Re-decking trailer

[Egon]

But what if'n your trailer ain't got them slide in things and you want a stiffen it up a bit by bolting the boards to each cross member??

 

[architect]

Just bought a 9990# flat bed trailer, 2012 model, so wood was aged a bit by sun, I decided to put a coat of clear water treatment on it, any opinions on treating the treated wood to last longer?

 

[Soundguy]

black aspahlat fence paint.

I trat all my wood deck trailers with it. coat liberally. 5g is cheaper than pait or stain.

bugs and mold don't like it. and it make sthe boards last quite a while. I've got a 16' flat bed that I redecked in 04 or so.. it's a 2000 or 2001 model.. oem boards diet in that short time. the boards on it now are still going. .. I painte dthem liberally with that asphalt paint. was a messy install even after cure.. but it was worth it. then i recoated after being in place.

 

[Car Doc]

I dont know if used motor oil would work as a sealer you probably wouldn't want to move a nice set of furniture on the deck but I have accidentally spilled quite a bit of oil on my floors before with no known adverse affects. I only give a trailer floor about 5-7 years life anyway but that's my stuff ymmv as always.

 

[Soundguy]

there are far better and safer ( for the environment ) products out there than the used motor oil. that asphalt paint for example.

sure there is a cost factor.. etc.. but it also ures and dries and doesn't transfer onto that good furniture.

 

[sparc]

I just recently redecked my 30' gn, I re-used the original holes by placing the new board in place and reached under the trailer with a can of spray paint to mark the holes, flipped the board over and drilled with no problems. My only concern with the new deck is the corrosion caused by the new pressure treating chemical, both for my trailer and the deck screws.

Anyone placed some sort of barrier between the cross members and the PT lumber to isolate it from the wood? I'm thinking a strip of roofing paper or maybe neoprene or even some type of heavy duty tape.

If the wood were seperated from the channel in this way would it reduce/hinder corrosion of the frame where it contacts the wood?

 

[Cpjlube]

I wouldn't be surprised if the asphalt paint isn't just as bad, for the environment, as motor oil. They are closely related. The used oil thinned a bit with turpentine might make a good first coat. As long as you don't pour it on you could paint it on safely.

 

[oldballs]

I'm on my third re-deck of a 1998 equipment trailer....used the original cross member holes (where possible), drilled from below...used 2 x 8 PT yellow pine...bought the self tapping screws from the trailer manufacturer....needed a couple carriage bolts in some places. The fore and aft of the planks are all carriage bolts as per the OEM.

The OE planks were 2 x 6 but I decided to go with the 2 x 8 even though the holes didn't line up evenly. One 2 x 6 was needed to finish it off. I've been using Boiled Linseed Oil over the years, doing it twice per years as a rule; but the asphalt fence paint could be a better choice. And I quit hauling tons of gravel from now on. Much of the old decking is saved for other uses around the place.

But, heck, I'm retired with not much else to do but fool with my stuff.

 

[Creamer]

I wouldn't be surprised if the asphalt paint isn't just as bad, for the environment, as motor oil. They are closely related. The used oil thinned a bit with turpentine might make a good first coat. As long as you don't pour it on you could paint it on safely.

Agree! I am not sure the used motor oil is not better for the environment. When it does come off it breaks down quicker than asphalt. Plus it reuses an existing product rather than forcing the creation of some more. Reuse is better than recycling.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Agree! I am not sure the used motor oil is not better for the environment. When it does come off it breaks down quicker than asphalt. Plus it reuses an existing product rather than forcing the creation of some more. Reuse is better than recycling.

The theory is that asphalt doesn't break down and leach into the soil or cause volatile runoff from rains. Sure fresh asphalt will create a bit of a sheen from rain/water exposure but that is nothing compared to oil. I did put some used motor oil on my brother in laws trailer using a paint roller to spread it. It seems to have worked with keeping the board from rotting for 5 years now but it sure was slippery when wet for several months. The trailer sets outside in the elements all the time. I put a coating of waterproof sealer on mine and it is due for another coating.

 

[Soundguy]

um...? i use PAINT as the barrier...

Anyone placed some sort of barrier between the cross members and the PT lumber to isolate it from the wood? I'm thinking a strip of roofing paper or maybe neoprene or even some type of heavy duty tape.

If the wood were seperated from the channel in this way would it reduce/hinder corrosion of the frame where it contacts the wood?

 

[Soundguy]

I wouldn't be surprised if the asphalt paint isn't just as bad, for the environment, as motor oil. They are closely related. The used oil thinned a bit with turpentine might make a good first coat. As long as you don't pour it on you could paint it on safely.

you'd be incorrect.

lookup the MSDS for asphalt pINT.

NOW CHECK OUT USED MOTOR OIL.

PS.. the bituminus asphalt emulsion product we put down as tack and prime coat for road work is environmentally inert once cured.

 

[Creamer]

you'd be incorrect.

lookup the MSDS for asphalt pINT.

NOW CHECK OUT USED MOTOR OIL.

PS.. the bituminus asphalt emulsion product we put down as tack and prime coat for road work is environmentally inert once cured.

Really? Totally inert - never breaks down? It is still asphalt with the same chemical make-up - basically the heavy ends of a barrel of oil which change somewhat from barrel to barrel. The motor oil will just break down quicker. Plus, once again, it is reuse versus a new product. Total amount of hydrocarbons in the environment is less with the oil just a little longer to release with asphalt.

I do agree with the comment about oil coating being much slicker when wet.

 

[Creamer]

you'd be incorrect.

lookup the MSDS for asphalt pINT.

NOW CHECK OUT USED MOTOR OIL.

PS.. the bituminus asphalt emulsion product we put down as tack and prime coat for road work is environmentally inert once cured.

Really? Totally inert - never breaks down? It is still asphalt with the same chemical make-up - basically the heavy ends of a barrel of oil which change somewhat from barrel to barrel. The motor oil will just break down quicker. Plus, once again, it is reuse versus a new product. Total amount of hydrocarbons in the environment is less with the oil just a little longer to release with asphalt.

I do agree with the comment about oil coating being much slicker when wet.

 

[msmith1wa]

I live in Washington. Here used motor oil is considered a hazardous waste and there are laws regulating how it is handled. As long as it is not contaminated with something else that is considered hazardous asphalt is not hazardous.

 

[crazyal]

Used motor oil has all sorts of contaminates in it. That's why it gets removed from the engine.

 

[Soundguy]

i didn't say totally inert. i said environmentally inert. IE.. what the epa considers inert .. check out the hazard info on the msds.

Really? Totally inert - never breaks down? It is still asphalt with the same chemical make-up - basically the heavy ends of a barrel of oil which change somewhat from barrel to barrel. The motor oil will just break down quicker. Plus, once again, it is reuse versus a new product. Total amount of hydrocarbons in the environment is less with the oil just a little longer to release with asphalt.

I do agree with the comment about oil coating being much slicker when wet.

 

[Creamer]

I live in Washington. Here used motor oil is considered a hazardous waste and there are laws regulating how it is handled. As long as it is not contaminated with something else that is considered hazardous asphalt is not hazardous.

I see some guys that are not thinking and believing the documentation the government puts out - the one size fits all. Three years ago we had an event where raw milk was a hazardous material and they had to have guys in jumpsuits to deal with a milk truck that had rolled over.

I am not saying that used motor oil is a good thing to have dripping around, and yes it has contaminates, that is one of the main reasons it is deemed hazardous - it is an unknown quantity to some extent. A government agency will not put its stamp of approval on it because it is not consistent. Whereas something like asphalt, even though it is made from the dregs of the oil barrel and has some inconsistencies, they are relatively known ranges of inconsistency and therefore it is deemed safe. This is a great example of how we have become a throw away society - we are not allowed to re-use anything which is the best recycling of all.

My wife the other day was telling me I should not re-use a water bottle as the plastic outgases and it gets into the water. Then a little while later she was complaining about her "non-stick" griddle that things were sticking to - so I asked her where the teflon went. She doesn't like it when I ask these questions. Another good example is that we are not supposed to use a milk jug to transport gasoline but we can use a special red plastic jug that is made out of the same polyethylene from the same plant to the same specs. Hmmmmmm!!!!

 

[aczlan]

I am not saying that used motor oil is a good thing to have dripping around, and yes it has contaminates, that is one of the main reasons it is deemed hazardous - it is an unknown quantity to some extent. A government agency will not put its stamp of approval on it because it is not consistent. Whereas something like asphalt, even though it is made from the dregs of the oil barrel and has some inconsistencies, they are relatively known ranges of inconsistency and therefore it is deemed safe. This is a great example of how we have become a throw away society - we are not allowed to re-use anything which is the best recycling of all.

Yum, yum, yum more lead, arsenic, zinc and cadmium for dessert please...
I have small kids, they WILL be on the trailer at some point. I have been around several trailers that had oil put on them many years before and they still had a nice sheen when they got wet (enough to make your finger slippery if you rubbed it on the boards). That means that it hadn't fully soaked in and was still coming out.
I would no more put used motor oil on a trailer than I would pour it on the ground.

Aaron Z

 

[Soundguy]

Yum, yum, yum more lead, arsenic, zinc and cadmium for dessert please...
I have small kids, they WILL be on the trailer at some point. I have been around several trailers that had oil put on them many years before and they still had a nice sheen when they got wet (enough to make your finger slippery if you rubbed it on the boards). That means that it hadn't fully soaked in and was still coming out.
I would no more put used motor oil on a trailer than I would pour it on the ground.

Aaron Z

yup.. it won't cure and will leach.... might as well just pour it in the cities well.