What an awesome video that you made helped so many of us airstream owners out here. we have a 2003 and have noticed three soft spots on the subfloor but we’re not willing to make those patch repairs or completely replace the subfloor. We are currently selling it and we like to let potential buyers know your video will be helpful. Thank you
OMG. I am so thankful for this video. As you said, the how-to-do-it videos are nonexistent on YT. Speaking with my regular RV repair guy, he concluded what you concluded, which was to have a professional Airstream person do the repair. I'm still contemplating my next move with repairing my 2004 Airstream Safari 25SS; however, I am significantly closer as the result of your video. Thank you.
this was SO helpful! there only seems to be subfloor repairs with the frame off on youtube, and like you, I only need to replace a small section of the total floor so taking the body off the frame seems like overkill. I especially liked the heads up about cutting around the frame-to-body bolts.. I would probably not have noticed that! thank you so much :)
I have an Avion with a funky floor. This was a logically executed video. Too many tubers seem to be striving for celebrity rather than clarity. Thanks.
EXCELLENT video! Thank you so much! Just yesterday I found a bad patch of subfloor (~5 sq ft) in the rear bedroom and thanks to you I now have a plan. One question - was drilling new holes in the frame for the screws difficult? Is a cordless drill sufficient or should I use a corded drill?
Great, I’m glad it helped! As far as drilling the new holes, we used a cordless drill. The wood to metal screws also help so try to find the screws I mentioned in the video or something similar 😀
Thank you so much for making this video! I’m undertaking this kind of repair on a 1967 and taking the skin off with both intimidating and very hard for me. Did you need to replace any framing wood in this process as well?
Thank you ... a great video. Our question is .. How would you handle getting one piece of wood in the C chanel? We are doing a very similar rear repair, but we are trying to WEDGE a pritty rectangular section.....center section ...maybe 5 feet X 2 feet that meet up to the support cross beams into the C chanel. Using a mallet and wood blocks to pound is not going so well ... there is no give in to the wood or the trailer. I think we may need to cut the wood that goes into the c chanel wide enough to be able to attach it to the rear support beam, this way the we can pound in into the chanel...the wood is flat... no wedge angle to deal, then attach it securally to the support beams. We then can cut/fit and literally drop the the other piece of wood in place like a puzzle piece, and attach that piece of wood to the cross support beams. I may have answered my own question. What do you think??? Lorie
I think you did! A smaller piece would make the job much easier. What’s important is that you get the wood into the channel to support the shell, I don’t think it is super important that it is one solid piece of wood as long as you are securing it to the frame :)
Thank you for this very helpful. I found a leak and it was repaired at a rv shop but we didn’t realize the damage under linoleum. So now I have cut out rotten wood. Question - could I just just plywood to fit this hole and screw down? Therefore not removing all the wood under the metal shell! It seems tough to get out. Any advice appreciated
Hello! I think you could get away with putting some plywood to fit the hole and screwing it down if the hole isn’t that big. You can send a pic over to our email at goranandjen@gmail.com and we can take a look if you like!
What a great well illustrated and detailed video. We will be doing what seems to be minor subfloor repair on our beloved 19’ Bambi we have owned for 21 years. Only difference I’ll do is put some wood water protection coating on plywood. But again, thank you Ssssooooo much for this video!
Looking at several other videos saying not to piece a subfloor, do you feel that it compromises the stability at all? I assume you have towed and used since repair. Loved your presentation, well done!
Hello! Yes, we looked at some of those videos as well. I think that is why it took us so long to figure out how to do the spot repair, because we were scared that we would compromise the structural integrity. So we kept searching and watching more videos and doing more research until I came upon a video that explained the C-channel and the bolts, and how the shell is attached to the frame. We figured out that as long as you don’t cut those bolts and you make sure you insert the replacement subfloor into the C-channel, the structural integrity will remain intact. We have traveled over 2000 miles in the airstream since we have done the repairs and she is holding up great! We are very happy with the repairs. I hope this helps!
Thanks so much for this detailed video. Most helpful one on RUclips that I’ve found. Any more insights clearing the wood from the c-channel? How long did it take with the multi tool? I’m having a hell of a time and wondering if cutting the bolts and then replacing as I go might make things quicker and less soul crushing. Lol Thanks!
Hello and I’m glad the video helped! I feel you on the soul crushing task of removing the wood from the C-channel, it took us forever to figure out. On our Airstream, a lot of the wood that was in the C channel was wet and very rotted so it was easy to get out. But, there were sections that were not in such bad shape and they took much longer to remove even with the multitool. Goran says he spent about 10 hours total working on it. One tip is to think of the piece of plywood like a layer cake. “Eat” or gouge out the middle layer first and the rest of the wood will fall out more easily. Hope this helps!!
Thanks for the reply. “Soul crushing” indeed. 😂 making some better progress with the multi tool. Makes me feel somewhat less crushed knowing it just a royal pain in the a**. Thanks again for the video.
Thank you so much for making this video! I am just starting to restore a 1971 Airstream Overlander and like you, don’t need/want to do a full shell off restoration. This info will come in very handy. How did you find the person you hired to do the job?
You’re so welcome!! The guy we hired was a friend of my brothers. Anyone that has experience with carpentry experience/subfloor repair in a home should be able to do it, but it’s a unique job so it might take a minute to find someone willing to do it. Good luck with your restoration!!
Great info ,thank you! I am doing the same thing on my 1973 Trade Wind. I think I am going to treat the edges of the subfloor with an epoxy resin, just to prolong the wood rot incase there is a leak in the future that goes unnoticed. HA HA, As if it will never leak again.
Smart! We wanted to do the same thing but the guy that was doing the work for us didn’t have time to wait for it to dry (or so he said😑) We used pressure treated plywood and I sealed the roof and the sides as much as I could. Fingers crossed but so far so good!
Did you do vinyl planks or a sheet? Hard to tell. I was wondering about the expansion gap because I don't see one at your perimeter. I have removed my dinette, bedroom furniture, linoleum and carpet, and I'm about to replace some subfloor. The back of the existing ply has a foil insulation stuck to it.
@@GoranandJen What kind of gaps? Perimeter? In the middle? Everywhere? :O I'm going to do the same thing. I was thinking of making the holes in the planks oversized where anything screws down to the subfloor, to allow for movement.
Great video! I follow your recent carnivore journey. Just subscribed here too. I just purchased a vintage 73 Argosy which has a few spots needing fixed.
What did you use as trim for the perimeter on your new flooring? I tried using quarter round but broke a couple pieces on the the curved spots. Thx! Love the video! Now that I see what’s underneath the subfloor it seems a lot less intimidating
Hello! We are not using any trim at the moment because we still need to build in our beds and the front dinette. I would think you would have to use something flexible around the curves but I do not know the answer to what that product would be😀
Great video doing this to a 72 Airstream had to cut four of the seven plywood you can run a brace between each cross beam that's 23.5" or length wise that's 5' 3" for structure support. My Airstream will be used on 5 acres not over the road
Do you know if the bolts In the c channel no longer going through the wood of the subfloor will cause structural integrity issues? Also really appreciate this video!
Hello! That’s a good question. I think the method of repair we settled on is strong because the way we cut the little half circles out of the new subfloor to accommodate the bolts maintained the bolts’ structural integrity, in that we didn’t cut them or damage them. The new piece of plywood slides right into the C channel and fills in that space so it doesn’t collapse or crunch in on itself. I think if you have to replace the entire subfloor of the Airstream, this method would be iffy. But, if you are just doing a spot repair like we are doing here, it seems to work great. The bolts are still holding the frame to the shell, and the new plywood is a tight fit and screwed into place through the beams running the width and length, so it’s as good as it can be in my opinion 😀 after the repair, we traveled from Chicago to Brownsville, TX, then over to Fort Myers, FL, and then back up to Chicago, along with several other trips, and the subfloor repair is holding on strong! I hope this helps!
Did you put anything under your insulation or will it stay place on its own? We are dealing with the same thing in our 89 Excella too. Thanks for the video!
Hello! We did not put anything under the insulation, we just stuffed it into the space and it held very well. I did clean out the belly pan after we had removed the rotten subfloor, before we stuffed the new insulation in. Subfloor rot seems to be a common issue in these older Airstreams! But the repair is holding up great and we are happy that our Airstream will be preserved for many years to come :) good luck with your repairs!
Hello! Yea, we thought about that too. We were thinking about maybe starboard? But we ended up using the pressure treated plywood and painting the edges with the waterproofing. We think we got all of the leaks so fingers crossed that wont be an issue as long as we maintain her :)
@@GoranandJen SO much… did a spot in the bedroom of my Excella 1979 (motorhome model) yesterday … and it worked like a charm !!! Thanks again, very useful
Great question. We used Thermafiber Fire & Sound mineral wool from Home Depot. No specific R value is listed on the product, I think because it is meant for interior walls and noise dampening. But I would say based on similar products it’s between 13-16. We used mineral wool insulation because mold can’t grow on it. We’ve repaired all of the leaks we could find but you just never know. Also, it was the only mineral wool insulation available at the time at the Home Depot. Thermafiber Ultrabatt R23 is the product I would use today if I were doing this project again.
helpful tips, Im hoping to convince an airstream owner to go this route and forget the whole body off nonsense, I think that's nice if you have endless resources and time but throwing in some new ply where its soft is more practical and fixing the leak obviously because all the old systems can be pretty much negated with new technology anyway
Hello! I think off the body is only good if most of the subfloor is rotten AND the frame needs work. Otherwise, spot repair is faster and more economical for sure 😀😀
Oh yes! We did. It was two issues: old gaskets in the side compartment doors and a couple roof leaks. We replaced the gaskets and sealed the leaks. We have a complete roof sealing project we’re going to be doing in April or May :)
What an awesome video that you made helped so many of us airstream owners out here. we have a 2003 and have noticed three soft spots on the subfloor but we’re not willing to make those patch repairs or completely replace the subfloor. We are currently selling it and we like to let potential buyers know your video will be helpful. Thank you
Hello and thank you so much! It was quite the job LOL
OMG. I am so thankful for this video. As you said, the how-to-do-it videos are nonexistent on YT. Speaking with my regular RV repair guy, he concluded what you concluded, which was to have a professional Airstream person do the repair. I'm still contemplating my next move with repairing my 2004 Airstream Safari 25SS; however, I am significantly closer as the result of your video. Thank you.
Hello, and I’m so happy you found this video helpful!
this was SO helpful! there only seems to be subfloor repairs with the frame off on youtube, and like you, I only need to replace a small section of the total floor so taking the body off the frame seems like overkill. I especially liked the heads up about cutting around the frame-to-body bolts.. I would probably not have noticed that! thank you so much :)
You’re welcome!! I’m glad it helped 😀
I have an Avion with a funky floor. This was a logically executed video. Too many tubers seem to be striving for celebrity rather than clarity. Thanks.
I’m glad it helped😀😀😀
Great information 👍
Thank you :)
Well done work, explanation, and video
Thank you!
Great video, that you
Thank you!
EXCELLENT video! Thank you so much! Just yesterday I found a bad patch of subfloor (~5 sq ft) in the rear bedroom and thanks to you I now have a plan. One question - was drilling new holes in the frame for the screws difficult? Is a cordless drill sufficient or should I use a corded drill?
Great, I’m glad it helped! As far as drilling the new holes, we used a cordless drill. The wood to metal screws also help so try to find the screws I mentioned in the video or something similar 😀
Thank you so much for making this video! I’m undertaking this kind of repair on a 1967 and taking the skin off with both intimidating and very hard for me. Did you need to replace any framing wood in this process as well?
Hello! We did not need to replace any framing wood, only the subfloor😀
Great video. I am working on the same repair right now. Very helpful information. Thank you.
Thank you and I’m glad it helped!
Very helpful! Thank you!
Thank you!
Thank you ... a great video. Our question is .. How would you handle getting one piece of wood in the C chanel? We are doing a very similar rear repair, but we are trying to WEDGE a pritty rectangular section.....center section ...maybe 5 feet X 2 feet that meet up to the support cross beams into the C chanel. Using a mallet and wood blocks to pound is not going so well ... there is no give in to the wood or the trailer.
I think we may need to cut the wood that goes into the c chanel wide enough to be able to attach it to the rear support beam, this way the we can pound in into the chanel...the wood is flat... no wedge angle to deal, then attach it securally to the support beams. We then can cut/fit and literally drop the the other piece of wood in place like a puzzle piece, and attach that piece of wood to the cross support beams.
I may have answered my own question. What do you think???
Lorie
I think you did! A smaller piece would make the job much easier. What’s important is that you get the wood into the channel to support the shell, I don’t think it is super important that it is one solid piece of wood as long as you are securing it to the frame :)
Great info and presented short and sweet
Thank you!!
This was the video I needed! Thank you!
You’re very welcome!!
Thank you!!! We have to do one side! Man thank you so much!!!!
You’re very welcome, I’m glad it helped😀
Thank you for this very helpful. I found a leak and it was repaired at a rv shop but we didn’t realize the damage under linoleum. So now I have cut out rotten wood. Question - could I just just plywood to fit this hole and screw down? Therefore not removing all the wood under the metal shell! It seems tough to get out. Any advice appreciated
Sorry trying to add pic but can’t figure it out
Hello! I think you could get away with putting some plywood to fit the hole and screwing it down if the hole isn’t that big. You can send a pic over to our email at goranandjen@gmail.com and we can take a look if you like!
What a great well illustrated and detailed video. We will be doing what seems to be minor subfloor repair on our beloved 19’ Bambi we have owned for 21 years. Only difference I’ll do is put some wood water protection coating on plywood. But again, thank you Ssssooooo much for this video!
You’re welcome!! We wanted to do that too, but our guy was moving so fast we only had time to put some along the edges. Happy camping to ya😄😄
Excellent video perfect detail.
Thanks!
There weren't any rivets from the bottom of the outside skin going into the channel? I'm going to be doing this shortly on a 2007 27' Safari SE.
Hello! We didn’t see any rivets in the C channel 😀
@@GoranandJen good to hear! I keep imagining the end of the Airstream collapsing when I take the plywood out
Reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaly a helpfull video!!!!! you¨ll help me save a lot of time and money, Thank you very much and have a great day
I’m so glad it helped!! You’re very welcome 😊😊
Thank you. I hit a wall too. Glad to see how to do the floor.
You’re welcome!! I’m glad it helped :)
Looking at several other videos saying not to piece a subfloor, do you feel that it compromises the stability at all? I assume you have towed and used since repair. Loved your presentation, well done!
Hello! Yes, we looked at some of those videos as well. I think that is why it took us so long to figure out how to do the spot repair, because we were scared that we would compromise the structural integrity. So we kept searching and watching more videos and doing more research until I came upon a video that explained the C-channel and the bolts, and how the shell is attached to the frame. We figured out that as long as you don’t cut those bolts and you make sure you insert the replacement subfloor into the C-channel, the structural integrity will remain intact. We have traveled over 2000 miles in the airstream since we have done the repairs and she is holding up great! We are very happy with the repairs. I hope this helps!
@@GoranandJen
Thank you and that makes sense to me!
Thanks so much for this detailed video. Most helpful one on RUclips that I’ve found.
Any more insights clearing the wood from the c-channel? How long did it take with the multi tool? I’m having a hell of a time and wondering if cutting the bolts and then replacing as I go might make things quicker and less soul crushing. Lol
Thanks!
Hello and I’m glad the video helped! I feel you on the soul crushing task of removing the wood from the C-channel, it took us forever to figure out. On our Airstream, a lot of the wood that was in the C channel was wet and very rotted so it was easy to get out. But, there were sections that were not in such bad shape and they took much longer to remove even with the multitool.
Goran says he spent about 10 hours total working on it. One tip is to think of the piece of plywood like a layer cake. “Eat” or gouge out the middle layer first and the rest of the wood will fall out more easily.
Hope this helps!!
Thanks for the reply. “Soul crushing” indeed. 😂 making some better progress with the multi tool. Makes me feel somewhat less crushed knowing it just a royal pain in the a**. Thanks again for the video.
Thank you so much for making this video! I am just starting to restore a 1971 Airstream Overlander and like you, don’t need/want to do a full shell off restoration. This info will come in very handy. How did you find the person you hired to do the job?
You’re so welcome!! The guy we hired was a friend of my brothers. Anyone that has experience with carpentry experience/subfloor repair in a home should be able to do it, but it’s a unique job so it might take a minute to find someone willing to do it. Good luck with your restoration!!
in one of your replies you indicate you fixed the leak that caused the problem in the 1st place. what kind of leak was that? (window? roof?)
Hello! Roof I think. We are also putting new gaskets on all the window.
Great info ,thank you! I am doing the same thing on my 1973 Trade Wind. I think I am going to treat the edges of the subfloor with an epoxy resin, just to prolong the wood rot incase there is a leak in the future that goes unnoticed. HA HA, As if it will never leak again.
Smart! We wanted to do the same thing but the guy that was doing the work for us didn’t have time to wait for it to dry (or so he said😑) We used pressure treated plywood and I sealed the roof and the sides as much as I could. Fingers crossed but so far so good!
Did you do vinyl planks or a sheet? Hard to tell. I was wondering about the expansion gap because I don't see one at your perimeter. I have removed my dinette, bedroom furniture, linoleum and carpet, and I'm about to replace some subfloor. The back of the existing ply has a foil insulation stuck to it.
Hello! We used planks. We wish we had installed the flooring after we built the dinette and beds, because we’re experiencing some gaps
@@GoranandJen you mean you wish you installed the flooring around those items instead of underneath?
@@nursegilbey yes
@@GoranandJen What kind of gaps? Perimeter? In the middle? Everywhere? :O I'm going to do the same thing. I was thinking of making the holes in the planks oversized where anything screws down to the subfloor, to allow for movement.
Thank you...very helpful...
😀😀😀
Great video! I follow your recent carnivore journey.
Just subscribed here too.
I just purchased a vintage 73 Argosy which has a few spots needing fixed.
Hello! We are going to start releasing more videos over here in the next month or so,, lots more videos on rehabbing our Airstream :)
Can you repair justly a section that creeks by the bathroom?
I’m sure you could!
What did you use as trim for the perimeter on your new flooring? I tried using quarter round but broke a couple pieces on the the curved spots. Thx! Love the video! Now that I see what’s underneath the subfloor it seems a lot less intimidating
Hello! We are not using any trim at the moment because we still need to build in our beds and the front dinette. I would think you would have to use something flexible around the curves but I do not know the answer to what that product would be😀
Great video doing this to a 72 Airstream had to cut four of the seven plywood you can run a brace between each cross beam that's 23.5" or length wise that's 5' 3" for structure support. My Airstream will be used on 5 acres not over the road
Thanks!! Nice! Sounds like a huge project 😀😀
Very nice!!!
Well done for a spot repair. The only thing you left out was putting water proofing on the edges and sides of the "marine" plywood.
Hello! Yea, we wanted to do something like that but the guy that installed it was in a hurry :(
Thank you so much!
You’re welcome :)
Do you know if the bolts In the c channel no longer going through the wood of the subfloor will cause structural integrity issues? Also really appreciate this video!
Hello! That’s a good question. I think the method of repair we settled on is strong because the way we cut the little half circles out of the new subfloor to accommodate the bolts maintained the bolts’ structural integrity, in that we didn’t cut them or damage them. The new piece of plywood slides right into the C channel and fills in that space so it doesn’t collapse or crunch in on itself. I think if you have to replace the entire subfloor of the Airstream, this method would be iffy. But, if you are just doing a spot repair like we are doing here, it seems to work great. The bolts are still holding the frame to the shell, and the new plywood is a tight fit and screwed into place through the beams running the width and length, so it’s as good as it can be in my opinion 😀 after the repair, we traveled from Chicago to Brownsville, TX, then over to Fort Myers, FL, and then back up to Chicago, along with several other trips, and the subfloor repair is holding on strong! I hope this helps!
Did you put anything under your insulation or will it stay place on its own? We are dealing with the same thing in our 89 Excella too. Thanks for the video!
Hello! We did not put anything under the insulation, we just stuffed it into the space and it held very well. I did clean out the belly pan after we had removed the rotten subfloor, before we stuffed the new insulation in. Subfloor rot seems to be a common issue in these older Airstreams! But the repair is holding up great and we are happy that our Airstream will be preserved for many years to come :) good luck with your repairs!
Did you use any sealant when sliding your new pieces into the c-channel?
Hello! We did not. I did use Kilz mold and mildew primer along the edges of the plywood once it was installed to discourage any future water damage.
One thing I would say is you might want to replace the floor with something that will not rot again?
Hello! Yea, we thought about that too. We were thinking about maybe starboard? But we ended up using the pressure treated plywood and painting the edges with the waterproofing. We think we got all of the leaks so fingers crossed that wont be an issue as long as we maintain her :)
Thanks so much !!!!
You’re welcome!! I hope it helped 😀
@@GoranandJen SO much… did a spot in the bedroom of my Excella 1979 (motorhome model) yesterday … and it worked like a charm !!! Thanks again, very useful
@@eti3691 Awesome!! I'm glad this video helped, that was my goal :) Happy travels!
What was the r value in your insulation?
Great question. We used Thermafiber Fire & Sound mineral wool from Home Depot. No specific R value is listed on the product, I think because it is meant for interior walls and noise dampening. But I would say based on similar products it’s between 13-16. We used mineral wool insulation because mold can’t grow on it. We’ve repaired all of the leaks we could find but you just never know. Also, it was the only mineral wool insulation available at the time at the Home Depot. Thermafiber Ultrabatt R23 is the product I would use today if I were doing this project again.
Thank you
You’re welcome!!
helpful tips, Im hoping to convince an airstream owner to go this route and forget the whole body off nonsense, I think that's nice if you have endless resources and time but throwing in some new ply where its soft is more practical and fixing the leak obviously because all the old systems can be pretty much negated with new technology anyway
Hello! I think off the body is only good if most of the subfloor is rotten AND the frame needs work. Otherwise, spot repair is faster and more economical for sure 😀😀
I hope you found the leak didn't hear you mention if you fixed that
Oh yes! We did. It was two issues: old gaskets in the side compartment doors and a couple roof leaks. We replaced the gaskets and sealed the leaks. We have a complete roof sealing project we’re going to be doing in April or May :)
Just so I’m clear. The shell sits on top of a c channel on the frame. The plywood fits into the c channel.
Hello! Yes, precisely. The C channel is part of the frame, and the plywood fits into the C channel.
I just notice my typing spelling errors:(
Lorie
It’s all good!! I’m glad you enjoyed the video :)