Damp protection

E

efinjohn

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Bristol
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37,260
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c class
Exp
2000
Can anybody tell me why the manufactures don't build the lower floor with a protective covering ie plastic or aluminium to save the timber from all the elements thrown at it? surely it cant cost a great deal if bought in bulk.. I am looking at covering my bessacarr 789 lower floor in aluminium as it is now 9 years old and showing some signs of water damage! can anybody tell me why I cant do this.. Regards Kevin
 
It hasn't got into the timber yet but I can see it may be a future problem, I will hand sand the boards to clean the timber then seal before fitting the ali. I had a small problem with my previous van it cost me nearly 3k to repair don't want that again!! I have mudflaps fitted Thanks for your reply paul. Kevin
 
There is very little future in building perfect, dry, waterproof motorhomes. Once everybody who can afford one has one the market is dead. As with everything these days it's built to fail so that you need to replace it with a newer model.

D.
 
Wood is a natural product. It needs to breathe. It will both absorb moisture, but also release it. The moisture content of wood, and indeed many other materials changes from summer through winter as temperature and humidity alter. That is irrespective of actual content with water, as opposed to airbourne moisture vapour.

We need to protect from water ingress. We must take care that if something is so totally sealed the natural humidity temperature changes can't lead to harmful intersitial (internal) condensation that would cause problems.

So be careful. If sealing up, make sure it really is dry before you do so.

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efinjohn said:
Can anybody tell me why the manufactures don't build the lower floor with a protective covering ie plastic or aluminium
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Both my last two vans have GRP underfloors. I think most German vans use GRP floors now.
 
The simple answer is "there are manufacturers that don't use any wood" but you have to pay for it, no wood in our van but it was £100k 13 years ago.

Martin
 
efinjohn said:
Can anybody tell me why the manufactures don't build the lower floor with a protective covering ie plastic
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do an internet search on soggy swifts to see the reason why, swift is the name that is usually associated with this but many others tried the sealed wood floor idea (even german manufacturers)
 
efinjohn said:
Can anybody tell me why the manufactures don't build the lower floor with a protective covering ie plastic or aluminium to save the timber from all the elements thrown at it? surely it cant cost a great deal if bought in bulk.. I am looking at covering my bessacarr 789 lower floor in aluminium as it is now 9 years old and showing some signs of water damage! can anybody tell me why I cant do this.. Regards Kevin
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Swift tried with a vinyl film on the underside of ply for the floor from around mid 2000 It was a total failure the ply rotted when moisture got between the ply and film as side skirts where not sealed properly, they had to repair a lot of Swift and Bessacar floors. I had a 2006 Bessacar that had a rotten floor which was repaired at factory
 
My garage floor is plywood. Its ok at the moment. I had been thinking of a breathable " paint" to prolong its life.
Any suggestions?

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SandraL said:
My garage floor is plywood. Its ok at the moment. I had been thinking of a breathable " paint" to prolong its life.
Any suggestions?
Click to expand...

A decent water proofing agent would be good. Available from any boat chandler or on ebay
 
Could never understand why phenolic ply isn't used for floors.
It's used extensively in the trailer industry and lasts, fully exposed to all weather's, for donkeys years with no further protection.
 
pappajohn said:
Could never understand why phenolic ply isn't used for floors.
It's used extensively in the trailer industry and lasts, fully exposed to all weather's, for donkeys years with no further protection.
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Simple answer there, it's probably a bit more expensive.
 
CazPaul said:
Simple answer there, it's probably a bit more expensive.
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Yes it's is, a few pounds a sheet.
I'm sure they could shave the cost elsewhere... Maybe just one less LED light and wiring.
I'm sure buyers would rather a floor that will probably outlast the rest of the wood than one more pretty light.
Trailer manufacturers could use standard ply in box trailer floors but they don't skimp on quality materials and still sell their trailers.
 
On helga( my Hymer) I have a piece of wood behind rear wheels, under locker that is splitting and needs replacing, I was told about this problem a couple of years ago from Jock/ Rita,, It’s trying to find somewhere to get her high enough off the ground to sort it! Lol

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pappajohn said:
Yes it's is, a few pounds a sheet.
I'm sure they could shave the cost elsewhere... Maybe just one less LED light and wiring.
I'm sure buyers would rather a floor that will probably outlast the rest of the wood than one more pretty light.
Trailer manufacturers could use standard ply in box trailer floors but they don't skimp on quality materials and still sell their trailers.
Click to expand...


That's the problem though, you could go around an entire van and say"It would only cost a few more quid to get quality" door stays, waste/fresh release valves, cupboards, fixings, floors, insulation etc
There are a lot of poorly built crap vans out there that they could have spent a few bob extra when building.
I see it all the time.
 
Not much use to the manufacturers if their product lasts forever, zero repeat sales...
 
CazPaul said:
That's the problem though, you could go around an entire van and say"It would only cost a few more quid to get quality" door stays, waste/fresh release valves, cupboards, fixings, floors, insulation etc
There are a lot of poorly built crap vans out there that they could have spent a few bob extra when building.
I see it all the time.
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Agreed, but the floor is the only wood part exposed to the elements from day one... Water, snow, mud, dirt. All other wood is internal and protected unless a leak occurs. The floor is impossible to replace as EVERYTHING is built on it. Frame timbers, furniture etc is relatively easy to replace so any old tat can be used... How many of you have looked behind the nice facia of American RV furniture which you wouldn't normally see..... Pallets, recycled floorboards, anything to hand on the more budget motorhomes.... But the floors are quality.
 
Our 21 year old Swift had a black painted wood floor, no damp at all, I can only assume it was built using high quality ply and some sort of breathable paint.
Our new Burstner has a GRP floor and roof.

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As others have said some manufacturers do build a floor without wood. Our Hymer has a 30mmm thick insulation sandwich construction floor with GRP layers top and bottom.

My guess is it costs a bit more than chucking down a sheet of cheap ply, but it will probably last a lot longer.
 
pappajohn said:
Agreed, but the floor is the only wood part exposed to the elements from day one... Water, snow, mud, dirt. All other wood is internal and protected unless a leak occurs. The floor is impossible to replace as EVERYTHING is built on it. Frame timbers, furniture etc is relatively easy to replace so any old tat can be used... How many of you have looked behind the nice facia of American RV furniture which you wouldn't normally see..... Pallets, recycled floorboards, anything to hand on the more budget motorhomes.... But the floors are quality.
Click to expand...


Yes agree, the Achilles heel of the older Hymers, great construction and they then went and used a timber floor. I have lost count how
 

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