> Colin,
> The point is, should you, as an authority on the subject, unnecessarily
> alarm all those Airstream owners by stating unequivocally that it, "rots out
> in no time?" The statement is overly dramatic, patently untrue and by
> definition "alarmist." Is it your intent to scare people? Cause them worry?
> Cause them to lose confidence in the Airstream product?
>
> And what would you have them do about it? Do a complete floor replacement?
>
> Constructive criticism is always welcome, but I don't want experts devaluing
> my Airstream with prejudiced opinions. Keep in mind that you only see the
> failures. Owners that are not having problems likely will not be bringing
> their Airstreams to you for repair.
>
> Forrest
Seems like I've hit a bit of a chord here......... The point is not that OSB
is an inferior product or that it should not have been used in this
application. The point is that if you lay a sheet of OSB & a sheet of
plywood out on your lawn unprotected for a season, the OSB will, without
question puff up, expand & break down into a paper mache type mush. The
plywood will suffer but not catastrophically. That means owners of trailers
with this type of subfloor have to be far more diligent about checking for
wet spots around the exterior of the floor where it meets the wall. That
being said, every decade of Airstream production has its strong
points.........and weak points, & this happens to be a weak point........in
my opinion. The reason why I am so adamant about this is because I have seen
so many poor attempts at structural repairs which I end up trying make right
for the current owner. This is often far more costly to repair than if it
had just been left alone.
As everyone knows, Airstreams are a "monocoque" structure, well actually
they are a "semi monocoque" structure. "Monocoque" is derived from the
French words "mono" meaning one and "coque" meaning shell. This means that
the main structural element is "the shell". Now, in the world of Airstream,
the frame supports X amount of the load & the "shell" supports the rest,
which is why Airstreams are Semi-monocoque's. The link between the frame &
the shell is critical. Just as a side note, Airstream frames will take a
"set" or bend under their own weight. The shell is actually needed to hold
the ends up. In the SOB world, very stout frames are built in order to
support a non structural box. This is why SOB's typically weigh more per
foot than Airstreams (and their Silver Cousins, sorry Tom) do. Back to the
story here, the floor is the critical link between the shell & the frame.
The frame of the post 1950 Airstreams is a "ladder" type frame, which has
two main rails connected together with a series of crossmembers. Extending
out from the main rails, inline with the crossmembers are outriggers. The
ends of the outriggers are then in turn connected to the shell through the
FLOOR with bolts. When the roof leaks, water runs down inside the walls to
the perimeter of the floor & rots it. The water, which in our current world
is often acid rain, creates a galvanic reaction between the steel bolts &
the aluminum "C" channel in the base of the wall. In addition to the wood
floor rotting out, the heads of the bolts often pull through the "C" channel
releasing the shell from the frame. This is why the so called "git rot" &
epoxy repairs don't actually work for this type of repair. The only way to
repair issues of this magnitude is to gain access to the inside of the wall
& replace the bolts & the mushy or missing floor wood. The ends of the
outriggers often rust off as well so some welding may be required.
So...........the moral of the story is to check the perimeter of all era's
of Airstream's for wetness. The OSB era trailers are failing far quicker
than the non OSB trailers. It's not a minor problem. Niagra Falls started as
a trickle of water!
Forrest, the clients with this era of trailer do not typically come here for
a floor replacement, they arrive with numerous other symptoms which
typically all revert back to that little trickle of water. The 02 that
showed up wanted their carpet replaced, but when we pulled it out we
discovered that the galley end was soaked. Upon further examination, severe
rot & a wild array of mold growth was found. I suspect that many shops (I
can show you examples of that too) would have just put new floor covering in
& called it a day, however that is not how we do it here. Most owners are
oblivious to what is going on at the base of their walls. Addressing the
leaks & localized floor repairs are generally all that is required to bring
it back to its original strength. If your trailer is suffering from these
problems, it should be devalued, & if it is not or it has been repaired
correctly you should & will reap the benefits when you sell it, not to
mention the piece of mind while you own it.
I will point out though that every trailer does not have to be a concourse
special & be perfect in every way. In the vintage car world, there is such a
thing as a "daily driver" which is structurally sound but a little tired
around the edges, & there is nothing wrong with this. My wife is an antique
nut & that is called Patina. However a vintage car with body mounts rusted
out or possibly a cracked or rusted out chassis is just a hazard on the
road.
I am planning on conducting a seminar at the Vintage Trailer Jam
www.vintagetrailerjam.com in Saratoga Springs, NY in July of this year on
this subject showing examples of these problems & what they can ultimately
affect.
Hopefully you are enlightened by this posting & not "alarmed". It's the
reality of Vintage Airstream ownership.
Colin Hyde
GSM Vehicles Inc.
Plattsburgh, NY
WBCCI, VAC 1936
VAC Technical Advisor
www.thevap.com The Vintage Airstream Podcast