Floor replacement cost

[2007 Flagstaff]

I am looking at a 2007 831RLSS Flagstaff to purchase. It has some soft spots in the floor. What would a good estimate be to replace or repair the floor? If it is possibly.

[SeaDog]

If it has soft spots I would advise to pass it by unless they are willing to let it go for about 1/4 the low book price. Floor removal and replacement unless you do it your self can be very expensive.

[mduff]

Also you should be concerned with how the floor got soft, often indicates water damage, which may also be in the walls. My brother did a section in his, leaked around the hot water heater. Had to strip out a substantial amount of the interior and luckily did not extend under the exterior walls.


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[2007 Flagstaff]

I agree, but they have agreed to repair the floor prior to my purchase. Just curious what it might cost to repair the floor.

[Iwannacamp]

Originally Posted by 2007 Flagstaff

I agree, but they have agreed to repair the floor prior to my purchase. Just curious what it might cost to repair the floor.

I would hope for a good deal and find the cause to stop the next soft spots. Like posted above opt for a good deal. Most of the used trailers I looked at were just plain junk. It is amazing how people tear stuff up.

BTW I would see if they let me check in with them during the repair to ensure good work. Chances are if they didn't advertise soft floor to start then there may be a trust issue.

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[2007 Flagstaff]

Thanks guys,

I am waiting to hear back from the guy who owns the Flagstaff as to when the floor will be repaired. I will then make the trip to check to see how it was repaired. The floor is a composite floor that may have just got soft from foot traffic in the sponge areas. Be it foot traffic or water I think it will be expense to fix.

Our first travel trailer, just want to be careful.

[5picker]

Best of luck on your endeavor.
That is a huge repair to contend with for your first purchase.

[Wobbles]

Originally Posted by 2007 Flagstaff

Thanks guys,

I am waiting to hear back from the guy who owns the Flagstaff as to when the floor will be repaired. I will then make the trip to check to see how it was repaired. The floor is a composite floor that may have just got soft from foot traffic in the sponge areas. Be it foot traffic or water I think it will be expense to fix.

Our first travel trailer, just want to be careful.

I would want to check that the soft spots are localized. Water damage can go everywhere. If you find mold, run.

I hope the seller is a close buddy otherwise he could just fix the soft spots and not tell that your health may be at risk.

[SuicideSaints]

I would walk away from this immediately.

If you are getting this for pennies on the dollar then I would entertain negotiations. Even then I am talking about like 25 percent or less of low value and that is with the floor "repaired".

I would be less concerned about the repair and more concerned with how it was damaged as well as (more importantly) damage that is yet to be discovered.

Is this at a dealer? or being solid privately? Who is doing the repair? a dealer or an individual seller?


Just my opinion here.....

[Flybob]

Search for videos of RV assemble lines. The floor is one of the first things to be attached to the frame. The remainder of the RV is built on top of the floor. So properly repairing any major floor damage is not a simple thing.

[ShermanD]

Originally Posted by 2007 Flagstaff

I agree, but they have agreed to repair the floor prior to my purchase. Just curious what it might cost to repair the floor.

soft floor means it has been wet for a while, which could lead to black mold. You sure you really want to take that chance on your families health.

[2007 Flagstaff]

Thanks for all the input about the soft floor. It really help me make my decision to keep looking for a travel trailer. We may look at buying a new trailer but maybe a little smaller to start.

[bikendan]

Many times, depending on how much damage there is, floor repairs can require the box being removed from the chassis.
This is a factory repair.

[ShermanD]

if you are going to borrow to buy, You may find that you can new for about the same monthly payment as used. Check out your local Credit Union. most have great rates if you stay under borrowing 50K and will usually go 10-12 years on that size loan.

Repairing water damage can be done.

I did it on my 1998 Wildwood 5er.

I built new trusses for the front bedroom section, replaced some wall studs.also had to rebuild the floor by the entrance door. If you are mechanically inclined you can do it yourself, but it is time consuming. The trusses required removing both the roof and ceiling, I worked the wall studs in the bedroom by removing interior walls. The floor area was repaired by removing exterior aluminum siding so I could access the bottom wall plate so I could remove the screws holding the walls to the decking. Then it is a matter of removing the bad section of the flooring and replacing it.

The biggest obstacle was figuring out floor joist layout. It isn't your typical 16" OC, It could vary depending on the mood of the installer. about the only thing for sure about the spacing was that there was a board supporting the plywood flooring joints.

If your a do it your self person and have the time, energy, and interest. figure out the NADA trade-in price on the trailer with the problems and offer them a dime on the dollar. They will be lucky to get that much from a salvage company.

[2007 Flagstaff]

The floor on the Forest River Classic Super Lite has a bonded composite floor of luan, styrofoam, and luan. In heavy traffic areas the styrofoam begins to break down and creates soft spots. I have been told you can install a 1/4 plywood sheet over the exiting floor without interfacing with the slide out to make the floor solid.

I believe I could do the repair, but it is extremely labor intensive, and once you get into it you never know what you may find. So I think I will opt for a new or newer travel trailer.

[DSMURPHY]

Originally Posted by 2007 Flagstaff

The floor on the Forest River Classic Super Lite has a bonded composite floor of luan, styrofoam, and luan. In heavy traffic areas the styrofoam begins to break down and creates soft spots. I have been told you can install a 1/4 plywood sheet over the exiting floor without interfacing with the slide out to make the floor solid.

I believe I could do the repair, but it is extremely labor intensive, and once you get into it you never know what you may find. So I think I will opt for a new or newer travel trailer.

IMO, this could be your best choice. I bought a used TT a couple of years ago for my kids to use, knowing it had water damage to the floor. Yes, I was able to get a good price from the dealer after pointing out the damage.
I was able to repair the floor, but was surprised how much worse the damage was than my worse case estimate.
Good luck.

[pappcam]

Pretty sure that most newer Flagstaffs have the luan/styrofoam bonded floor so the only repair is to put a wood floor over top of it. My 2012 27 BESS has a few soft spots. It isn't water damage. It's compression of the styrofoam.

[W5CI]

If your floor is bad you need to just suck it up and get rid of it, take your loss and move on.

[pappcam]

Originally Posted by W5CI

If your floor is bad you need to just suck it up and get rid of it, take your loss and move on.

Or just live with a few soft spots that in no way affect the structural integrity of the trailer. It's not water damage so there's no issues with mold or rot and there's no danger of falling through the floor or anything silly like that. It's just bad design. We've camped in our trailer over 300 nights so we've gotten good use of it and 2 or 3 soft spots won't be making me get rid of it at this point.

The floor construction method will however be something that I'll be looking at when we get our next trailer.