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Veteran
Posts: 113
Location: Lyons Oregon | I was going to pay to have my trailer floor replaced. I was quoted a price of $150-175. Then I thought "I have a drill. I have a saw. Why can't I do this myself?" What sort of wood should I use? There is a custom hardwood mill near me. Would that be better then wood from home depot? It will take 8 boards 76 inches long. The trailer repair place uses wider board which they say is better, should I do that? I thought I'd try to replace one board before plunging in to do the whole thing. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 565
 
Location: Michigan | Your best bet is to use pre-treated lumber, the kind used for decks/porchs available at Home Depot, Lowes, and most lumber yards. This type of wood will hold up better to moisture which your trailer will be exposed to underneath the trailer, weather elements and from your horse's urine. |
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.jpg) Expert
Posts: 2828
Location: Southern New Mexico | Don't tear apart the old boards. You can use them as a template for your bolt holes. I did the floor in my old 2horse bp and the hardest part was getting the old bolts out. I ended up cutting them and replacing them because they were rusted up. Couldn't get the nut off the bolt. |
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Expert
Posts: 2957
Location: North Carolina | I've replaced a floor. Becareful. While the treated lumber will resist decay, understand most of it is softwood. It is not as strong as oak. Look at how the boards are supported too. You might be able to just lay the new boards in or NOT. I had to cut a piece of metal out to get the new boards in, then weld it back. |
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Veteran
Posts: 113
Location: Lyons Oregon | Thanks for the help. I will price oak. One trailer repair place said pressure treated wood is brittle and can shatter. It looks fairly straight forward, no metal edges come over the wood anywhere. Still, maybe I'd be better off taking it too the repair shop (Rusty Wheel in Scio Oregon) |
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Regular
Posts: 67
Location: Central Ky. | Have you considered recycled rubber lumber?It provides better footing,some cushioning and should last considerably longer than wood.It's worth looking into,see www.rumber.com SaddleSore |
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Member
Posts: 39
Location: Covington, Louisiana | One thing you have to be careful about with using the new composition (plastic & rubber) flooring material is that it is not as strong as "real" wood and requires more closely spaced supports than wood floors.
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 455
Location: Ontario - east of TO | Originally written by cascadia on 2005-04-14 9:14 PM Thanks for the help. I will price oak. One trailer repair place said pressure treated wood is brittle and can shatter. It looks fairly straight forward, no metal edges come over the wood anywhere. Still, maybe I'd be better off taking it too the repair shop (Rusty Wheel in Scio Oregon) I remember my father replacing the floor in one old trailer - and he was told to use rough lumber... we also used rough lumber in the stalls (suspended wooden floors in stalls) it it held up very well - I think we got about 5-7 years, and that's with a horse standing and peeing on that floor for hours a day. |
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Expert
Posts: 2957
Location: North Carolina | Originally written by cascadia on 2005-04-14 9:14 AM Thanks for the help. I will price oak. One trailer repair place said pressure treated wood is brittle and can shatter. It looks fairly straight forward, no metal edges come over the wood anywhere. Still, maybe I'd be better off taking it too the repair shop (Rusty Wheel in Scio Oregon) I 'd like to encourage you to DIY on the floor. Don't take my comments as negatives, just advice for a good result. There's too many different trailers to make blanket statements as to what can be used for a replacement floor without seeing it. I've never heard of treated wood as brittle. Just a comparison as in oak to pine. |
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Expert
Posts: 2689
| I'd look into SYP and rough sawn (full thickness) white oak.
I would AVOID anything "treated" for fear of slivers, bad enough in if you get them in your hands - think 'Puss Pits'. The only folk I know who have done this found the cross members to be badly rusted when they tore up the floor, decided on closer spacing when he replaced them - so budget for some steel work as well when you tear up the old floor. You probably don't need to space the boards for drainage, they'll shrink across their width anyway and open up.
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Expert
Posts: 1416
Location: sc | Originally written by Reg on 2005-04-16 8:33 PM
I'd look into SYP and rough sawn (full thickness) white oak. I would AVOID anything "treated" for fear of slivers, bad enough in if you get them in your hands - think 'Puss Pits'. The only folk I know who have done this found the cross members to be badly rusted when they tore up the floor, decided on closer spacing when he replaced them - so budget for some steel work as well when you tear up the old floor. You probably don't need to space the boards for drainage, they'll shrink across their width anyway and open up. reg, what is SYP? and i dont understand the "slivers" ? the horse should be standing on a mat anyway and the treated deck material, that seems to be so popular, is usually pretty smooth. |
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Member
Posts: 26
Location: galveston,in | I would put in good treated 2x6"if thats what fits in your trailer.As you have lots of moisture in the horse area and the floor is exposed to the elements. I have treated 2x6 on my deck over trailer i hual tractors and backhoes on and i have had this trailer for 8yrs since new and havn't had aboard crack or "shatter".Since on average the floor bracing is closer together on a horse trailer than my deckover and i haul more wieght that a horse ways on it treated wood be fine. Yes rough sawn oak would be the strongest ,but i dont know if its available to you. |
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Expert
Posts: 2689
| Originally written by chadsalt on 2005-04-16 10:42 PM
Originally written by Reg on 2005-04-16 8:33 PM
I'd look into SYP and rough sawn (full thickness) white oak. I would AVOID anything "treated" for fear of slivers, bad enough in if you get them in your hands - think 'Puss Pits'. The only folk I know who have done this found the cross members to be badly rusted when they tore up the floor, decided on closer spacing when he replaced them - so budget for some steel work as well when you tear up the old floor. You probably don't need to space the boards for drainage, they'll shrink across their width anyway and open up. reg, what is SYP? and i dont understand the "slivers" ? the horse should be standing on a mat anyway and the treated deck material, that seems to be so popular, is usually pretty smooth.
Sorry, Southern Yellow Pine (SYP).
I guess I haul the mats out a LOT and wash underneath them. I try to avoid pressure treated lumber wherever possible, ONE festering sliver wound is far too many for me. I hadn't considered wood floors with rubber mats over, maybe seen too many trailers with just wood and the drainage gaps between the boards.
When I wrote "white oak" I meant oak truck flooring, it should be fairly low priced and is very tough.
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Member
Posts: 9
Location: MN | I've redone a number of trailers. rough Oak is the only way to go. However (there is always a however) If the wood has not been dried, it will shrink. You need to keep that in mind. The last stock trailer I did the Oak shrunk enough over a year that I had to add another 2x6. Also, many backyard saw mills cut Oak to actual dimensions instead of dimensional dimensions. (wonder how many times I can use the word dimension in one sentence). This can cause problems if your trailer has channels built to only accept boards that are 1 1/2 thick.
Measure twice, cut once
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Regular
Posts: 55
Location: Polkville NC | Oak boards will work. Its what I use to replace the floor of trailers. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 366
Location: Albany, Oregon | We don't have much white oak out here...I learned that building a sailboat in my younger years....It resists rot the best in the oak family, we have lots of red oak but it rots fast! Pressure treated is made out of hemlock (out west) ....they call it hemfir...not real good for a span type floor application! Knowing the area we live in I would use good ol douglas fir (the second choice for white oak) we have lots of it! Rough sawn would be fine. There are probably some mills in the Lyons area you can have it cut from a curred log that is dry. You don't want green wood!Maybe even soak it with boiled linseed when you are done. White Oak is supper IF you can find it dry and the size you need. |
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Member
Posts: 39
Location: Covington, Louisiana | One caveat on using pressure treated wood is that early in 2004 the chemicals used in pressure treating wood were changed to eliminate arsenic containing preservatives. The chemicals now being used are much more corrosive to metals. We are being advised to use stainless steel screws, bolts and other fasteners when working with structural PT wood. If you do use PT wood in your trailer floor it might be worth while to put something between the wood and the steel supports to prevent direct contact and slow down any corrosive effect of the chemicals. In replacing the floor in my trailer I'm using strips of neoprene on top of the metal supports and in the channels the sides and ends of the boards rest in. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 1011
Location: Oregon | Originally written by xyzer on 2005-04-21 8:25 AM
We don't have much white oak out here...I learned that building a sailboat in my younger years....It resists rot the best in the oak family, we have lots of red oak but it rots fast! Pressure treated is made out of hemlock (out west) ....they call it hemfir...not real good for a span type floor application! Knowing the area we live in I would use good ol douglas fir (the second choice for white oak) we have lots of it! Rough sawn would be fine. There are probably some mills in the Lyons area you can have it cut from a curred log that is dry. You don't want green wood!Maybe even soak it with boiled linseed when you are done. White Oak is supper IF you can find it dry and the size you need. Hubby works for a lumber mill. He said get douglas fir and make sure it is kiln dried. Having it kiln dried will help against warping from heat and moisture. It is what we used for our 3 rail fence 5 years ago, and the boards all still straight. |
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Expert
Posts: 1416
Location: sc | Originally written by Rander on 2005-04-21 11:30 PM
One caveat on using pressure treated wood is that early in 2004 the chemicals used in pressure treating wood were changed to eliminate arsenic containing preservatives. The chemicals now being used are much more corrosive to metals. We are being advised to use stainless steel screws, bolts and other fasteners when working with structural PT wood. If you do use PT wood in your trailer floor it might be worth while to put something between the wood and the steel supports to prevent direct contact and slow down any corrosive effect of the chemicals. In replacing the floor in my trailer I'm using strips of neoprene on top of the metal supports and in the channels the sides and ends of the boards rest in.
do you have any refernces to this fact? i would be interesed to learn more.
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Member
Posts: 39
Location: Covington, Louisiana | chadsalt:
Sorry to be slow in responding but I've been away from the computer most of today. I dropped by the local Lowes today and found a tear sheet from the Great Southern Wood Co which produces "YellaWood" the most popular Southern yellow pine pressure treated wood. It addressed fasteners for the new ACQ (alkaline copper quatenary) pressure treated wood. The link to the company site is below and from there you can link to a pdf document that lists specific companies and fasteners. Basically, hot dipped galvanized steel, some proprietary coated fasteners and stainless steel are approved. They note in a couple of places that stainless provides the best protection. I had been advised, as I wrote, that I should use only stainless steel fasteners for the trailer floor and any "structural" work. It appears that I may have overstated my earlier email but I think the person at the lumber yard that gave me that advice was just trying to give me the safest advice. One interesting point in the sheet is the advice not to let the PT wood in direct contact with aluminum because it apparently really eats aluminum. I realize that several of you are from the West where different species are used for PT wood but I think the chemicals are the same. I'll stop now--I'm too long winded as it is. Sorry.
http://www.greatsouthernwood.com/products/product.aspx?id=14 |
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Expert
Posts: 1416
Location: sc | thanks |
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Regular
Posts: 57
| I have heard that Rumber flooing warps, does not drain, gets very slick, and is very hard to clean. |
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Regular
Posts: 55
Location: Kingston, Ontario | I have had many old trailers(steel) and had the floors replaced (by my husband who is very handy).... Never had any trouble doing it...
When you remove the old floor it gives you a good opportunity to closely check the cross supports.(for rust etc)...I think that most trailers with wood floors should probably have 12 " centers?(min)?....
re: pressure treated wood? Pressure treating doesn't mean "strenght"...I always went with hard wood (oak, ash or maple)and then treated it with a preservative myself...( strickly for protection against mosture)
Also, I continued to check the floor for any dampness / rotting on the edges.....then covered with rubber matting.
After carfully checking out the pros/cons of wood floor vs aluminum, I think for the cost, wood is more shock absorbant and easily replaced..... |
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Regular
Posts: 55
Location: Kingston, Ontario | Oh ya...forgot to add....I always went for the "rough cut" lumber...I think that it adds thickness to the boards and therefore makes them stronger.... |
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Veteran
Posts: 167
Location: Monroe, WA | Got to put in my two cents here, a lot of people are saying they are using 2x6 Pt lumber - the biggest diffference in the weight factors hauling horses and hauling other heavy stuff (like hay, heavy equipment, etc) is how the weight is distributed and applied to the floor decking. Hay weight is spread out over a large surface, ie, many fewer pounds of pressure per square foot of deck. Rubber tire equipment has it's weight concentrated on the tire footprint, while tracked equipment again spreads it out - lighter footprint weight.A thousand pound horse puts all his weight on four relatively little round feet - all the weight concentrated on (often) ONE board at a time, and OFTEN between the steel supports. OK, so it's not all thousand (or so - we have one 1450 broodmare) pounds, but that's your horse's foot and leg that will go through the floor if it fails. We always ALWAYS go with 2x8 or 2x10 treated, high grade doug fir, with NO knots or voids to cause future problems. This is one time when you do select each board, and go with the best straight clean lumber you gan get. It needs to be heavy (not just wet), dense and near flawless.We also install extra steel stringers to support the wood under the places the horses' feet usually stand, as added security. Just finished up doing this to my faithful old 2-horse walkthru, getting it ready to sell. Whoever gets this trailer will have no safety issues with the floor!I've seen the remains of a leg that was dragged a few hundred feet before the driver (ahead of me, going up to branding) got the rig stopped - a rotted board end let go, the thin 1/2 inch mat tipped down under the foot and let the hoof slide through, then trapped it so the poor damn horse could NOT drag it back in before he was ruined. I hope I never have to see that again, or shoot another horse that is injured so uselessly. |
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Expert
Posts: 1416
Location: sc | on this topic, i have a trailer i purchased new(my first new one) that came with PT flooring. just out of curiosity how long should this floor last with OCD type care? haveing only had used trailers before the floors had often just been replaced. i priced the PT lumber at lowes and i can replace it for about $125 and an afternoon, so i cant see this as a problem even if it had to be done every couple years. anyone care to share their long term experiances? |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 1011
Location: Oregon | Originally written by chadsalt on 2005-05-05 9:32 AM
Anyone care to share their long term experiances? I had a 1968 Murray 2 horse trailer. I was the second owner as of 1985. The owner had just replaced the floor within the last year. I sold the trailer in 1999 and only 1 or 2 boards needed replacing. I will also add that I never took care of the floor. I think the mats were pulled up once or twice when I owned it. It was made out of 2x6 dry lumber, not PT.
Edited by krys 2005-05-06 9:13 AM
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Regular
Posts: 57
| I just made a choice on my new Hawk that I orderd to have them put in wood floors instead of Rumber. I have done my research and hope I have made a wise choice. It sounds like wood floors last a long time. And easy enough to put in new wood if you need to. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 489
Location: CA | I had my annual trailer service last week, and had them check the wood floor as usual. I was fully expecting them to say I needed to replace it (after 14 yrs!), but no, it's still in great shape. I'm really happy with my wood floors (PT wood, BTW). I think they give a "softer" ride, are quieter, drain better, and in some cases, last longer than other types of flooring. Of course, since I didn't need to replace the floor, I spent tons-o-money on other stuff.....3" axle blocks, extra tie rings, acid wash, battery box, Fan-Tastic fan in the gooseneck, a reading light in the gooseneck....Well, you get the picture, I spent mucho dinero(sp?). Going camping next week...Yeeehaw! |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 1011
Location: Oregon | Originally written by equigal on 2005-05-03 7:39 AM
Oh ya...forgot to add....I always went for the "rough cut" lumber...I think that it adds thickness to the boards and therefore makes them stronger.... Rough cut lumber MIGHT add 1/8 of an inch. I would still get "planer ran" lumber. I looked at my boards and they are ran through a planer. That extra 1/8" might be a problem to fit them into the sides, as it is a tight fit already. |
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best wood for floor?
