RV Camper Floor Replacement 2.0: This Time It's Personal

There's nothing like doing the same work twice.

This spring I replaced the front half of my camper floor — again. About four years ago I did the same project after water damage had wreaked havoc on the original floor. Here's a link to the first of six posts from that 2013 project.

So, what happened?

I never was happy with the results. It held, but it was still "bouncy." We're probably going to sell the camper in a few years and anyone who'll be looking at it would take one step inside and immediately turn around. I needed to eliminate the bounce either by reinforcing what I had done, or doing it over.

Then, last winter I helped a buddy — who has the exact same make and model camper — replace his floor. We had the luxury of not repeating my mistakes, and his turned out so well it was enough to convince me that my floor needed replacing, too.

Finally, last summer we blew a tire on the way to Cooperstown Shadow Brook Campground in Cooperstown, N.Y. The blowout ripped a small hole through the floor. It was only under our single dinette, but it was enough for me to pull the trigger.

So this spring I decided to tackle RV Camper Floor Replacement 2.0.

The Good News: It only took four steps.

Step 1: Remove everything.

Step 2: Remove old floor.

Step 3: Install new floor.

Step 4: Put everything back in.

The Bad News: Step 3 was quite the ordeal. Not that it was difficult; there was just a lot to it.

The video above should explain most everything, but ask a question in the comments if you need more information.

Here's the New Foor, from the bottom up:

• 8x15-foot piece of ripstop silnylon, cut to fit, used as the weather barrier for the underside of the camper.
• 2 sheets of 3/4-inch 4x8-foot treated plywood, cut to fit across the 7-foot interior width of the camper, that was screwed into the chassis rails with self-tapping screws.
• 5 pieces of 1-inch square aluminum rods, set 16 inches on center, used as cross beams. 
• 2 pieces of 1-inch square pieces of wood used as cross beams to supplement the aluminum rods; one in front of the door and the other at the front end of the camper.
• 2 sheets of 4x8 foil-backed styrofoam, cut to fit, in between the cross beams.
• 3 sheets of 1/2-inch 4x8 treated plywood, cut to fit, across the entire floor, being sure to overlap the seams of the 3/4-inch plywood.
• 4 sheets of 1/4-inch luan, cut to fit, across the entire floor, being sure to overlap the seams of the 1/2-inch plywood.
• 8 1/2 x 20-foot roll of woven vinyl from Infinity LWV, cut to fit, glued to the luan using Henry 640 flooring adhesive. The product is used for pontoon boats and is a terrific option for RVs.