LuLu Gets a New Floor – Part 2

In part 2, I’m going to go over the intricacies putting down LuLu’s floor (and subfloor). For the overview (or if you haven’t read it, see part 1). I won’t be going over the rust process here, so I have that linked as well.

LuLu Gets a New Floor – Part 1
Project LuLu: Rust Bucket

Subfloor

Materials:

Sound-dampening Insulation
XPS Insulation
Aluminum Tape
1/2″ Plywood
Concrobium Mold Control Spray
Zinsser Mold Killing Primer

For the part of the floor that won’t be visible, the vehicle itself served as the subfloor. On top of that I strategically placed sound-dampening insulation made by Canopus, then XPS insulation, and finally the top layer of the subfloor is a plywood underlayment. These are all linked above.

It’s important to have a snug fit for the insulation, and this was the most mind-numbing process for me. The Dungineer used spray paint to transfer the grooves of the van floor onto their insulation and then carved out the places that had paint transfer. It looked so easy and made so much sense, so that is what I decided to do. It wasn’t easy, it wasn’t fun, and I also don’t feel particularly proud of the job I did.

There were, however, some obvious differences between him and I that I should point out. To start, while my insulation was XPS, the brand was different so it was white (meaning white spray paint wasn’t as visible). I also didn’t have the same tool to carve with, so I made due with a utility knife and spoon. I also have a poor sense of time, so I thought it would be quick and it really wasn’t. In addition to that, I did it indoors, so it made a huge mess. Easily vacuumed, but just be prepared depending on the location you choose for your project.

After using aluminum tape to tape my seams, I laid 1/2″ plywood on top. The floor is essentially a “floating” floor so none of these points are anchored to the body of the vehicle. I was able to use a single sheet of plywood for this. The floor dimensions are 63″x64″ and the gentleman at the lumber yard was happy to cut the plywood to fit. I believe his words were “For any woman who is going to try this, I’m happy to make as many cuts as you need. If you need it trimmed at all, just bring it back and I’ll trim it for you.”

Note: I sprayed the bed, the foam, and the plywood with mold preventative before layering. I also treated the plywood with Zinsser primer to prevent water damage from things like condensation and mold. Better safe than sorry! This doesn’t need to look pretty, so it just took a few quick rolls of the primer to do the job.

Preparing the Wood

Once the subfloor was in place, there was a lot of work that went into preparing and making the wood floor. My first task was to rip apart old pallets to harvest the planks. I started by trying to just pry them apart with a flat pry bar but those nails are really in there. I switched to using a reciprocating saw with the nail-embedded wood blade. It wasn’t the easiest but I also had a lot of help cutting.

Note: If you are not interested in keeping the nail holes preserved, you absolutely do not need to do this! Take the saw of your choice and just cut through the planks to the dimensions you need or want.

Once we had our planks gathered, I went to work (along with my mom and my niece) removing the leftover screws and nails embedded in the planks. Something about this part was very satisfying to me. I basically used an ice pick and a hammer and just hammered them out. Some were loose enough to put the hammer claw under and rip out, so I did that whenever possible.

Up next is to prepare the wood to be laid. This process involved the following steps:

1. Match planks by thickness, discarding any that are too thick or too thin
2. Select the best overall planks and set aside (including straight, quality/knots, cracks, complete pieces)
3. Sort remainder by how much can be used after cutting out cracks, etc.
4. Cut wood to size for desired floor pattern
5. Fill knots, holes, and cracks (I used clear epoxy resin, pictured left)
6. Sand, sand, and sand again starting with a heavier grit, working to a finer grit sandpaper(make sure not to use anything finer than about a 220 grit if you plan to stain)

My advice after going through this process is that it will take more work initially, but save much more work in the end if you mill you planks down. Make them straight and remove bends, even if it changes the dimensions. Not required, but will save you a headache later.

I also decided to stain my boards before laying (omitted above). I wouldn’t recommend doing this because it didn’t benefit me in the long run. It gave me the dopamine boost I needed to keep working through the project, but I ended up having to completely re-stain everything regardless.

Laying the Floor

Once my planks were prepped, it was time for the fun part. I had decided before I made any cuts what kind of pattern I wanted for my floor, taking into account the length of the standard plank (40″) compared to the space I’d be filling. I made a mock-up using graph paper (pictures below) and found a nice pattern that repeated, but not frequently. The lengths I decided on were 40″, 32″, 8″, 16″, and 24″ pieces.

Next up, I took my planks to my van and I laid them in my decided pattern on top of the subfloor. I moved pieces around so my favorite pieces would be more visible. I also made sure to note how the pieces came together to avoid larger than necessary spaces between the boards.

After much research into the best way to adhere the planks in place, I decided to use Loctite PL400, which is a construction-grade subfloor adhesive. Originally, I had planned to use finishing nails to nail directly into the underlayment, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted visible nails. Then, I thought about nailing from the side with a nail gun like you might for tongue and groove hardwood flooring, but I needed a special kind of nail gun (which I didn’t want to purchase).

Loctite PL400 comes in a caulk tube and I found it really fun to work with. I’m picky with my adhesives (mostly because I’m impatient) but I would definitely recommend this one! There is only a brief window that you can adjust it, meaning that I didn’t have to figure out a way to clamp it down. It does have a longer cure time, but that is a trade off I’m more than happy to make.

Here’s where I ran into trouble with this part: I bought wood clamps but for some reason bought clamps that were way too small. They could clamp 2 planks together side-by-side but that was it.

Essentially, I started with a relatively straight and central piece and glued it down by making a 1/4″ strip winding all the way down the length of the board. Then, I would take the next plank, glue it, and then clamp it to its neighbor. The goal here was to eliminate bends as much as possible while the glue was drying. I ended up getting some longer clamps and it helped, but I still could have benefited from longer ones. The ones I purchased were ratcheting bar clamps, and I would highly recommend (as long as you get the right size).

Needless to say, its a floor made by a beginner using reclaimed wood, so it has its flaws. There were places I needed to clamp and glue for extra long. I had to use shims in various spots to level the floor. When waiting for the adhesive to cure, I also had to weigh down some sections so they didn’t bow. Overall, however, I’m pretty happy with it how it came out!

The floor has been a bigger job than I ever anticipated, so in Part 3 I’ll tell you how I finished the floor and do the final reveal! Stay tuned and tell me what you think! Any tips to pass along? Let me know below!