Carpet removal and new flooring install thread.

[Skillet]

Huh, didn't know there was something underneath that. Just figured it opened up inside the dash. Might have to try that! I'm 50/50 on that wood dash inlay. It's unique but very dated to me.

[Blue~Go]

Yeah, I found that for the longest time I was keeping it just because well, it was a "special" thing. But I didn't like it at all. Once I found out I could remove it easily with no harm done (hey, lunch stop at a pretty overlook, why not take the dash apart ), that's what I did. I was amazed at how much I preferred the driving experience without something "busy" on the dash. And it can be put back on any time, just some screws.

On mine there was no glue or anything, just the screws you see holding it onto the factory dash panel (which is really dark grey). I put the finger of a rubber glove on the screwdriver to keep from marring the black screw heads (I think I used a Phillips 00, but I can't remember for sure), then just put the screws back into the holes. Figured I'd look for a new dash panel but now I like it, so no need.

I did the same thing on the doors, but it was slightly less satisfactory as the wooden pieces left "dents" in the padded doors. There is a post on here where someone else Plasti-dipped the wood in black, and that looked pretty cool, so maybe that's a good solution for the door wood (and I guess it peels right back off later).

[Manitou]

Keeping the dream alive here..
My brother had an interesting idea. Instead of 1/2" plywood to raise the floor over those bolts.. How about 1/2" insulation foam? Would be cushy like underpayment and possibly provide better inhalation rating(?).

[Skillet]

Would it create a dip in the floor as the continued weight from walking on it would press it down over time? I like the idea, just wondering.

[Manitou]

ahh good point. A little googling turned up this:
http://www.doityourself.com/forum/solid ... ion.html#b

New slightly modified idea.. 1/2" pink foam board and 1/8" sheathing plywood layer, then laminate vinyl flooring.

[Chinookers]

On flooring, someday I'll get around to ripping out the carpeting and installing wood or vinyl or tile, but back in 2012 I took a short cut and installed rubberized "SoftTile" over the top of the carpet, which has proved to be much better than I expected. Here are a couple of related links from the blog:

http://chinookers.blogspot.com/2012/11/ ... oored.html
http://chinookers.blogspot.com/2012/11/tada.html

The SoftTile is comfortable to walk or kneel on, and cleans up easily. The dogs find it comfortable too!

[Skillet]

Hmmm, I might go that route! Everytime I pass those in Costco I thought maybe I could do that. Now that you've done it... So since you're recommending it, can I assume it was all it was cracked up to be since it's been installed for about 3yrs? No sliding? Just lay on top of the base flooring?

[Chinookers]

Hmmm, I might go that route! Everytime I pass those in Costco I thought maybe I could do that. Now that you've done it... So since you're recommending it, can I assume it was all it was cracked up to be since it's been installed for about 3yrs? No sliding? Just lay on top of the base flooring?

I haven't seen the ones in Costco - mine were from SoftTile online
(http://www.softtiles.com/?gclid=CMjKwY_ ... QgodsR4Aog)

It has held up to a LOT of use from me, my wife, and our two dogs.

The gray color works nicely in our unit



Fitting it took several hours - I wanted to get perfect edge to edge sizing

Most of it stays tightly interlocked. There was some movement on the edge piece near the door and the edge piece near the front seats - this was fixed by bonding the edge pieces to adjacent squares with high strength duct tape underneath.

Due to the thickness of the tiles the drop down door under the sofa and the drop down doors under the dinette do not lay flat against the floor - hasn't been a problem for us

It has protected against several water spills and one doggy 'accident'

Because it is soft it's comfortable to walk or kneel on, but my wife says sometimes she finds it slightly unstable when we are say on a slope (but there again she's no longer a spring chicken LOL)

[Skillet]

It's just me and my 2 german shepherds so it doesn't have to be perfect. You did a very good job with yours. Did you remove any furniture to go underneath (like the couch)? I like the idea of soft on the knees too.

You certainly get more variety than Costco at the link you provided. I could go all dinosaur if I wanted!

[Manitou]

I recall seeing a breaker for "nu heat" the floor heating system. I've never found a switch to activate such a thing, so I assumed my rig just had the breaker.. Maybe some wiring but not the actual feature. Anyone know some details about this? I spent some time in single digit cold last year and would have loved the feature.
Perhaps just some better flooring insulation would be good enough though. Thoughts?
Thanks!