I am stuck......................

[Robin G]

I need someone to kick me in the rear and get this figured out, so please suggest what I should do..............

I removed the carpet from the Casita (I should have waited till I knew what I wanted to replace it with, but oh no, because of my pure hatred of carpet I just went ahead and got it out of there).............

So now I have bare fiberglass floor, hmmmm what to do? Of course I could install linoleum, pergo type product, wood, bamboo, cork but I have to tell you a secret, I don't want any of those unless they can be different that the typical flooring. I have thought about having an artist paint wood flooring. But worry about applying poly over the whole finished project after it's installed. I have thought about having an artist paint the fiberglass, but again sealing it is a concern.

So please if you know of something unusual, artsy fartsy type of flooring (sorry NO carpet on the floor for me) please suggest. You know camping season is coming up, I got to get this figured out. I am stuck, sometimes I let my creative mind over rule my sensible mind, this unfortunately is one of those times. Help me please with some cute, cool looking flooring options. Thanks!

[Bobbie Mayer]

Painted floor cloth.

Get those interlocking floor tiles (the soft rubber ones) in some bright colors and then make your own mosaic with them (don't know how you'd seal that, though.)

I don't see a problem with sealing over an artist painting on plywood or fiberglass. You'd do that if you painted a floor inside, why not in the trailer?

Or how about a wood-inlay floor? You know how they do artistic wood inlay? (There is a name for it that I forget- Intarsia? something like that. ) You'd still have to seal it.

Whatever you do you need to seal unless it is something you can pull out and wash and in that case whatever is under it needs to be sealed.

[floyd]

They do have "pergo" type products which resemble stone or ceramic tile, they also have plastic locking squares which allow you to securely lock in real tile.

You could get dark and light "pergo" and install an inlay looking pattern.
I once saw a floor installed over plywood which consisted of a quiltlike pattern of cloth laid in polyurethane then coated over with polyurethane afterward. It looked like a hard shiny quilt, it really was pretty.

You could install vinyl tile squares cut to resemble a mosaic or an aztec type pattern.

[Mike Bromley]

Parquet would be divine.

[Gina D.]

Decoupage on a finish quality plywood? Might be a bit heavy, but it's different for sure. Might be a pain to install as well. You would have to plan a good trim.

[Robin G]

Dang you guys are fast!

So I could have the fiberglass painted and sealed? It wouldn't hurt anything? (I am so liking this, as I really like the texture of the fiberglass floor.) Now if I could come up with something to paint it. hmmmmmmmmm

My issue with wood floor is, everyones got it! (I am weird I know!) I like different unusual, I like finishes that are not like everyone else (this has gotten me in trouble in the past with wood floor) LOL.......... But when they were finished I had to coolest wood floors that you didn't see in every house. I have thought about just having oak flooring painted either by and artist or I was thinking of taking it to a car painter and having him paint it some color then having it installed. But was worried about sealing it inside such a little space.

I have thought about the decoupage as I have done this project more than once. Actually have decoupage floor in our bedroom now. I love it! But again was worried about sealing it. I wasn't sure I could decoupage directly to the fiberglass, but if you all think that I won't have a mess on my hands with the fiberglass and poly, I think I will go that route.

Thanks, you are all so quick to kick my rear into gear! LOL..........

[Jenny W.]

I was thinking of eventually replacing my floor with rubber flooring. Nora Enviroplan is pretty cool. Super durable and sustainable. Comes in sheet or tiles and many colors.



Also, many people say linoleum, but it's really sheet vinyl. True linoleum is made of cork and linseed oil. Forbo's Marmoleum also comes in tile and sheet and great colors.




If interested their websites have a section for residential dealer locators. I'm an interior designer for a commercial architecture firm and we love both products. I believe it runs about $4/sq. ft and you would only need one box.

I know you said you hate carpet, but what about commercial carpet tiles? Interface Flor has a ton of options.

[Robin G]

I know you said you hate carpet, but what about commercial carpet tiles? Interface Flor has a ton of options.

When I said "hate" I really mean despise it! I truly would not have carpet on a floor in my home. ( Of course I can't stand it on my floors but I buy a damm travel trailer with it on the walls.) At least it's not on the floors! But Thanks for the suggestion. Carpet is just not for me.


I love the rubber floor option, that is really cute. I am gonna search for their websites. Thanks again.......

[SherryNPaul]

I love painted, or stenciled, floors, in big spaces. The issue in a little trailer is the same feet keep tracking stuff over 2x6 feet over, and over... destroying anything even remotely fragile.... or at the least, leaving tough to buff out scratches and gouges. That would leave paint out of the formula for me.

Have you looked at some of the (way cool) marmoleum tiles out there. Some very fun, bright colors, environmentally friendly and much easier care. Could do a mondrian pattern of a range of colors...

The fun thing about our little trailers is the expense of changing out the flooring is so small, if we count our labor as free, as long as the flooring is easily "divorced" when we change our minds.

I like 2 x 6 runners . Cushy underfoot, and when dirty, I shake them out, beat them on the clothesline with a broom, and eventually, wash 'em at the laundromat.. . I especially like that they are not "CARPET". I , too, dislike carpet, at home and in the trailer.

I absolutely loved the IKEA mat idea someone posted a few days ago. Cool, fun, cleanable, removeable... True outside of the (big) box thinking.

Sherry

[Dave Bese]

You could go to a fabric store; find a pattern that turns yer screws and use epoxy to laminate it

[Rick n]

I need someone to kick me in the rear and get this figured out, so please suggest what I should do..............

I removed the carpet from the Casita (I should have waited till I knew what I wanted to replace it with, but oh no, because of my pure hatred of carpet I just went ahead and got it out of there).............

So now I have bare fiberglass floor, hmmmm what to do? Of course I could install linoleum, pergo type product, wood, bamboo, cork but I have to tell you a secret, I don't want any of those unless they can be different that the typical flooring. I have thought about having an artist paint wood flooring. But worry about applying poly over the whole finished project after it's installed. I have thought about having an artist paint the fiberglass, but again sealing it is a concern.

So please if you know of something unusual, artsy fartsy type of flooring (sorry NO carpet on the floor for me) please suggest. You know camping season is coming up, I got to get this figured out. I am stuck, sometimes I let my creative mind over rule my sensible mind, this unfortunately is one of those times. Help me please with some cute, cool looking flooring options. Thanks!

Well if you want something really different you could go with Aluminum Foam with a clear epoxy coating over top of it.

Check these folks out CYMAT, then check out their Alusions brand

Their website. http://www.alusion.com/ then click on Architectural

They're a fairly new company but their products are very cool Audi uses their product in their showrooms around the world and they were used for wall cladding at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.



GL.

[Robin G]

You could go to a fabric store; find a pattern that turns yer screws and use epoxy to laminate it

Would the epoxy stick to the fiberglass? I am thinking it would but has someone did it? Not the epoxy on the floor, but on fiberglass? You know, you just gave me another idea! Keep them coming!

Sherry, What mats? I was thinking of using the gel pro mats/runner over whatever I end up doing but I didn't read anything about the Ikea mat. Are they cool mats?

[Robin G]

Rick, really different product! Thanks for the link. It's very interesting I will investigate further.

[Rick n]

Rick, really different product! Thanks for the link. It's very interesting I will investigate further.

I sort of gathered by your original post you were looking for something out of the box(pun intended).

The cool thing about this product is it is not affected by cold, heat, water and is as light weight as you can get and is very strong.

[Dave Bese]

Fibreg;ass is simply a fiber (spun glass) used to reinforce epoxy resin. Of course epoxy will adhere!

[Robin G]

I thought it would but wanted a second opinion......... Thanks Dave!

[David A. L.]

If you are still considering wood graining the floor here is a close up photo of a floor I just painted. The technique isn't hard and allows one to create very complex patterns/miters should one wish. The paint I used was Glidden Porch and Deck polyurethane and is over coated with two coats of clear polyurethane. This floor measured 16 by 28 ft with a "island" in the center where there will be a rug.
Hope this helps,
David

[Roger C H]

Maybe you could get an artist ala Julian Beever or Kurt Wenner to give you a really interesting floor!

http://www.impactlab.com/2006/03/09/amazin...alk-art-photos/

[Robin G]

David, BBBBBBBeautiful! I actually have a bit of experience in that type as well. My Dh owned a Hardwood Floor Co, and I was forever having to paint/repair floors that the owners didn't want to go to the expense of replacing a floor that had been damaged (everything from a dishwasher leak, to a beautiful home in Aspen) That the caretaker put out a Decon type product and the varmints ate it then proceeded to get into the house and die, leaving body fluid all over 5 thousand square feet of exotic hard wood. , so instead of replacing the exotic wood, they called my Dh to repair. But the body fluid had soaked into the wood so after I don't know how many bleachings they decided the to have me paint and replicate the wood grain then poly over. I worked, and I saved the owner/caretaking company a lot of money. Usually it was very small damaged area so it was a matter of a small area versus a whole floor. Not that a Casita floor is big, I just think if I was gonna paint to look like wood I would just have wood installed. But your work is beautiful! Do you do it professionally?



Roger, when I thought of an artist painting the floor that is one of the first ideas I had, for a look. I think that art work is amazing! But I think art work like that might confuse Dh so I scaled my ideas down to something calm or cute.......... With Alzheimer's Dh has enough delusions I don't need to make him think we have baby seals in the Casita with us!

[SherryNPaul]

Hi, Robin,
The post I was referring to was this one:
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/board/index.ph...+new+ikea+floor

Another thought, since you are so artistic, for a more changeable floor might be buying woven mat runners with the canvas edge (I have them in my kitchen), and painting the mats... Though thin, these mats are great. I can clean the spills off them by taking them outside and hitting them with a hose or pressure washer on low, and letting them dry on the patio. Normal maintenance is just sweeping or vacuuming them (until I spill something on them!). I bought them at Ross or Marshall's very inexpensively. If the canvas edge is narrow, they stay flat, and the ones I bought have little rubber bumps on the back to keep them from sliding around. They're at least a little warmer underfoot than bare tile on cold nights when I walk around barefoot. (I have a small one by the garage door with a three inch canvas border that curls up badly. I think the canvas has shrunk more than the straw mat when washed with the hose.) They have a much cleaner look than carpet runners, and not as much of a tripping hazard.

Sherry