We visited with David Flanagan at FOT regarding the replacement of flooring. He will not put a hard surface floor in the bedroom of our 1997 U295. My understanding is that the carpeted surface is required in order to maintain the proper sound and temperature insulation.
Based on our conversation with him, we would probably choose a high quality vinyl tile for most of the flooring. We would follow his recommendation regarding the insulation and flooring in the bedroom.
I put a DIY laminate in our SOB coach. It was a "click together" floating floor with the look of travertine tile. It looked good. I don't know how it would hold up. We sold the coach right after I installed it. I will probably hire a professional like Ernie or David to replace flooring in the FT. Their knowledge of what works in a coach is valuable.
We put a "luxury vinyl" tile in our '93. It can be installed in a grouted or non-grouted configuration. We chose and purchased the material, but had David Flanagan and his crew do the removal of the old floor and make sure the underlayment was done correctly. (We know our limitations!) We kept our coach plugged in (but barely heated) in the Pennsylvania winters, rode out in the desert in Big Bend and bounced the heck out of that torsilastic suspension ... no cracking of the grout whatsoever in 3 years. It was an absolute dream to keep clean. I maintained carpet in the bedroom for my tootsies, but I can't imagine anyone wanting carpet in a bathroom or kitchen ... think most women will agree. This coach came with a 12" porcelain tile that the previous owner had professionally installed. There are no cracks in either tile or grout after 10 years. Also very easy to maintain, but a lot colder on the feet than the vinyl ... and if you drop a glass, it ALWAYS breaks. With vinyl, sometimes you get lucky. Also ... on a coach with no slides, a diagonal installation can really open up the area, visually. These are my "FWIW" observations. Happy updating!!
well on the subject of ceramic tile I did the floor on our old 93 GV and now the kitchen ,dining room, bathroom of this one and never have had a crack in tile or grout. The toughest part was ripping out the hardwood section in kitchen as it was well stuck. I 100% glued a piece of 3/8th plywood in the area to be tiled (white glue) then stapled it down with air pinner, and then laid out my pattern and for the tile a mixture of thinset with Acrylic additive (no water). The frame is solid so we have no issues with grout etc. This (sub floor ply') also kept the tile surface pretty level with the carpet. I am going to do the living area but maybe with wood-not sure yet.Luckily I have done tens of 1000's of sq ft of flooring in my remodelling life, love doing it.
John H
Neither of us like the carpeting in the salon and galley areas (and especially not in the bathroom). The only place *I* want carpeting is the bedroom. We've been looking at wood samples from Home Depot and so far I am leaning towards cork. I'm a little concerned about water damage in the galley area but like the sound and vibration absorption of cork and the relatively softer feel. And more secure footing for moving around under way.
Has anyone installed a cork floor in their coach? Any opinions?'
Craig
I was told that wood in the bedroom with make the engine noise much louder. The padding under the carpet there i 100 dollars a foot and it is heat insulating and noise as well and is different then the regular padding you use. I did not put wood in mine for that reason. Also, i have seen a few coaches who have put the industrial tiles under the slide and they have had grooves in the tile after a while. They use throw rugs to cover them in one case.
I have a tile kitchen and bathroom, but the box that the toilet sits on is carpet. Gee, that was intelligent. What are the options here?
Ernie installed Mannington Adura Vinyl Tile in our coach from front to back. We hear a bit more noise. When under way, all noise from the engine, fuel pumps, generator, etc., disappear behind the noise generated by the wind going around all the stuff on the front of the coach (mirrors, awnings, etc.).
Even with OEM carpet and padding in the bedroom, the room was unusable while the engine was running. We've not noticed a significant difference with the tile in the bedroom. We have a couple of small rugs for our bare feet to land on next to the bed.
We have made several trips since the new floor was installed. We are pleased with the result. Cleaning up dog drool, dog hair, debris from shoes, spills, etc., is much easier than when we had carpet. We also prefer the new appearance.
Pictures of our floor are on Ernie's yahoo site.
Interesting. We use the bedroom all the time. Linda will sleep in the morning as I start down the road early in the morning.
We have ceramic tile in the kitchen & bath too. When we bought the coach the toilet box was carpet. We were at FOT and Dave F gave me a dozen vinyl tile that closely matched the ceramic. I tore out the carpet and installed the vinyl in the parking lot. Glued it down with silicone adhesive and caulked the seams with sanded caulking. Looks great, much more sanitary and only took a couple hours time.
Hardest part was removing the 900 carpet staples from the plywood.
Dean
I have also tried from my wife's lap top. It has to do with my user name. Still waiting for an answer from Yahoo.
Here are a few pictures of what I did...
Don
Don,
You are an absolute menace! With all the wonderful mods you are capable of carrying out it keeps giving my wife ideas.
Keith
Don that is one superb looking job. I cant show the DW, again.
Larry
Then my work here is done Keith ;D just payback that my project list has gotten longer because of this forum!
Don
Ah shucks Larry... Thanks. By the way, any update on that prospective coach?
Don
Don sent you a PM
Larry
With as many staples holding the padding down in our bedroom I wouldn't think there would be any sound or temperature insulation at all! :P