Soft spot in flooring

hood4 · 04-14-2021, 11:34 AM

Hi all!

Just discovered what I think is a soft-ish spot in the flooring of our 2016 Apex Nano 193bhs. This spot is about a 9” in to the cabin of the trailer. It’s not necessarily super soft, but it feels softer than the rest of the floor.

I’m not sure I need to do anything.... more-less just looking for reassurance that it’s not a major major issue.

Has anyone else experienced a soft[er] spot in flooring ???

ben31 · 04-14-2021, 11:47 AM

I know of many people with RVs, whose floors, over time, get soft in high traffic areas. We've seen at lest 10 in the campground we were full-timing in, get their floors rebuilt. It seems to be a problem, like many in RVs, which stems from trying to get as much in with the least amount of weight. Therefore, very little underlayment for the floor. Ours has a few areas, mainly around the kitchen island, where we constantly walk. It is not from water damage, or anything like that. It is from repeatedly walking in the same spots.

We had our floor checked by the people replacing the floors in the campsite next to us. He said it happens quite often and (if not caused by water damage) it isn't really dangerous, as you aren't going to fall through or anything, it is just unsettling. We decided to not get our floors replaced, upon hearing his reaffirmation of what we thought.

Get underneath and check to make sure you don't haver water damage. If not, I personally have decided not to worry about it.

hood4 · 04-14-2021, 01:30 PM

Thanks for the reply, that’s kinda/sorta what I was hoping to read... worn out.

I highly doubt water damage, but not fully ruling it out. It seems very unlikely that there could be damage, that small, in the area by the entrance.

I tried to check underneath but there is some sort of insulated material covering the bottom. Is there a less obtrusive way to check without cutting that stuff apart underneath???

Thomas ho · 04-14-2021, 01:33 PM

check your fridge. drain tube is out side of vent panel

Reverse_snowbird · 04-14-2021, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hood4

This spot is about a 9” in to the cabin of the trailer. It’s not necessarily super soft, but it feels softer than the rest of the floor.

You may not need to do anything, but you need to check the rig for signs of a leak. Have you checked the roof seams, checked around the slideout for gaps, inspected the windows, doors, checked the plumbing for obvious leaks? Have you checked around the wheel wells for any gaps? (We had a gap in the top part of a wheel well and water got in when we were driving.)
If you have water intrusion, it's going to find the lowest spot in the trailer.

If you've checked everything, then I'd just keep an eye on it. If it gets worse, you could try injecting a wood stabilizer in there, but that's a questionable treatment.

Gmoney67 · 04-14-2021, 08:35 PM

I have different unit than you but same type floor.i had a soft spot could not find a leak well when i pulled up the vinyl i did indeed have leak from my slide out and it cuase the delamination on bottom side delaminated from styrofoam and created the soft spot.i had checked it from to see if could reinforcie floor from underneath i did see any signs of leak because of the underlayment they use.i fixed the leak and repaired the floor now its solid.everyone would say that if you have soft spot you have a leak and i would say bs but thats what caused mine.i spent two days last week sealing up everything on the out side to prevent anymore problems.

hood4 · 04-15-2021, 07:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thomas ho

check your fridge. drain tube is out side of vent panel

Checked that, it appears to be draining fine!!! Thanks for the heads up!

hood4 · 04-15-2021, 07:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gmoney67

I have different unit than you but same type floor.i had a soft spot could not find a leak well when i pulled up the vinyl i did indeed have leak from my slide out and it cuase the delamination on bottom side delaminated from styrofoam and created the soft spot.i had checked it from to see if could reinforcie floor from underneath i did see any signs of leak because of the underlayment they use.i fixed the leak and repaired the floor now its solid.everyone would say that if you have soft spot you have a leak and i would say bs but thats what caused mine.i spent two days last week sealing up everything on the out side to prevent anymore problems.

Good info here, thanks! I’m taking it out this weekend. I’ll give it a nice comb-over when it’s opened up.

How did you find the leak by the slide out??? I hesitant to pull up the flooring right now. But may eventually have to

Gmoney67 · 04-15-2021, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hood4

Good info here, thanks! I’m taking it out this weekend. I’ll give it a nice comb-over when it’s opened up.

How did you find the leak by the slide out??? I hesitant to pull up the flooring right now. But may eventually have to

When pulled vinyl up to start the repair to the floor. i had no signs of a leak as water was between the wood and vinyl.only reason i found it i didn't like the soft spot as im a bigger guy stepping in that area thought i was going go thru floor.

MCTroy · 04-16-2021, 06:57 AM

Following this post because we have a small soft spot in our hall by the kitchen. It also happens to be where the dining room slide comes in. No leaks from roof - we just had that replaced and inspected for leaks. Hoping the soft spot is from the slide...

hood4 · 04-19-2021, 05:52 PM

update on this...

took the TT out and was able to open it up and inspect further. Turns out there absolutely IS a leak. It appears that water is coming in just below the diamond plating on the side w/ the door. There is a very small spot where it has to be leaking.

I found it because the storage under the bed is kinda soft too... i kept following it until i was able to peel back some of the boards in the storage. i'll go outside and get a pic in a bit.

Extremely bummed to find it, but can now start mapping out a plan of attack to 1) stop the leak and 2) repair the floor.

Anyone have any experience with this? Pretty overwhelmed at the moment...Hoping we caught it <fairly> early and don't uncover a tremendous amount of rotted flooring.

hood4 · 04-19-2021, 06:27 PM

here it is. Unreal.

Life Without Whine · 04-19-2021, 06:31 PM

bummer .... I was just going to add that I was thinking of picking up a piece of plywood and covering it with a thick carpet to cover my soft spot next to the bed - guess I'll go take a better look too ....

hood4 · 04-26-2021, 10:08 AM

update #2

I removed the queen bed, pulled up the vinyl and discovered an absolute bunch of rotted wood. From the entry all the way to the front of the trailer... fahhhk

I cut out the rot. Removed insulation. Patched the hole, resealed the exterior and dried out the cabin completely. It absolutely dumped rain recently and everything is completely dry! :fist pump:

Bought a 5/8” sheet of marine plywood and have about half of the flooring laid back down. Hoping to wrap this project up and turn the page. It’s a good learning experience, and an even bigger pain in the ass.

Not sure why my pic rotates when I upload them... but here’s a lil peak at what I was working with

TL/DR: my camper had a bunch of rot, I’m halfway thru fixing it

palomini-er · 05-15-2021, 07:20 PM

If it is soft, water has something to do with it. This is exactly why today I traded in my 2014 Palomino 142 on a 2021 Jayco Slx 154bh. Much better construction techniques. Not perfect, just much better. Good bye Forest River!

SLBAHLE · 05-23-2021, 11:27 PM

Does anyone know if insurance will cover damage repairs by owner?

**bikendan** · 05-24-2021, 12:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SLBAHLE

Does anyone know if insurance will cover damage repairs by owner?

Since this thread is about soft spots in flooring, is that the type of repairs you're asking about?
You need to be more specific about what you're asking about.
But I don't know of any insurance company that will cover damage repairs by a non-professional.

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