them. The basement door just sits in there and I fashioned the pull handle in the center of the door so I can just pull it up when I need access. And the dinette door just flips up and mostly stays in place. Sometimes after traveling a bumpy road, it'll push loose a little and I just have to shove it back.

For the dinette edge and the edge of the step to the bed, I used a piece of L-shaped aluminum. I glued it on with some heavy duty mastic.I made cuts in the aluminum edge so that the dinette door could still open. **be sure you remove the screws from the step above the circuit breaker so you don't lock yourself out of there by laying floor on top.

Overall, the flooring was by far the most complicated process of my Bigfoot renovation. I used Allure Vinyl Planks that I bought from Home Depot. I laid the floor width wise which made it a little trickier but looks great (makes the camper look a little wider). I glued down the planks, which DOES void the warranty, but I had no other choice due to the layout and trap doors. I also didn't care since it was only 3 boxes (~$150).

I finished the edges by filling the gaps and edges with some caulk to match the cabinets.

I hope this helps. Feel free to DM me with any specific questions.

[pastorbillv]

My Bigfoot floor is fine, but I had B&B RV Service in Auburn (Northern Ca) replace the floor on my BBQ trailer and they did a WONDERFUL job. put in one piece instead of tiles...

Bill

[work2much]

We used to have a 10.6 and if memory is correct the main hall floor is lino and carped with a transition strip between. I would be tempted to replace all the flooring with vinyl plank flooring You will have to source some thin moldings to terminate around the basement hatch. Possibly some L shaped pieces the would cover the plan flooring and return down in the opening. Perhaps there is already such trim terminating the carpet that is internal with the hatch that could be reused?

For the carpet under the dinette the best way to replace would be remove the dinette benches and replace the carpet complete. This probably how it came from the factory. Less work way would be to cut the carpet neatly around the dinette benches and use a base molding to terminate it. If the carpet rolls under the edge of the dinette you could use another metal or wood termination strip or just staple it if it is hidden from view. Some sort of termination molding if possible will help to keep the carpet from fraying.

We went with the vinyl plank flooring and used window screen molding for base termination on our AF1150. Came out pretty nice. We didn't tackle the carpet. After this picture was taken we gave it a thorough stem clean and it looked great.

[kohldad]

Easy way is to cut the carpet along the edge of the dinette, put down the new carper and then cover the edges with 1/4 round.

For the main floor, you may want to consider water resistant, floating hardwood flooring. Or, just cut a piece of carpet to lay down. You can either secure with 1/4 round or leave loose so it can be removed for beating out the dirt. The removable carpet is what I did to the floor of mine. Makes it a tad bit warmer and nicer to walk on without shoes. Has lasted about six years, but now I need to get another piece to replace it.