2004 Itasca Horizon Vinyl Floor Project Help - With Zero Edge Floors

[imnprsd]

I have read all the posts on this subject and I need help clarifying some very important concerns:

1) How best to deal with the large slideout on the driver's side of the coach?

This is the side where the floor drops-down to a "zero edge" and then needs to ride-up... and clear the vinyl so it does not scratch.

Q: Can this be done without replacing the "plastic shoe" with a "carpet shoe?" ...And I'm still unclear on how to do this? Do I need to pull the slide out 10" to gain access do the underside of the floor? (Please send pictures.)

2) What will I run into with regards to the floor being the right height?

Q: Should I plan to add a 1/4" of under-layment or are we talking about adding a floor leveling material -- like they use when installing tile? (The latter I don' like as this stuff will break down under vibration.)

3) What problems will I run into when dealing with the engine hood in the bedroom?

Q: Do most people just leave the old carpet in this area? Or maybe it's easy to re-carpet?

4) The front step side walls, and over by the driver's foot pedals, look like the sidewalls bend. Is this a problem if you want to pull the carpet off and install vinyl planks in its place?

5) What tips can you offer me in general?

6) Or... If you paid someone in the USA to do your RV, would share what you paid and if you would recommend this outfit? My concern is these guys do their best, but do not really take the above issues into consideration. (Especially, replacing he carpet shoe.)

I'm also thinking $4,500 for a full front to back job would be a good/fair price, but this may not be enough if you want the best quality job. On the other hand, anything higher and then I'm motivated to doing the job myself.

*** Here's a sweet new "FLOOR VISUALIZER PROGRAM" that will let you up load your coach interior picture and then you can select your choice of vinyl floor... to see what it looks like on your computer screen. Check it out. This is awesome! And you should keep this website link for your home flooring projects too!

https://www.lumberliquidators.com/ll...oor_Visualizer

Here are examples of my interior with light cabinets so you can see what floor choices look good and which one's do not.

[PennBruce]

I hope you get some replies. This is a subject of interest to anyone that owns an older coach.

Bruce

[BobC]

Personally I think that keeping or installing new carpet in the slide area is your best bet. I used low nap, commercial carpet tiles (installed using carpet tape) when I did mine. It's easy to install and to keep clean and, if you keep extra tiles, can be replaced if damaged. With vinyl, even with a carpet shoe, a piece of grit or gravel is going to get trapped and scratch your floor.

In terms of leveling your floor, I'd vote for plywood if it needs something. This wasn't an issue for me. If you go the carpet tile route, the difference may not be enough to require anything but it will take some careful measuring to be sure. Depending on your old carpet, it's compressed thickness may not be materially different from that of your new flooring, especially if you use carpet tiles. If I understand the geometry, the issue won't be the matching of the two floor levels when extended, assuming they both have the same finished surface, but making sure the slide's "shoe" isn't too high when retracted.

[imnprsd]

Yes... I am also thinking about just putting carpet in.

I also thought I would clean my carpet first, but then I read this post where an owner rented a carpet cleaning machine and he said it was one of the biggest mistakes he ever made (in the RV), because it smelled for a long time. ...Is this true? Are there huge smells trying to clean your old/dirty carpet? ...Or maybe this guy did not extract the water like he need to.

Who has cleaned their carpets with a professional "Stanley Steamer" or equivalent and ran into horrible carpet orders afterwards?

===

I love the wood look, but other people have said their RV is much noisier after they put a new floor in. (Wood vs vinyl???) ...And the same was motoring down the road too. Is this true?

[emiddleb]

I clean mine with a "Rug Doctor" equivalent every year with no issues. Just a bit tricky to maneuver in the tight spots. Leave the windows and ceiling vent open and it dries out in a day or so.

[FIRE UP]

inmprsd,
Well, replacement flooring is of course, a matter of choice. Long story short, both my wife and I are carpet fans when it comes to the motorhome. We like the quietness, the softness on our feetzies, and, to us, the sound from things like radios and the TV, is greatly enhanced due to carpet. We've been in a few coaches with no carpet and, to us, it's just a bit resonating.

Just over a year ago, we were invited to see a friends coach that was just recarpeted. Its the same year model as ours. We'd been on the fence about carpet vs any other type of flooring. Well, upon seeing that new carpet job, it took us all of about 20 seconds to decide NEW CARPET FOR OURS!

So, after that visit, we headed directly down to the showroom for that company. After about 15 minutes of looking, the CEO, (I'd bet you'll never guess who that is!) decided on a color and type. The owner was there, at our house, the next day, ripping out the old carpet. But, I did something our friends didn't. I gutted the coach, as best as I could. Everything was removed, including the two front captains chairs, one smaller love seat, and the dining room table and chairs.

That left one, long electric couch. I separated it in two pieces so I could move it about, while the old carpet was removed and, the new was to be installed. The next day after the old was removed, the new carpet was there, to be installed. I mean, it looked like a bomb went off in that coach. The carpet layer was 75 years old and still going strong. He wasn't very fast but, he knew every inch of what he was doing.

When it was all said and done, the transformation of looks and feel, inside that '04 Itasca Horizon 36GD with the CAT C-7 330HP, was/is phenomenal. We're so pleased and happy with it, we'd never go to a hard type floor.

Now, you asked about the slide-joint, where the slide dipps down for a level floor. Well, since we did carpet, that was an easy issue to resolve. The carpet layer laid the new carpet right to the stationary floor edge. However, for the slide floor, he cut the new carpet long enough to have a sewn edge, overlapping the stationary edge, when the slide is all the way extended. It looks like Winnebago did it.

Once the new carpet was installed, that gave us/me incentive to remodel the rest of the interior. So, out came the old valances. I built brand new ones from 1/2" plywood. I foamed them all with 1/4" headliner foam then, the wife sewed up a new design and new material and I applied it to all the new valances. Once that was done, out came those seriously trashy pleated day-night junk-restring once a week shades and, in went some new, Shade Pro, double roller day-night shades. Waaaaaaaaaaaaay better than the pleated ones.

We've since reupholstered the two-piece electric couch and the dinning room chairs to match the valances and color of the carpet. We are now ultra happy with the brand new interior of our coach. But, again, this is us, we like carpet. And, the potential slide issues with hard wood flooring, are not there with carpet, our choice. Good luck on your choice.
Scott

I've got a zillion more pics but, you'll get the point.

[NeilV]

I just rent a Rug Doctor and slowly go over the entire carpet when done in just extract mode with the non-powered floor wand to get the extra moisture out. Too many folks think moving the wand fast helps however that just reduces the amount of water and dirt extracted from the bottom of the carpets padding leaving mud behind. Adding a little OdoBan to the Extractor Detergent will help. After your done just set out a fan blowing across the area shampooed to hasten the drying process.

What will help also is to not wait until its too late before you vacuum your carpets while your camping and to take care of any tracking after each trip before you put the coach away.

I keep a Resolve Carpet Kit in my RV so I can give the high traffic spots a touch-up after each trip. Vacuum thoroughly, give it a quick scrub, set out the fans and then a few hours later vacuum again. Having a good beater bar vacuum is even more critical in a motor home than it is in your stick and bricks home. If you maintain your carpets with regular vacuuming and light cleanings they can last for decades.



Financial and Business Guru John Maxwell puts it under the "Law of the Price Tag" since sooner or later your going to have to pay it and the sooner you pay the less its going to cost you. A few minutes payed out doing regular carpet maintenance is only going to cost you a few hundred dollars over a decade or two however prematurely replacing carpets can cost you thousands

[sbryan5500]

We have a 2005 Winnebago Vectra that had the sculptured carpeting in the main living area with ceramic tile in the kitchen and hallway. The bedroom had different carpeting but all was original to the coach.

When we decided to rip out the disgusting sculptured carpet that was not worth trying to clean we had weighed the options of what kind of floor to replace it with. Once the old carpet was up we put down 3/8 pressure treated plywood for subfloor and decided to try vinyl tiles so we could cut the uneven areas easily and it was the least expensive. Vinyl tiles have come a long way in design and quality but we still had the problem of the slide dragging across the tile when extended, especially behind the driver's seat.

Tried using pieces of thin carpet tile to lay under the slide areas that were prone to scratching and had a fun time getting them out from under the slide when they slid too far under the lip and disappeared.

So we read dozens of blogs like this one and talked to other owners who had done new floors and found like you are I'm sure, everyone has their own "better idea".

The vinyl tiles started separating and lifting up from I assumed the flex of the coach and vibration along with the lack of enough adhesion to the plywood. Now we had to decide whether to stick with the tile or go another route.

We went to a company in Ormond Beach that specializes in remodeling RV's. They came up with a solution to use laminated wood flooring in a houndstooth diagonal design. It came out really nice but again the slide was rubbing the flooring. Their solution was to use a couple extra pieces of the laminated flooring sections (about 3 feet long) and lay them inverted on the floor under the areas of the slide that were rubbing. One behind the driver's seat and the other by the kitchen counter.

It works ok but is a bit of a pain to get them set just right when retracting the slide and then to store them behind the couch or in the overhead when the slide is extended. We have forgotten to place them a couple times and have some small scratches on the flooring but Old English Oil makes them disappear.

We changed the original sleeper sofa with a leather double recliner and put new carpet in the bedroom while retaining the tile in the kitchen.

We don't notice additional noise without the carpet in the living area and get many compliments on the wood floor. We also removed the valances and and pita shades and put up 1" wood slat blinds. I use small pieces of velcro on the bottom of the shade and the window frame to keep them from banging around when moving. Works great and the shades match the floor perfectly as well as the dark cherry wood cabinets.

Long story short, a professional installation is worth it to me, especially if something has a problem later they will fix it. This is our last coach and we want to modernize it and improve as much as possible before we hang it up for good.

Next step is a residential fridge and say goodbye to the Norcold four door.

Good luck with your project. It will markedly improve your enjoyment of the coach. BTW the name of the place that did our work is Classic Coach Works in Ormond Beach, FL. Gregg Williams is the owner and is great to work with. The website is classiccoachworks.com

[rgvtexan]

Here is a thread on floor replacement.
It ends with my carpet replacement.

I spoke with Rick about wood, laminate and vinyl. He prefers carpet but has done others.
But he recommends Bound Carpet on the flush slide.

Carpet in RGV - iRV2 Forums

[imnprsd]

If I may summarize... As the OP... It would seem many owners are satisfied with putting new carpet down and many owners are in favor of vinyl floors. It sort of depend on cost, if you have pets where vinyl wins, or if carpet under your feet is desirable. So it's a tie.

I want to address the subject on who has replaced the "Plastic Shoe" with the "Carpet Shoe". Why?

Apparently, it is widely accepted that if you want to go with vinyl floor that you need to change the plastic shoe located under the driver-slideout with a "carpet shoe" in order to prevent your vinyl floors from getting scratched.

Questions:

* What does it cost to add a carpet shoe? ...Not counting the cost of your vinyl floor. But while we are at it, what did you pay for your vinyl floor "upgrade" and was it worth it?

* Can any dealer or RV shop pull the slide... out to replace the shoe with a carpet shoe? ...Or do you need to go to Winnebago in Forest City, IA?

Attached are pictures of the plastic shoe in question.

My notes also suggest the new part numbers for the carpet shoe is #166884-02W65 ($39); and according to the Winnebago service rep I talked to, you need to order the metal strip which is part #164774-01-01A ($152).

These were the prices I got at Winnebago in 2018. But they wanted to charge me $5,500 to do a vinyl floor in the main cabin and bedroom area... with carpet over the engine; so I passed!

I'm still hunting for a viable solution. And while I like the modern-look of vinyl I really don't want to drop $4,500-$5,500 on a vinyl floor.

I recognize there is a lot of work to do, but if carpeting is in the $2,500 range then I have to say... I'm leaning towards new carpet. There is just one concern: I don't like the idea of putting residential carpet in an RV; and I have to admit the "sculpted" carpet looks old... albeit it maybe appropriate for an RV.

Note: Every time I think about changing the look of my RV, to modernize it, I get proved wrong... and end up thinking Winnebago got it right the first time. So is carpet one of these times? ...If so, where can I/we find sculpted RV carpet?

PS
If you slideout is making noise when it goes out and in, then maybe it needs new "triangles" if you have a Workhorse Chassis. If you have an Evolution Chassis from Freightliner I'm not sure if they use these parts? (Do they?) Who can say for sure? Why?

I think if you are going to pull your slideout...out to install a carpet shoe, then this would be a good time to service your driver-side slideout! (More info on this subject is requested.)

[PeteBar]

I have an 01 Horizon that I put Alloc commercial maple flooring down. matched the maple cabinets and has been down about 10 yrs. I did keep carpet in the slide and did not change the runners on the slide.

[Kvw613]

Our galley floor tiles shifted and kept getting stuck in the HWH slide. After adjusting the bolts, we were able to remove the tiles. As an experiment we removed the remaining galley tiles just from the sliding area, and replaced them with Allure vinyl flooring planks, sticking them right to the old tile adhesive in the plywood floor. Countersinking and screwing in strategic locations, the Allure just covers the area that the slide covers when closed. After a cross country trip and a couple more thousand miles, I’d say this was a success. I have ordered replacement slider guides from HWH, but have not yet seen fit to install them. Occasionally, we get some black marks from the slider shoe, but a quick cleanup with WD40 takes care of that. Keep the area clean of sand and other grit, and scratches are avoided.

[imnprsd]

There are times when I'm a gun-ho and ready go start a vinyl floor project; and then the drive goes away or gets derailed by other concerns raised by the process and/or by the finished product benefits vs. backlash issues... like scratches appearing later from the slide-out shoe.

So, I think this upgrade is not for me at this time.

Maybe my carpet is just not in that bad of shape? Maybe I like having carpet under my feet? Maybe I just can't see the value and improvement/comfort over carpet vs. spending $3K-$5K on a vinyl floor.

The kicker: Even if I decided to tackle this project myself, and that lowered the vinyl flooring cost to $1,000 in materials, my decision would still be to go with carpet.

* If I was traveling with a pet... maybe.

* If my existing carpet was in terrible shape... maybe.

* If I took out all the flooring, tile included, and ran new flooring from the front, through the kitchen and bath, to the back bedroom... maybe.

...Personally, I don't like how vinyl meets tile. And I have yet to see a hardwood or vinyl floor where the transitions in the bedroom look "clean". I.e., these "make-shift" transitions in my opinion are not ideal and sort of cheap'n the look.

* If I really felt like this upgrade would not cause any trouble with my slide-out... maybe.

* PROS: I kind of like the more more modern look.

So for me, at this time, there are just too many "maybes" for me to pull the trigger.

My suggestion to others: Before you redo your floor, replace your refrigerator with residential unit. Now that in my opinion is an indisputable upgrade in my opinion. (And go with stainless!)