Plywood for 4x8 trailer floor

[supton]

Put my foot through mine last time I used it, so it's time. 8ish years on whatever OSB the local place told me I ought to use, some sort of long life flooring... beats me what it was. Am tempted to pick up a sheet of pressure treated plywood from Lowes instead, maybe it'll handle being wet better? Any reason to not to go this route?

Trailer is stored outside, is often buried in snow. Replacing the flooring every decade doesn't bother me. Well, I won't enjoy it, but it seems to reasonable. I realize I ought to use stainless carriage bolts.

 

[spasm3]

With out seeing it, is it possible to use treated 2x4 and put the crown side up? treated plywood my hold up better, but if water just sits on it, it will still probably warp/ delaminate over time.

 

[abycat]

I used actual plywood. good one side and 1" thick. It was in my pressure wash trailer. was an open trailer for two years then I enclosed it and used it for another 3 years. held up great.

 

[andyd]

Wabbout 3/4 or 5/4 PT southern yellow pine wit a few gaps for drainage?

 

[Clevy]

Plywood handles a direct hit better than OSB does but isn't as strong laterally,but that isn't relevant on a trailer is it.
If using plywood you can either treat it with some form of waterproofer,or use pressure treated.
As a carpenter I'd do both. Treat the edges with a waterproofer to keep moisture from creeping up and call er done. A sheet of 3/4 will last you another decade or more easy.
If carrying stuff like block or broken concrete I'd double up layers of pt plywood and use pl-400 or some type of construction adhesive to bond the 2 sheets. It would take a force hard enough to buckle the trailer before it'll bust through the plywood.

 

[IndyIan]

I think the issue with pressure treated is that it will rust exposed metal quickly.
Deck screws for pressure treated are now ceramic coated, so I assume its no joke.
If you like the trailer, maybe price out a sheet of expanded metal and have it tacked on?
Some 1.5" by 6" white cedar boards would last along time too, look up a local sawmiller.

 

[cancov]

I've been considering picking up a 4x8 Harbor Freight trailer and installing 5/4"x6x8 decking boards. While these boards tend to "draw" while new, I've envisioned buying the boards and allowing them to "dry" by placing them in partial shade and flipping the boards every couple of days. Granted, this process will take a few weeks to complete and isn't a quick fix but should be a long-term solution that can be treated later with a sealant as well.

 

[tomcat27]

my snowmobile trailer (also used for ATV's and tons of other stuf) still has its factory plywood on it - which I believe is pressure treated 3/4" or 13/16. trailer is probably 20 years old.

 

[datech]

what about that synthetic recycled decking, looks like wood, weather's like plastic.

 

[Brybo86]

Originally Posted By: datech
what about that synthetic recycled decking, looks like wood, weather's like plastic.

Trex?

 

[Clevy]

Originally Posted By: datech
what about that synthetic recycled decking, looks like wood, weather's like plastic.


Trexx. And it's utter garbage. The stuff only expands,never contracts. It's total garbage.
I've used it twice on very large and expensive outdoor living spaces. 4 years after install the owners called me up to rip it all off and replace with cedar,which I tried to sell them on before using the trexx stuff.
The mitres had expanded so much in length and width there was buckling everywhere. In all my years I'd never seen anything like it.
Perhaps a more temperate or dryer climate would be more appropriate,like the desert,but Georgian bay was NOT the right place to use it.
Just use Pressure treated plywood. Simple,cheap and easy.

 

[zking67]

another option would be to use pressure treated wood boards like decking (Italian pine or pine )we have them on our front veranda painted them grey then you could just use wood deck sealant every 4-5 years or so. Use the width of a screw as spacers for drainage when building. hope that this helps , BTW our front porch is 15 years old no board replaced the back deck is 12yrs old with no boards replaced yet.

Cheers
Mike Z
2013 Chevy spark "Lily-Heather" M-1 synthetic 0w20
... MY dad always says a good car is like a good woman, Take care of her and she won't leave you at the side of the road at 3 A.M.

 

[donnyj08]

Originally Posted By: Clevy
Originally Posted By: datech
what about that synthetic recycled decking, looks like wood, weather's like plastic.


Trexx. And it's utter garbage. The stuff only expands,never contracts. It's total garbage.
I've used it twice on very large and expensive outdoor living spaces. 4 years after install the owners called me up to rip it all off and replace with cedar,which I tried to sell them on before using the trexx stuff.
The mitres had expanded so much in length and width there was buckling everywhere. In all my years I'd never seen anything like it.
Perhaps a more temperate or dryer climate would be more appropriate,like the desert,but Georgian bay was NOT the right place to use it.
Just use Pressure treated plywood. Simple,cheap and easy.


As the son of a contractor, who used to work for my father for 8 years i know the feeling... avoid the Trexx it is a poor substitute for planks.

To the OP 3/4 plywood coated yearly with a deck sealant will work well. Deck planks or 2x6 planks would work well also, if you don't mind having Gaps.

 

[Nick1994]

Yup use wood decking planks and get out a roller and some decking sealant and it'll last a long time.

 

[bvance554]

Originally Posted By: Clevy
Originally Posted By: datech
what about that synthetic recycled decking, looks like wood, weather's like plastic.


Trexx. And it's utter garbage. The stuff only expands,never contracts. It's total garbage.
I've used it twice on very large and expensive outdoor living spaces. 4 years after install the owners called me up to rip it all off and replace with cedar,which I tried to sell them on before using the trexx stuff.
The mitres had expanded so much in length and width there was buckling everywhere. In all my years I'd never seen anything like it.
Perhaps a more temperate or dryer climate would be more appropriate,like the desert,but Georgian bay was NOT the right place to use it.
Just use Pressure treated plywood. Simple,cheap and easy.


It sounded good on paper. I've heard the same from everyone who has owned it for a few years.

 

[Clevy]

Originally Posted By: bvance554
Originally Posted By: Clevy
Originally Posted By: datech
what about that synthetic recycled decking, looks like wood, weather's like plastic.


Trexx. And it's utter garbage. The stuff only expands,never contracts. It's total garbage.
I've used it twice on very large and expensive outdoor living spaces. 4 years after install the owners called me up to rip it all off and replace with cedar,which I tried to sell them on before using the trexx stuff.
The mitres had expanded so much in length and width there was buckling everywhere. In all my years I'd never seen anything like it.
Perhaps a more temperate or dryer climate would be more appropriate,like the desert,but Georgian bay was NOT the right place to use it.
Just use Pressure treated plywood. Simple,cheap and easy.


It sounded good on paper. I've heard the same from everyone who has owned it for a few years.



Absolutely. And all the literature on it made it sound like a lifetime of beauty and only cost 50% more than cedar,but the truth of the matter was that the stuff was great in a dry warm climate. Add snow or extreme heat,mixed in with some rain and the small wood fibres embedded in the plastic would expand,like OSB and due to the plastic encapsulation the moisture could never escape.
I built 2 huge decks including a dock and a 200' walkway to the dock,and I tore it all apart.
I framed everything with galvanized nails,pressure treated undercarriage and screwed the trexx down,so it came apart easy enough,the indercarriage was stellar,no rot or anything and I used that green treatment on all the cut ends,so my framing looked great 4 years later,but the trexx was buckled and twisted and looked like a bomb went off on top of it.
Never again. I will walk away from the job if that's what the customer wants. No way will I have my name attached to that brutality.
And the trexx lifetime guarantee is a joke. They cover product only. Not labour. So you can build some real pretty stuff that ends up looking like garbage and can only re-coup a small percentage of the total expenditure.
Cedar costs less,lasts longer and is easy to replace if a few boards rot out. Doesn't require complete rebuild.
Ya wood. In a thousand years man still can't find a more cost effective building material.

 

[eljefino]

My FIL, a carpenter, swears by "Advantech" chipboard for sheathing. To hear him tell it, he buried some in some swampy leaves for several years then dug it out and there was no rot or anything on it.

Now I know fungus rot is different than saltwater/ road rot, but if you get some in 3/4, I can see it lasting.

 

[supton]

I honestly don't recall what kind of chip board this was, it did ok. Advantech? Sure, could have been that...

Trailer is an eight year HF trailer. Half the paint is gone, but structurally seems ok. Do want wood, it makes it easier to zip something down if I need to. 1,500lb rating, don't think I've gotten close to that.

Decking planks sounds interesting, but like a lot of work to secure. I would have to drill the frame for a large number of carriage bolts. But it probably would last much longer, and not need treating. Those are what, six inches wide, so eight planks and 24 bolts?

 

[Hokiefyd]

I was also going to suggest 5/4 board. You can sometimes get them in different widths. 5" and 6" seem common. My 5x8 trailer has the expanded metal mesh floor, but I'd like to line with 5/4 boards at some point. My issue is I move the trailer around by hand to park it (across the front lawn an into the back yard through a side gate), so I can't suffer much increase in weight.

 

[supton]

A couple of times I've tossed stuff onto the tail of my trailer, just to make it balance a bit easier. Thin tires cut into the lawn though, so I don't add too much. Just enough to make it easier to lift the tongue.

*

Hmm, ok, maybe I'll look into this 5/4 board then, longer lasting is longer lasting. Once I get the old flooring ripped up I'll see what the frame looks like (darn these ever-shortening days!).