Trailer Deck Replacement

Instead of apitong you could use oak, but the price is comparable. I would not recommend plywood. Some shippers won't load a trailer with a plywood floor. Besides, plywood won't last very long. It could be used temporarily to patch a couple of holes until you can do it right. You need to use a hard wood for a trailer floor. If money is an issue, you might consider doing it piecemeal until you have the entire floor done.

 

I'm in a similar situation, and my thread is just a few below yours. Do not use plywood. It has nowhere near the PSI rating needed for hauling freight. You can use steel plate if you don't want to get hardwood, but apitong is reasonably priced if you're going to be doing it yourself.

http://www.trailerdecking.com/Default.aspx

 

Weve all been at a starting point or in a bind, would doing it n sections or saving up to do it all be an option? I dont think you want to redeck it twice.

 

If the majority of the deck is solid just repair what is bad. I would measure the old wood to get an idea of the thickness. My guess is 1" is a little too thick. The last repair I did I took the apitong to a wood working shop along with an old piece of floor and they milled it to the same height. By matching the deck you won't be tripping over the splice in the floor. As far as the old floor if it is curling up and warped, treat it with a 50/ 50 mix of boiled linseed oil and turpentine. Your floor will level out. Wear gloves and be carefull with the linseed it will burn your skin. May want to wear safety glasses too. That combo will soak right into your floor and if you do that every year or two you will never have to replace your floor. I'm a little picky so I try to match the floor pattern to what the factory did even if it means removing some surrounding floor to get it right. The old floor screws break off pretty easily and then you just put new screws in. I like apitong but any hardwood will do, i'd stay away from plywood. I would get several floor screw bits because you are going to eat them up. If you drill a hole with a drill bit it will take longer but go easier. God's blessing on you and your project! P.S. If you have gaps between the boards the boiled linseed oil will cause the wood to swell up and close up those gaps.

 

Hardwood..........well to keep it simple.....in native North American species suitable for this: either Red or White Oak.

Apitong is imported....great stuff. If your old deck is all off; get the 1 5/16" stock and it will wear that much longer!

Don't....DON'T use 5/4 PT decking for this......

 

Hi, Admiral. I just purchased a brand new Fontaine flatbed. This sounds like a great idea! Is this something you recommend for brand new trailers, as well? Also, how does one apply the concoction?


And to the OP, Fontaine has a program where they take old trailers like yours and refurbish them to like new condition. I'm not sure how much it costs, but maybe it'd be worth looking into.

 

I use the same mixture.............in the sun on anice hot day......with a brush!!!

 

A brush it is!