Well Jimmy you were right. The Dremel Multimax is my new best friend. I cut out a section of the floor board that goes under the wall into the bathroom and under the sink vanity. As you can see from these photos I ended up taking out the vanity to see how far the bad wood went. It appears to me the leak that rotted the wood must have has something to do with the sink area because of the way it is directly below the pipes. Also most of the screws in the bottom of the cabinet I had to cut out because they were so rusted. Also check the pic before I pulled the vanity out. You can see the bottom of it is all black like the rotten wood of the floor. Although we only used the RV a couple of times we never noticed a leak. It was so dry that I wonder if someone fixed the leak some time ago but never addressed the floor.
Well I can't seem to load multiple photos from my phone because they must all have the same name and the website will only allow me to load the image name once. So the only pic I will post for now is looking into the bathroom where I have removed the vanity. If you look to the right outside you can see the edge of the appx 2'x2' section I took out of the floor. I will need to remove a good chunk of the floor under vanity and replace it as well. Any tips you have would be welcome. Never intended to have to remove this much stuff. I am tired of destructing and want to put things back together and get on with the flooring.
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Todd, We had a leak in that area and it was very difficult to even notice. Once noticed I used my Food Coloring trick and it became very evident. I rebuilt the bathroom Faucet and no more issues, just a "heads up". If you have an area that is hard to get to or is very small you can allow it to dry and then use a penetrating epoxy to treat the bad wood. I might consider using the epoxy under the cabinet anyway just to help seal the wood.
Not sure what I will find when I pull our carpeting but I have noticed an area of concern in our tank bay and will be addressing that next month.
Erniee,
If the sub-floor feels good would you simply go over the linoleum or remove it prior to installing the flooring. Or is there another reason for getting rid of the Linoleum?
Todd. Remember our conversation. The floor is not structural. Trim the flooring at the walls dig out the rot. If you can slide the new piece under do so and use adhesive, or the penetrating epoxy. The structure is the angle iron and the square tubing under the aluminum floor pan. The issue is connecting the spliced in piece. I used flat & angle pieces of metal nailing strips. Attached with countersunk screws & waterproof liquid nails. Along with the # 10 flathead self tapping metal screws. You end up with a solid floor. The coat with some sort of waterproof wood paint or sealer.
You'll be road ready before you know it.
If you need something give me a call.
If that vinyl is tight on the floor- you may be able to go over it. If floating floor- ok- the only caveat is if an adhered floor is to be installed, the adhesive may not stick to the vinyl.
Ernie- posting from Douglas, Wy- heading to Montana
thanks, I would bet that the polyurethane would stick well to the linoleum and it would be much safer than removing the linoleum, asbestos and all (PS please wet the "paper backing" on the older linoleum to keep the asbestos from becoming airborne).
I'll give a spot sampling before going through the entire floor.
As a side note; a small Ball Peen Hammer is a great tool for sounding. As Erniee recommends a probe (I would suggest a dulled Ice Pick or Awl) could also help identify soft spots.
Since we're talking about possible asbestos removal the proper way is like Steve said to wet the linoleum. Use a little bit of soap to create "amended water". It will make the water more absorbable by the paper backing. Then carefully bag the stuff. DO NOT use a vacuum since that will only spread the asbestos throughout the air. Unless you have a HEPA vacuum suitable for asbestos removal, not your household variety.
Yes I had various training in my career and even managed to stay awake in some of them
The linoleum is completely removed. I cut some of the rot out but ran out of time to complete it. Hope to get back to it later this week and get the new board in. I will have to do it in 2 sections because one piece is too big in that space and will not lay flat to slide under the wall.
I did wet the paper backing but it was still a dusty mess.
i like that term "Amended Water", you must have training, and here you are retired and traveling...how cool!
Todd,
I say that you stop taking things apart and start getting ready for your own Rally!
As a side note I have restored 2 wooden boats, the hardest part is managing or keeping the size of the project manageable. Seriously start getting ready for the Rally now, just use throw rugs if needed everyone would understand since we have all been there.
Good Luck Todd