Replacing carpet in a Journey

1ciderdog · 04-22-2016, 06:37 PM

I'm wondering if anyone has replaced the carpeting in a Journey 39K or a similar Journey with a passenger and driver side slides? My spouse thinks it is time to replace the carpet which has wear marks from the slides and she thinks one of the wood flooring type products would be great. I'm thinking if I replace the carpet I'd have a similar problem with flooring. Bedroom slide would not be an issue since it is well above the floor. Any thoughts or suggestions?

ByeTheWay · 04-22-2016, 09:12 PM

Not the same coach, but mine was converted from carpet to wood and yes wear marks are starting to appear, from the slide rollers.

skigramp · 04-22-2016, 10:02 PM

We changed from carpet to vinyl tile about 3 years ago ... no wear marks

We changed the glide strip from plastic to carpet covered wood (on the driver's side)... we do not have a slide on the passenger side.

I posted some notes about the change on this forum

vsheetz · 04-22-2016, 10:21 PM

Changed the PA from carpet to sheet vinyl. No marks. Best change we have done to the coach. Search my username for thread with info and pictures.

bsamole · 04-23-2016, 08:31 AM

I have replaced my carpet three times. The first time I replace carpet with carpet. The second time I replace the carpet with 12 inch linoleum squares. The 3rd and hopefully the last time I replace the linoleum squares with luxury vinyl rectangular interconnecting pieces. The slide consists of both plastic and carpeted slide strips. I have not change the slide strips to correspond with the flooring. In my case leaving the original slide strips and place has not caused a problem. Allow plenty of time since this is a very labor-intensive job.

1ciderdog · 04-23-2016, 10:47 AM

Thanks for the replies. It'll be late summer before I can start this project but planning ahead to hopefully avoid problems.

1ciderdog · 04-23-2016, 10:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skigramp

We changed from carpet to vinyl tile about 3 years ago ... no wear marks

We changed the glide strip from plastic to carpet covered wood (on the driver's side)... we do not have a slide on the passenger side.

I posted some notes about the change on this forum

Skigramp, when the drivers side is out is it floor level? I'd tend to think so since same brand and year of coach.

tomsm · 04-23-2016, 11:03 AM

When I replaced my carpet a few years ago, I was afraid if I changed the glide strip to carpet, an unseen pebble or bit of kitty liter might get caught up in the carpet strip and scratch the new flooring. So, I decided to prevent the slide-out glide strip from directly touching the flooring.

I bought 4 pieces of 12" x 24" lexan at HD. (link to product) I glued some of that rubber shelf liner on one side to prevent the slide from pushing them around. I lay the 4 strips on the floor somewhat evenly spaced along my big dinette/couch slide before pulling in the slide.

The shelf liner works great, the strips never move and the floor doesn't get touched. After about 8 months on the road with lots of slideout usage (not parked for a season) the lexan has some scratching, but no damage, and the floor is like new - no scratches...

Probably the best part is that I didn't have to change the glide strip.

tomsm · 04-23-2016, 11:32 AM

A little more info... I left the old carpet in the slide-out box and also a couple of inches of the old carpet inboard of the floor/slide-out joint. I secured the cut-off edge of the carpet with a metal transition strip like here. I just butt the 12" edge of the lexan panels up against the metal strip. Not sure my method would work without the metal strip to protect the edge of the lexan.

tomsm · 04-23-2016, 12:13 PM

If I figured out hot to post a picture, here's what it looks like...

Sorry, don't have a pic of the lexan strips.

FIRE UP · 04-23-2016, 12:43 PM

Hey Bob,
Got an idea/suggestion for you (and the CEO) to consider. There is a new product being used in the boating industry for flooring. And, as I read and research even further, it's starting to appear in some coaches/makes/models too. This product is called "LWV" or, Luxury Woven Vinyl".

At present, that I know of, there is at least two companies that manufacture this product. One is called Infinity flooring and, the other is called Chilewich flooring. Both products make a large variety of their respective products. Like linoleum or, tiles and the like, there is a multitude of designs, colors, and textures.

Both of these floorings come with a urethane/rubber backing already applied to it. Both are COMPLETELY STAIN PROOF!! Both are seriously easy to work with. I've recently completely removed all the carpet that was in our '06 Kayot, Deck boat and, replaced it with the Infinity brand of this product.

All we both can say is, WOW, what a tremendous difference in both looks and feel. We've all grown up with carpet, wood floors, tile, linoleum, and more. This is new and innovative stuff. This stuff can be glued down and, tucked under edges around the corners etc. just like any other flooring. It's very pleasant to walk on and, like carpet, is a sound deadener. The Infinity brand comes in two different thickness backings. We chose the thicker version. I sewed a binding all around the edges of ours due to the fact that the flooring is comprised of pieces and, it snaps in and out for cleaning of the boat.

Anyway, it's just something to give you another option from the same old choices. Below are some pics of our boat we just finished. They will give you an idea of what it looks like. Take care.
Scott

tomsm · 04-23-2016, 01:19 PM

The current issue of Motor Home mag has a article about using LWV. Yours looks outstanding, Scott!

FIRE UP · 04-23-2016, 03:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomsm

The current issue of Motor Home mag has a article about using LWV. Yours looks outstanding, Scott!

tomsm,
Hey thanks a lot for the nice comment. This stuff was fun to work with even though it was the thicker of the two products. Sewing the binding all around the perimeter of each peace was also fun with the exception of inside corners. Those were a bit of a pain. But, I do believe that if any one who's reading this particular thread, were to see and handle this stuff, and see all the variables that are produced, many would do an install of it.

Below is a link to the factory show of all their product lineup.

Infinity | Luxury Woven Vinyl - VIEW OUR COLLECTIONS

And below is a link to Chilewich's site:

https://www.chilewich.com/contract/floor/wall_to_wall

The really good part about these products is the warranty. It's a 10 year warranty.
Scott

Mr Miyagi · 04-23-2016, 07:45 PM

Wow Scott! Very nice work on the boat! We're loving that " Better Than Teak II™" pattern for a possible update...

FIRE UP · 04-23-2016, 11:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr Miyagi

Wow Scott! Very nice work on the boat! We're loving that " Better Than Teak II™" pattern for a possible update...

Hey Ron,
Nice to hear from you. Thanks for the nice comment. We've looked close at the "Better than Teak" variation and, to us, that pattern just didn't appeal. Not only that but, due to the "straight line" pattern, if one were to install that in coach or a boat, they better have it EXTREMELY STRAIGHT! Because if it's off even the slightest bit, it will show a mile away. The semi-random pattern of ours, is not really noticeable if you're off a bit in either gluing down the pieces or, putting them down with snaps, as we did.

The Better than Teak also has a more closed surface whereas ours, as you can see, is more open, looking more like a toughted weave. Thanks again.
Scott

bsamole · 04-24-2016, 07:31 AM

Hey Scott, thanks for posting all those pictures. The flooring material looks great. And the boat looks awesome.

FIRE UP · 04-24-2016, 11:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bsamole

Hey Scott, thanks for posting all those pictures. The flooring material looks great. And the boat looks awesome.

You are quite welcome Sir.
Scott

skigramp · 04-24-2016, 09:41 PM

We have a 39W Journey ... we have two slides ... one in the front (driver's side) and one in the back (driver's side).

The slide moves ON TOP of the floor ... the stove, sink, and fold down couch are in that slide. On the other side we have a euro-rocker, dinette, fridge, and pantry.

We have no scratches in our vinyl floor ... the carpet glide works great

FIRE UP · 04-24-2016, 11:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skigramp

We have a 39W Journey ... we have two slides ... one in the front (driver's side) and one in the back (driver's side).

The slide moves ON TOP of the floor ... the stove, sink, and fold down couch are in that slide. On the other side we have a euro-rocker, dinette, fridge, and pantry.

We have no scratches in our vinyl floor ... the carpet glide works great

skigramp,
You are in what I would call, the lucky group. Your slide was built, adjusted and, is working correctly and as designed. I have no idea of how many folks/owners are in your "group". We read about issues of slides not functioning correctly, making marks on the floor, creeping out while driving and other issues. We too have been fortunate in terms of having both slides function "normally". We still have carpet on our floor where our slides extend and contract and, so far, no noticable markings or excessive wear and tear. And our is also an '04 Itasca Horizon 36GD with the C-7 330HP CAT.
Scott