[encantotom]

oh....the easter candy thing. every year we hide a hundred or more eggs with candy and money in them for the grandkids to find. we find them all year long.....ha

tom

[Erniee]

I believe a moisture barrier was a non existant phrase back in the early 80s. The vinyl used was pretty common and had a backing that may have contained asbestos.

[Ozarkguy]

Ernie I changed my flooring in a 74' that had the same vinyl with carpet over it. One should wear a mask because of the dust that comes with tearing it up. If you have to replace any of the plywood there is a layer of fiberglass under that that had turned to powder. Made me sick for a few days as my mask didn't fit we'll. just saying..... I sealed it with a few coats of polyurethane sealer.

[Flick]

Well I spent another lovely evening in mortal combat with my floors. Coach Ernie was kind enough to lend me advice as I went along. The backing paper still needs to come up but the large scraper I had would not take it up. If it did get underneath it would quickly gouge the wood. So tomorrow I will go back at it again with a 4 inch scraper that has a razor blade end that Ernie recommended. Wish it was like wallpaper and there was something that I could brush on and then easily scrape it.

Can't post pics from an IPad I guess so I will try tomorrow when I get in front of the computer. So guys what about a moisture barrier? Am I seeing some differences of opinions. What would barrier do since these coaches hold so much moisture anyway?

[Ozarkguy]

Mold & wood rot comes to mind. Think of it as a vapor barrier. There is no air circulation under the flooring and the inside tends to on occasion, get damp from sweating windows, high humidity from cooking, breathing and gas furnaces. If nothing else just use a good wood porch paint to protect the plywood. Of course, it's your choice.... Just something to consider.

[Erniee]

if folks are concerned about moisture on your floors- what about the walls, cabinets- etc made of wood? I say this after being in the floorcovering business for 41 years. Have I installed any moisture barrier in a coach? No. Would I? Not needed. Its' your money and time- I can be bought.

[Flick]

if folks are concerned about moisture on your floors- what about the walls, cabinets- etc made of wood? I say this after being in the floorcovering business for 41 years. Have I installed any moisture barrier in a coach? No. Would I? Not needed. Its' your money and time- I can be bought.

You sold me.

[Flick]

           

and speaking of moisture...as you will see from the pics below..I have yet another issue. Tell me there is a place in Newell heaven for me guys!! This is in the bedroom directly over one of the basement airs. I have now noticed I also have discolored floor over another unit as well. so I think 30 years of AC blowing on the underside of wood must not be a good thing. It is only rotten in a small area, but I am pretty sure I could punch my hammer right through it. It would appear as though it runs under this cabinet as well so that will have to come out for the repair. Hmm wonder if I should just put in a washer and dryer there now once the floor is replaced.

OK guys teach me how to repair the floor and has anyone installed a washer and dryer before so I can decide if i want to tackle yet another project. At this pace I may be in a tent at the rally.

Oh and stripping the backing from linoleum from a wood floor could in fact be the worst task I have ever attempted. This I will sub out if there ever is a next time.

[encantotom]

hi todd,

yes there is a place for you in newell heaven....

welcome to the world of well built but older coaches. i even had to replace a wall in my 02 from the window leaking....so not something no one has done. i would guess most people would be surprised if they pulled up the carpeting and looked underneath it everywhere.

i also stripped the linoleum off the floor of my 90 and it was a long job.

i have piece floor patches in on my 90 and it was not hard but a bit of work.

i would really look for any place that there could be water getting in from outside. a window or other opening.

washer and dryer will likely not fit in any cabinets you have. if they do, then you have to get power, water, vent and drain to it. can be done but not a trivial task.

on my 90 i did two things there were about as bad as stripping the floor. all the corian had a laminate inlay on the edge. when we put in the granite floor darlene decided she wanted matching black inlays. it took me a long time to strip out all the old inlay. there is a lot of corian in it. bedroom, bathroom, end tables, table, kitchen etc. used an exact width chisle and then used adhesive remover. putting in the new inlay was the easy part.

the other monster task was replacing all the windows. the new ones required some hand trimming to get to fit.

that took me a long time. turned out good, but a ton of work. i can go on and on.

call if you want to talk

tom

tom

[Flick]

By coincidence perhaps today I called Newell again to see if I could get the drawings and such of our coach. My previous message to the guy someone mentioned earlier there went unanswered. Today the gal who answered the phone (Jessica) was very nice and helpful. She looked and could not find the records. So she called back for the VIN because she said it contained the coach number and she would find it that way. So I guess I have coach 18 according to her.

Maybe these drawings will help me know where's to cut. I assume I need to take enough out so that it is drilled into the same crossbeam as the section coming out correct?