New Carpeting

[Dean & Linda Stock]

I want to re-carpet our 38-foot motorhome.  I know nothing.  I'm sure the Framily have done this many times.  Please tell me what I need to know.  Any suggestions on type of carpet, dealers, etc. would be appreciated.  Is there anything I should be careful of?  Did anyone make any booboos that I can learn from and not repeat?  I have hated this carpet for 6 years, ever since we bought the coach, and I am going to ask for the re-carpeting for Christmas.

Thanks for advice.  RVForumites have made our RVing so much more pleasant and have helped us avoid many pitfalls.

 

[Tom and Margi]

We ripped out most of our carpeting and replaced it with Pergo flooring and I love it!  You can "warm it up" with throw rugs.

Forum member Ernie Ekberg is very knowledgeable and helpful.  Hopefully he will see your post and chime in.

Margi

 

[Dean & Linda Stock]

We ripped out most of our carpeting and replaced it with Pergo flooring and I love it!  You can "warm it up" with throw rugs.

Forum member Ernie Ekberg is very knowledgeable and helpful.  Hopefully he will see your post and chime in.

Margi

I mentioned doing exactly that to Dean, and I'm glad to hear that it's successful for you.  This is just the kind of info I'm hoping for.  Where did you get it done?

 

[Ernie Ekberg]

I'm here. What would you like to do?

 

[warsw]

If carpet is the way you want to go, have it done by someone that does home carpet installs. They lay carpet for a living and will do a way better job than some dealers will do.

Most any good home carpet will work in your M/H but some type of Berber will hold up better and not show traffic patterns.

Use a really good pad under the carpet. It adds to the quality feel of the carpet and does a pretty good job of insolating out some of the road noise while you are traveling.

 

[SeilerBird]

I am going to Texas next month to have Ernie redo my carpeting. I would not let a normal carpet installer near my RV. I want someone who does RV carpeting for a living. A normal carpet installer might not get it right carpeting around slides and engine covers.

 

[Tom and Margi]

I mentioned doing exactly that to Dean, and I'm glad to hear that it's successful for you.  This is just the kind of info I'm hoping for.  Where did you get it done?

We were in Des Moines, IA when we replaced the carpet in our motorhome with a wood floor (not Pergo, but something else).  Sorry, can't remember the carpet dealer's name.  This motorhome did not have a slide.

In our current fifth wheel, we bought the Pergo and matching molding from Lowe's.  They will not install in RVs, but recommended two installers who work for them and will "moonlight" for RVs.  They did a wonderful job.  We chose not to replace the little bit of carpet on the slidein front of the couch and my desk.  Don't know how they would have handled that.  Ours is not a flat floor slide, unfortunately.  The top (carpet) slides effortlessly over the bottom (wood) however.

Margi

 

[Ernie n Tara]

We bought Acclaim at Lowes and installed it from BR to the dog house. It took several half days to do and has worked out very well. We did do the slide and faced it with the same material.
Ernie

 

[ArdraF]

We had carpet in our first several motorhomes and I grew to hate it - constantly trying to keep it clean (we wear our shoes inside).  So when we ordered our current motorhome we opted for tile all the way back to the bedroom where we have carpet.  I like it so much better!  It's much easier to keep clean.  I learned something last night on the "Extreme RVs" TV show.  Newell was doing one with tile and the installer mentioned using a grout that has a slight flexing ability which is good for our rolling homes as they go down the road.  I'd look for that.  Also get a really top-notch grout sealer.  We've had a couple of really dirty things (oil for example) that came right up.

In our last motorhome we had wood in the kitchen area and it got dinged a lot, so be sure to get one of the newer tougher wood floors if you go that route.  I think our first one back in the 1970s had a linoleum of some type and it wasn't too bad.  Sheet vinyl cleans pretty well and may be the easiest to care for, but it isn't "modern" or "elegant" enough for many people.  I think one reason manufacturers use so much carpet is that it deadens sound while driving.

None are perfect, but some are nicer than others!

ArdraF

 

[Dean & Linda Stock]

Thanks to all!  I have copied everything that everyone said, and I think the first thing we have to decide is wood, tile, carpet, or Pergo.  So, we have a lot of work to do.  I appreciate everyone's help.