Flooring

[Al & Donna]

Hi! We have a 13 ft Uhaul, and want to put in a vinyl floor. We are having trouble figuring out what to put down to even out the floor. There is a metal band that runs down the middle of the floor, so it has a bit of a hump there. We purchased some type of floor leveler, but it's like sand (kind of like a thin concrete) , and I don't think it will work. Does anyone have any suggestions, and what did you use? We wanted to put down a luan first, but still need the floor to be level underneath. Thanks!!

[Brian B-P]

I've used floor leveling compound in my house, which I assume is the same material mentioned, and I agree that it seems unsuitable for use in a flexing and vibrating environment; I assume that it would crumble with time. Perhaps an autobody filler material (e.g. some variation of Bondo), would work?

[Herb P]

bondo is probably not the right tool either, not to mention the amount of weight it would add.... Maybe the weight is insignificant ....

I also agonized over what to do with the floor in my 17. After trying to peel up all the lino and only getting the top 2 layers, I quickly gave up. The old lino is probably still made with asbestos and I didn't want to try grinding it off the floor... So I'm going with laminate flooring and the levelling sheets that they sell for that... It's going to add a lot of weight but seems like about the only thing I can reasonably do other than maybe carpet which just seems like a bad idea.

[Jerry Gw]

Do a search for "System 3 Quick Fair" - it is a boat fairing compound designed to be used on boat hulls. Not really cheep, but it will be light weight and strong. Another idea is use epoxy thickened with Microballons - makes kinda the same shmooz as the Quickfair, but at a lot lower cost.

Check out www.bateau.com - they sell all that stuff. If you find yourself on their message board, I am Jerry-rigged there, building a canoe.

Jerry

[Al & Donna]

Thanks Jerry ,
I called our local Highway Marine and will go there tonight to speak to someone. They do not carry the System 3 Quick Fair that you suggested, they carry West System, which is apparently comparable. Thanks so much, hopefully this is what will get my new vinyl in, and level!!

[Brian B-P]

I was thinking of a lightweight filler, extended with microballons, but didn't know the specific product. The fiberglass-specific filler compounds Jerry suggested sound like a better idea than anything for general autobody use - good information!

[MyronL]

Is the metal band is the prime stumbling block? How thick is it? I have seen very thin plywood sheets, maybe 1/16th thick, and am wondering if they would work if set down on both sides of the metal band, eliminating the hump.

Plywood that thin is probably hard to find, but is often used as a cover sheet to protect other surfaces during shipment and you might find enough of it free, at a lumber yard.

[John & Sandy M]

Another option might be to lay "economical" vinyl on the floor and cut out over the area of the steel band. This gives a light weight and flexible base. The "good" stuff simply goes over the econo vinyl. I had to do something similar when laying a vinyl floor in a double-wide mfg. home where the M bath was on one side of the home sections and the dressing room on the other. There was a slight vertical misalignment between the two sections.

[Carol A.]

if you have access to a marine lumber yard you might find "okoume" plywood... it comes as thin as 3mm, I think...

expensive though...

[Bobbie Mayer]

I like the econ. flooring idea- it would be easier to remove if you ever had to. But let us know how the marine stuff works out.

Bobbie

[Al & Donna]

Thanks for all your suggestions! In the end we took the "scrap" pieces and glued them down on either side of the metal band, and then glued down the "good" vinyl over it. It still has a small hump that won't go away no matter what, but it looks so much smoother. Al rolled it out with a rolling pin, and it looks AMAZING!! He did such a great job!! Thanks again for your help!! We are going to "seal" the edges with vinyl trim that you would use for your bathtub/floor area.