My 16 foot open trailer deck is rotting, 2×6, 2×8 untreated wood. Don’t want to use treated, do to corrosion of steel frame. I’m afraid regular framing stock will just rot. Any ideas?
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synthetic decking and let the trailer see some more sun light tha it's getting...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
white oak. Expensive, but it'll hold up very well to the weather.
Or Ipe.
shep.
white oak has a weakness though. The thing that provides rot protection is called tannic acid.. and when white oak gets wet the tannic acid attacks steel. thus the wood won't rot but the metal will.
Seperate the white oak from the trailer bed with a simple piece of polyurethane and you'll massively increase the life of the trailer..
Perhaps 30# felt aka tarpaper would work better than poly.
atrident,
I agree!
Good point.
I'd probably use Vycor as the separating membrane, tho.
Ipe'.
Forrest
When I redecked my trailer last year I primed,painted and painted again the wood on all six sides to help/delay the next replacement. The paint scratches off some with use but so be it.
I also bolted the retainer strip rather than weld it back on so that I could repalce a bad board without grinding the weld again.
my 2x8 trailer deck (2x8 D Fir) is starting to rot also, and needs replacing.
Plan on replacing it with the same and with original DIY treatment which did last 30 years 100% outdoors.
Cut all pieces to fit. Then use a 20% penta, 1% chlorodane, mixed with used motor oil - wrap in poly and let soak for a few days.
Your only problem is you may not have a stash of 'outlawed' penta?
Creosote works good too - wait, that's also 'outlawed' unless you have a stash.
Uh well, pex?? Build a shed to keep it in??
Find a local sawmill that cut you some oak decking, they will probably have it in stock It's the standard for trailer decking and fairly cheap.
IPE is my vote
As a youngster I grew up in a farming community. A number of the farmers treated wood beds to a coat of used motor oil every couple of years. DanT
Does ipe come in 2x6 or 2x8 stock?
I wouldnt use composit deck unless your trailer has joists on 12" centers.
Maybe Rino liner or some other spray on bedliner.
Apitong is used a lot on truck beds.