Our first trip.......from hell!

**WhittleBurner** · 06-12-2014, 10:34 AM

Tim, that is a big ouch. Can't say I'd be any happier than you if the table was turned my way. But I do have confidence that GD will come through in the end (judging from others posted stories). I hope the dealer was giving you the worst case in time and it comes home sooner.

**Bamaman** · 06-12-2014, 05:25 PM

We're not talking about brain surgery here. We're talking about a trailer that didn't take very long to be built from scratch.

I'd hope your trailer won't be in the shop 5 weeks. If I was a dealer, a frame off re-flooring is not something I'd even want sitting in my service department. I'd want that trailer fixed and returned to you before any customers see the damage to the floor.

I don't know if GD's are floored with OSB like most other RV's??? If so, pay the difference and have it refloored with plywood. Plywood's no harder to work with than OSB--within reason.

**thompsons 369rl** · 06-12-2014, 06:49 PM

5 weeks does seem like a very long time even if the entire floor needs replacing. As to the plywood vs OSB issue. My guess is the major reason OSB is so widely used is cost. Here is some info on the advantages and disadvantages of using OSB over plywood. It seems to me that if the cut edges of the OSB were somehow treated to seal out moisture it would be as good, if not BETTER than plywood.

OSB has some advantages over plywood:
•OSB is generally more square and has smaller dimensional tolerances
•It can be manufactured into panels of up to 8' x 24', far larger than plywood
•There are no soft spots such as those that can occur in plywood
•OSB is made from smaller (often farmed) trees reducing the demand for old growth timber
•OSB has greater shear strength than plywood; the span rating, nail pull and screw hold are all roughly the same
•It can be $3 to $5 a panel less expensive than plywood. For a typical 2400 square foot home, OSB will save about $700 if used as the subfloor, sheathing, and roof decking instead of plywood.

The major disadvantage of OSB is that if it gets exposed to significant amounts of water or moisture, the edges expand by up to 15%. . .especially if they are cut edges. This swell will then telegraph onto the shingles or some flooring. When plywood gets wet, it expands evenly throughout the panel, dries more quickly and shrinks down to its original size more rapidly than OSB.

source: PATH Previously the Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing

**chris** · 06-12-2014, 08:53 PM

Great info!
Ct..

Originally Posted by thompsons 369rl

5 weeks does seem like a very long time even if the entire floor needs replacing. As to the plywood vs OSB issue. My guess is the major reason OSB is so widely used is cost. Here is some info on the advantages and disadvantages of using OSB over plywood. It seems to me that if the cut edges of the OSB were somehow treated to seal out moisture it would be as good, if not BETTER than plywood.

OSB has some advantages over plywood:
•OSB is generally more square and has smaller dimensional tolerances
•It can be manufactured into panels of up to 8' x 24', far larger than plywood
•There are no soft spots such as those that can occur in plywood
•OSB is made from smaller (often farmed) trees reducing the demand for old growth timber
•OSB has greater shear strength than plywood; the span rating, nail pull and screw hold are all roughly the same
•It can be $3 to $5 a panel less expensive than plywood. For a typical 2400 square foot home, OSB will save about $700 if used as the subfloor, sheathing, and roof decking instead of plywood.

The major disadvantage of OSB is that if it gets exposed to significant amounts of water or moisture, the edges expand by up to 15%. . .especially if they are cut edges. This swell will then telegraph onto the shingles or some flooring. When plywood gets wet, it expands evenly throughout the panel, dries more quickly and shrinks down to its original size more rapidly than OSB.

source: PATH Previously the Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing

**Bamaman** · 06-12-2014, 09:59 PM

The major disadvantage of OSB is that if it gets exposed to significant amounts of water or moisture, the edges expand by up to 15%. . .especially if they are cut edges. This swell will then telegraph onto the shingles or some flooring. When plywood gets wet, it expands evenly throughout the panel, dries more quickly and shrinks down to its original size more rapidly than OSB.

Your pros are not enough to overcome the cons you noted. As someone that's had to rebuild both ends of a travel trailer with OSB flooring, I can attest that plywood's preferred by me. And you can actually glue down vinyl flooring to plywood--something you cannot do to OSB without screwing down 1/4" plywood over the OSB.

**thompsons 369rl** · 06-12-2014, 10:40 PM

Originally Posted by Bamaman

The major disadvantage of OSB is that if it gets exposed to significant amounts of water or moisture, the edges expand by up to 15%. . .especially if they are cut edges. This swell will then telegraph onto the shingles or some flooring. When plywood gets wet, it expands evenly throughout the panel, dries more quickly and shrinks down to its original size more rapidly than OSB.

Your pros are not enough to overcome the cons you noted. As someone that's had to rebuild both ends of a travel trailer with OSB flooring, I can attest that plywood's preferred by me. And you can actually glue down vinyl flooring to plywood--something you cannot do to OSB without screwing down 1/4" plywood over the OSB.

Just want to point out that these are not MY opinions. I'm simply providing some info from a respected source.

**mtpocket** · 06-13-2014, 05:34 AM

Sounds like osb is an advantage to the manufacturer. Easier and cheaper. For the consumers plywoond gets the nod. I will pick marine plywood everytime.

**Eaglehead** · 06-14-2014, 08:30 AM

That really sucks having that kind of problem with a brand new camper. In my experiences with campers there are some that are worse than others as they ALL will have some type of issues, the question is like others have pointed out is how well the dealer or Mfg. is going to take care of you. We bought a new 2012 Forest River Surveyor SV301 in 2012 and the first 4 months of ownership it spent 3 months in the shop waiting for repairs as the wheels turn slow for some things . We traded that unit for a 2013 Lance 2285 TT and I had issues with it the very day we picked it up which was Oct. 2012 from the dealer and we continued to have issues with it until Dec. 2013.
Water leaks are the worst to deal with as I was in the remodeling business for 25 years. My opinion about replacing the flooring with anything other than what the mfg. recommends is that it would be on your nickel and they more than likely won't want to stand behind it either.
OSB , if installed properly , and allowing it is designed for flooring use, it will have tongue and groove joints so one panel locks into the next one.
If it were me I would push for Grand Designs to take this unit back and give me a new one, that would probably be a first but that would really attest to their commitment to building the best camper on the market. If they did that you can bet your arse they would make darn sure that EVERYONE on the assembly line did their job correctly or they wouldn't have one.